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Showbiz Tonight
Mel Gibson Speaks; Daniel Smith Murdered?; Showbiz Weight Watch; Interview With Gloria Estefan
Aired October 13, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
A.J. HAMMER, CO-HOST: Anna Nicole Smith`s mom makes a shocking claim that Daniel Smith was murdered.
And a startling documentary all about a notorious pedophile priest.
I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
TV`s most provocative entertainment news show starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice over): On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is Mel Gibson an anti-Semite? Tonight, for the first time, Mel Gibson revels what might have led to his drunken anti-Semitic tirade. Was his passion because of "Passion of the Christ"?
MEL GIBSON, ACTOR-DIRECTOR: My resentments stem from certain individuals treating me in a certain way.
HAMMER: Plus, Mel grilled on his father`s claim that the Holocaust never happened.
Tonight, the passion of the Mel.
The Showbiz Weight Watch. Why "American Idol`s" Paula Abdul and some of Hollywood`s biggest stars are all fired up about the obsession with getting crazy skinny.
PAULA ABDUL, "AMERICAN IDOL" JUDGE: It`s not normal for any celebrity to be extremely underweight. It`s just not normal.
HAMMER: Tonight, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT with the stars who have struggled with eating disorders and are now on a mission to stop the madness.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Hello. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York with the startling reason Mel Gibson now claims he may have gone on his anti-Semitic tirade after cops pinched him for drunk driving. For the first time, mad Mel is talking about what happened the night he got arrested, so would you believe that his anger over the way he got beat up for "The Passion of the Christ" is what may have set him off?
It`s mad Mel on the defense big-time.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GIBSON: It was the stupid ramblings of a drunkard.
HAMMER: They may have been stupid ramblings, but for the first time Gibson is not just blaming drinking for the anti-Semitic comments he made the night last July he was arrested for suspicion of DUI.
GIBSON: There was anger from that, I think, because I felt that I was unjustly treated.
HAMMER: During part two of an interview with "Good Morning America`s" Diane Sawyer, Gibson blames his disturbing words that night in part on lingering resentment he still feels about the uproar over his controversial film "Passion of the Christ" and accusations that the movie portrayed Jews in a bad light.
GIBSON: Even before anyone saw a frame of film for an entire year I was subjected to a pretty brutal sort of public beating.
HAMMER: SHOWBIZ TONIGHT brings you the reaction to Gibson`s shocking interview from those who say it`s time to give Mel a break...
STEPHEN BALDWIN, ACTOR: The guy said he`s sorry. Let`s forgive the guy.
HAMMER: ... and those who are saying, "Mel, give us a break."
KEN JACOBSON, ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: There`s a very thin line between explanations and excuses.
HAMMER: Two years ago "Passion of the Christ" was greeted by passion and protests...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mel Gibson is an anti-Semite!
HAMMER: ... from those who claimed it was anti-Semitic. Gibson tells Sawyer that criticism may have stung him more deeply than he thought. And it all came spilling out that fateful night.
GIBSON: Sometimes you can bare the scars of resentment and it will come out, you know, when you are overwrought and you take a few drinks.
HAMMER: How did Jewish leaders take to that?
JACOBSON: It had an element to it of blaming the Jews.
HAMMER: Ken Jacobson of the Jewish advocacy group The Anti-Defamation League tells SHOWBIZ TONIGHT that Gibson is missing the point.
JACOBSON: I can understand him defending his film. He`s a human being. He did a film. He`s going to defend himself. But there is no sensitivity to the possible pain that the film caused to the Jewish community.
HAMMER: Gibson says he has other reasons for his post-arrest outburst, when according to an arrest report obtained by TMZ.com he said, "F-ing Jews. The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world."
On "Good Morning America," Gibson said that Israel`s military action in Lebanon, which was raging at the time, may have been weighing heavily on his inebriated mind that night. After several firing back-and-forths with Sawyer...
DIANE SAWYER, "GOOD MORNING AMERICA": A lot of people are going to say, wait a minute, is he still blaming the Jews.
GIBSON: No, but I didn`t say that.
GIBSON: He is still blaming Israel.
GIBSON: No, no. Did I say that?
HAMMER: Gibson took it all back.
GIBSON: I don`t believe that Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world. I mean, that`s an outrageous, drunken statement.
HAMMER: Actor and recovering substance abuser Stephen Baldwin told me he knows a thing or two about drunken statements and that he thinks Gibson should be forgiven for his.
BALDWIN: I think it was because of the alcohol, to be quite honest. Hey, some people aren`t going to buy that, and I understand that.
HAMMER: One thing Gibson refuses to do is blame his father, Hutton, who has publicly expressed doubts the Holocaust ever happened.
Gibson tells sawyer his dad is not the doer.
GIBSON: We`re talking about me here right now and me taking responsibility for my words and actions. And I`m certainly not going to use him to sort of put anything off of me.
