From SNL to EWTN: The Actress Who Never Hid Her Faith (and What It Cost Her)

🎤 In this episode of The Living Room, Liv Harrison sits down with actress, writer, and producer Siobhan Fallon Hogan for a hilarious, heartfelt, and totally unfiltered conversation about being Catholic in Hollywood for over 30 years. She tells incredible stories about going to Sunday night Mass with Chris Farley after SNL, how the Hallow app helped Catholics finally "shout it out," and why she thinks the culture is shifting. 

Siobhan opens up writing her way into Hollywood with a one-woman show when nobody would cast her, restarting her parish Bible camp after Uvalde because "the kids thirst for faith," and how her new EWTN+ podcast Catholics and Cappuccinos was born at the Napa Catholic arts gathering. If you've ever wondered what it looks like to be loud, funny, faithful, and totally yourself in an industry that doesn't always make that easy, this conversation is for you.

Guest Bio

Siobhan Fallon Hogan is an actress, writer, and producer known for roles in Forrest Gump, Holes, Dancer in the Dark, Charlotte's Web, Seinfeld, and Saturday Night Live. She has written and produced multiple films including Shelter in Solitude and Rushed, and her play about her mother's passing will open at the Athenaeum Theatre in Chicago this fall. She is the host of Catholics and Cappuccinos on EWTN+.

Links

Connect with Siobhan Fallon Hogan: https://www.instagram.com/siobhanfallonhogan/

Watch Catholics and Cappuccinos on EWTN+: https://www.ewtn.com/programs/9949-ca...

Follow Liv Harrison: https://instagram.com/@livharrison

Chapter Markers

00:00 The Play, The Nails, and Why This Already Feels Like a Living Room

03:20 Meet Siobhan Fallon Hogan (and Catholics and Cappuccinos)

07:37 Being Catholic in Hollywood Before It Was Cool

09:26 She Quit a TV Role Over an Affair Scene That Started in Mass

11:20 Chris Farley, Sunday Night Mass, and Two Irish Terrors

14:10 Kevin James Fasted 40 Days

16:01 A Priest Required Mass and 2,000 More People Showed Up

17:22 Bible Camp, Uvalde, and Why the Kids Thirst for Faith

18:15 "Stop Thinking About Yourself": The Fallon Family School of Tough Love

20:34 Forrest Gump and What Your Favorite Role Says About You

26:30 From Receptionist to SNL

29:48 The Salty PTA and Writing Through Every Phase of Life

30:00 Imposter Syndrome, Creative Visualization, and Adding Faith

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey, Miss Foster. How are you doing, Miss Foster? Just fine, guys. Mike, mate, fine, huh, Miss Foster? Oh, yeah, it's perfect. And that's how I got an SNL and on side for it. Because it's so intense when you have that period of life, but it's also a great chapter. And I'm like, you don't have to quit. Listen, we're just playing a part. You can just tell your kids. I was like, no, you can tell your kids, but I quit. Anybody else? Friends? Same the rotaries punched each other in the head, drinking wine, punching each other in the head, laughing, laughing, laughing. Like I was on the show, and I was like, wow, this is great. Sketch. I flip my dog up. My dog. She's 195. She's like me as a dog. Like you'd get out of SNL and there'd be like pop rocks here with a you know. And then the next thing you know.

SPEAKER_00 1:04

Perfect. Okay. You're basically a director. You are a director. Aren't you a director? Have you directed?

SPEAKER_01 1:10

I write and I produce, but I don't direct.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 1:13

I'd like to, but no one will let me.

SPEAKER_00 1:16

Wait a second. Okay, wait. Are we filming? Yes, we are. Okay, great. Because this is how I want this to go. Wait, so you have a play. Yes. But did you did you direct that play that I because I was at Napa this summer and I saw you and it was fabulous. Thank you. And I know you wrote it, I know you produced it. I know that you star in it, but did you direct it?

SPEAKER_01 1:38

Well, I guess you could say I did then because it was a stage reading to try to get investors, but now, so I did direct that, but I wouldn't direct the play for production because if I'm in it, it's too weird to not have a critical view eye of yourself, which I already have a critical eye enough because I can look in the mirror. But anyway, I it's going to be done at the Athenaeum in Chicago in the fall. It is? Yes, because of Napa, because of doing it out there. Uh-huh. So you met with Lawrence with the Athenaeum. I met with Lawrence and Patty Heaton, you know, from every loves rap, Margaret Colin, Welker White, my daughter Sinead. Yeah, Lila Robinson, all these all these fabulous actresses in it. Do you have dates for that or not yet? We're supposed to start rehearsing like the third week in September and open the beginning of October. Oh, I gotta go.

SPEAKER_00 2:26

I gotta be there.

SPEAKER_01 2:27

I'm so excited.

SPEAKER_00 2:28

I can't even tell you. It was so fabulous. Like I, and here's the thing, I don't know you really. You know what I mean? Like I've kept him on. I'm not saying what I want you to hear is I'm not trying to blow smoke up your skirt as I feel like, oh, Liv's just saying that because she loves me. I mean, I don't know any different. I'm telling you, it was spectacular. And my favorite, and I'm not, I don't want to give anything away because it's such a great show, but my my um okay, how am I gonna say this? Let me just say this. My favorite song of all time is Fly Me to the Moon. Oh, that's my favorite song of all time. My grandfather was next door neighbors with Frank Sinatra. They grew up together. Yes, isn't that great? I know. Oh they were best friends until they were 15. And I have a cousin who's a Broadway composer. Oh, okay. And so I get to go to the city, and Frank is a part of all the, you know, they're always talking about these old stories. So best. I am the non-talented one out of Are You Kidding Me?

