28 Facts About Rich Iott

Richard Bradley "Rich" Iott was born on October 25,1951 and is a President at Braeburn Entertainment, Ltd and was the 2010 Republican nominee for United States Representative for Ohio's 9th District.

Rich Iott attended parochial grade school and graduated from Sylvania High School in 1969.

Rich Iott wanted to enlist in the military during the Vietnam War era, but was refused due to a heart murmur.

Rich Iott worked in the family grocery business, which grew to be the Seaway Food Town regional chain of 75 supermarkets and drug stores.

Rich Iott started out in clerk jobs in 1966 then moved up into management, becoming the President of the corporation in 1989.

Rich Iott was CEO from 1996 until the business was merged with Spartan Stores in 2000.

Since leaving the grocery business, Rich Iott has become involved with start-up companies, ranging from 3D imaging to salsa making.

Rich Iott is a filmmaker, producing over thirty feature films, mainly as an executive producer, between 2007 and the present, including films for the SyFy Channel, Lifetime Channel, a 3D family film Call of the Wild and the multiple award-winning Beautiful Boy starring Michael Sheen and Maria Bello.

Rich Iott was co-founder of Toledo's Black Swamp International Film Festival in 2009 and is a member of the Producers Guild of America.

Rich Iott is a graduate of the United States Marine Corps Command and General Staff College and the United States Air Force Air War College.

Rich Iott holds a parachutist rating from both the Israeli Defense Force and the Army of The Netherlands.

Rich Iott retired at the rank of Colonel in April 2016 after more than 32 years of service.

Rich Iott is the recipient of the State of Ohio Distinguished Service Medal.

Rich Iott has been on numerous community boards over the years including the Toledo Zoo, the Toledo Chamber of Commerce, St Ursula Academy, St John's Jesuit, Erie Shores Council of the Boy Scouts, and St Luke's Hospital.

Rich Iott was Chairman of the Ohio Council of Retail Merchants.

Rich Iott began his run for Congress as an independent, announcing his candidacy in late January 2010.

Rich Iott's campaign was largely self-financed, with $823,100 in loan contributions coming from Iott as of June 30,2010.

Rich Iott lost the election to incumbent Democrat Marcy Kaptur by 35,822 votes.

Rich Iott won Ottawa and Lorain counties, split Erie county and lost Lucas county.

Rich Iott opened three new stores between 1998 and 1999.

Org goes on to say it was "wrong to blame Rich Iott for "closing our neighborhood stores," and it goes too far in blaming him for "costing 5,000 people their jobs.

Rich Iott received national media attention in October 2010 when it was reported in The Atlantic that he was a member of a Waffen-SS reenactment group that portrays the German SS Division Wiking.

The Atlantic published two pictures of Rich Iott dressed as an SS man that were replicated virally on the internet and by other news sources.

Rich Iott told The Atlantic that his interest was historical and that he absolutely does not agree with the tenets of Nazism.

Rich Iott said he joined because reenactments were a hobby and a father-son bonding experience, and that he has participated in a range of reenactments over the years including as a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War, and as American soldiers in World War I and II.

Rich Iott's campaign said the candidate had not engaged in any reenactments for about five years.

The JTA News Service noted that Rich Iott had not apologized.

The Lucas County GOP chief continued to back Rich Iott, emphasizing that the county Republican Party organization did not condone Nazis, and adding the claim that this was nothing more than politically motivated mudslinging and an attempt to split the party.