JACOBSON: When he says, "I don`t believe in that that kind of a thing," that`s a good statement. But I think he needs to go further to acknowledge that there`s a problem of what his father did. He doesn`t have to say, "I have a problem with my father."
HAMMER: Despite those misgivings, it was Gibson`s statement of remorse at the end of the interview...
GIBSON: There`s a lot of compassion out there, so that was kind of overwhelming for me. So, and I`m -- I don`t want to disappoint anyone again.
HAMMER: That may have earned him a second chance from some of those he offended.
JACOBSON: All of that I thought was a really fine closing statement that really gives a positive hope about the direction in which he is going.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: So what about the matter of Gibson`s DUI? Well, Gibson wound up pleading no contest to the charges. He`s going to serve three years probation, he`ll pay a fine, and he will attend rehab. He is scheduled to be back in court for a progress report in January.
And last night we asked you on to vote on the topic on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day". We`re asking -- Mel Gibson: Do you believe he`s an anti-Semite?
We got an overwhelming response to our question, and it`s split fairly down the middle, with 46 percent of you saying yes, 54 percent of you saying no. We`re going to read some of your e-mails a little later in the show. And if you like, well, please keep voting by going to CNN.com/ShowbizTonight. And if you have more to say, the e-mail address is ShowbizTonight@CNN.com.
Well, tonight we have to tell you about a startling claim that was made by Anna Nicole Smith`s mother. She says that she thinks Anna Nicole`s son, Daniel, who died in Anna Nicole`s hospital room in the Bahamas was murdered. That`s right. She thinks he was murdered.
Joining me tonight from the Court TV studios in New York, Court TV news anchor Ashleigh Banfield.
Thanks for being with us, Ashleigh.
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, COURT TV NEWS ANCHOR: Hi, A.J.
HAMMER: So let`s bring everybody up to speed. As we know, shortly after Anna Nicole gave birth to her daughter, Daniel Smith died in the very same hospital room that he, his mom, and Smith`s attorney and lover, Howard K. Stern, were in. Stern is also, of course, saying that he is the baby`s father. An autopsy on Daniel revealed that he died from a lethal combination of prescription drugs.
Now, I want to take a quick peek at what Virgie Arthur, Anna Nicole`s mother, told Nancy Grace when she asked why Virgie believed Daniel`s death was no accident.
Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VIRGIE ARTHUR, ANNA NICOLE SMITH`S MOTHER: There wasn`t any sign of Daniel taking any kind of drugs other than a sleeping pill and an anxiety pill.
NANCY GRACE, HOST, "NANCY GRACE": So if it wasn`t suicide, that only leaves Anna Nicole and Howard Stern.
ARTHUR: That`s true. There was only three people in that room. Danny was one of them.
GRACE: But what could their possible motive be, Ms. Arthur? Why would they want to do this to a young boy?
ARTHUR: I don`t have any clue. I don`t know why. I just know that Danny didn`t kill himself. He did not overdose himself.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Wow. Ashleigh, that is just an outrageous claim to be making, but is this thing coming out of the blue, or there are actually other people out there who are thinking and saying the same thing as she is?
BANFIELD: It`s definitely not the first time I have heard this. I have heard some more stark language used. Not reported because it`s very libelous if you say these kinds of things. But, no, I`ve spoken to people who are very close to Anna Nicole Smith, one of her best friends, who said this about four weeks ago, that she believes this is murder.
HAMMER: What kind of motivation are you hearing from those people?
BANFIELD: Money, money, money. At least this is their conjecture, not mine. Let me be very clear about this.
They believe that because of the setup, if there`s, in fact, some kind of a union between Howard Stern and Anna Nicole, and Daniel is no longer there, it cuts at least one avenue for some of that money if something were to happen to Anna Nicole down the road. And I know that it sounds pretty Hollywood script-like, but some of these friends truly believe this.
HAMMER: Yes. I mean, it`s a real conspiracy theory. And look at the fact that the Bahamian police have said at this point that they don`t believe there is any criminality involved. But is there any evidence that could possibly point to and back up this theory that Daniel was murdered?
BANFIELD: Well, there`s methadone, and if you talk to at least Virgie Arthur, if you talk to some of the people very close to Anna Nicole and Daniel -- and one of these best friends, by the way, baby-sat Daniel for years and thinks he is one of the finest children out there, and really was the adult in the relationship between mother and son, and never took a drug, nor would he ever -- Virgie Arthur believers that, too -- that may be evidence right there that it would be very unusual to find that level of methadone in his system.
And the Bahamian police may be saying that now, A.J., but they are investigating, and they`re not just investigating on the island. They`re also investigating in California, and they are also likely to be speaking with this best friend very soon. She, right now as we speak, is consulting with her attorney about it.
HAMMER: Ashleigh, every time we talk about this, I say I didn`t think it could get more bizarre, and here it has gotten more bizarre. When do we expect to hear the final word on the case?
BANFIELD: Oh, my heavens, are you kidding me? I thought the probate issue might take a year or two, and here we are 10 years later talking about that at the Supreme Court level.