SPEAKER_01 3:33

No, so so when I got married, I I couldn't decide between two songs. So I I said, okay, this is the deal. I know this is weird, but I'm gonna have two dances with my father. One was King of the Road, and the next one was Fly Me to the Moon. But it would play, you know. I think because people relate because, well, it's about my mother's last day, and it my mother passed just before 97. My three sisters and my niece and my aunt and I all took care of her, and it was so cat, you know, saying the rosaries, punching each other in the head, drinking wine, punching each other in the head, laughing, laughing, laughing. So people can relate to it because it's so intense when you have when you have that period of life, but it's also a great chapter. Like it's like you wouldn't take it back for the world. It's such a beautiful period. And the play, as you know, starts with the priest having given the last rites and it all goes from there.

SPEAKER_00 4:19

Yeah, it does. I well, you know, and and here this is I love that we're already chit-chatting and we're here on the show. This is uh this is a new podcast called The Living Room, and I'm I'm Liv Harrison, and this is Siobhan Fallon Hogan. Hogan. Here's the thing: why do I want to keep stopping at Fallon? Did you ever just go by Siobhan Fallon or did I make that up?

SPEAKER_01 4:46

Well, first of all, I want to say I love the name that's Liv from the Living Room. That's brilliant. Oh, thank you. Because of this, my maiden name is Fallon, and I was professionally Siobhan Fallon Hogan for years. I mean, no, Siobhan Fallon. And then I realized my kids were like, why, you know, they're Hogan's. So, Mom, why are you Siobhan Fallon? So then I switched it.

SPEAKER_00 5:05

Okay, so thank you. I'm not totally crazy.

SPEAKER_01 5:08

I I would not advise anyone doing because you know, you go to the airport and you're licensed, and then you're oh, it's ridiculous.

SPEAKER_00 5:15

It's too much. It's too many names. It's too many names, it's too many names. Well, um, yeah, so I I was blessed enough to meet you this summer in Napa, and I got to see your amazing new play that you wrote about with the passing of your mother. Yes. But something that I really wanted to talk about, Siobhan, especially since we met, is I identify so much with you personally. You are getting to live, and I think I told you this in Napa. You are getting to live the life that I always wanted. So I want to say thank you, first of all. You're doing fantastic. That's so nice on our life.

SPEAKER_01 5:48

Let me tell you something, sister. Um, as I said to my kids, you know, so I've got so lucky to have this podcast coming out, Catholics and Cappuccinos on EWTN, and my daughter's like, Mom, you have did follow her. So I go, I finally made it. Finally made it. You made it. One time my husband, his aunt, my his Aunt Francine, she was the best from Rockaway Queens. We drove out there and he had just bought a Durango and he said, Aunt Fran, I'm gonna show you my new Durango. And she said, Pita, you finally made it.

SPEAKER_00 6:22

I love that you, and I've seen you say that online. Like, uh, you know, and I want to talk about you have this brand new podcast, Catholics and Cappuccinos. And I love that it's plural in both, by the way. Like it's not Catholic and Cappuccino. It's see, was there some conversation about that? I knew there was a reason that you added the yeses. Well, you have to understand something.

SPEAKER_01 6:42

I am not the brightest bulb, and I there's been so many funny things where I'm like, hi, and welcome to Catholics with Cappuccino. And my son's like, no, that's not the name. Okay, let's take two. Hi, I'm Chibon Vellanovi, and welcome to Catholics and Cappuccino. And he's like, nope, that's not the name. And I'm like, what is the name? So people always think that I'm way deeper than I am, and they're like, Why did you decide that I'll do that? And I'm like, I was a mistake. It's just like my movies, I'll be like, I love the theme. Like I wrote this movie, Shelter in Solitude. I loved when the it's about a prison, you know, a guy in Death Row, and I play this washed up prison guard. And I just wrote this story. And afterwards, people are like, I just loved when he was eating the cookie, and it was just like the Eucharist. That was genius that you did that. And I was like, Uh-huh. Oh, funny. Yes. You're gonna put chocolate chip cookies in there. You mean like I'm not that deep. And so it's just really lucky, or you know, God has a sense of humor and he's trying to make me think that I'm smart and I'm not.

SPEAKER_00 7:43

I think you must have a really great guardian angel, is what I think. Definitely. I think that's what it is, definitely. And they're like, look, this is gonna do amazing with the Catholics. This scene.

SPEAKER_01 7:53

So I was telling you before we got on last night, I look like I don't know what. Like what you look fantastic. Look like I need to be closed for renovation. But my son did a movie, producing a movie, it's Catholic themed. And anyway, we had a see a shoot last night in New Jersey. And if you look at the weather, it's freezing. And I played a nun. Um, I won't go into it, but it gets hit by a car. But I had played a different role where I had beautiful nails, and God was on my side because just before I'm not supposed to have nails in it, was it? That was from a different part. They all fell off except for this one. So I just have one so because you know you have like longs. So I think I do have a funny guardian angel. You do have a very funny guardian angel, I'm sure. Well, my cuticle beds don't feel so bad.

SPEAKER_00 8:38

So you look you I'm sorry, but for being up till 5 30 in the morning, you look sensational. I uh I want to ask you because you you're very rare, or or let me say this. You were rare being an entertainer and a Catholic, but now I feel like everybody's kind of getting in on your territory a little bit. Well, what like come on, stay under stay under your bushel, your bushel basket.

