Can A Jewish Buffoon Save A Scientologist's Name?
WINNING CONVERTS
Why Tom Cruise Is Counting On Les Grossman: Can A Faux Jewish Buffoon Save This Scientologist's Name?
TOM CRUISE PROBABLY RECRUITED A COUPLE HUNDRED NEW CONVERTS TO SCIENTOLOGY WITH HIS spankin' dance party with J.Lo at last night's MTV Movie Awards.
America has a complicated relationship with Tom, who dominated at the box office for two decades with hits like Top Gun, Risky Business, Rain Man and Jerry MacGuire. But that relationship soured after his carefully crafted public image began to crack.
He dissed Brooke Shields for using anti-depressants to treat postpartum depression, then dissed Matt Lauer as being "glib" when he questioned his comments. The country then delivered a counterpunch, morphing Tom's declaration of love for Katie Holmes on Oprah's couch into a favorite Internet meme.
On top of all this, Cruise's role as figurehead for the spooky Church of Scientology is a perpetual public relations mine field.
Yet, through clenched teeth, Tom keeps smiling. And one of the smartest things he's done is turn the fun on himself when he appeared as out-of-control Hollywood producer Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder. The Top Gun made himself the target, once again endearing him to us. As MTV's Natalie Finn wrote : "We've never liked Cruise ...as much as we do right now."
Cruise teased last night that American might get to see more of the ribald and bald Jewish character in a movie of his own. "We're working on it, yup, we're working on it," he told MTV last night.
Will a Les Grossman make us love Tom again? Let me know your thoughts.
Tags: Film , Television