I don`t think you`re going to hear the end of this any time soon. And you know what? Even if they settle this legally at some point, I think you`ll have the conspiracy theorists online, just like in JonBenet, talking about what it might have been for years.
HAMMER: It is an amazing additional piece to the puzzle.
Ashleigh Banfield, from Court TV, thanks for joining us, as always.
BANFIELD: Thank you.
HAMMER: Well, Gloria Estefan has sold 70 million albums. Now she is out with a brand new collection of hits and a terrific new children`s book. She`s going to be here to tell us all about them.
Gloria Estefan is coming up in the interview you`ll see only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
Plus, the Showbiz Weight Watch continues. We`re going to tell you how Paula Abdul and some other big stars are on a mission to stop the madness of eating disorders.
We`ll also have this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel betrayed by the church. The church has betrayed me and my family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Just a little piece of a startling documentary about a notorious pedophile priest. We`re going to have the people behind "Deliver Us From Evil" coming up.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night is coming right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
Now the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT weight watch. "American Idol`s" Paula Abdul is teaming up with some of Hollywood`s biggest stars to stop the madness over getting too skinny.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT was right there in Hollywood as Paula, who suffered from an eating disorder, revealed radio ads that she and some other stars recorded to convince young girls that crazy skinny is, well, just plain crazy.
Take a listen to Paula.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
ABDUL: Hi. This is Paula Abdul. And before I was a judge on "American Idol" and before I was a singer, even before I was a dancer, before I was ever famous, I was just a girl with a secret. I had an eating disorder.
Recovering from an eating disorder is possible. I`m living proof. But you need to take the first step. Go visit nationaleatingdisorders.org.
I have shared my secret. It`s time to share yours. Visit nationaleatingdisorders.org.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HAMMER: Well, Paula is not the only one doing the ads with the National Eating Disorders Association. So is Wynonna Judd, supermodel Emme, singer Sarah Evans, and the young star of the TV show "Reba," Scarlett Pomers.
Pomers has also suffered from an eating disorder, and she joins us tonight from Hollywood.
Welcome back to the program, Scarlett.
SCARLETT POMERS, ACTRESS: Hi. Thank you for having me back.
HAMMER: It`s our pleasure.
You have been very open about the fact that you suffered from anorexia. What was it that actually triggered it for you?
POMERS: Well, I mean, it`s pretty much was the same things that I think a lot of people go through. You know, just different stresses in my life and, you know, it really manifests differently for everybody. But most of the time it can really creep up on somebody.
They don`t just wake up and go, you know, "Oh, I think I`ll have an eating disorder." It pretty much happens -- like I said, it creeps up on you and you kind of get to a point where you realize, I can`t tell what`s normal anymore.
And it was basically just a lot of things. And it became, you know, the thing that ran my life 24 hours a day eventually. And I always tell people that`s -- that`s what will happen if you don`t get help right away as soon as you feel like something is not right, because it eventually will become the only thing you think about 24 hours a day.
HAMMER: And like any disease, it can just take over your life. I have noticed this every time -- every time you have been on the program or I have seen you speaking, you speak so eloquently. You are so poised for such a young woman. Very symbolic of what young girls everywhere aspire to.
And you`re working in Hollywood, you`re living in the spotlight. How is it possible to avoid the trap of feeling that pressure to be thin, or is it?
POMERS: You know, I think it`s just -- it`s something also that I think where it`s a fine line because, you know, especially now that they`re doing so much research about what people who get eating disorders might have genetic predisposition to it. Whether somebody who is just trying to lose weight for a health reason, and then somebody who takes a diet too far or decides that that`s the only way they`re going to gain acceptance.
And it`s really hard to know. And it`s difficult because it`s such a huge number of people that get eating disorders and have them. And I think we probably aren`t even correct on the statistics that we know, because most people hide their eating disorder even if they`re, you know, in recovery. They keep it to themselves.
And my message has always been that you don`t have to hide it. It`s an illness, and if you`re -- whether you are ready to get help or not, it`s not something you need to hide. And, you know, it`s nothing to be ashamed of.
HAMMER: What was your wakeup call, though? Because I think that`s -- part of the key is, as you said before, it just kind of creeps up on you, and then one day, wow, have you to deal with it. For you -- and I only have about 30 seconds -- but what really set it off for you that you said, I have to focus on this?
POMERS: When it did become something that I had to hide. When I realized that the way I was living my life and the behaviors I had with food and exercise was something that I had to hide, and that -- that I was terrified of people finding out. And that was pretty much the point where I went, OK, I`m done and I have to tell someone. And it was pretty much my family that I told first.
HAMMER: Well, Scarlett, I think your candor is certainly going to help some other women out there, as well as these PSAs that you`ve done. And I thank you for joining us as well.
POMERS: Thank you so much.
PHILLIPS: Scarlett recently released the album "Project Chains" and works tirelessly for her charity Arch Angels, which raises money for people who need treatment for eating disorders. She`s doing a tremendous amount of really good work.
