NAMES IN THE NEWS : Michael & Phil Sells Out in Flint

Phil Donahue will take his program to Flint for an interview with Michael Moore, maker of the General Motors Corp.-bashing documentary “Roger & Me.”

More than 1,000 people lined up Wednesday morning at Whiting Auditorium for tickets to Donahue’s Monday show.

“Roger & Me,” the critically acclaimed satirical documentary, shows Moore trying unsuccessfully to interview GM Chairman Roger B. Smith on plant closings and layoffs in Flint, a hub of the auto industry devastated by declining employment.

Flint police helped disperse a crowd of people who waited all night in hopes of seeing Donahue and Moore but were turned away when the 1,266 free tickets ran out.

Some of the disappointed chanted, “Hell no, we won’t go” when about 12 officers arrived Wednesday morning to send people home. The crowd included Moore, who signed autographs before dawn, and some who were affected by the plant closings.