The idea that would eventually manifest into the Republic of Molossia—a country within the United States—occurred to President Kevin Baugh when he was 15 years old and living with his parents in Portland, Ore. With his best friend, James, he watched “The Mouse that Roared,” the British satirical film starring Peter Sellars, based on Leonard Wibberley’s Cold War novel of the same name. In the film, Count Mountjoy, played by Sellars, declares war upon the United States—and wins.
It was a watershed moment for Baugh. “I was blown away by the film’s imagination and creativity,” Baugh says. “I was fascinated by the idea of creating my own country. That was the seed.”
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