Someone else who has certainly made a big difference in the lives of so many people through here music -- you see I`m smiling thinking about it right now -- also through her charitable work, the lovely Gloria Estefan. Gloria sold more than 70 million albums over the course of two decades, and she is out with a brand new CD.
It has 35 of her greatest songs on it. And there are more, but it has 35 on it.
Also, this children`s book is out, "Noelle`s Treasure Tale".
Gloria Estefan joining me in New York.
So cool to see you.
GLORIA ESTEFAN, SINGER: So happy to be here. Thank you so much. We go way back.
HAMMER: We do go way back.
ESTEFAN: Exactly.
HAMMER: And we`ll get into that in a moment, because...
ESTEFAN: The big hair days for both of us.
HAMMER: Yes. For me, really?
ESTEFAN: You don`t remember?
HAMMER: I`ll have to dig up those photos, Gloria.
ESTEFAN: We have some.
HAMMER: We were just listening to Scarlett speaking so eloquently, as I said, about the issues that the young women in Hollywood and throughout America and the world face as far as eating disorders. Talk about when we were hanging out, your daughter Emily was born in 1994 when we were spending a lot of time together. So she`s about 12 years old now.
ESTEFAN: Yes, almost.
HAMMER: Is it something that you worry about with her and speak with her about?
ESTEFAN: I do speak with her about it, because you know what? She -- I notice a lot more that girls her age that are more concerned -- which it`s good to eat healthy. I mean, that`s a good concern.
She`s an athlete, and she works out a lot, but I have to tell her often, you know -- she says, "Oh, maybe I`m not going to eat this, mommy." I go, "Look, you burn the calories. If you burn what you eat, it`s fine. Don`t worry. Don`t focus so much on this, because the glamour of show business is not the reality of life."
And sometimes people try to live up to that standard so much, and they don`t realize it`s not a realistic standard.
HAMMER: No, it`s a smoke screen, really.
ESTEFAN: Exactly.
HAMMER: And it`s all done with mirrors and smoke and...
ESTEFAN: And Photoshop...
HAMMER: Yes.
ESTEFAN: ... and a lot of things. And, you know, album covers and magazine covers are airbrushed, and they don`t know these things. They think this person should look like this. And it`s not right.
HAMMER: Well, you have such a realistic perspective to share with her on that.
I want to talk about the CD set, "The Essential Gloria Estefan". Thirty-five tracks on here, and as I mentioned, these are only some of your songs. But everybody is going to know all these songs.
Let`s go back to even before Miami Sound Machine was what it was. In the late 1970s, when you were first stopping up with a band, could you have possibly imagined then that you would have achieved this level of success in your life?
ESTEFAN: I never would have imagined it because, first, it was a hobby for me. I was going full time to the university. I was studying psychology, communications, and a French minor, and was going to go to Sorbonne to study international law at that point, and it was my hobby.
It was for fun, and I was very shy as a young girl. So I never imagined that I was going to end up doing this.
But I fell in love with my boss, Emilio (ph), the head of the band. And, you know, it was just natural. We loved music, and we thought if we can -- if we have a chance to make a living at it, then let`s go for it, because you can always do something else. And boy did it turn into a beautiful career.
HAMMER: And, as much as you love music and your career, I know that you think that your children are the best things to have come out of your life.
ESTEFAN: Totally.
HAMMER: But you really stopped a career that you were just cranking with in order to have and really raise your kids properly, which is something a lot of people have a difficult time with. It`s a decision that`s hard.
Was it hard for you to actually pull back and...
ESTEFAN: Well, you have met my son. He had been on the road all the time. So I had the luxury of being able to bring my kids to work with me. And I have been able to do that all along.
The thing is that now Emily is becoming a teenager. I want to be there. I want to enjoy -- I take her to school every day, pick her up. I go to all her games.
I`m involved with that. And I don`t want to miss it because I know how quickly it goes. And I have been able -- I have been fortunate, because most women can`t do that. I mean, my husband has been with me, my kids, and that...
HAMMER: You`ve got a great support system around.
ESTEFAN: Yes, I have.
HAMMER: And "Noelle`s Treasure Tale" your second children`s book.
ESTEFAN: Yes, my baby.
HAMMER: All your books -- well, your second one now -- so I can say all...
ESTEFAN: Yes.
HAMMER: ... have a great story to them. And what`s the moral of this one?
ESTEFAN: Well, this one, you know, speaking of the times we`re living, everybody is so, you know, into acquiring possessions. And that this is what you should do, and success and money and sometimes fame, and that sometimes you get clouded by the things that are of real value.
And ultimately, Noelle goes searching for a treasure on the treasure coast. It`s historically correct. It talks -- why it`s called the treasure coast, and all these things.
And then she ends up finding a treasure far more important, and generally it`s life. That, you know, the connection that we have with each other as human beings and the things that we help each other through and just life in general is worth the ride.
