We re with Tom Jefferson, celebs say

Published March 25, 2008 4:00am ET



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The brooding Peter Coyote moderated. Michael J. Fox was beamed in via satellite. Kevin Bacon and his brother Michael (aka, the Bacon Brothers) performed a few numbers, although they brought along enough roadies and gear for a small tour. Other actors, such as Wendie Malick (“Just Shoot Me”), Jack Klugman (“The Odd Couple,” “Quincy,” “12 Angry Men”) and Dan Lauria (“The Wonder Years”) sat on the couch to give their thoughts.

It was all in the service of keeping politics out of the pulpit (and vice versa), as the celebs gathered with activists at Atlantic Video in Penn Quarter Tuesday to tape a program on the separation of church and state.

“Everything You Always Wanted to Know about the Separation of Church and State … but Were Afraid to Ask!” will air today in movie theaters in37 cities.

“My son is the producer — that’s how I got involved,” Klugman told Yeas & Nays. “I’ll be 86 next month, and it’s time I took a stand. So I took a stand on this one.”

Malick denied that it was a partisan issue. “Religion is the place where government has no business,” she said.

As Bacon took the stage, he told the crowd, “We thought it was a great opportunity to bring light to a very important issue.” He then played his song “Children.” Sample lyric: “Get yourself a hundred wives/I’m OK with that.”