BILLY: THE EARLY YEARS

The movie BILLY: THE EARLY YEARS is coming out on October 10th. Having worked with the producers just a little early on during the filming back in April (see earlier posts), I'm more than a little surprised at the reaction of Franklin Graham to the movie as reported by The Charlotte Observer and Christianity Today. Apparently, at least one of Franklin's sisters disagrees with his assessment.
I was impressed with how closely the movie's script sticks to the facts of Dr. Graham's life story. I think we all knew that there would be some license taken, after all it's a movie, not a biographical book or documentary. For instance, I don't know if it will survive editing, but the scene portraying radio station WMBI in Chicago (where Billy first heard and came to meet Bev Shea) is a little one-room, red building pictured here. Anybody who knows WMBI's studios in downtown Chicago will laugh at this, but it does nothing to take away from the story.
Likewise, the objectionable examples raised by Franklin Graham, in my opinion, are minor and do not affect a very powerful story line. I appreciate the care and respect that was shown by the writers, producers, director, and cast of BILLY: THE EARLY YEARS.
My complete interview with writer/producer Bill McKay, which addresses this and many other issues, is posted here. It's cut #16 on the list and can be downloaded.