SPEAKER_01 9:02

This is what happened, I think. Yeah, what is going on? Please tell me. Because, you know, I don't know if you at Nap, if you heard Alessandro speak, but you know, here was Goldman Sachs' successful guy, and they're like, Why are all these other, you know, um religions or meditation and why aren't why are why are we hiding this as Catholics? I remember years ago, my husband was actually, you know, in 9-11, um, stopped in church and missed being killed. But I was nine months pregnant and he stopped in to say a prayer for me because I had my nine-month appointment. Literally at St. Vincent's Hospital looking at the towers. Horrible. Oh, wow. But I remember shortly after Congressman Peter King, if you know who he is, he's kinda brilliant from New York, said we had a meeting. And um he said, Why is it that the Catholics are afraid to shout it out? Like, what do we do? Like we're almost like we're too proud or something. And anyway, so now I think with the halo, people are shouting it out, not afraid. And then you realize, oh, he's Catholic? Oh, she's Catholic. Oh, and all along you've been like, like I'd be on movies that I'm like, listen, listen, listen, I'm Catholic, so I don't but I really wasn't. I was really proud. But like, but like the movies I always say were easy because you get the script, you know what you're getting. But TV shows, it's another thing I want to talk to about God about privately. Like I was on the show and I was like, oh, this is great. Regular schedule, TV, and get that TV money. And about four episodes in, they decide to have my character have an affair. It started. And I was like, Oh, are you kidding me? Like, what? And then they're like, and they're like, look, I have to quit. And they're like, You don't have to quit. Listen, you're just playing a part. You can just tell your kids. And I was like, No, you could tell your kids, but I quit.

SPEAKER_00 10:56

So anyway, um So you did, so you left apart because they wanted you to have an affair, and you were like, I'm not doing that. It's a good one. Started in mass. Wait, get on this.

SPEAKER_01 11:04

Started in mass when I was picking up a missalette, and this guy's like, huh. No, first of all, it's wait, I'd let my dog out. It's such a joke, anyway. But yeah, no, I was like, Well, my dog, she's 195.

SPEAKER_00 11:18

She's like me as a dog. I love it. Uh it's perfect. This is real life. This is what would happen in a living room. I love this. Exactly. This is the point. I even have the candle for the living room. Good. Oh, thank you. I love that. What are we smelling? What does the candle smell? Well, I think it's left over from Christmas. It's red. What cinnamon, cinnamon. Perfect. Fantastic. I love that. So you love to part because of that. Yeah, I was gonna say, because you've always been Catholic. You're not like you're not a person in entertainment that found the church. No, I you were in it, you're an OG, Siobhan.

SPEAKER_01 11:53

You're an OG. Do you know what I didn't even know what an OG was? It's just like L O L. I thought oh L O L was is it Laugh Out Loud or Lots of Love? I still don't know what she's saying. Laugh Out Loud. Okay, I thought it was lots of love. So people sometimes said that to me and I was like, that's a little appropriate.

SPEAKER_00 12:12

Married woman. Shouldn't give me that much love. We barely know each other.

SPEAKER_01 12:15

Another person that has a crush on me. I was like, no, I don't have a crush on you. I just want to laugh. Um, so yeah. So OG, yeah. No, I never doubted. I mean, my parents were awesome. And I'm like, like, I had a friend, best guy actually passed away, and I said, Chris, you're such a good Catholic. You you go to mass sermon. He goes, No, Siobhan, I'm not a good Catholic. I just love Catholicism. I go, it's kind of like me.

SPEAKER_00 12:39

I love that. Yeah. Well, you told a great story at Napa about you and Chris Farley and how when you were on Saturday Live, you guys would do the show. Yeah. And he was known to be a fun guy. Oh, hilarious. The best. You'd partake in all sorts of fun activities. Yes. And then you two would end up in mass. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

So we lived near each other and we were on the upper west side and went to Holy Trinity, and we would go to the night mass on Sunday nights because Saturday night live is all nocturnal. My son's actually working there. I actually went, see, I've been on a run. This is why I look particularly bad. Saturday night I went to the show because my old pal Stellan Skarsgard, who I haven't worked with in 24 years, I haven't seen him. His son was on. And so I went and saw him. So I was up till five in the morning then. I'm all mixed up. It's like I went to Japan, but I didn't get the benefit of the trip. But anyway, so so we would go to Mass, and um, Chris was the best guy and so faithful. You know, he visits Shut ins. He was like the real deal. Really? And yeah, but in Mass he'd be like, Oh, I'm so sorry. And because, you know, we'd go like the party would end, and then we'd be like, Whose buzzers can we ring? That's how we met, that's how I got. Well, I didn't meet my husband. I met my husband, he didn't like me. And so I was like, Chris, we have to go to my husband's because Chris played rugby, and so did my husband. And Chris had his whole rugby team and his friend who became a priest, who um father, I believe, it's Foley, you know, the the characters from right, right, right. Okay. I'm from a van now by the river. Anyway, so I was like, I really like this guy, but he doesn't like me. And he's like, Oh, come on, let's go. Let's go. We buzzed his my father would his mother would be like, Oh, Siobhan, please, that's so disgraceful. But we go and we buzz like, he's like, Wake up! We got anything to eat, and just bombard it. So we would just be like two Irish terrors and then you know, be at mass the next night.

SPEAKER_00 14:32

I love that. Yeah, have you found anyone else like Chris? I mean, okay, first of all, there's no one like Chris, but anyone else like Chris in the Catholic space where you can share, you know, and go to mass with and and share your faith with?

SPEAKER_01 14:45

Well, here's the thing like from doing um Catholic well, first of all, my kids, I'm like, look, like my son now works at SNL, my daughter's a newscaster in New York, and I'm like, my other daughter's an actress, and I just hound them. I'm like, let me tell you something. You begin a lot of gifts, and uh, you get your rear end of mass, and I just, you know, but within the business, um this is what's so great. This Catholics and Cappuccinos, like I've had Kevin James on, such a faithful guy. He fasted for 40 days last year during Lent. He's incredible. Jonathan Roomy, Patty Heaton, and I, you know, like uh Barbara Colen out in Napa, you know, we're all Catholic girls and they're both they're both in my play. Not intentionally, by the way. It's just well, it's weird because I cast them because they remind me exactly my sisters, you know, right about my sisters. And then they're Catholic, which, you know, comes out in their work.

