Matt Stone And Trey Parker To Mediaite: Romney Would Really Like Book Of Mormon

by Mark Joyella | 12:04 pm, June 8th, 2011

» 58 comments

As Newsweek reports in its somewhat controversial (at least in Salt Lake City) Mitt Romney cover story, Mormons are “having a moment.” How’s that? According to Newsweek, suddenly Mormons are in key positions all over the place, from Glenn Beck (even though he’s moving out of his high profile spot on Fox and into a far-less-certain future on the web) to Romney’s emergence as an early frontrunner for the GOP nomination–and, some argue, the White House–and then there’s the musical. “Even Broadway has gotten in on the act, giving us The Book of Mormon, a big-budget musical about Mormon missionaries by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone and Avenue Q writer Robert Lopez that, with 14 nominations, is expected to clean up at the Tony Awards on June 12.”

Mediaite spoke exclusively with Parker, Stone and Lopez about the show, Romney, and Glenn Beck–a fan of Broadway who the creators hoped from the start would come out and enjoy the show. “I know Glenn Beck is a Mormon. And he loves Spiderman, said Stone. “I believe Glenn Beck would like our musical. I really believe that. He could draw a flowchart on the chalkboard.”

Stone and Lopez said the show was never intended to mock Mormons, but rather to use Mormonism as the setting for a great story. “To make a musical where we’re just going to make fun of Mormons, that doesn’t sound very fun,” said Stone. “We’re definitely going to have fun at their expense, but at the end of the day, their generosity and big-heartedness wins the day. I think Mormons are going to really like this show.”

While the Newsweek cover–which was produced with the cooperation of Book of Mormon–has sparked criticism, with National Review saying the cover “makes the GOP frontrunner look like a lunatic,” others have seen the show as a sign of acceptance. “It was wonderfully clever,” said Bob Nelson, a theater professor–and practicing Mormon–at the University of Utah. “It was witty. It was also one of the most vulgar theatrical experiences I’ve ever had. I was wincing at the same time I was laughing,” he told The Salt Lake Tribune.

And that’s fine with the guys who created South Park and Avenue Q. “The only way they wouldn’t like it, is if they don’t see it,” Lopez told Mediaite. “If Mitt Romney came and saw the show, he would really like it,” added Stone, though he doesn’t expect the candidate to take time out from the campaign trail to catch the musical. Beck, on the other hand, just might. Even if the creators of the show admit they don’t watch Beck’s show or much of any cable news at all. “I don’t really watch a lot of that stuff,” said Stone. “Maybe I watch The Daily Show and see what was on cable news.”

Book of Mormon, Mitt Romney, Newsweek

tatboy

While the Newsweek cover–which was produced with the cooperation of Book of Mormon–has sparked criticism, with National Review said the cover “makes the GOP frontrunner look like a lunatic,”

It’s NEWSWEEK… they will do what they can to take down the biggest threat to THEIR prez.
http://www.perceptionasreality.blogspot.com/ skoorbekim

TP & MS know firsthand that it’s safer to make fun of certain religions over others…
lonestar77

The double standards from the left, particularly the left-wing media, are beyond egregious.
tatboy

skoorbekim said:
TP & MS know firsthand that it’s safer to make fun of certain religions over others…

See Family Guy trilogy episode……
http://www.facebook.com/people/Carl-Emmoth/624241688 Carl Emmoth

Hello,

the broadway show will of course be a big satire of Mormons but it might be so twisted, even Mormons recognize it as not being about mormons but about a great story (as said in article).
Just4thefax

Fact: I’m glad Romney is the preseason team MSM favorite.
mmars

Since when is this man running as a Morman? He is not basing his candidacy on his personal faith. Are you putting Keith Ellison on a prayer rug on your cover? Are you putting Pelosi on the cover as the Pope? What disgusting journalism Newsweek has!!!!
valkyrie101

mmars said:
Since when is this man running as a Morman? He is not basing his candidacy on his personal faith. Are you putting Keith Ellison on a prayer rug on your cover? Are you putting Pelosi on the cover as the Pope? What disgusting journalism Newsweek has!!!!

