"The Grace Card" Opens in Top 20

The Grace Card is a dramatic film that intends to illustrate the everyday opportunities that people have have to rebuild relationships and heal deep wounds by extending and receiving God’s grace. The film stars Louis Gossett, Jr. and Michael Joiner. It was released on February 25, 2011 to 363 theaters, grossing $1,010,299 on opening weekend - good enough to land in the 16th position.

"The Grace Card" was conceived by its first-time director, Dr. David Evans, a Memphis optometrist making the leap into filmmaking with the support of his congregation, the Calvary Church of the Nazarene in Cordova TN, the film's "sponsoring church."

The success of "Fireproof" with Kirk Cameron, a low-budget 2008 movie produced by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga., that earned $33 million at the box office, provided inspiration for Evans and his supporters.

A self-described "modern evangelical" and "20-year pro" in Hollywood who co-wrote Clint Eastwood's "Space Cowboys," among other films, screenwriter and producer Howie Klausner, rewrote Evans' original script and joined the production after deciding he wanted to help Christian films "grow up." He describes "The Grace Card" as a cop movie with a spiritual twist.

Academy Award winning actor Louis Gossett Jr., who earned a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1983 for his role as a tough Marine sergeant in "An Officer and a Gentleman," said he was attracted to "The Grace Card" because he's interested in "nourishing stories" that complement his faith in God and his work as the founder of The Eracism Foundation.

Broadway Performer Tony Vincent Collaborating with Kevin Max

In the mid-90s, Tony Vincent released two Christian CDs before going to Broadway, where most recently he was part of the cast of American Idiot.

Tony recently sent out this note in his email newsletter:

Long-time friend of mine and killer singer Kevin Max (of the band dcTalk), phoned me up out of the blue several weeks ago. He and a mate of his have been working on a project that has changed directions several times since its original inception almost a year ago. Knowing I’ve been greatly influenced by bands from the “New Romantic” music era (such as Roxy Music, David Bowie and Duran Duran), Kevin extended an invitation for me to join his work-in-progress band, currently working under the name Bad Omens.

Although my music career has always been as a solo artist, I have lately been toying with the idea of changing direction and cloaking my music in a band format, which would lend itself perfectly to the style of music that I want to produce. Kevin and I spoke on and off for about a week, and after thinking about it for a few days, I phoned him up and told him I was in.

Even though we are still in the early stages of fleshing out exactly what the sound of Bad Omens will be–we’re heading to Los Angeles this week to start the writing process–we’re both incredibly excited about the potential of a vocally driven, Brit-pop/synth-rock focused band.

Bible Edited Out of Film 'Soul Surfer' to Appeal to Non-Christians, Added Back In

The upcoming film “Soul Surfer,” slated for release in April, is based on the true story of teen surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a 2003 shark attack, but courageously returned to her board and become a champion again months later.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the real-life Hamilton family – all devout Christians – were upset to learn that the words 'Holy Bible' were digitally removed from the cover of a Bible in a scene featuring Bethany Hamilton's father Tom reading by his ailing daughter’s hospital bedside.

An executive at Mandalay Pictures pushed to soften the Christian element of the film, presumably in an effort to appeal to non-Christian audiences. However, after the upset family complained, they were pleased to discover that the 'Holy Bible' had been reinstated in the final cut, THR reported.

“I could see the words bright and clear. I looked at my wife and whispered, ‘Thank you God, they put it back,” Tom Hamilton told THR.

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RED to perform on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno

RED will be performing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on February 16. According to Randy from the band, they will not be performing Faceless as on CONAN.

RED Debuts at #2 on Billboard

Rock band Red debuts in the runner-up slot this week with its "Until We Have Faces". The band sold 43,000 its first week - a bigger start than the 39,000 that greeted its second album, 2009's "Innocence & Instinct," upon its No. 15 entry on the Billboard 200.