Retired NFL star Michael Oher, whose supposed adoption out of grinding poverty by a wealthy, white family was immortalized in the 2009 movie “The Blind Side,” petitioned a Tennessee court Monday with allegations that a central element of the story was a lie concocted by the family to enrich itself at his expense.
ESPN is astonishingly good at taking what should be a 4 sentence article and turning it into a 4 part anthology. Here is a summary from the Bing LLM:
According to an article on ESPN, Michael Oher, the subject of the movie “The Blind Side,” has filed a petition in a Tennessee court alleging that the Tuohy family never adopted him and instead tricked him into signing a document that gave them legal authority to make business deals in his name. Oher alleges that the Tuohys misled him into believing an arrangement he signed was a form of adoption, but was in fact a conservatorship. The petition also claims that the Tuohys made millions off the lie that they adopted him, including $225,000 in addition to 2.5% of the film’s net proceeds, which grossed over $300 million. Oher made no money off the film, which was released after he completed his college career and would not have impacted his NCAA eligibility ²⁴.
Source: Conversation with Bing, 8/14/2023 (1) ‘Blind Side’ subject Oher alleges Tuohys made millions off lie. https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/38190720/blind-side-subject-michael-oher-alleges-adoption-was-lie-amily-took-all-film-proceeds. (2) Michael Oher, ‘Blind Side’ subject, alleges adoption by Tuohys was a lie. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/michael-oher-blind-side-touhy-adoption-lie-rcna99823. (3) ‘The Blind Side’ subject Michael Oher says adoption by Tuohy family was a lie, he was cut out of money from movie. https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/the-blind-side-subject-michael-oher-says-adoption-by-tuohy-family-is-a-lie-he-was-cut-out-of-movie-money/ar-AA1fgxqO. (4) Michael Oher, subject of ‘The Blind Side,’ alleges Tuohy family profited from lie. https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/michael-oher-subject-blind-side-alleges-tuohy-family-profited-lie/story?id=102258379. (5) Michael Oher Alleges ‘Adoption’ a Lie: ‘The Blind Side’ Controversy … https://www.themarysue.com/michael-oher-alleges-adoption-a-lie-the-blind-side-controversy-explained/.
But we’re going to love Michael at 37 just like we loved him at 16.
…which is to say, not at all, and with a thick overlay of paternalistic racism.