I think we recently crossed the line and we now pay attention to what our politicians do or do not believe religiously. If Obama is forced to dissavow religious speeches (that he did not even attend) by his church minister, to confirm that he does not believe as Jeremiah Wright does, shouldn’t Romney have to confirm that he does not believe Mormon prophesy that states America will crash and bur?. How could any of us vote for someone who maintains an underground bunker stocked with last days survival gear?
cjd ohio 1

valkyrie101 said:
I ?. How could any of us vote for someone who maintains an underground bunker stocked with last days survival gear?

like the U.S. government maintains?
valkyrie101

cjd ohio 1 said:
like the U.S. government maintains?

If you are a presidential candidate and you are planning for the last days with survival gear in your basement, I do not want you being my president
valkyrie101

cjd ohio 1 said:
like the U.S. government maintains?

Yes, in case of nuclear catastrophy not the advent of locusts.
cjd ohio 1

valkyrie101 said:
If you are a presidential candidate and you are planning for the last days with survival gear in your basement, I do not want you being my president

but you want a government that plans for the last days?
cjd ohio 1

valkyrie101 said:
Yes, in case of nuclear catastrophy not the advent of locusts.

so just for nuclear, not disease, asteroid, plague, climate change lol
valkyrie101

cjd ohio 1 said:
but you want a government that plans for the last days?

Last days?
Moderate

Newsweek is the print version of MSNBC, their only function is as a mouthpiece for the Democratic Party.
cjd ohio 1

valkyrie101 said:
Last days?

yeah, the break down of society, millions dead…….in the event of a disaster
valkyrie101

cjd ohio 1 said:
so just for nuclear, not disease, asteroid, plague, climate change lol

Yes, for rational causes. But if Romney is a Mormon true believer, and he believes the prophesies of the Mormon prophets which say in the end America is going to melt down, with roving bands of undead roming the streets, and NYC, Albany, the east coast cities? A wasteland of physical destruction. Apparently only those who are prepared with stockpiles of weapons (to ward off scavengers who did not prepare), and enough food to last the onslaught will survive. In other words, Glenn Beck’s vision for our future. Of course in the end all the Mormon true believers are ressurected to Heaven and everyone else goes to the nether gloom. Why should I not believe that Romney will finally seek to fullfill Mormon prophesy? I mean Glenn wants not to extend the debt ceiling, even though some economists predict dire world wide consequences, and then he predicts the end is near in the same breath. His reputation is on the line, the world just must collapse. Romney needs to clearly and decisively dissavow any aspect of Mormon teaching that suggests America must melt down. And I want to hear that he is removing his supply of last days seeds from his bunker.
mmars

You just keep hoping for that valkyrie. I’m sure he will do that just for you. lol
valkyrie101

cjd ohio 1 said:
yeah, the break down of society, millions dead…….in the event of a disaster

Yes, you just described the Mormon view of America’s future and I want to hear Romney dissavow that vision.
valkyrie101

mmars said:
You just keep hoping for that valkyrie. I’m sure he will do that just for you. lol

I like Romney the best of all the republican candidates, but I liked him better when he was more moderate. If he did not error by moving so far right, he would be in the driver’s seat right now, with the right wing candidates cancelling each other out.
Nature Freak

I am not a Romney “hater” by any means, would prefer Mitt over Sarah any day, but I have to admit The Latter Day Saints i find to be kind of out there in regards to certain aspects of their faith. And Romney comes from a long ling of mormons going back to the days of J. Smith and B. Young. Romney is immersed in it. If he gets the nomination he will have to deal with this issue.

As for Huntsman, I still need to find out the particulars, but I do not think he is heavily invested in the church and I
am not sure all his family members belong. If Huntsman somehow got the nomination (and if he did it would help me renew my faith in the sanity of this country) he will still have to deal with this issue but a little less.
TucsonTerpFan

I can’t wait for the show’s producers next Broadway production: “Kickin Back with the Koran.”

I hope it does not “bomb” or inspire any bombings!

