The ‘Pope Culture’ Podcast Offers Faith, Funny Business
It’s hard to know what to trust in the world of entertainment if you’re a family-minded conservative.
Enter “Pope Culture.” The new podcast gives you three perspectives – by three Catholic comedians, two of whom are entertainment journalists for Catholic and other Christian publications.
Each week, “Pope Culture” will point out some of the best (and worst) entertainment choices around, as well as the people driving their creation. And they do it with a strong dose of humor, making sure it’s highly entertaining as well.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to be Catholic to like the show and get plenty out of it.
This week’s episode features Catholic comics/film critics Carl Kozlowski and Michael Wahle discussing their post-mortem on the Oscars, the Inclusion Rider movement, the religious symbolism of “A Wrinkle in Time” and their vastly different opinions of the movie. You’ll also get an in-depth look at the HBO Pete Holmes series “Crashing,” the Freeform network bleeping out women saying they’re “sorry” and an early take on next week’s big Christian film release “I Can Only Imagine.”
“Pope Culture’s” debut episode takes a swing at covering a broad swath of pop culture, with a focus on the great new CBS sitcom “Living Biblically” (complete with interview with its showrunner, Patrick Walsh), Chris Rock’s amazing rant on abortion, what Catholics can find meaningful in “Black Panther” and much more.
The show’s second episode features a discussion of the violence and vengeance in “Death Wish” and “Red Sparrow,” a conversation about exorcism and the devil in the series “Paranormal State” and news about the ongoing Joy Behar vs. Mike Pence battle. You’ll even get a review of the new comedy “Peter Rabbit.”
Meet the “Pope Culture” hosts
Carl Kozlowski is a stand-up comedian on the Los Angeles comedy scene and beyond, as well as a contributing writer to the Chicago Tribune and alternative newsweeklies such as Newcity and the Chicago Reader. He’s a past winner of the Laugh Factory’s America’s Funniest Reporter contest as well.
Tanya Yarbrough is a dog trainer specializing in aggressive and anxious dogs. She uses her improvisational humor to teach people how to handle their animals, keep her lessons interesting and give people hope. She is the host of her own podcast “That Dog Training Show with Tanya Yarbrough” and co-host of “Pope Culture”, and has been making dog owners laugh for more than 8 years in Los Angeles with her 3-hour one-woman show about canine pack behavior.
Currently, Tanya is a regular co-host of the monthly Comedy and Country Hootenanny Spectacular! at Malcolm’s Steakhouse in Pearblossom, Calif. and is a key member of the Catholic Laughs clean-comedy troupe.
Michael Wahle is a movie critic/columnist for Angelus News. Originally from the Boston area, Michael began writing for the Angelus in 2015, and has served as a frequent contributor to the publication’s Entertainment, Sports and Human Interest sections ever since. He also works as an improv/sketch comedian throughout the Los Angeles area. He hosts the weekly podcast “The Bachelor Zone” on iTunes and runs the weekly sketch comedy site “Wahle At It Again” on YouTube.
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