FIGHTING HARD FOR A LEGACY OF FAILURE In my new screenplay, I have a scene in which an elderly dying man, stubbornly resists his stated attraction to be reconciled to God. After a wracking bout of bloody coughs, he rasps to the young priest hero of the piece, “I told myself my whole life, that I wouldn’t turn to God in the end because I was afraid.” I got this line straight from real life. Suffering from Parkinsons, an agnostic... Read more

EMILY MONDAY 1548 Meeting by Accident,We hovered by design —As often as a CenturyAn error so divineIs ratified by Destiny,But Destiny is oldAnd economical of BlissAs Midas is of Gold — Read more

THE OTHER BARBARA NICOLOSI So, I get an email today, from somebody who read something I wrote somewhere. In the course of the message, the emailer congratulates me on my casino winnings. Now, I WAS in Vegas last week, and I DID have my usual break even luck at the slot machines, but it was hardly the stuff of kudos. And how would somebody know to even mention it? I wanted to know. So, the emailer sends me back this... Read more

BARB ON THE ROAD AGAIN I have a week or so of travels coming up. Because it worked so well on that last trip, I am again looking to set up meetings and conferences with other groups while I’m wandering through your neighborhood. Here is my schedule… San Antonio – May 17-18 Washington, DC – May 19 – 22 Orlando, FL – May 23 – 26 If you have an idea for a me centered event (….rats…), please email my... Read more

CRASH IS NO ACCIDENT So, you think you know what kids are thinking? As someone who works with and teaches teens and twenty-somethings, I have learned that Internet technology has given them a whole alternate media that herds them – by happy consent of the herded – with lock-step success. This alternate media includes web-sites like aintitcoolnews.com, and a whole cultural chat-room universe to which people over thirty are not invited. I experienced this again this weekend. When I walked... Read more

THE FAVOR BANK IN SMALL TOWN HOLLYWOOD Funny story. So, I get a call from one of our faculty who was a successful TV show-runner and now studio movie producer. A friend of his was just hired by Disney to rustle up some celebrities to talk about C.S. Lewis and Narnia for a documentary the studio is doing to accompany the film’s Fall release. The friend hird by Disney, called my producer friend for the favor of getting someone who... Read more

THE KINGDOM OF HEAVE The good news is, the Kingdom of God has nothing to fear from Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven. Probing new depths in tedium, Kingdom is an over-produced piece of pretentious politically-correct pablum. Honestly, the first time I looked at my watch, it was only about fifteen minutes into the movie. “Allah forbid,” I groaned, as a character we had just met a couple minutes before and didn’t care about, got an arrow shot through his forehead.... Read more

CHRONICLING NARNIA I can’t remember if I blogged about this already…but I was interviewed a few weeks back for a story by Mark Pinsky (Orlando Sentinel) about whether the Narnia projects would signal and end to the Christian boycott of Disney. I think I said, “There’s a boycott?” Anyway, here’s a link to Mark’s article as it appeared in The Washington Post. One of my two snips… Any efforts to deemphasize the religious aspects of “The Lion, the Witch and... Read more

CHARLIE AKBAR! Good friend and fellow writer, Charlie Carner, copied me on a letter he sent to the Hollywood Reporter in response to their rave review of the new Crusades retelling by Sir Ridley “Not Exactly the Lionhearted” Scott. I plan on seeing the film tomorrow night after at least two stiff drinks, so look for a review this weekend. But here’s Charlie’s defense of the faith. Kirk HoneycuttHollywood Reporter5055 Wilshire Blvd.Los Angeles, CA 90036 Re: “Kingdom of Heaven” Dear... Read more

RATS. You are Lady Marchmain. You make some peopleuncomfortable, but you do your best to helppeople in unfortunate circumstances, personalor spiritual. What Brideshead Revisited character are you? brought to you by Quizilla No. No. No. Now, I’m going to be depressed for a week. I’ve always been afraid of being Lady Marchmain. But I suppose she is better than Bridey. Only slightly though. I really want to be Cordelia. Doesn’t everyone? On the other hand…even though the book sets up... Read more