The Lord of the Dance was born in Chicago, the son of a plumber, and he followed his old man into the business. He went from Roto-Rooter to multi-millionaire in just seven years, simply by flinging his freaky little feet at five thousand miles an hour. Michael, whose parents emigrated from Ireland a decade earlier, began dance lessons at the age of four, taught by his grandmother. He went on to become the first American to win the World Irish Dance Championships. He tried to start a dance studio after graduating from high school, but the opportunities for a working wage through traditional Irish dancing were not exactly bountiful. Flatley made his living with a variety of manual labour jobs, ultimately starting his own business, Dynasty Plumbing. "I’m no stranger to hard work," he said. "I think any man who works for a living should be proud." Well said Michael. Flatley was 36 before he left the problems of intractable garbage disposal to become the star of Riverdance, taking traditional Irish steps across the world. One year later he went in the huff over the choreography and was fired so he set up his own version, Lord of the Dance. It was a bit similar to Riverdance but he got more money out of it. Much more.
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