SPEAKER_00 15:42

Yeah, it does. It does come out in their work. And I I think what's interesting, you know, we kind of started talking about this a little bit at the beginning, how there's this all of a sudden it feels like everybody's Catholic. I'm like, it feels like it's the in-trinity thing to be. I had a friend that said, if you're famous and you walked into our church once, the Hallow will put you on and you'll do a rosary.

SPEAKER_01 16:06

Well, you know, interesting, uh, my church, Holy Trinity, Diane Weist was a parisher, and um Raoul Julia, a member from the Adams family.

SPEAKER_03 16:14

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 16:15

Yes. So I think there's a real like I had Father Duffy on from, you know, Rockville, um, St. Agnes, I believe it's St. Agnes, one of the biggest parishes in Long Island on the on the um podcast. And he said, Look at people are getting tough. So he said, Look, I was telling the bishop that my what's the proper word, confermandes. Said it? Yeah, that's good. That's the only thing. I had to step up my lingo when I'm talking about.

SPEAKER_00 16:43

No, that was impressive.

SPEAKER_01 16:44

I'm very that was like a catechism. Yeah, that was amazing. Yeah, but like my sister was, you know, she has her master's in theology, and she's like, Shimon, please don't mock this. Don't mock the people that you're mock, you know, that are in front of your face. I'd be like, I'm discerning dessert. It's a whole, it's a whole lingo. You gotta bring like the book, like it says Okay, listen, if you want to be impressive, say your apostolate is this. And I was like, So anyway, you're dropping all the right words. So so Father Um Duffy said that he said to his uh eighth grade students and their parents, look, you're not bringing these kids to mass, so I'm no longer going to say they're ready for confirmation. So here's the deal either come to Mass and we're gonna do it through a QR code, or they're out. The next Sunday they're two thousand more parishioners. Two thousand? Isn't that amazing? That's like kids were Jesus numbers.

SPEAKER_00 17:36

That's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 17:37

And then like in my little I'm from upstate New York, and when my kids were little, for years I would do the Bible camp and I would do this improv and do all the stories, and we had a whole group that we did this Bible camp. Well, I and then you know, as my kids got into high school, they'd be volunteers, I would continue to do it, and um but anyway, it it it fizzled out. It was no longer well then five years ago when there was a horrible shooting in uh Mexico at Uvaldi, I was like, messed up. These kids need religion. What is going on, right? So I said, we gotta start the Bible camp again. So here I am, you know, long of the tooth. My sister Megan is my youngest sister, but she got the master's in theology, and then my friend Mary Beth, all our kids are old, and we start the Bible camp. And uh me my sister Megan is brilliant, so she's the brains behind the operation. I'm the dog and pony show, like doing improv and getting the kids up to, you know, like okay, the wedding of Candy. You guys are you guys are dancing over here, okay. You're the waiters, then we're went on a wine, and you know, but then they come in droves. Like they're like they the kids uh thirst for faith, and you know, this this insanity of like well, I we couldn't go to mass, we couldn't go because we got a sport. Yeah. Stupid. Right. After all, if you're gonna look at things from a sports anal an analysis, how many kids become professionals? So if I were you, I'd skip that, go to mass and get it together because you want to be that's why everybody's depressed. I mean, you know, some people are legitimately depressed, but then everybody says like just I think societally depressed, because who wouldn't be depressed for just looking at yourself in the mirror? I would have been the I would have been I wouldn't be able to get out of bed. Just my like looking yourself all the time. My mother said to me when I was in LA, I called her up, I was like young, like 28, and I said, Oh my gosh, mom, I'm so and she's like, hurry up and talk, because this is expensive. You girls don't even know that, you're too young, but and she'd be like, Mom, I'd be like, Mom, and my father, unbeknownst to me, my father would be on the other end of the line listening. I was like, Mom, I honestly I can't get a job as an actress, and this this job that I have is killing me. I'm a clown at birthday parties. Things aren't going well. And my mother said, Well, Sioban, maybe you should stop thinking about yourself, think about others, and volunteer and see how hard other people have it. And maybe you shouldn't be looking in the mirror so much. And then I'd go, huh? And my father would go, Sean, I'm on the other end of the line. And oh, I'm watching the show called the Academy Awards, and you're an actress, right? Because I've never seen you on it. And I'd like to burst out laughing. So it's such a sick relationship. We'd hang up, and my mother would go, Oh, Sean, I better go. And she'd go, Bill, and you hear the phone go, Bill, I think you made her feel badly. Oh But in other words, you know, we weren't allowed, like there was not only guilt, but also you would kind of feel, you know, it was a little wrong to be thinking about so much about yourself. And if you and if you come out of yourself and get into church and get involved and volunteer, then you feel a lot better about yourself.

SPEAKER_00 20:50

I was gonna say, that's gotta be a really hard line to walk, especially being an entertainer and a and a comedic one, because it is all about like, look at me, look at me. It's Saturday Night Live. I need to be funny. And if you don't have the other side, which I'm I'm sure you've seen, I don't know. I'm just guessing you've met a few people with some egos that think they are sensational. Sure. And uh and they don't have anything that grounds them right like faith. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 21:21

But even like, you know, you can start to drink the Kool-Aid yourself. Like you'd get on SNL and there'd be like paparazzi, and they're like, huh. You know, and then next thing you know, you're not on it, and you're like, huh.

