On the same day that C. John Miller became the 20th president of the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA), October 20, 1973, the Arab oil embargo was announced.

From that moment on, Miller and the IPAA kicked into high gear. Oil prices rose shockingly high, the stock market and U.S. economy plummeted, and Miller found himself testifying before Congress dozens of times. In July 1974, still president of the IPAA, he arranged a meeting with Vice President Gerald Ford, a fellow Michigander, but Ford never showed up. The reason? That very day, Ford learned he had become President, when Richard Nixon resigned.

Miller served the IPAA until October 1975, and at that time was awarded the Lone Star Steel "Chief Roughneck Award." In 1974 he was elected to the All-American Wildcatters.

In 1980, he and his wife, Reva, moved back to Washington, D.C., to accept a newly created position as permanent IPAA president. Serving in tumultuous times, when the onerous Windfall Profits Tax was created, Miller was a clear voice, advocating for the domestic oil and gas industry. At the time, the U.S. imported about 40% of its oil. Time and again he argued that with correct economic incentives, there was plenty of oil and gas to be found right here in the United States.

His father, Clyde, tended boilers in the West Virginia oil fields, eventually moving to Michigan. Upon his passing, Miller and his brother Gene took over two rigs and grew the company. A third brother, Jack, was general manager.

In 1979, John and Gene formed Miller Brothers Oil Corp. for deeper-zone exploration in Michigan. Through the 1980s, they were the first to use the federal tax credit to drill for unconventional fuels—in this case, the Antrim shale. By 1985, Miller and his son Mike had formed Miller Energy Inc., and Gene and his son Kelly had formed Miller Oil Corp.

They sold Miller Energy's Michigan production to Conoco in 1998, and with five other independents, formed Global Exploration Co. (Globex), which drilled in the Dutch North Sea, Equatorial Guinea, Australia and Papua New Guinea. Globex was sold to Marathon Oil Corp. in 2002.

In 1995, a 12-year legal battle ended when the State of Michigan compensated Miller Brothers Oil Corp. for taking its leases in the environmentally sensitive Nordhouse Dunes, which has since become a legal precedent: When governments "take" a lease, and prevent the owners from drilling, they must pay.

In June 2000, Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, created the C. John Miller Business Leadership Award, to be given annually. Miller was its first recipient.

Now retired, Miller swims regularly, works out with weights, reads and enjoys sports—and his 16 grandchildren and five "great-grands."

Investor You have a lot of great stories to tell.

Miller Yes, and they're all true.

Investor Although you are retired, do you keep up with the industry?

Miller Oh yes, in our particular area, and worldwide, I like to be aware of what's going on and why. I am still chairman of Miller Energy, but my son and grandsons run it day-to-day. If I have a concern , I'll do something about it, or if they ask me for something, but I want them to get the recognition now.

Investor Miller Energy was drilling the Antrim shale back in the 1980s, long before this current shale revolution. What do you make of it?

Miller I would say, without any feeling of ignorance, that we had no idea. If people had said 20 years ago that we'd have the kinds of production numbers we hear about now, they would've been taken off to the "joint." We are very fortunate as a country to be able to find this.

Investor What led you to the oil industry in the first place?

Miller My dad was a cable-tool contractor in Kentucky, and then Michigan. I liked the business; as a kid I went to work for him. My brother Gene liked it too. When I got married at 20, I knew I had to get serious about working, and he and I took on the company. We had four or five rigs running, primarily in Michigan.

Investor Did you feel a little isolated there, compared to all the activity in Texas and Oklahoma?

Miller In some ways, yes. But that's why we got involved in the IPAA and other associations, and we met other people and learned what was going on in other places. We would sell deals and buy deals. We made many friends.

Investor What was Washington, D.C. like the first time you went there?

Miller I suppose they thought I was the kid from the country. But it opened up many doors.

Investor The Windfall Profits Tax was passed while you were there.

Miller I think I testified before 19 or 20 Congressional committees. It was a knock-down, drag-out fight. A whole bunch of people in the industry worked on it with me. I was never the Lone Ranger.

Investor If money was no object and you were younger, would you go into business again?

Miller Oh, I'd be in it right up to my ears. I love the business.

-—Leslie Haines

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