(Display Name not set)June 2006 Archives

"I’m sick to death of Jesus. I feel that Jesus and Paris Hilton are both overexposed." Loud and obnoxious statements like that should offend my Midwestern evangelical sensibilities just enough to make me want to rant about Kathy Griffin, the pseudo-celebrity and stand-up comedienne who these days expresses her snarky "militant atheist" views on her reality series “My Life on the D List.” But I can’t quite bring myself to do that. Even if I am not a big fan of every word that comes out of her mouth, I thoroughly enjoy her show, which recently returned for a second season on Tuesday nights. I've decided to give her a new title to add to her "D list" standing--my favorite celebrity atheist. (And we here at Idol Chatter think everyone should have a favorite atheist.)

Griffin has carved her comedy club career by riffing on the foibles of A-list celebrities, but her reality series is more about poking fun at the flaws in her own nature. While all reality shows may be edited to death in post-production for maximum dramatic impact, I still can't help but admire the way Griffin--who executive-produces her show--allows some of her most vulnerable and unattractive moments to play out on the camera. When Jay Leno makes a cheap joke about her looks when she appears on "The Tonight Show," she lets the cameras follow her offstage ,where we see her burst into tears. When she makes a crude joke at movie star Renee Zelleweger's expense only to have Zelleweger shower Griffin with dozens of roses in response, Griffin turns the entire episode into a mea culpa to Zelleweger for taking the moral low road in her act--again.

But it is her generosity and loyality that I find most endearing. Her unflagging work for charity was around long before her show came to TV--instead of wedding gifts she aseked her guests to donate to charity instead, for example. No stunt for charity is too crazy, as viewers find out when Griffin ebays a weekend at her house to a complete stranger just to raise some money for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. And even though she is vehemently opposed to the war in Iraq, Griffin goes on a stand-up tour into some of the most dangerous parts of Iraq to entertain the troops--places where other celebrities have never performed. She is also unabashedly emotional when she talks about how much she loves her (now former) husband, Matt, and her desire for them to stay reconciled after they filed for divorce last year. (So far, so good.)

To be perfectly honest, part of me wants to be a just a little more like Kathy Griffin. I could stand to learn to be a little more transparent about my emotions, a little more outspoken in the face of injustice, and a little more honest when I screw up. In return for what I have gained from watching Griffin, maybe next season she'd let me help her do a little work on re-thinking that whole existence of God thing.

One of the many reasons summer is my favorite time of year is the fact that while enjoying the view of Lake Michigan, I can also catch up on my reading. Yes, with re-runs on TV and little at the box office to grab my interest lately, it's time to turn the pages of some books that have been sitting on my nightstand for months. I chose all of my beach-lounging choices because they discuss the intersection of real life, faith, and/or pop culture from a smart and fresh perspective.

(If any Idol Chatter readers want to add some suggestions to my summer reading list, feel free to leave them in the comments box below!)

1. "Working on the Inside: The Spiritual Life Through The Eyes Of Actors": If you want to know what celebs like Liam Neeson, Kristin Chenoweth, and others really think about God , this book is an inspiring read. Author and journalist Rett Blaney does an amazing job of discussing the spiritual significance of mixing faith and art in some intriguing discussions with some A-list stars.

2. "The God Factor": This book is another series of interviews that examines the spiritual lives of public people from politicians, sports stars and actors. A variety of faiths and cultural backgrounds are represented in this book as the journalist Cathleen Falsani. Interviews an eclectic group from Muslim basketball star Hakeem Olajuwon, novelist Anne Rice, and musicians Annie Lennox and Melissa Etheridge. (You can read an excerpt of it here.)

3. "Faith & The City": If you're a twentysomething who's still making those tricky transitions into full-blown adulthood--like moving into your first apartment or searching for the career path that will make you happy--you will be able to identify with this "chick lit"-style book. While not quite as amusing as Bridget Jones or Carrie Bradshaw, Jennifer Ruisch's memoir about her life in Chicago after college is a fun, fast read that covers everything from sex to faith to the spiritual desire for lots and lots of donuts. (You'll have to read the book to understand that last part).

It's not often I get to (a) see a movie star up close and (b) see a Broadway show. But on my first --and hopefully not last--whirlwind trip to New York, I was able to do both in one afternoon. I sat in my seat mesmerized as Ralph Fiennes ("The English Patient," "Schindler's List"), wearing a baggy suit with an ugly green tie and matching socks, made me forget his big-screen persona, as he alternately shuffled and then paced back and forth on a stark, black stage. With a twinkle in his eyes but despair in his voice, Fiennes transported me back to Depression-era Wales in search of the miraculous in the haunting Tony-nominated tragedy "The Faith Healer."

The play, on the surface, is quite simple. It is actually a series of long, long, long monologues that tell the tale of a two-bit hustler, Frank Hardy (played by Fiennes) and the two people closest to him--his lover, Grace, and his "business manager," Teddy. The motley trio travels the impoverished back roads of Wales advertising Frank's supernatural ability to heal the lame and infirmed, for a small price, of course. The story of the same heartbreaking series of events surrounding the misguided use of Frank's spiritual gift is told from the perspective of all three characters and reveals glimpses of truth in the midst of a pack of lies. The challenge for the audience is to figure out which is which.

