A multifaceted irreverent talent is the guest on the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s “Freethought Matters” TV show this Sunday.
Malachy McCourt is an Irish-American actor, author, humorist and an outspoken and happy atheist. He has appeared in many movies, including “The Molly Maguires” and “Brewster’s Millions.” He also portrayed a priest every Christmas on the soap opera “All My Children.” McCourt has acted in the plays “Inherit The Wind,” “Love Letters” and “A Couple Of Blaggards,” which he co-wrote with his older brother, the acclaimed author Frank McCourt (Angela’s Ashes). Among the many adventures he recounts in his interview is running as the 2006 Green Party candidate for New York governor. His books include Death Need Not Be Fatal, which asks: “What’s so great about the Great Beyond?”
“I’m an atheist, and on Sundays, I’m a pagan because I believe in everything,” McCourt tells “Freethought Matters” co-hosts Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor tongue partly in cheek. “I believe in the sunshine, I believe in the moon, the beauty of clouds, stars, I believe in love. And I don’t need a God or any kind of deity to give me love.”
If you don’t live in the quarter-plus of the nation where the show broadcasts on Sunday, you can already catch the interview on FFRF’s YouTube channel. You can also receive notifications when we post new episodes of Freethought Matters by subscribing to FFRF’s YouTube channel.
This is the fall/spring season’s 31st episode of “Freethought Matters,” airing in over a dozen cities on Sunday, March 28.
Coming shows include interviews with author and secular scholar Susan Jacoby and Sasha Sagan, author of For Small Creatures Such as We and daughter of Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan.
“Freethought Matters” airs in:
- Chicago, WPWR-CW (Ch. 50), Sundays at 9 a.m.
- Denver, KWGN-CW (Ch. 2), Sundays at 7 a.m.
- Houston, KUBE-IND (Ch. 57), Sundays at 9 a.m.
- Los Angeles, KCOP-MY (Ch. 13), Sundays at 8:30 a.m.
- Madison, Wis., WISC-TV (Ch. 3), Sundays at 11 p.m.
- Minneapolis, KSTC-IND (Ch. 45), Sundays at 9:30 a.m.
- New York City, WPIX-IND (Ch. 11), Sundays at 8:30 a.m.
- Phoenix, KASW-CW (Ch. 61, or 6 or 1006 for HD), Sundays at 8:30 a.m.
- Portland, Ore., KRCW-CW (Ch. 32), Sundays at 9 a.m. Comcast channel 703 for High Def, or Channel 3.
- Sacramento, KQCA-MY (Ch. 58), Sundays at 8:30 a.m.
- San Francisco, KICU-IND (Ch. 36), Sundays at 10 a.m.
- Seattle, KONG-IND (Ch. 16 or Ch. 106 on Comcast). Sundays at 8 a.m.
- Washington, D.C., WDCW-CW (Ch. 50 or Ch. 23 or Ch. 3), Sundays at 8 a.m.
Previous guests from the fall season include: pundit Eleanor Clift, whose interview you can watch here, actor and FFRF After-Life Member John de Lancie of “Star Trek” “Q” fame, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Linda Greenhouse, the country’s leading analyst of the U.S. Supreme Court, and legislative stalwart and feminist and civil rights pioneer U.S. Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton. One of the most eminent public intellectuals in the world, Professor Steven Pinker, was interviewed a few episodes ago talking about his new course on rationality. Legendary TV host, actor and singer John Davidson was the guest in early December. Recently, the show featured Ann Druyan, the co-creator of “Cosmos,” possibly the most acclaimed TV series of all time. A.C. Grayling, a prominent British philosopher and the author of about 30 books, grappled on the show with philosophy and the pandemic, and discussed how he himself dealt as a nonbeliever with a personal tragedy. Last week’s interview was with Rep. Jerry McNerney, a co-founder of the Congressional Freethought Caucus.
Watch previous seasons here, including interviews with Ron Reagan, Julia Sweeney and Ed Asner, as well as U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman and Jamie Raskin, co-chairs of the Congressional Freethought Caucus.
Please tune in to “Freethought Matters” . . . because freethought matters.
P.S. Please tune in or record according to the times given above regardless of what is listed in your TV guide (it may be listed simply as “paid programming” or even be misidentified). To set up an automatic weekly recording, try taping manually by time or channel. And spread the word to freethinking friends, family or colleagues about a TV show, finally, that is dedicated to providing programming for freethinkers!
