Hughes C.D. Cheryl: Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Convert Maker

Venerable Fulton J. Sheen was one of the greatest spiritual leaders—and entertainers—in America’s tumultuous twentieth century. His television shows, for which he eventually won an Emmy Award, reached millions of viewers, and in the 1950s and ‘60s, “Fulton Sheen” was a household name.  But his greatest gift was in finding lost sheep. Through his thought, wit, and compassion, many thousands of people likely entered the Church, from all walks of life. Among them were jazz legend Ada “Bricktop” Smith, journalist Heywood Broun, Communist activist Louis Budenz, U.S. Congresswoman Clare Boothe Luce, spy Elizabeth Bentley, composer Fritz Kreisler, Communist Bella Dodd, and Hollywood starlet Virginia Mayo.  This in-depth work by historian Cheryl C. D. Hughes lets readers inhabit the postwar America where Bishop Fulton Sheen thrived, in order to reveal what made him such a magnetic figure in his own era. It peers into the complex lives of the celebrities and fallen stars who saw in the warm, br