DETROIT – A U.S. Marine and one-time recruiter who appeared in Michael Moore's acclaimed documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11" has died in a roadside bombing in Iraq.
Although Staff Sgt. Raymond J. Plouhar willingly appeared in a segment of the 2004 film, his father, Raymond, said Tuesday that his son did not realize that it was for a movie critical of the war.
Raymond Plouhar said that all his 30-year-old son ever wanted to do was serve his country.
The younger Plouhar died Monday of wounds suffered while conducting combat operations in the Al Anbar province of Iraq, the Defense Department announced Tuesday.
He signed up for the Marines immediately after graduating from high school, his father said in a telephone interview.
The 57-year-old Plouhar said his son took four years off from active duty to serve as a recruiter in Michigan after donating one of his kidneys to his uncle.
During that time, the Marine was filmed as part of "Fahrenheit 9/11," about the Bush administration's actions after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
"I'm devastated, sad and proud," Plouhar said. "This just makes me devoted even more to his belief that people need help in Iraq, and he felt that he was helping."
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