So, yes, other things are nice. You know, it`s not bad to have luxuries. But you shouldn`t focus on that. That there`s other things that you might miss if you do.
HAMMER: It`s a great message, and you speak from experience.
Please tell the family I say hello.
ESTEFAN: I will. I`ll tell them. They were very excited that I was coming. They say to say hello, too.
HAMMER: Gloria Estefan, always good to see you.
ESTEFAN: Thank you.
HAMMER: The book, again, "Noelle`s Treasure Tale". It`s in stores now. The double CD, "The Essential Gloria Estefan," is as well.
A dramatic lesson in what it takes to create the magazine perfect image -- images of women we see. Plus, an author who is on a mission to bust that beauty myth wide open.
That`s coming up.
Plus, country singer Sara Evans files for divorce and quits "Dancing With the Stars". And you are not going to believe what she says her husband was doing.
That`s on the way.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Well, Jen Aniston say she and Vince Vaughn have not split up. "People" magazine reports that Aniston told Oprah Winfrey during a taping of Oprah`s show that they are in fact still together.
Now, tabloid headlines had them screaming that the two were kaput. Jen also said they`re not engaged.
Oh, and by the way, Aniston also told Oprah that she hasn`t gotten any breast implants. Some of the tabloids have been saying that she did. She said that when she gains weight that`s where the weight goes.
Coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, the Showbiz Weight Watch continues. We`re going to be seeing through the hype. Tonight we`re speaking with an author who is on a mission to shatter the Hollywood beauty myth.
We`ll also have this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel betrayed by the church. The church has betrayed me and my family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: ... a startling documentary about a notorious pedophile priest. We`ll have the people behind "Deliver Us from Evil" coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night. It is 30 minutes past the hour. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
And still to come, a dramatic lesson in what it takes to create the magazine-perfect images of women we see everywhere. I`ll be speaking with an author who`s on a mission to bust that beauty myth wide open.
Also tonight, shocking details that have been made public over the divorce filing of country singer and "Dancing With the Stars" contestant Sara Evans. She has quit the show, and she has quit her marriage. And that`s on the way in just a few moments.
But first tonight, a controversial, chilling film opens today that could truly rock the Catholic Church. It`s called "Deliver Us From Evil," and it`s all about a priest who is one of the most notorious, sick pedophiles out there. What`s even more shocking is that the movie alleges that the church tries to cover up the abuse.
Now in just a moment, I`ll be speaking with a victim in this disgusting story, as well as the director of the film.
But first, here`s your first look at the documentary that`s reigniting outrage that could even lead to the reopening of the criminal cases.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Two American women came to the Vatican, hoping to deliver a letter to the new pope.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m going to put in direct language they`ll understand.
ZAHN: The guards wouldn`t let them in.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His name was Father O`Grady.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was the closest thing to God that we knew.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is going to be the most honest confession of my life.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My last memory of Father is severe pain before I black out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you feel aroused when you see children in underwear? I said, Yes. How about children who are naked, let`s say? Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had sexual urges towards a 9-year-old. Is that cause to remove him from ministry?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mahoney (ph) said he knew that you were being abused, but you were a girl.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My hand went down and I grabbed up her (ph) night dress.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Had you been a boy, that would have been obscene.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the aspects in being successful in the church is that you create the good image.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The thing he had to do then to avoid scandal was to move O`Grady to an outlying parish.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was a danger to them. But I would have been a danger to others as well.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I have to ask them (ph), Did he catch when you were a little girl?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He just says, Yes. And I - the whole world collapsed.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They knew children were being victimized, and they did nothing except ensure that law enforcement would not find out.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They squelched the report, and they carried on as normal.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think that somebody should have told the cops that O`Grady had been previously accused?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Repeat that, please.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He has so many victims I don`t think you can keep track. I think it`s in the hundreds.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am battling to regain my life back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`ve encountered deception, perjury, denial and deceit at the highest levels of the Catholic Church.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think if a child were raped, that would be somebody that you would forget?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Object. Instruct the witness not to answer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Just amazing.
This shocking documentary is already sparked the attention of law enforcement officials in California, who are considering bringing charges against the cardinal who may have helped cover up former Priest O`Grady`s abuse of children.
Joining me tonight from Hollywood, the director of "Deliver Us From Evil," Amy Berg, and one of the victims of former President Oliver O`Grady, Ann Jyono.
Ladies, I really appreciate you being with me tonight.
ANN JYONO, WAS ABUSED BY CATHOLIC PRIEST: Thanks for having us.
AMY BERG, "DELIVER US FROM EVIL": Thanks, A.J.
HAMMER: Ann -- Ann, this is just a -- a stunning and shocking story. You were abuse by O`Grady from the time you were 5 years old all the way until the age of 12. But you didn`t tell anybody about it.
Why is that?
JYONO: Well, I think it`s a combination of things, A.J., for me especially. I can only speak for myself.