I’m sure it will be a smash and also be featured on the cover of “Newspeak.” (“Quick, Mo, aim plane for that theater, Allah…!”)
Nature Freak

valkyrie101 said:
I like Romney the best of all the republican candidates, but I liked him better when he was more moderate. If he did not error by moving so far right, he would be in the driver’s seat right now, with the right wing candidates cancelling each other out.

If Huntsman is truly a moderate, as long as the senate stays in Democratic hands I could deal with it. Romney at this point is more of a question mark as he was until recently doing a lot of pandering to the far right.

My deep fears involve Bachman, Santorum the frothy, the Pizza dude, and obviously Sarah Palin.
The Voice of Reason

Wow two people-_-

You better watch out Newsweeks the Mormans are taking over!
Nature Freak

Nature Freak said:
If Huntsman is truly a moderate, as long as the senate stays in Democratic hands I could deal with it. Romney at this point is more of a question mark as he was until recently doing a lot of pandering to the far right.

My deep fears involve Bachman, Santorum the frothy, the Pizza dude, and obviously Sarah Palin.

If Sarah wins it is the equivalent of America playing Russian roulette, you know she probably won’t win, but there is always a slight chance and it isn’t worth it to play.
Nature Freak

Nature Freak said:
If Sarah wins it is the equivalent of America playing Russian roulette, you know she probably won’t win, but there is always a slight chance and it isn’t worth it to play.

If Sarah wins the republican nomination

fixed it
valkyrie101

Nature Freak said:
If Sarah wins it is the equivalent of America playing Russian roulette, you know she probably won’t win, but there is always a slight chance and it isn’t worth it to play.

If she runs it will likely be as a third party candidate, and there is no chance of her winning under those circumstances.
redleaf

tatboy said:
While the Newsweek cover–which was produced with the cooperation of Book of Mormon–has sparked criticism, with National Review said the cover “makes the GOP frontrunner look like a lunatic,”

It’s NEWSWEEK… they will do what they can to take down the biggest threat to THEIR prez.

Honestly, you people are so condition to hate anything that’s not Fox News.
The guy is on the cover of Newsweek. The headline says “HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES WINNERS.”
WINNERS!!
Not “HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES LOSERS.”

I mean, can’t you step back from you knee-jerk hatred for one second and not spin yourself into the ground trying to find liberal, blah blah, mainstream media biah blah, Rush, Sean, Sean, Rush?
mmars

redleaf: they are really just trying to make his candidacy another religious one. He is not basing his run on his religion. If he were, then the connection would be legitimate. Since he is not the Newsweek cover is malicious.
valkyrie101

mmars said:
redleaf: they are really just trying to make his candidacy another religious one. He is not basing his run on his religion. If he were, then the connection would be legitimate. Since he is not the Newsweek cover is malicious.

It is not Newsweek that Romney will have a problem with, it is Huck and evangelicals who do not like Mormons.
mmars

Exactly my point! They are trying to generate an issue.
ProgLib

I want to know if he really believes that the founder of this cult met an actual angel in upstate New York in the 19th century (not terribly long ago historically), who showed him some magic invisible golden plates that came straight from god.

If you truly believe this not only should you not be president, you should have your head examined.
valkyrie101

ProgLib said:
I want to know if he really believes that the founder of this cult met an actual angel in upstate New York in the 19th century (not terribly long ago historically), who showed him some magic invisible golden plates that came straight from god. If you truly believe this not only should you not be president, you should have your head examined.

I’m good with the tablets, but they predict the demise of my beloved Albany.
tatboy

redleaf said:
Honestly, you people are so condition to hate anything that’s not Fox News.The guy is on the cover of Newsweek. The headline says “HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES WINNERS.”WINNERS!!Not “HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES LOSERS.” I mean, can’t you step back from you knee-jerk hatred for one second and not spin yourself into the ground trying to find liberal, blah blah, mainstream media biah blah, Rush, Sean, Sean, Rush?