SPEAKER_00 21:34

And if you want to stay steady, it's the only thing that can keep you steady. Yeah. Is the faith. 100%. Well, my favorite role that you were ever in was the bus driver and forest gum. I know it's probably what you get. What do you get most? What do people usually say to you? You know, I loved you in well, I loved you in your play, actually. To be very honest, that's my favorite role. I know. Again, not blowing anything up a skirt. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 22:01

I have different reasons for like Shelter and Solitude, which I wrote, I love because my family all produced and we were all in it. My son has got a lot of people. I need to see that. My friend Claire has told me about it. Claire said it's just fabulous. And then Rush is very serious. Catholic family and a fraternity hazing. I wrote that one, and I became friends with two moms who lost their sons in fraternity hazing incidents. Matter of fact, Rayanne Groover, who lost her son, Max Groover, has the Groover Foundation, has changed laws all over the country because of what happened to her son. So wow. To meet people like that who um have had horrific, horrific things happen to their families, their children, get up and be able standing, not only standing, but like saying, I don't want this ever to happen to another kid, is unbelievable. But go, um, you asked me what was my favorite. Okay, so or what do people know me from?

SPEAKER_00 22:54

What do people what do people normally say to you? Oh, I loved you in whatever.

SPEAKER_01 23:01

I will know a lot about people by what they know. So if they are like, oh my god, I loved you in hopes. Yeah. It's like their kids are a certain age. They're like, okay, I'm like, okay, you're in your 20s. Or people are like, I loved you in Dancer in the dark. I'm like, uh-oh, they know foreign films, they're really smart. I better make sure my grammar is correct when I'm speaking to them. I loved your dancer in the dark and dog va loved the Danish films. I'm like, thank you. I'm like, there's a mistake, they shouldn't have cast me. No, um, and then like um, I was in this crazy teeny show, Fred.

SPEAKER_00 23:35

And it's oh, I remember that show. I never watched it, but I remember when that was out on Yeah, and some people are like, I loved you and Fred, and I was like, It was my finest work.

SPEAKER_01 23:45

But so, yeah, I mean I have different reasons for different things. Like when I did Charlotte's webb, my kids got to come to Australia with me and go to school there. When I did the Lars von Trier movies, they got to come and go over to school, tutored in um Sweden and that kind of thing. So for sometimes it's about the experiences that I love, or like I really had a good time doing New In Town up with Terry Connick Jr. is awesome. I gotta get him on the podcast. He's Catholic.

SPEAKER_00 24:08

Okay, so I'm gonna be on the Good News Cruise speaking, and Harry Connick Jr. is gonna be singing on it. You need to come on the cruise with us, next. What is the Good News Cruise? The Good News Cruise is a Catholic, they rent out an entire ship, okay? A Catholic cruise ship, and they fill it with Catholics. And then it's Father Mike Schmitz. Um, you got Scott Hahn, Dr. Scott Hahn, and his wife. Yeah, he went to be the boss college. Yes, yes, yes. Would you like to come? I'm gonna call them right now and let's get you on. It'll be next February. That's hysterical. 2027. Do you want to come? I'd say yes. I love to come. Come to your show. I'd say we need a little play going on whilst floating to the Bahamas. Oh my gosh. In February.

SPEAKER_01 24:52

Yeah. Listen, listen, I would love to. I mean, when I went to Napa, I was like, these are my people. When I when I my I went with my sister Megan, as I told you, when I first went two years ago.

SPEAKER_00 25:01

I loved Megan. I got to meet her. She was with you, right? In Napa? Both times. She's like she was fabulous. We had a great time together. So she got her, she's an attorney.

SPEAKER_01 25:10

She got and she's the runaway bride. She was engaged, but she a couple times. She ran away. But she's she needs to be. She's Julia Roberts. She's single, shingle. Yeah. And my father actually took me on a car ride just before I got married and he said, Shaman and get in the car. And talk about it was Syracuse. Freezing. And I am a real sweetaholic. And he's like, get in the car. We're going to go down to Chittney. Home of the Yellowbrook Road, by the way. And the author of The Wizard of Oz. Um, and he goes, We're gonna go to the bakery there and we're gonna get some headlights. Now, I don't know if you know what headlights are, but they're donuts with chocolate and then white. So they're called headlights, just like like headlights. Okay, I now need to know what a headlight is like. He's like, Sharon, I want to tell you something. I think I was I was on SL. I was like 29, 30. And he says, There's a real vocation for single people, which by the way, I completely believe me, I said, my Aunt Hazel or the most beautiful life, single. And I said, You don't want to take me for headlights. You want to take me to tell me I'm gonna be single. And he said, Your mother tells me that you really found a fellow that you like. That's my that was Peter. Now listen, he said, You really like him? I said, Yes. He said, Well then you might want to hide your real personality for at least three weeks. Which is highly insulting, but I did it and it worked. And it worked, even worse. But then I got so bored pretending I was sh- I was like, oh, really? Oh, that's interesting. Huh? And then I was like, this is so boring, I can't take it. And then one day I told him, I don't know, he was on the rugby team, he's like, Yeah, we were out, we were doing that's stupid. Why don't you get some better little you know sense to say like tall like act like I was? But anyway, I love that. How long have y'all been married? Oh my gosh. Okay, so two.

unknown 27:01

Three.

SPEAKER_01 27:02

Oh, it's gonna be 34 years. 34 years. How many children, Siobhan? Three. So Bernadette is a newscaster in New York City. She's on um, she's on New York one. She covers like the governor and the insanity. My son Peter is an actor and a producer, but he works on SNL for his day job. And then my um daughter uh Sinead is in acting school at Lee Strasbourg.

SPEAKER_00 27:28

And she's the one that's in the play with you that you wrote.

SPEAKER_01 27:31

That's right.