I really didn`t know -- I didn`t have the education of sex education when I was 5 years old, so I probably really didn`t know what he was doing to me until I was a little bit older. And you have to remember that it would have devastated my family; I had a -- you know, an obligation of love and not to hurt my family or speak out against my parish priest. I have Japanese heritage, which is very prideful, and you have to understand that we don`t talk about shame, emotion as weakness.
And there`s a lot of things that pulled me in all directions. And it was the shame itself, of carrying that guilt of what he had done to me.
HAMMER: And I think it`s something that so many victims can relate to.
Amy, what`s really amazing here is this guy tells you everything. I mean, how in the world did you get O`Grady`s trust? He was so completely candid in this documentary.
BERG: Well, he was pretty candid, A.J., right away, the firs time I called him. But it took me five months of talking to him on the phone every Sunday. And his story stayed the same; I verified all the facts in his story. And he had a lot to tell. And I think he was extremely frustrated with the fact that his authorities rose in power and he was ultimately defrocked after his prison sentence.
HAMMER: Yes, and let`s talk about the prison sentence for a second. Because it was 1993 when O`Grady was convicted. He served seven years, but he was only convicted on four counts of lewd and lascivious acts with two pre-teen brothers. Now he`s living a free man in Ireland.
I know that makes my blood boil. Ann, does that make you angry, when -- when you know that this guy is still out there and living free?
JYONO: Yes, it outrages me, absolutely, that he can just serve seven years of a 14-year sentence, and every night I have to wake up with a fright, wondering where he is, if he`s abusing another child. He`s free and has access to, you know, tons of kids that are just -- they don`t even know what he`s about over there until recently.
And it enrages me. I think if he was really sorry, he would commit himself to an institution for treatment, where he should be monitored.
HAMMER: What gives you the strength to continue, Amy (sic), knowing that he`s still out there? I mean, it sounds like a really troubling issue to have to live with every day.
JYONO: Well, I`m still afraid of him, A.J. I -- you know, there -- it`s never going to go away. This is a life sentence that, you know, he`s destroyed a lot of the things in life that I have should have been able to enjoy. He has hurt my family and destroyed the basis of our family, which was our faith, Catholicism.
I`m still a practicing Catholic, but it`s just -- it`s really outrageous that he`s been allowed to get away with it this long. And I really probably thought I was the only one until I found out about the Howard boys in the 90s.
HAMMER: I think so many people are going to be outraged when they see what went on, and they hear what this guy has to say.
Amy, you knew you were getting into yourself into a shocking story when you started working on this documentary. But I imagine that you ran into something that you weren`t expecting.
I mean, what really surprised you, that you couldn`t have anticipated?
BERG: Well, the main things that surprised me were how deep the cover-up was, and how high it goes up, all the way up to the pope. And that was extremely disturbing.
But there was no way that I could have understood what these families have been through until I went into their house and they share their stories with me. The amount of abuse was just devastating, on every level.
HAMMER: People need to see and know that this was going on.
Amy Berg and Ann Jyono, I really appreciate you joining us tonight.
JYONO: Thanks, A.J.
BERG: Thanks, A.J.
HAMMER: My pleasure.
"Deliver Us From Evil" is in theaters everywhere.
Now, a shocking and all-of-a-sudden break-up in Hollywood tonight. It could have a huge impact on one of the most popular primetime shows on television.
Country star Sara Evans has filed for divorce. And in court documents SHOWBIZ TONIGHT got a hold of today, it`s because of her husband`s cheating, porn watching and verbal abuse. Sara is alleging that he has pictures of himself on his computer having sex with other women. And she claims that he even sex parties on -- online and on -- online ads, like craigslist.
In addition to the frequently threatening her, Sara has dropped out of "Dancing With the Stars" so she can deal with all of this and give her full attention to her three children. Evans has been married since 1993. The Tennessee have granted her temporary custody of all three children.
ABC, by the way, has no comment on exactly how they`re going to handle this with "Dancing With the Stars."
In other "Hot Headlines" tonight, Madonna has adopted an African boy, but she left the country without him today. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has confirmed that Madonna and her husband, Guy Ritchie, have been granted preliminary custody of the 1-year-old boy from Malawi. They are still trying to iron out all the details. A child-rights group is trying to block the move because it thinks the government cut corners to get her the kid.
And Hilary Duff and her boyfriend are frightened for their lives. They are seeking an order of protection in California. They`re claiming that a 19-year-old Russian man came to the United States for the sole purpose of -- quote -- "getting romantically involved with her." That can be scary. He allegedly admits he is obsessed with and has threatened to kill himself to get her attention. The man`s roommate, a self-described celeb photographer, is named, too.
And those are tonight`s "Hot Headlines."
A new movie about author Truman Capote, Robin Williams runs for president -- all that`s coming up next in "The SHOWBIZ Guide" to new movies out this weekend.
And here comes the brides, all dressed in white -- flour? Yes, it`s a very sugary-sweet walk down the aisle. "That`s Ridiculous!," and that`s next.