So it is your claim that Newsweek is “down the middle”?
tatboy

redleaf said:
Honestly, you people are so condition to hate anything that’s not Fox News.The guy is on the cover of Newsweek. The headline says “HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES WINNERS.”WINNERS!!Not “HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES LOSERS.” I mean, can’t you step back from you knee-jerk hatred for one second and not spin yourself into the ground trying to find liberal, blah blah, mainstream media biah blah, Rush, Sean, Sean, Rush?

PS… I don’t watch Fox News. BBC maybe. But I tend to aviod TeeVee for my info.
ProgLib

valkyrie101 said:
I’m good with the tablets, but they predict the demise of my beloved Albany.

I wouldn’t worry.
redleaf

tatboy said:
So it is your claim that Newsweek is “down the middle”?

I was not making a claim about the objectivity or political orientation of Newsweek or its employees. I was saying that certain people are so conditioned to find political bias in everything, that they can take the headline HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES WINNERS and think it’s a liberal agenda-driven slam against the GOP.

I mean, what goes through these people’s minds? Are they just totally brainwashed? I would love to know.
seek

valkyrie101 said:
It is not Newsweek that Romney will have a problem with, it is Huck and evangelicals who do not like Mormons.

balderdash. Just something the left is trying to generate.
bitterclinger

I find it absolutely amazing that Romney is getting as much support from conservatives as he is. The guy is a grade A flip-flopper….. he recently said that global warming is real and humans cause it. I can’t believe that after seeing the mega-mistake that was made in 08 that there are this many conservatives who evidently have their collective heads up their collective butts.
Nachi

Tis time to slip into your “garments” – and fasten your seat-belts for the religious ride.
valkyrie101

seek said:
balderdash. Just something the left is trying to generate.

Huck’s dislike for Romney and LDS are well known.
LAPhil

valkyrie101 said:
If she runs it will likely be as a third party candidate, and there is no chance of her winning under those circumstances.

And let’s hope the hell that doesn’t happen. The one thing we don’t in this next election is a spoiler which will guarantee Obama will be re-elected.
valkyrie101

LAPhil said:
And let’s hope the hell that doesn’t happen. The one thing we don’t in this next election is a spoiler which will guarantee Obama will be re-elected.

Not just Obama.
LAPhil

valkyrie101 said:
Yes, for rational causes. But if Romney is a Mormon true believer, and he believes the prophesies of the Mormon prophets which say in the end America is going to melt down, with roving bands of undead roming the streets, and NYC, Albany, the east coast cities? A wasteland of physical destruction. Apparently only those who are prepared with stockpiles of weapons (to ward off scavengers who did not prepare), and enough food to last the onslaught will survive. In other words, Glenn Beck’s vision for our future. Of course in the end all the Mormon true believers are ressurected to Heaven and everyone else goes to the nether gloom. Why should I not believe that Romney will finally seek to fullfill Mormon prophesy? I mean Glenn wants not to extend the debt ceiling, even though some economists predict dire world wide consequences, and then he predicts the end is near in the same breath. His reputation is on the line, the world just must collapse. Romney needs to clearly and decisively dissavow any aspect of Mormon teaching that suggests America must melt down. And I want to hear that he is removing his supply of last days seeds from his bunker.

You don’t seriously believe Romney believes all that, do you? So far you’re the only person I’ve heard raise that concern about him. There were people who thought JFK’s Catholicism would get in the way of his presidency too, but that didn’t happen, did it?
LAPhil

valkyrie101 said:
Not just Obama.

What do you mean, not just Obama?
valkyrie101

LAPhil said:
You don’t seriously believe Romney believes all that, do you? So far you’re the only person I’ve heard raise that concern about him. There were people who thought JFK’s Catholicism would get in the way of his presidency too, but that didn’t happen, did it?

No I do not believe Romney believes that stuff. I just want him to assure me that he doesn’t. JFK also had to confront his religious ties before the majority of people felt comfortable voting for him.
valkyrie101

LAPhil said:
What do you mean, not just Obama?

If the tea party goes third party there will be many races just like the recent upstate New York race where the third party took enough votes from the republicans to cause a democrat to win in a traditional republican district.
LAPhil

valkyrie101 said:
No I do not believe Romney believes that stuff. I just want him to assure me that he doesn’t. JFK also had to confront his religious ties before the majority of people felt comfortable voting for him.

