If you’re under 50, you may not recognize the name Pat Boone. Consider this: For most of the latter half of the 20th century, there wasn’t a person in America who didn’t know who Mr. Boone was and what he stood for. He was the All-American; the kid in the white buck shoes; the clean-cut alternative to early rock-’n’-rollers like Elvis Presley, Little Richard and Chuck Berry; the star of a dozen Hollywood movies, none of which contained anything resembling profanity, social subversion or a love scene. Life magazine put Mr. Boone on its cover in February 1959, dubbing him “The Million-Dollar Idol of U.S. Teen-Agers.” The country was different in those days. “Back then being the All-American kid was popular, and being a family guy was popular, going to church was popular, and all of that was OK,” he says during a recent interview in his memorabilia-filled office on the Sunset Strip. At 88, Mr. Boone is spry and sharp and, despite our presence in the godless wilds of La La Land, not the least bit hesitant to quote Scripture to a complete stranger: “When the wicked are in authority, sin flourishes, but the godly will live to see their downfall” (Proverbs 29:16). A well-thumbed Bible stays on his lap for the entirety of our 3½-hour conversation. “This is my 40th year to read straight through the Bible, word for word, from beginning to end.” Mr. Boone doesn’t curse and won’t sing songs about sex or drugs. He’s a conservative Republican and an outspoken Christian—the double kiss of death in Hollywood… (READ MORE)

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