Also, a very powerful message about body image. What it really takes to get that magazine-perfect model look. Plus, someone who`s absolutely determined to bust the beauty myths with a good dose of self-esteem for everyone.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT coming right back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... effect black.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Music under, stand by, A.J. Pre-set 2. Dissolve. Hit it.
HAMMER: Thank you, Gnarls (ph).
Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. This is TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
It`s time now for a little story that made us say, "That`s Ridiculous!"
I got a suggestion on how you can save a little money on your wedding: wear the cake. Look at this: a baker in the Ukraine made his bride`s wedding dress out of 1,500 cream puffs. Now the dress weighs in at 20 pounds. It took him about two months to make the dress. And the crown, bouquet and the necklace, all made from caramelized sugar. Mmm, wedding dress.
An edible wedding dress. Now "That`s Ridiculous!"
Well, what a perfect segue to the "SHOWBIZ Weight Watch," our continuing coverage of the obsession with body image.
Tonight, a really powerful mini-movie. It`s from Dove soap, and it totally challenges what beauty really is. I want you to take a look at how much effort really goes into making someone gorgeous for all those ads you see in the magazines.
This is called "Evolution."
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HAMMER: I think that`s just fantastic. And guess what? They do it every single day. So just a great message about how our ideal of real beauty is often -- I should say almost always very distorted.
You can check out campaignforrealbeauty.com. They have more info there.
You know, the Dove ads just one of a few campaign that really celebrate raw beauty. Hollywood definitely has its own idea of what`s beautiful. We are bombarded with those images everywhere we look.
So what message does it send when young women like Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton are reaping fame and fortune simply for fitting into that Hollywood image?
The book "All Made Up: A Girl`s Guide To Seeing Through Celebrity Hype and Celebrating Real Beauty" questions why young women look up to these celebrities, and where girls should really look to find real beauty.
Joining me here in New York, Audrey Brashich, the author of "All Made Up."
So good to have you here.
AUDREY BRASHICH, AUTHOR, "ALL MADE UP": Thanks. I`m happy to be here.
HAMMER: That Dove ad is astounding, isn`t it? And it really just goes to show, it`s all an illusion.
But Audrey, whose idea of beauty is this?
BRASHICH: Well, it`s not the girl`s idea, and it`s not young women`s. That`s for sure.
And I think that the more that girls and young women see images like this Evolution ad, they`re going to realize how much time and effort goes into looking that way. And if just a fraction of that were spent on something else and developing a talent, on another interest, the world would be a different place, if women put that energy someplace else.
HAMMER: That is such an important message to get out there.
Fortunately for you -- I know you figured that out pretty early on. You were modeling when you were in high school...
BRASHICH: Yes.
HAMMER: ...and you saw through the smoke and you quit.
What was going on in your life that you walked away from something that so many young girls aspire to do at such a young age?
BRASHICH: Well, I had some experiences. For instance, like, all of a sudden being asked to go out by this guy who was just a modelizer. He cared much more about the look and the label than who I was. And hearing other people just get so caught up in the label of model or celebrity.
And that got me thinking about which women are celebrated and why, and which values in women are really looked up to. And I wanted to put something out there that shows to younger women that that`s not where they need to spend all of their time and energy -- that there`s other ways to ...
HAMMER: But how do you do that? Because young women see people like Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan -- you know, often if they`re very thin, and wearing all these designer labels, and that`s what they want to be. That is what they want to aspire to.
And they`re getting all the accolades; they`re showing up in all the magazines. What young woman doesn`t want that? I`m not saying that`s the right thing to want...
BRASHICH: No. You`re right.
HAMMER: ...but -- so how do you tell them, That`s not where you should be looking?
BRASHICH: Well, I think you`ve hit on an interesting point -- that as long as women like that are in the media and are most focused on, that`s what young women are going to want to be like. They`re clueing in to that from an early age, and they`re thinking, Wow, if I can get like that, maybe I`ll have the status and the recognition and the high salaries.
So I think what we need to do as a culture is change the focus. Because until that happens -- until different women are celebrated and rewarded and valued for their contributions, it`s not going to be as appealing to young women to choose a different path.
So it really depends on what we as adults and in the media and as a culture show them.
HAMMER: It would be nice if people were celebrated for substance, wouldn`t it?
BRASHICH: I think so.
HAMMER: So I thought we were making a little bit of progress. I mean, it`s great that we have this dialogue going, and I think it has really been stepped up, particularly in light of what went on in Madrid several weeks back at this point. The fashion shows there took a -- a brave step, and said, We`re putting a bad on the super-skinny models. That was getting all the headlines.
But that was then overshadowed by what was going on at the Paris fashion shows, when all of a sudden, these incredibly thin and -- and almost bony, skinny models like the one we`re showing here, were suddenly breaking all the headlines.
What do we need to do to keep this going in the right direction?
BRASHICH: Well, I`m sad to say that these images have acted as a lightning rod -- which is a good thing -- for this whole problem, because it`s getting all of us to look at what ideal is being held up to young women. And until that -- until we can put something else in front of them, this is what they`re going to want to go after.