SPEAKER_00 27:31

When did you when did you start writing um movies and plays and things of that nature? I mean, because I'm guessing you started out doing improv. Yes. Started doing Saturday Night Live and and film, but when did you start saying, you know what, I'm actually a different type of creative. I can write. This is what happened.

SPEAKER_01 27:48

I was in New York City, desperado, working as a receptionist in a law firm because all I could do was answer your phones. Like, I was a horrible waitress, it was terrible at everything. And I was ready, my father kept saying, Why don't you come back up to Syracuse and you can start a dinner theater and or go to law school? And I was like, um, maybe because my SATs couldn't even get me in anywhere. How am I gonna do it? Amen. Same. Anyway, so um I was ready to quit, and I used to always get kids from Catholic U jobs at this law firm. And I really believe what goes wrong comes wrong. And this one girl was like, Shuman, there's an audition for this improv group. So I auditioned and it was very, very popular. There used to be lines around the block. I used to put on Michael Jackson's I'm looking at that man in the mirror every night in my walkman walk down. I'm looking at that and I was like, I've made it. Make 10 bucks a night. Anyway, so this guy said to me, You should write a one-person show. And I was like, Oh, I never even would have thought of it, really. And so I did. So I wrote all the parts, I did like 10 different characters that I would love to play, but no one would cast me in. Because I was like in my late 20s, and people would say, You're gonna work it when you're 40, because you're my voice was really deep, my hair was like insane, I was like weird looking. And they're like, Don't worry, you and I was like, 40? Like that seems like an eternity when you're like 27, 28. I was like, what?

SPEAKER_03 29:06

Right.

SPEAKER_01 29:07

So I wrote this one-person show, and that's how I got an SNL and on Seinfeld.

SPEAKER_00 29:12

Really? Yes. It was And you could write. And you found out, I mean, did you know you were a good writer before then?

SPEAKER_01 29:17

No, I was just desperate. And and and the guy mentioned it. So then what happened was so so I over the years, like say when I had kids and there was a little slump in my career, then I wrote a one-woman show about a mother, being a mother. And then when I moved out to New Jersey or New York City, my my kids all went to Catholic school, and I wrote something called the Salty C PTA because I was on the, you know, I was on the faith, and people would faith in action, they'd be like, um, we have meetings for the school, like during, you know, when during Vespers, like a lot of times the incense are not good for my son. So I'd be like, okay, so we're gonna stop doing that when we do them through thousands of years because you, or people be like, um, you know, it's not really fair that, you know, I cut up carrots for my kid every day and try to be healthy and celery. And then another kid has chocolate chip cookies. So I like literally did the show and just mocked everybody. It was either my my my my friend was like, okay, this is gonna go one or two ways. You're either gonna get run out of town or people are gonna think it's funny. And I was like, so I was backstage and the night was we were doing it at this big theater. So I'll sold out, and I my friend Peter's a director, and I go, I'm in this wig. I'm gonna come out, I come out dancing. It's so insane to she's a lady. Um, you know, um, Tom Jones. She's a lady there. And I'm like, it was absolutely insane. I'm supposed to be like this therapist giving advice. And it and I come, I go up to my friend, and I have this crazy wig on and my glasses, and I said, Oh, just got thinking about something. What if this doesn't work? And he said, It's too late now. And he walked away from me. So crazy.

SPEAKER_00 30:55

No, but that's brilliant. But that's kind of like I talk, um, one of the things that I do as a speaker is I talk about imposter syndrome. Oh. And I was gonna say, that's kind of like when you walk up and you're, you know, I don't know, have you ever gone through imposter syndrome when you're like what what exactly is that? It's when you have such self-doubt that you think that you are a fake. Like, like, let's say that you studied to be a surgeon, right? Right, right, right. And you walk in and here's this person laying on the table, and they give you a knife, and you look down and you go, What the hell? Like, why would they think I can do this? Like, who said I can do this? Oh, I'm not, but you can because you you're a trained surgeon. Or like when you're a mom and they put the baby in your hands, and like you can take it home now, and you're like, Who thought I could do this? Right. So you think you're a fake or a phony, and the other side of it is and you're afraid everyone else is gonna find out.

SPEAKER_01 31:47

Well, it's that's very interesting because back in the day when I was in my 20s, and and you know, of course you have that doubt, and you know, everyone's telling you're terrible, and you're not you never get you never get a job, and it's not going well. And um, so my friend gave me this book called Creative Visualization, which was by this woman, Shakti Gawain. I still recommend it. But I say if you you know, it's sort of that picturing and because I feel like the brain is really weak. And if you picture your future and then you add faith to that, it's like a great recipe. Because, you know, you can uh I mean it with a podcast. I was like, like I said to Jonathan Roomy, I go, the first thing I was like, so it's a podcast. So I guess I'm one of those people. What do you call it? He's like a podcaster. I'm like, okay, you know, so but but I have to say, like my mother was great. Like my father was really funny and like big personality, but my mother was really funny behind the scenes, like you know, most people that were in the family or weren't close, close friends wouldn't know, but but she was always like, What are you doing? And like, so if I did one person shows, she and my sister married the oldest. They said they would sit there and be like, Oh no, like they'd be like, come out and be like, Oh no, oh no, oh no. And then my mother would say to my sister, is it good? People laughing. Like he was in fear for me, which is so insulting. I I never really did have that imposter system, um, symptom too much, other than my early years, that my father, which I put in my one of my shows, so he said to me one time, I called him from a payphone in New York City, because I was doubting his advice. He was a he was a lawyer, and I was he was advising me to only sign a contract for a year with an agent. And I said, Dad, no, let me let me tell you something. Uh they want me to sign for three years. Sean, are you listening to me? And I and he said, You know what's wrong, you? You're a thesbian and you have unearned effervescence. You're like a thesbian who doesn't listen, and you got unearned effervescence and you don't get it. Click.

