Not long ago, Tim Tebow’s career as an NFL quarterback had been blown dead. After the Denver Broncos let him go in favor of Peyton Manning, he had a brief stint at the New York Jets, than an even briefer stint with the New England Patriots — then, nothing. Tebow hasn’t appeared in a regular-season NFL game since 2012. He got work as a college-football commentator, made many speaking appearances, was the subject of various romantic rumors (but zero scandal)... Read more
Under a tsunami of awful news on all fronts, I just had a tiny glimmer of joy. Even though, as a longtime entertainment journalist, I have watched a bazillion hours of TV, I remain one of the worst comedy audiences ever. Very little TV comedy makes me laugh out loud, and the one thing guaranteed to do that at least once in every episode, is, of all things, a show about motoring. Here’s a taste of the BBC’s “Top Gear”:... Read more
In the secular world, people usually lobby for promotions, or, at least, the subject is brought up with them at some point. Not so, in the Catholic Church. Not long ago, Robert Barron, Catholic media star, priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago and rector of its Mundelein Seminary, got a call. “I was in my room on a lazy Sunday afternoon,” he said. “I had finished Mass, and I was back in my room, watching golf. This phone call comes... Read more
Ever heard of Pope Pius XIII? No? Don’t worry, you didn’t miss a chunk of Church history. The pontiff comes from the imagination of writers Tony Grisoni, Umberto Contarello, Stefano Rulli and Paolo Sorrentino, who will also direct all eight episodes of HBO’s “The Young Pope.” Production is set to begin this summer and continue through early 2016, primarily in Italy but also in the U.S., Africa and Puerto Rico. Jude Law takes the title role of Lenny Belardo, an... Read more
After axing the beleaguered “19 Kids and Counting” in June — which was, all things considered, utterly unsurprising — TLC is keeping a toehold with the faith-based audience with the premiere of “Answered Prayers” on Sunday, July 26, at 10 p.m. ET/PT. “Touched by an Angel” star Roma Downey is executive producer (with husband Mark Burnett and others) and host of the one-hour series, which chronicles stories believed to feature miraculous experiences. Over the last few years, Downey has been more producer... Read more
There are some stories that, while not dramatic or grand or full of explosions and people with superpowers, can awaken minds and shatter souls. I’ve told a version of this little story to many people — orthodox Catholics, lapsed Catholics, non-Catholics — and it never fails to get the same wide-eyed, awestruck response. There are few things more powerful than reminding someone of who he or she really is: A story from the life of St. Francis of Assisi illustrates how the awareness... Read more
On Tuesday, July 21, Archbishop Jose Gomez (second from left) of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles held a press conference at the downtown Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels to introduce his three newly named auxiliary bishops — (from left to right) Msgr. Joseph V. Brennan, Father Robert Barron, and Msgr. David O’Connell — to the media. The three bishops-elect wore pectoral crosses identical to those worn by Pope Francis, who had the ultimate say over their elevation (but I understand... Read more
Tonight, Wednesday, Juy 22, Syfy Channel premieres “Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!,” the latest installment in the surprisingly successful franchise about Fin (Ian Ziering), a former surfing star who finds his inner action hero defending the world — chainsaw in hand — against repeated onslaughts of airborne sharks. The reviews for this one haven’t been good — in fact, they’re pretty bad — but “Sharknado” isn’t aiming for an Emmy, just to entertain summer audiences. At the same time, like... Read more
It’s such an obviously awesome and appropriate move that one can hardly believe that the Vatican actually did it. Father Robert Barron, founder of the Word on Fire Catholic Ministries, producer of top-quality video content such as the groundbreaking documentary “Catholicism,” for which he was also host, is coming to Hollywood. Pope Francis has named Barron — along with Monsignor Joseph V. Brennan and Monsignor David G. O’Connell — as auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Bishop-Elect Barron... Read more
TV isn’t always fussy about ethnic accuracy in casting historical dramas, but sometimes it gets pretty close. Stranger in a Strange Land British actor Alexander Siddig, one of the stars of the three-night, six-hour miniseries “Tut,” premiering Sunday, July 19, on cablenet Spike, was born in 1965 to an English mother and Sudanese father not far from the Nile River in Sudan, which is at modern Egypt’s southern border. But at the age of four, his Muslim grandmother packed him off... Read more
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