So it`s really up to us to have a different vision for them.
HAMMER: And what about celebrities getting involved? Does that make a difference? Earlier we were talking with Scarlett Pomers, who has been very vocal, very outspoken about the fact that she went through an eating disorder and is doing whatever she can to help young women not go through and endure what she had to go through.
But it often seems like sometimes celebrity can even get in the way of that. What`s your take?
BRASHICH: I think it`s great when celebrities start to speak out on what they go through to get the look that they have, and how much time it takes. Because they`re the people that are -- first of all, have our attention. And secondly, they have the opportunity to reach out to younger women and say, This is the real -- this is the real deal.
Because a lot of those ideas don`t make it into the media that target younger women. So they really need someone reaching out to them, who can explain that to them, and someone that they want to listen to. So I think it`s a great step when someone will do that.
HAMMER: Well, I do hope we`re heading in the right direction, and I appreciate your book, and I appreciate you being with us on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, Audrey.
BRASHICH: Thanks so much.
HAMMER: "All Made Up: A Girl`s Guide To Seeing Through the Celebrity Hype and Celebrating Real Beauty" can be found at your favorite bookstore now.
A reminder: SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is now on seven nights a week. Yes, it`s Friday night, but TV`s most provocative entertainment news show has arrived on your weekends. So make sure you join us Saturday and Sunday night at 11 p.m. Eastern, 8 Pacific.
Time now for "The SHOWBIZ Guide." Tonight in "People"`s "Picks and Pans," three new films for your weekend: Robin Williams is out in "Man of Year"; there`s an all-star cast, including Sandra Bullock and Daniel Craig in "Infamous"; and we get a look at an infamous chapter in recent American history with "Deliver Us From Evil."
Joining us tonight in New York, "People" magazine film critic Leah Rozen.
Nice to see you, Leah.
LEAH ROZEN, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: Nice to see you, A.J.
HAMMER: I love Robin Williams. I am so hoping "Man of the Year" is a great film, because it looks like a lot of fun.
ROZEN: If Robin Williams were to run for president in real life, which is what he does in the movie, I`d certainly vote for him.
But the movie I`m kind of mixed on. They`re selling it as this wild and crazy comedy, and it`s really this rather ungamely hybrid of comedy about retropolitics (ph), but also this cloak-and-dagger thriller. There`s been a glitch in the voting, a whistleblower is trying to expose it, and, you know, bad guys are trying to kill her -- she`s played by Laura Linney.
So I guess the film -- it never cuts loose the way you keep wishing it would. So I got to say, mixed on it. You`ll have a good time, you just won`t have a great time.
HAMMER: And the glitch in the voting with new electronic voting machines being used for the first time, right?
ROZEN: They are computer -- it`s a computerized program.
HAMMER: But you don`t -- yes. Foreshadowing maybe.
Let`s move on them to "Infamous." It`s the story of Truman Capote while he was writing "In Cold Blood."
Wait a second, Leah. Didn`t we see this film?
ROZEN: Did you see this one already? Yes, you did. You saw it exactly a year ago. It was called "Capote" then.
It`s the same story, but with a different emphasis. This is a good film; it`s just not quite as good as Capote was. Terrific performances -- Sandra Bullock shows up as Harper Lee. This one has more emphasis on the fact that Capote was sort of the court jester to Manhattan`s wealthy. Sigourney Weaver shows up as Babe Paley. And you`ve got Daniel Craig, the new James Bond, playing one of the killers.
And this movie is much more explicit that he and Capote fell in love.
HAMMER: All right. Well it sounds like it`s worth checking out.
And "Deliver Us From Evil" -- quickly, it sounds like it`s got a lot of Oscar buzz going for it already.
ROZEN: It is this amazing documentary about a pedophile priest. I mean, completely true story. You see the man on camera; he`s interviewed. He`s creepy as anything.
Twenty years, he molested kids in Northern California. Finally did jail time; we deported to Ireland. But still receives an annuity from the church.
HAMMER: And really well done it sounds like.
ROZEN: It`s a very well done documentary.
HAMMER: Leah Rozen...
ROZEN: Impressive.
HAMMER: All right. We appreciate your insight for the weekend.
And as always, you can get your copy of "People" magazine on newsstands now for more "Picks and Pans."
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HAMMER: It is time now to see what`s coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
This weekend, the "SHOWBIZ Weight Watch": more of our ongoing coverage of the obsession with body image. Scary skinny: the uproar over the unbelievably skinny model at a major fashion show. So skinny, you will not believe your eyes. What in the world is going on here? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates this weekend.
And on Monday, stars who are simply disasters waiting to happen. Paris Hilton, Tara Reid, Whitney and Bobby. We just can`t take our eyes off of them, because, really, at any moment, they`re probably going to do something ridiculous. Hop on board the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT celebrity train- wreck express Monday.
That is it for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Thanks a lot for watching. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
Glenn Beck coming up next, right after the very latest from CNN Headline News.
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