TRAVERSE CITY -- Michael Moore has a treat for capitalism lovers and haters.
He'll buy your ticket to see his movie at the State Theatre this week.
"The tickets are on me," Moore said from Miami, where he was continuing to tout his latest documentary, "Capitalism: A Love Story." "Anyone can come."
The free screenings -- usually two or three each day through Oct. 29 -- are "partially a thank-you from me to the community for supporting the movie," Moore said. He said the State Theatre has continually been in the top 20 highest grossing theaters of the 1,000 theaters screening the film nationwide.
The State Theatre is owned by the Traverse City Film Festival; Michael Moore is the founder of the festival.
The freebies are also partly because the unemployment rate in the region hovers around 17 percent, Moore said, although it doesn't matter what your income is to get a free ticket.
There will also be screenings of "Sicko," the 2007 documentary Moore made about health care. Tickets for those screenings will be $5 with 100 percent of the money going to two Antrim County health clinics that provide low-cost or free services.
"Sicko" has never been shown at the State. It opened locally at Carmike Horizon Cinemas and the Bay Theatre in Suttons Bay.
"We've had many, many requests for it," Moore said. Health care "is so much in the discussion right now."
The money raised will go to the Ironmen Health Center in Mancelona, which serves people 21 and younger, and the East Jordan Family Health Center, for its clinics in Bellaire and Central Lake.
The free screenings of "Capitalism" aren't actually free, of course.
"A capitalistic company owns it and distributes it," Moore said. He had to ask the studio, Overture Films, if he could show it for free to people who can't afford to go. They told him sure, but he'd have to buy the tickets. At the end of the week, Moore said he'll have to write a check to Overture.
But Moore said it's worth it because he's overwhelmed with how well "Capitalism" has done locally -- and grateful. He even thanked "The people of Traverse City, Michigan" in the credits of the movie.
A schedule of this week's screenings is online at www.statetheatretc.org or by calling 947-4800. Tickets are available at the box office, 233 E. Front St., and at the Web site.
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