Susan Campbell Beachy
December 17, 1998

Costumed characters are one of the big draws at Walt Disney World. But according to Crackers the Corporate Crime Fighting Chicken, some giant furry animals are more welcome there than others.

Crackers, a 7-foot yellow bird made famous by his segments on Michael Moore's TV Nation series, was recently detained for two hours by Disney security and the Orange County, FL, Sheriff's Department, a spokeswoman for Moore tells Dish.

The unlikely superhero was at the Florida resort to tape a segment for The Awful Truth, the new Moore series that debuts in April on Bravo. According to the spokeswoman, "Crackers was trying to get to Mickey to ask him some questions" when Disney security intervened. She declined to specify the nature of Crackers' queries.

"Obviously, they couldn't cuff him, but they did walk him away," said Moore's rep. "Crackers is now banned for life from Disney World. They took numerous photos of him as Crackers for security reasons."

A spokeswoman for the legal department at Walt Disney World told Dish she hadn't heard about the incident, and that even if it did occur, the information would be considered confidential.

Meanwhile, back in New York, an eagle-eyed pal of Dish spotted Moore strolling down Sixth Avenue with a camera crew, a snowman and some elves. A police officer stopped the posse, but apparently determined they were doing nothing illegal and sent them on their way. It turns out the Roger and Me helmer's pals were all ex-smokers who had lost their voice boxes, and they were heading off to sing carols to tobacco-company executives. Merry Christmas!,