LANSING -- Attorney Geoffrey Fieger is back in the entertainment business.
Fieger, who was one of four lawyers who defended clients on the daytime syndicated show “Power of Attorney,” was appointed this week by Gov. Jennifer Granholm to be the head of the Michigan Board of Film and Recording, formerly known as the Michigan Film Office.
Fieger has represented high-profile clients such as assisted suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian and is no stranger to the media. He has given countless interviews during the eight years he represented Kevorkian and hosted his own talk show on a Detroit radio station after his unsuccessful 1998 campaign for governor of Michigan.
Since finding out about his appointment to the film board, Fieger said he has started to research different ways Michigan can use private partnerships to attract filmmakers to the state.
“If the deals can be made attractive enough, it can be done,” he said during a telephone interview.
Granholm on Friday pointed out that Fieger received a bachelor’s degree in theater from the University of Michigan in 1974.
“Geoffrey Fieger brings an awful lot of interest and yes, controversy,” the governor said. “He certainly will not allow the commission to be dormant.”
Fieger’s appointment doesn’t need to be confirmed by the state Senate.
The Michigan Film Office was created in 1979 to attract production companies to the state. It’s part of the state Department of History, Arts and Libraries. Recent movies made in Michigan include “Road to Perdition” starring Tom Hanks and rapper Eminem’s “8 Mile” in 2002.
Fieger, 53, of Bloomfield Hills, said he begin working to increase the number of films made in Michigan by contacting filmmaker Michael Moore, who grew up in Flint and now has a residence in northern Michigan.
“He has a home here in Michigan. His first film was based here in Michigan,” Fieger said, referring to Moore’s “Roger & Me” about life in Flint after General Motors Corp. plant there closed. “He has an allegiance to the state of Michigan.”
Fieger said he also will be focusing on helping the state, and particularly Detroit, establish itself as a premier recording location. He said he is familiar with the recording industry, noting that his brother, Doug, as a member of The Knack, had the ’70s hit “My Sharona.”
A number of appointments still must be made to the film board, Fieger said. But he added that he will be a pseudo-department head.
“If we’re going to make progress, it can’t done through a board
because decisions aren’t well made in that way,” he said.