Political commentator and author Bill O’Reilly gave an early plug for his latest nonfiction history book during an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes this weekend. He also detailed the third, and latest, book in his nonfiction series, Killing Jesus, just out in September.
The muse to writing on Jesus came to the life-long Catholic at night and he points to divine inspiration for the idea, “My inspiration comes from that [the holy spirit] and so I wrote Killing Jesus because I think I was directed to write that.” But, O’Reilly says, “It’s not a religious book… it’s all about history,” though the work is bound to spark commentary. The contract for the book amounts to over $10 million, to be shared with his co-author, Martin Dugard, who does the bulk of the research for the publications.
The fourth book of the Killing… series, is anticipated for release September of 2014, and will focus on World War II. The series started with Killing Lincoln—which was turned into a 2013 docudrama for National Geographic Channel, featuring Tom Hanks as narrator and Billy Campbell as Abraham Lincoln—and book two was Killing Kennedy. National Geographic adaptations are already set for Jesus and Kennedy—premiering this November. The channel hit viewership records during last February’s airing of Lincoln.
O’Reilly (pictured here on vacation in Ireland, 2013) said the new book includes, “brand-new information about some very, very fascinating things,” but he would not reveal if the title will mimic the rest of the series.
According to the interview, O’Reilly’s show, The O’Reilly Factor, has reigned for 13 years as the most watched program on cable news. Known for a history of combative interviewing, CBS interviewer Norah O’Donnell claims he is “mellower” than during his earlier appearance on the news magazine, when interviewed in 2004 by Mike Wallace.
Other publications penned by O’Reilly include children’s versions of the history series and titles such as Keep It Pithy: Useful Observations in a Tough World (2013) and No Spin Zone: Confrontations with the Powerful & Famous in America (2002).
[Image via official Bill O’Reilly website.]