Does Frank truly have the ability to heal others? Well, sometimes, in spite of his whiskey-induced stupor, yes, he does. Do the people who come to him actually want to be healed? In Frank's opinion, no, they don't. Is God involved in any of these healings--or in some cases, the lack of healings--or is it just mind over matter?

"The Faith Healer" neither mocks the possibility that faith in a higher power heals nor fully embraces the notion of the miraculous. Instead, it is a tortured look at what could happen to those who does not question what they put their faith in. Frank heals others not out of a sense of the divine, but rather to escape the nagging spiritual questions inside his heart. Frank only feels escape from these questions when he is healing someone, yet refuses to acknowledge the possibility of a God who gave him this gift--if it is a gift. Grace and Teddy, on the other hand, place too much faith in the frail and unhappy Frank and suffer greatly because of this. What is clear by the final, tragic scene is that in this story, faith alone cannot save anyone.

I certainly have been taught since I was a teenager to "walk by faith and not by sight," as the Bible teaches, but this particular afternoon as I left the theater and walked down a crowded Schubert Alley, I was left reflecting on my own spiritual complacency. I put my faith in other people, other things--as well as my personal beliefs--but sometimes without a lot of thought. It only took a couple of hours in a darkened theater to remind me that it is when we ask questions and struggle with doubts, that we find what is truly worthy of our faith.

Tonight will mark the return of perhaps the one and only positive representation of American Muslims currently on primetime television. Unfortunately, instead of being on a show that is substantial and thought-provoking, it will be on something shallow and salacious--a reality TV show.

On the last season of CBS’ “Big Brother,” the show where a group of people are sequestered in a house and monitored by cameras 24/7, the smart but soft-spoken Kaysar Ridha became the clear fan favorite, even if he didn’t win the grand prize. With this season of “Big Brother” being an “all-star” season in which former house guests can be voted back into the Big Brother house by fans, it is almost inevitable that Ridha, the son of Iraqi immigrants, will be one of the former housemates to return.

Ridha, who is a graphic designer and has used his “Big Brother” fame to start a clothing company called IRockStar, said often last season that the only reason he went on the show was to help raise understanding of the issues Muslims in the Middle East as well as America face.

With the war still going on in Iraq, I think that is a better reason than most to go on a reality show. And I admit I liked watching Kaysar last season, and I do hope he returns for this season. I just don’t know if I can take another three months or four months of listening to host Julie Chen ask inane questions of the house guests or watch one more idiotic challenge to win “Head of Household.”

Couldn’t those of us who are not "Big Brother" fans just vote for CBS to give him a sitcom instead?

Who's the biggest sinner in Hollywood? The E! Channel promises to answer that question in its new seven-week series, "The Seven Deadly Hollywood Sins." Starting tonight, the series will provide a cheesy and cheeky look at how Hollywood celebs indulge in each of the seven deadly sins--anger, pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, and sloth--with tonight' s episode focusing on the sin of gluttony.

While I am sure that tonight's episode with have illustrations galore of Hollywood's excessive and self-indulgent ways--which will make my own late-night love affair with my refrigerator pale in comparison--it is a blurb on a future episode on envy that has me intrigued. That episode on envy will focus on a secret rivalry in Hollywood between Kabbalah and Scientology.

I am also hoping the series will have a bonus episode that will provide an explanation for numerous other Hollywood sins, which are not deadly but are certainly annoying--like "greenlighting" production on Jack Black's latest film "Nacho Libre," for example.

Mix "Grey's Anatomy" with "Rescue Me" and you get TNT's lastest summer drama, "Saved." There is the requisite flawed hero who can only save others but can never save himself. There are also the obligatory dysfunctional family relationships and the...

In my recent Beliefnet interview with Ralph Winter, he said that if Hollywood could make a sequel to "The Passion of the Christ," they would. Well, Winter was right as usual: According to The Hollywood Reporter, Screen Gems studio is...

Oscar winner and director Robert Altman has long been known for making movies filled with unusual characters and rambling, improvisational dialogue which viscerally dissect a certain segment of society--country singers in "Nashville," Hollywood execs in "The Player," hired help in...

In a culture where quick wealth and instant fame are becoming more and more glamorized on television--think the recent hit game show “Deal or No Deal” and almost every reality show on the tube--it seems the time is right for...

Thou shalt not covet thy Middle Eastern neighbor’s oil--but coveting his wife, not such a big problem. Thou shalt not use weapons of mass destruction. Thou shalt not lie--unless you are up for re-election. These are a few of the...

What if a spiritual leader such as Deepak Chopra was channeled through the completely politically incorrect energy of a very famous comedian? You’d get a character named Guru Pitka, and Paramount Pictures would want to make a feature film about...

There are several supernaturally-themed horror movies coming to the cineplex this summer, but perhaps none is more anticipated by horror film buffs that the remake of the '70s cult classic "The Omen," which opens next week--on 6-06-06 to be exact....