As a young boy I was always absorbed in books about history—particularly that of the United States—and geography, yet still managed a weekly outing with friends to see the latest cowboy or adventure movie. Later, I was exposed to the Broadway stage and developed a great fondness for musical theater, at one point picturing it as a future career choice. But alas, as I grew older and realized I was not that talented, I became more serious about the future.
Fortunately I wound up in a creative segment of the business world, which provided me the opportunity to travel the globe and stimulated my interest in world history. It also opened up avenues into entertainment and politics. I found a home in the fashion industry and served as President of Charles of the Ritz Group, Ltd., then a wholly owned subsidiary of Squibb Corporation, where I also served on its Board of Directors. Here I was deeply involved with well known fashion designers, Yves Saint Laurent and Gianni Versace; Hollywood stars, Linda Evans and John Forsyth; and because of the success of the perfume, Opium, wound up in Washington meeting with senators, congressman and administration officials to obtain relief from gray market goods flooding the United States in the early 1980’s.
After my retirement I wrote two novels based on my many years of experience in the fashion industry, and continually pursued my interest in history, focusing on the Second World War. Following a short break to write a non-fiction book on the relationship of taxes and jobs, I spent much of my time these past several years studying the biblical account of the rise of Christianity from the varying narratives of religion, history and archaeology.
Based on that research and conceptual ideas, my wife, Leslie Schweitzer Miller, wrote a new novel, Discovery, that was subsequently published.
Now my interest is in public policy on issues that affect the United States such as healthcare, taxes, job creation and foreign affairs, about which I will be commenting periodically.