This Christianity Thing Could Catch On’
“So it’s not just Kirk Cameron and Stephen Baldwin and the kid from Two and a Half Men.” With A-list stars backing Jesus, who knows? This Christianity thing could catch on.” Those two sentences ended an article that ran in the New York Post back in June. Film critic Kyle Smith had just finished highlighting […]
Captive: When Being Taken Hostage Changes Your Life Spiritually
In 2005, Brian Nichols escaped from an Atlanta courthouse, broke into Ashley Smith’s apartment and took the woman hostage. He had nothing left to lose. But thanks to Smith and a copy of Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life, he actually had everything to gain. And so, as it turned out, did Smith. The story—the […]
What Makes a Movie a Success?
There’s never been a movie that appealed to everyone, a motion picture without a single critic. Take two films awarded Best Picture, Chariots of Fire and Braveheart. One Chariots critic went so far as to state that the movie was “an affirmation of clouded and second-hand values—and, as a result, it becomes vulgar.” With Braveheart, […]
War Rooming for Plugged In
Because most people have strong opinions regarding entertainment, as you might imagine, we get quite a few emails (and an occasional letter, believe it or not). Some are quite complimentary. Some not so much. It’s human nature to favor the praise over the crit. I know I do. But I can assure you, the latter […]
An Entertainment Adventure in Garage Saling
As we do almost every year, my wife and I spent vacation time in July visiting our out-of-state daughter. And although you’ll probably find this a bit strange (for that matter, I find it a bit strange), over the last couple of years at least we’ve found ourselves spending some of that R&R garage saling. […]
Does It Matter That Reality TV Isn’t Real? An Insider Speaks
Last week on my blog post “Alaskan Sham People,” I confessed that, even though I’m a media guy, I was shocked to discover that a reality show I like wasn’t very real at all. One thing led to the next, and I found myself in the studio recording an interview with Schy Gleason. Gleason has […]
Alaskan Sham People?
For a number of years now, Plugged In has communicated that “reality TV” is often anything but. Of course, we weren’t the first ones to bring this bit of news to the tube-watching public. Just Google the subject sometime and you’ll find numerous articles from reality show producers, stars and writers who openly admit how […]
The Man Behind Bob and Larry Sounds Off On Today’s Media
In 1993, Phil Vischer launched what became a hugely popular series for kids called VeggieTales. Back in 2009, we talked with him about VeggieTales, his new venture JellyTelly and the challenges of guiding kids through the entertainment culture. This time around, I wanted to talk with Vischer about the entertainment culture as a whole—and to […]
My Name is Bob Waliszewski. And I’m a Phoneaholic.
I haven’t attended any 12-step program yet. But it’s clear I need to. They say that the first challenge for any addict is to first admit they need help. Denial, it seems, is part and parcel to dependencies. That’s why I’m determined to air my dirty laundry and get it out in the open. I refuse […]
Eduardo Verástegui Talks About Faith, Little Boy and the Power of Media
The New York Times ran “nearly 900 film reviews in 2013,” according to the Times itself. That’s not quite three films per day, but it’s getting close. With that huge number of motion pictures being made each year (and certainly the Times didn’t review every one), it might surprise you to know that Focus on […]