We want to thank our reader in Greece who alerted us to a pretty amazing situation. An entire 2-hour Michael Chan talk given to Scientologists in Athens had been posted to YouTube, and if we hurried we could get a look at it before Chan pulled it down (which Chan said would happen soon).
Michael Chan is such an interesting figure in Scientology. You see, church leader David Miscavige may have given himself the role of emcee and ringleader at Scientology’s major annual events, but his rah-rah addresses really have very little content that one would characterize as “the tech.” What we’re saying is, Miscavige is no preacher. You’re just not going to hear him give a room a speech about the wonders of auditing and what they can expect to experience on the OT levels.
But if you’re the Church of Scientology and you need to convince people to fork over the big bucks for those pricey levels, you really do need someone to preach the gospel about L. Ron Hubbard. In recent years, that role has largely fallen on a single man — Michael Chan, who is constantly barnstorming around the world, giving what he says are about a thousand different talks about all aspects of Scientology in order to wind up the local rubes and get them to fork over the big bucks for the mysteries of the upper levels.
Several years ago, we had a tipster get into a Chan lecture, and learned that he was spinning some of the wildest stuff, telling Scientologists that once OT 9 and OT 10 are released (OT 8 is currently the highest you can go), they would be able to literally clone themselves and live for hundreds of years.
Chan, in other words, is one of the few figures who really gets to traffic in Hubbard’s outlandish cosmological ideas underpinning Scientology. And for that reason, Chan’s talks are top secret and the only indication we usually get about them are advertising fliers.
So when we learned that an entire Chan lecture was online, we were pretty excited. We can tell you there is definitely some nutty space opera stuff in this talk, but what really stunned us was something else entirely — an anecdote Chan included about an hour and a half into his talk, revealing that someone connected to the NFL has secretly been giving Scientology millions.
Say what? In fact, Chan ended up dropping a lot of clues about this mystery moneybags, and we’re hoping you’ll help us figure out who he’s talking about. Take a look at this video we’ve put together in the name of Fair Use…
Isn’t that fun? If you have some idea who the mystery donor is, please let us know.
And we’re sure that Steve Tisch, New York Giants owner, is thrilled that Scientology’s Michael Chan is going around telling people that Tisch is a miserable human being despite his substantial wealth.
But hey, Scientology can help him with that!
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Scientology’s celebrities, ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and more!
We’ve been building landing pages about David Miscavige’s favorite playthings, including celebrities and ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and we’re hoping you’ll join in and help us gather as much information as we can about them. Head on over and help us with links and photos and comments.
Scientology’s celebrities, from A to Z! Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!
Scientology’s ‘Ideal Orgs,’ from one end of the planet to the other! Help us build up pages about each these worldwide locations!
Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society!
Today’s Scientology celebrity: James Barbour!
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Now on sale: Twice the Miss Lovely!
Our new book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is now on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. What a pleasure it is for us to work with her on this after we wrote about her ordeal as a victim of Scientology’s “Fair Game” campaigns in our 2015 book, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, which is also on sale in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions.
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Defeated in court, L. Ron Hubbard’s son boasted about spreading lies in new FBI document
[TWO years ago] Tonight on ‘Scientology and the Aftermath’: When the fraud & abuse becomes overwhelming
[THREE years ago] Scientology’s latest filing in the Trout Run zoning fight: We bleed for all religions
[FOUR years ago] Jonny Jacobsen: New Scientology legal setbacks in Belgium, France, and Holland
[FIVE years ago] Monique Rathbun back in court today: David Miscavige will be deposed, judge decides
[SIX years ago] HOMELAND SECURITY INVESTIGATING SCIENTOLOGY FOR HUMAN TRAFFICKING
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Bernie Headley has not seen his daughter Stephanie in 5,297 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 1,428 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 1,930 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 1,410 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 473 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 361 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 3,668 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 1,536 days.
Carol Nyburg has not seen her daughter Nancy in 2,310 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 3,084 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 2,430 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 10,996 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 6,916 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 3,083 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 2,664 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 2,924 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 1,964 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 1,676 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 1,202 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 5,291 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 2,431 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 2,751 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 7,607 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 2,726 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 1,082 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 5,384 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 1,490 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 1,893 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 1,764 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 1,347 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 1,842 days.
Mary Jane Sterne has not seen her daughter Samantha in 2,096 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 13,205 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on December 13, 2018 at 07:00
E-mail tips and story ideas to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We post behind-the-scenes updates at our Facebook author page. After every new story we send out an alert to our e-mail list and our FB page.
Our book, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.
The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2017 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2017), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…
BLOGGING DIANETICS: We read Scientology’s founding text cover to cover with the help of L.A. attorney and former church member Vance Woodward
UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists
GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice
SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts
Other links: Shelly Miscavige, ten years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ
Watch our short videos that explain Scientology’s controversies in three minutes or less…
Check your whale level at our dedicated page for status updates
Join us at the Underground Bunker’s Facebook discussion group for more frivolity.
Our non-Scientology stories: Robert Burnham Jr., the man who inscribed the universe | Notorious alt-right inspiration Kevin MacDonald and his theories about Jewish DNA | The selling of the “Phoenix Lights” | Astronomer Harlow Shapley‘s FBI file | Sex, spies, and local TV news