If memory serves me correctly, Romney did do something to that effect when he ran in 2008.
tatboy

redleaf said:
I was not making a claim about the objectivity or political orientation of Newsweek or its employees. I was saying that certain people are so conditioned to find political bias in everything, that they can take the headline HOW THE OUTSIDER FAITH CREATES WINNERS and think it’s a liberal agenda-driven slam against the GOP. I mean, what goes through these people’s minds? Are they just totally brainwashed? I would love to know.

Some are yes… I’m not as kneejerk as you make me out to be. I just know who writes for Newsweek.
redleaf

tatboy said:
Some are yes… I’m not as kneejerk as you make me out to be. I just know who writes for Newsweek.

Fair enough. But everybody has a political opinion. Everybody. No exceptions. That includes plumbers, baseball players, cable repairmen and journalists. When you’re a journalist, you train yourself to put those biases aside because your first charge is to the truth. Just because you work for a particular outlet doesn’t mean you cannot fulfill that charge.

In the cable and internet era, when targeting a very specific demographic (evangelicals, socialists, war mongering conservatives and pot smoking liberals) can result in great success, one must look long and hard to find an outlet that cares only about reporting the news. MSNBC and Fox are, institutionally, not interested in objectively reporting the news. I would consider Newsweek/Daily Beast an outlet of overwhelmingly liberal opinion columnists, but whose general-interest news reporting and linkage (yesterday they linked to Stars and Stripes magazine, hardly a liberal mouthpiece) is fairly straight forward.
tatboy

redleaf said:
MSNBC and Fox are, institutionally, not interested in objectively reporting the news.

TRUTH!!!
valkyrie101

LAPhil said:
If memory serves me correctly, Romney did do something to that effect when he ran in 2008.

Not nearly enough.
Nacho

mmars said:
Since when is this man running as a Morman? He is not basing his candidacy on his personal faith.

Tell that to the right.
http://www.harropson.com WHarropson

Is that really a newsweek cover or is it a MAD MAGAZINE parody?. What a classy operation it has evolved into.
Just4thefax

Fact: Mitt might be to busy pushing the global warming alarm.
redleaf

Just4thefax said:
Fact: Mitt might be to busy pushing the global warming alarm.

Do you have Fact: as a cut-and-paste, so when you decide which story should benefit from your childish wisdom, you can begin your post with just two keystrokes? Here are some other cut and paste jobs you should consider utilizing:

Not a fact:
My opinion:
Another Angry Neanderthal Post:
My Favorite Political Radio Host Commanded Me To Have the Following Opinion:

I think you can program the F-keys for each of these options.
You’re welcome in advance.

OH PLEASE RESPOND TO THIS POST WITH “FACT:”
LIVE THE DREAM!
JasonMays

Nature Freak said:
I am not a Romney “hater” by any means, would prefer Mitt over Sarah any day, but I have to admit The Latter Day Saints i find to be kind of out there in regards to certain aspects of their faith. And Romney comes from a long ling of mormons going back to the days of J. Smith and B. Young. Romney is immersed in it. If he gets the nomination he will have to deal with this issue. As for Huntsman, I still need to find out the particulars, but I do not think he is heavily invested in the church and Iam not sure all his family members belong. If Huntsman somehow got the nomination (and if he did it would help me renew my faith in the sanity of this country) he will still have to deal with this issue but a little less.

You sir, just displayed religious bigotry.

This from the idiots who bend over backwards to defend every muslim piece of crap on earth.

AHHHH!!!! MORMONS!!!!!
Hcafaculty

Just saw where the soldiers can’t “fart” now in Afgahnaistan as it’s incredibly offensive to Muslims……yet on TV, in battle, on the radio, in boot camp, anyone can yell “Jesus Christ” AND they even sometimes say “Jesus f’n Christ” in movies and that is incredibly offensive to Christians but no one says a word, or cares, because that’s fair game. Madonna did her black Jesus thing – I wonder if she would ever do a white mohammed thing? Never