Recently I went through 20 or more of our old Toronto Scientology friends’ names and checked their Facebook pages to see what they were up to currently. It’s amazing how few mention Scientology at all on there. Paris Morphopolous of Clearwater One Stoppe Shoppe fame has a brother George who at least as of a few years ago was running Narconon Cambridge, Ontario, and had mentioned that on his Facebook page. Most of the rest of the Toronto public we knew were Scientology-absent in their messaging.
A good number of them have moved away from the area. Some moved to the Cambridge area, some to the U.S. Nothing about fundraisers or Org happenings at all from any of them.
Korgo swung by the Yonge St address a few days ago and told me that aside from their 3-year-old permits on the front boarded-up door, the only evidence of any construction was that some of the graffiti had been painted over in black.
The Toronto Org has been operating out of a little hole-in-the-wall on King St for the past few years, but have now taken up residence in a new building northeast of the city center, on O’Connor Drive.
Church of Scientology Toronto
1880 O’Connor Drive, Toronto
Ontario, Canada
Phone: 416-925-2145
The Facebook page for the Toronto Org shows the new address on O’Connor Drive but shows a picture/rendition of the Yonge St building with their view of what it might look like after their hoped-for renovations. They must believe it’s still going to happen.
Over the next decade Scientology Toronto, along with Cambridge, ran numerous fundraisers (Tony reported on many of them). They likely raised at least another $5 million for the renovations. Although, over the past few years their fundraising activities seemed to have pretty much petered out.
Inside the O’Connor Drive building, posted on a whiteboard, is a list of local Scientologists who were willing to volunteer their time to fix up the new digs for the Org. Volunteers. Yep, after these poor schlubs donated around $10 million dollars for renovations they now have to do this themselves. And on that list, I recognized at least 16 people we knew from back when we were at the Toronto Org. They’re all at least our age, so pushing 70. Some of the other names had the same family name as some we knew so were probably second-generation Scientologists.
The Dianetics “bus” parked by the new building is an old RV owned by a Scientologist friend of ours from back in the ’80s. I say “friend” but since these guys all disconnected from us, I’d say they were just acquaintances. The RV has been painted or wrapped with the Dianetics signage. I’d guess it’s probably wrapped which would be a lot less expensive to do, and most certainly paid for by the Scientology public, and not the Org.
This from Korgo:
I was in the vicinity of 1880 O’Connor Drive, listed as the home of the Church of Scientology. It is in a mixed single-family dwelling, apartment building, shopping center, and small store area. I parked at the Subway Sandwich Shop and looked around. It is not pedestrian-friendly with a parking lot on three sides and a business (Subway) on the other. It looks like someone is on the second floor but whoever it is, is just getting set up. There is nothing attractive about the building. You will notice that the landlords are looking for medical personnel and druggists — strange bedfellows. I did not go in looking for a list of occupants.
My insights are those of any Torontonian. It is cheaper real estate in a city that has no cheap real estate. It is literally a stone’s throw from Scarborough where there is a large population of people who don’t have English as a first language. All this seems very ironic when they have the abandoned husk a few blocks from Bloor and Yonge that is probably worth 30 to 40 million as a tear-down.
So in conclusion, no Yonge St renovations, and little to no Scientology being done in Toronto at all. It seems like the extent of their activities is to have their old-timers do some painting, and a bit of drywall. Canada will be Clear in no time.
— Phil Jones
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“I had a psychiatrist reading Dianetics, and he was rushing out every few minutes and putting the electrodes on somebody and coming back in. And he says, ‘Yes. Yes. I’ve looked at this book. This book came in the other day. It came in the other day. And I looked at it, and I’ve looked it over. And I’ve reported it to the association. I think it’s disgraceful.’ And he says, ‘I’m a Horney.’ I said, ‘Well what philosophy do you follow in your psychoanalysis?’ He says, ‘I’m a Horney man myself. I’m a Horney man.’ And he rushed out and strapped and shocked somebody else and came back in again. And he says, ‘I’m a Horney man.’ While he was gone, I saw the book Horney, Karen Horney. So I said, ‘Well, what is Horney? What is the Horney offshoot of Freudian analysis?’ and so on. He says, ‘I don’t know. I never read it.’ It’d be different if I was telling you that for a gag. But actually that’s totally factual. Unbelievably true. He was a Horney man, but he’d never read anything by Horney. I don’t know, how do you get it? Telepathic?” — L. Ron Hubbard, June 7, 1961
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“Hey, on this cruise, where are we going? Any suggestions?” — The Commodore, June 7, 1969
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“I am on Solo Nots outside of the corporate church. I got here by using a highly trained C/S, a tutor and a very experienced auditor. Best decision. It’s just so freeing to be able to do this level without any interruptions and at my own pace. If you’re stalled on training or auditing just find people to deliver. It’s all out here and easy to access. You will be so happy that you are getting the miraculous gains LRH wanted us to receive.”