SPEAKER_00 34:04

And did you say, Dad, I'm Catholic? I can't be a thesbian. I'm just kidding.

SPEAKER_01 34:14

But he was like, What's with you? Another time he came down to New York, and I had done this off, off, off, off, off, off, off Broadway, like in a baseball unit experience. Connecticut. It was in Rhode Island. It was like in the basement of speaking of Rhode Island, okay, you're not right. So it was the basement of a church, it was a it was like a musical review, and my song was You Come from Rhode Island. I don't know if you know that. And that was a 1920s bathing suit. I was like, You, you come from Rhode Island, and little old Rhode Island is famous for you. I did it. I cause I can't remember the whole song, but we went out to dinner afterwards. The Luxembourg Cafe, it's still there. My mother, my sister, and my poor sister Megan was always dragging along because she was youngest. And my father was twirling a fork, staring like this, staring wow. Talking to the people at the next table, sat talking to us, and I go, What is wrong with you? Why are you talking to everybody else and twirling your fork like that?

SPEAKER_02 35:05

And he said, You want to know why? I go away. He said, This is what you want to do with your rest of your life. Sing songs about Rhode Island in the basement of a Unitarian church. Is that what you want to do? I go, Yeah, that's what I want to do.

SPEAKER_00 35:19

That's exactly what I want to do. It's my whole dream. It's my entire dream. That's all I ever. It's on my dream board. That's right.

SPEAKER_01 35:26

Right back at him. And then when when like I got an SNL stuff, you're like, Sean, um, listen to where the knights of Columbus want you to come and speak. I'm sure a hibernial. Oh, and it was like, oh yeah, you're all over it now. Sure, I get a little airtime.

SPEAKER_00 35:40

And then I was like, hey, you want to be glam on now, Dad. I love that. That's so fantastic. Well, so here we this is perfect, Siobhan, because now you've transitioned into this open space where a dinosaur. Into a dinosaur. No, but you you've always been this Catholic entertainer. Well, no, an entertainer that's Catholic. But now you're kind of transitioning into a Catholic entertainer with this this new podcast. Like, what made you decide to go like Catholic forward? Does that make sense? Like, what made you decide to kind of go into EWTN zone? It's a little different from Hollywood in New York. Yeah. They're in Alabama.

unknown 36:22

I didn't decide.

SPEAKER_01 36:24

They decided. So I was like, well, you guys are better than me, so whatever you say. No, so this is what happened. I wrote the movie Shelter in Solitude, Deacon Charlie Achevry. Do you know Deacon Charlie? No, but Claire does. And Claire's my friend that's your friend, and she loves Deacon Charlie. And he's very instrumental in the reason why Catholics are coming together. He's bringing all these people together. Brilliant. And I had done this movie and he saw it and he liked it. And so then he then I put on the reading of my play in New York with Patty Heaton and Mark Cullen, everybody, Lila Robbins and my daughter, blah, blah, blah. And of course, the devil. There's a mah, this is two years ago. There was a massive snowstorm the night before. So the guy playing the freeze was a great actor, couldn't come, whatever. He comes Charlie Havre. He's like, I love this. EW. Do you have a recording of it? I said, yes. As a matter of fact, we had someone record. And they said, EWTN, they've got to see this. So that's when they saw it, and that's when they said, bring it to Napa. And then at Napa, as you can see, I have a little problem stopping talking. You're like, okay, you're like, this is called the living room, but it's not the entire mansion. We're gonna have to end this soon. So you're doing great. So um when you were out there, like I went with my sister Megan, and we got off the plane, like two dirt bags, you know, some, you know, Syracuse, it was summer, and we pull up, and everybody's all fancy, and they got blue. They're all beautiful. Yeah. It's all beautiful, and everyone's like, And everyone has wine. Yes. Yeah, it's like these beautiful colleges and very sophisticated people, and we look like, you know, yeah, the two day old clothes, and I said to Megan, we're gonna rock this place. And she's like, What? And you did. These are our people. And then I went up to the tables and I said, I know we don't look good, but we clean up nice. So anyway, so you know, the point is that I had a great time out there. And it was just like freshman year in college, only like you're adults. Like, hey, what do you do enough for orientation? Are you going to such and such a talk? Yes. And it was really awesome. And like, what time do you go to dinner? And it was, it was just people that related and got your humor. So Peter Gagnon was like, Shawnee, what would you think of doing a podcast for EWTN? I was like, what do you mean? Well, what would it be about? And and and my sister be is like, stay in your lane. Just talk to people. Don't try to be, don't try to be smart. Don't try to be a theologian. I was like, watch up. Um, anyway, so then, you know, my son and my daughter, and we're we all talked about it, and they said, I said, well, I should just talk to Catholic celebrities and and religious, mix it all in so we can, you know, and talk about how great it is to be Catholic. And and then my son came up with the name. Oh, how cute!

SPEAKER_00 39:05

I love that. Yeah. I love that you thought of that. And so this all came out of Napa. Are you going back to Napa this summer? I am. They asked me to be, they asked me to be the uh MC.

SPEAKER_01 39:14

They just called me the other day. Uh I was actually at my church, this Italian dinner that I made the church at because after COVID, it the church was kind of dying. And so I said, You gotta have Italian dinner. And then I ended up getting a job and I had to leave. So I got all my friends to do it, and then they were like, that was actually like, thanks. And I was in Italy and I kept calling my husband who was in charge of music, and he's he's in New York and he's like, Can you not? Can you I'm like, Oh, I'll call back, can you stop? I call that. He goes so somebody else called me from they go, Sean, every time you call the Italian, the the Frank Sinatra goes out. So anyway, this year I was just at it again because I figured I better go this time. And I'm standing like with eighth graders handing out like pasta, which is my favorite thing to me with eighth graders because that's about where I'm at with my humor. And I'm like, anyway, and then they called and they said, Mark Morlane had called. They said, Sean, would you be the MC at the arts part of the Brilliant? I was like, Yeah, yes, it's so fun. Yes, good, so inspiring and so faithful, and you know, you learn a lot from people.

SPEAKER_00 40:19

It's neat. I was just I was in um, I was just in Santa Barbara last weekend, and David Henry was there, and we were talking, and he he's now the chair for the art festival for NAVA, which is so fantastic. So it's so neat. Like, I I this all makes sense now, Siobhan. How your parallel playing. Well, you can't believe this, Liv. Okay, so I I met David Henry last summer.

SPEAKER_01 40:43

He's lovely. Lovely, lovely. And we actually did the first two podcasts out there. We did it with David and with Patty Heaton. And that night I see David like, oh hi. And his wife comes over to me and she says, I think you might have hung out with my dad a lot in college.

SPEAKER_02 41:01

And I'm like, uh-oh, this could this could blow my cover.

SPEAKER_01 41:05

And I said, Who's your dad? She goes, I think you used to go to a lot of keg parties together. I was like, Whoa, keep it on the DL for an apple. Try to look trying to look sophisticated. And I said, Who's your dad? And she said, John Cahale. And I go, that's the absolute truth.

SPEAKER_00 41:21

Crazy. That's crazy. I know. That's wait, where'd you go to college? Lemoyne College in Syracuse. Oh, how crazy is that? Maria's she's pregnant with their um I d yes. Who just is it their fourth?

unknown 41:37

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 41:38

Yes. Yes, yes, yes. It is their fourth. Told me that. Yeah, amazing. Because we got to see her little baby bump. She can't hide it, you know.

SPEAKER_01 41:46

So I also speaking of which, do you know the people from Coronation Media? Gary Gibbs and Bill Phillips? No, I don't. Well, from Napa, they just did a film in Guatemala. I don't know if anybody's ever been there.

SPEAKER_00 41:59

Oh, yes. No, no, no. I do know. Yes, Dan is the is the director. Who's the director? Gary Gassy's the director. Okay, Gary, Gary's the director. Yes. It's okay. No, Gary, if Gary is listening to this podcast, he's gonna be so mad because I said his name wrong. You can edit. I've learned this. Okay. Oh, do I do know the director? It's Gary.

SPEAKER_01 42:21

It's exactly Gary Gassy. He's the best. So he's the best. So I met them at Napa, and um down to Guatemala I go to play the Methodist missionary from Kansas. It's all true about Father Stanley Rother. Yes. The Mayan. Okay, so this experience. Everyone's got to go to Guatemala.

SPEAKER_00 42:40

It's phenomenal. Have you been? Yes. And you know Emily Blainsdell. Uh Emily was became friends. Yes, she's lovely. I now work with her. Like I hired her company. Love her. She's fantastic. And I was there for a Catholic women's retreat in Guatemala. You need to come on our Catholic women's retreat. We'll take this. Well, you know what we'll do? We'll take the Catholic cruise. Yes. Would you mind dropping us off in Guatemala? Not a problem. We can we can arrange that. You, me, Harry Conick Jr. 100%. We gotta get people to go on Emily's Blesdell's.

SPEAKER_01 43:13

Am I saying her last name correctly?

SPEAKER_00 43:15

I don't know. I say it that way. I say it that way.

SPEAKER_01 43:17

She she has these amazing Catholic women's retreats down there. And I met her because of that. And she took me to the orphanage there. Yes, I want to go so badly. But the but the town where we filmed The Shepherd, which will be out next fall, it's amazing. About Father Stanley Rother. Oh, I can't wait. The people go to Mass every night for two and a half hours. The entire town. Are you serious? Culture. The women are dressed as they're poor as church mice. They're in uh weaved skirts that they make on their loaves, beautifully embroidered, hair done fabulous, with such dignity, fantastic, and they go to mass for two and a half hours every night. I love it.

SPEAKER_00 43:57

So amazing. I love that. That's so fantastic. You come home and you're like, Hallelujah. Wow. That yeah, you're like, I don't really believe in God, I don't think, because I'm not doing it. I'm doing it the wrong way. Yeah. That's too funny. Siobhan, what um, let me ask you one last thing. Um, what can we do? Like, as people who are listening out there, okay. You have this brand new podcast, you have all these other projects that are going on, you have Napa. Now you're Napa girl.

SPEAKER_01 44:27

Okay, you uh exactly how to watch this because a lot of people had some confusion with this EWPN Plus is the new EWTN offshoot my sister gave me how to watch. Now I just threw my glasses on the floor, so yeah.

SPEAKER_00 44:42

Had to go below deck. We'll tag it.

SPEAKER_01 44:44

We'll put it on here for how people can win EWTN Plus on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon. Anyway, you gotta tag it. So, okay, you can all the things. And then when when movies come out like Sola Mio, which is Kevin James, which is that looks so great. Respectfully Catholic, The Shepherd, we've got to support these. Broken Mary, um, Triumph of the Heart. We have to support each other and get people to go to these because in order for people to make them again, if you're Catholic or not, they have to make money. Right. Oh Shelter in Solitude, my movies, rushed on Amazon. They're both on Amazon. We have to support each other so we can do more of them.

SPEAKER_00 45:21

So can we so would that be a specific prayer that you would want people because I want people to pray for you in the best way that they can support, would that be what would be the most helpful?

SPEAKER_01 45:30

Yes. Please pray that as a Catholic, I can continue to spread the word and do works that represent uh us Catholics in the best way, and um let the young people know that there's a great space for them and come on in. The entertainment field needs us Catholics to shout it out from the highest mouth. Absolutely.