‘God Is the Bigger Elvis’

February 28, 2012

In 1963, actress Dolores Hart abandoned her career, broke off her engagement, and entered the Benedictine Abbey of Regina Laudis in Connecticut. In 2010, Archbishop Pietro Sambi--the late apostolic nuncio to the United States--told Mother Hart, now prioress of the abbey, that it would be desirable to make a film about religious life.

“I said to him, ‘Archbishop, it’s been 50 years since I was in Hollywood,’” she recalled. “All my contacts are dead or gone.”

“Have no worries, Dolores,” he replied. “The Lord will find a way.”

Two days later, HBO called to ask if it could make a documentary of her life. The documentary, “God Is the Bigger Elvis,” was nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary (short subject) in 2012 -- leading Mother Hart to return to the Oscar ceremony for the first time in 50 years.

 

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Further information:

• "God is the Bigger Elvis": A nun's story (Vatican Radio)
• A Nun Returns to the Red Carpet (New York Times)
• Abbey of Regina Laudis