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1995: The Associated Press reported this week that the Chilocco Development Authority has turned over the former Indian school to the Bureau of Indian Affairs rather than continue to deal with Narconon, the cos detoxification program. “But Wanda Stone, chairwoman of the Kaw Tribe, said her tribal council approved the move because it was tired of dealing with Narconon Chilocco New Life Center, a substance abuse treatment facility that has a 25-year lease on the site. ‘We decided we didn’t have time to mess with them,’ Ms. Stone said. The tribes had expected to receive a total of $16 million over 25 years when they signed the lease with Narconon five years ago. But Stone said the facility has only about 75 of the expected 1,000 beds. ‘We would get checks maybe every quarter for $2,500,’ she said. ‘We decided we had more important things to do.'”
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“I have mixed feelings about zoos and especially places like Sea World. To me it’s basically imprisonment and enslavement of other life forms. Unfortunately, by the middle of this century they are probably the only place many of these life forms will exist, so there’s the rub.”
Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Next pretrial conference June 30. Trial scheduled for October 11.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Last hearing was on January 18, referred to grand jury. Additional charges also referred to grand jury after January 5 assault while in jail.
— Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay sentenced to 9 years in prison. Jeff’s sentencing to be scheduled.
— Rizza Islam and other family members, Medi-Cal fraud: Pretrial conference June 9 in Los Angeles
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud: Next pretrial conference set for June 2.
— Joseph ‘Ben’ Barton, Medicare fraud: Pleaded guilty, awaiting sentencing.
— Yanti Mike Greene, Scientology private eye accused of contempt of court: Found guilty of criminal and civil contempt.
Civil litigation:
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Complaint filed April 28 in Tampa federal court.
— Luis and Rocio Garcia v. Scientology: Eleventh Circuit affirmed ruling granting Scientology’s motion for arbitration. Garcias considering next move.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ Valerie’s motion for reconsideration denied on March 15.
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Appellate court removes requirement of arbitration on January 19, case remanded back to Superior Court. Next hearing scheduled for June 29.
— Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Third amended complaint filed, trial set for December 6.
— Author Steve Cannane defamation trial: New trial ordered after appeals court overturned prior ruling.
— Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Lawsuit filed by the FTC and state of Georgia in August, now in discovery phase.
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THE PROSECUTION OF DANNY MASTERSON
We first broke the news of the LAPD’s investigation of Scientology celebrity Danny Masterson on rape allegations in 2017, and we’ve been covering the story every step of the way since then. At this page we’ve collected our most important links, including our four days in Los Angeles covering the preliminary hearing and its ruling, which has Danny facing trial and the potential sentence of 45 years to life in prison.
After the success of their double-Emmy-winning, three-season A&E series ‘Scientology and the Aftermath,’ Leah Remini and Mike Rinder continue the conversation on their podcast, ‘Scientology: Fair Game.’ We’ve created a landing page where you can hear all of the episodes so far.
LEAH REMINI: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE AFTERMATH
An episode-by-episode guide to Leah Remini’s three-season, double-Emmy winning series that changed everything for Scientology watching. Originally aired from 2016 to 2019 on the A&E network, and now on Netflix.
SCIENTOLOGY’S CELEBRITIES, from A to Z
Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!
Other links: SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS: Tom Cruise and dirty tricks. Scientology’s Ideal Orgs, from one end of the planet to the other. Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society. Scientology Lit: Books reviewed or excerpted in a weekly series. How many have you read?
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Reporting from Los Angeles: Danny Masterson’s civil and criminal hearings today
[TWO years ago] The unanticipated pandemic benefit: Nutty Scientology online videos
[THREE years ago] Photo evidence which suggests, sadly, that Riley Keough has slipped back into Scientology
[FOUR years ago] Testimony by the World’s First Real Clear, part two: ‘Scientology is designed to entrap people’
[FIVE years ago] Leah Remini’s ‘Troublemaker’ will become a Lifetime movie: Who plays Tom Cruise?
[SIX years ago] NAFC names David Miscavige a witness in Scientology trial scheduled for October
[SEVEN years ago] When Tom Cruise was one of Scientology’s biggest donors: A look back
[EIGHT years ago] Ryan Hamilton makes it an even dozen federal lawsuits against Scientology’s rehab network
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Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 2,688 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,193 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 2,743 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 1,733 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 1,624 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 4,930 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 2,799 days.
Carol Nyburg has not seen her daughter Nancy in 3,573 days.
Doug Kramer has not seen his parents Linda and Norm in 1,904 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 4,377 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 3,693 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,259 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,178 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 4,346 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 3,926 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,188 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,224 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 2,939 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 2,464 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 819 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 1,994 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 6,545 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 3,694 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,014 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 8,869 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 3,988 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 2,344 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 6,647 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 2,753 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,151 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,027 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 2,610 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,105 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 3,359 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 14,468 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on June 7, 2022 at 07:00
E-mail tips to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We also post 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 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. Our book about Paulette, 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, 1995-2021 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2021), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Other links: BLOGGING DIANETICS: Reading Scientology’s founding text cover to cover | 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 | Shelly Miscavige, 15 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, or 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 | Battling Babe-Hounds: Ross Jeffries v. R. Don Steele
Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast
