TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“Jumping processes on the Class Chart set the pc up to fall on his head later. An ‘OT VI with problems’ is really just an unflat Grade I. And until Grade I is flattened to permanent Ability Attained on the Class Chart, he remains an unflat Grade I. A C/S who gets wound up in this sort of skipped everything and made nothing, of course has an awful mess on his hands. He can feel as lost as Hansel or Gretel. But waiting to get covered up by leaves is for the birds.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1970
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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 as Danny faces a potential sentence of 45 years to life in prison. NOW WITH TRIAL INDEX.
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THE PODCAST: How many have you heard?
[1] Marc Headley [2] Claire Headley [3] Jeffrey Augustine [4] Bruce Hines [5] Sunny Pereira [6] Pete Griffiths [7] Geoff Levin [8] Patty Moher [9] Marc Headley [10] Jefferson Hawkins [11] Michelle ‘Emma’ Ryan [12] Paulette Cooper [13] Jesse Prince [14] Mark Bunker [15] Jon Atack [16] Mirriam Francis [17] Bruce Hines on MSH
— SPECIAL: The best TV show on Scientology you never got to see
[1] Phil Jones [2] Derek Bloch [3] Carol Nyburg [4] Katrina Reyes [5] Jamie DeWolf
— The first Danny Masterson trial and beyond
[18] Trial special with Chris Shelton [19] Trial week one [20] Marc Headley on the spy in the hallway [21] Trial week two [22] Trial week three [23] Trial week four [24] Leah Remini on LAPD Corruption [25] Mike Rinder 2022 Thanksgiving Special [26] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part One [27] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part Two [28] Claire Headley on the trial [29] Tory Christman [30] Bruce Hines on spying [31] Karen de la Carriere [32] Ron Miscavige on Shelly Miscavige [33] Karen de la Carriere on the L’s [34] Mark Bunker on Miscavige hiding [35] Mark Plummer [36] Mark Ebner [37] Karen Pressley [38] Steve Cannane [39] Fredrick Brennan [40] Clarissa Adams [41] Louise Shekter [42] John Sweeney [43] Tory Christman [44] Kate Bornstein [45] Christian Stolte [46] Mark Bunker [47] Jon Atack [48] Luke Y. Thompson [49] Mark Ebner [50] Bruce Hines [51] Spanky Taylor and Karen Pressley [51] Geoff and Robbie Levin [52] Sands Hall [53] Jonny Jacobsen [54] Sandy Holeman [55] Mark Bunker [56] Trish and Liz Conley [57] Trish Conley [58] Alex Barnes-Ross [59] Alex Barnes-Ross [60] Alex Barnes-Ross [61] Alex Barnes-Ross [62] Alex Barnes-Ross [63] Alex Barnes-Ross [64] Tory Christman [65] Tammy Synovec [66] Dennis Erlich [67] Alex Barnes-Ross [68] Valerie Ross [69] Kat in Austin [70] Mark Bunker [71] Phil Jones
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“I can take a look at my desk barometer any day of the week and get a better weather forecast than I get over the telephone. I’m being hard on the boys. Every year they get a little bit better. They’re finding the sky too. And then all of a sudden we get into passenger traffic left and right across the Atlantic, and we hear ‘above-the-weather flight,’ ‘radar-spotted weather,’ you see, and so on. They’re still finding clouds. They haven’t found the sky yet, see. Then they shot off a few cosmonauts, who became naught in Russia with great rapidity, and they found a great deal there called ‘the sky.’ And five dead cosmonauts later, the Russians must have decided that they should know something about it. But because they had lots of cosmonauts they probably haven’t bothered. But the point is, they send people up into the Van Allen belt, named after Van Allen. Who the hell heard of him? I don’t know, maybe he was the fellow who invented radiation fallout or something. In other words, they shoot people up into these areas, and they get scorched or something happens or something of that sort, and they’re in the big vagueness of ‘There is a sky.’ They’re still on this thing here, see.” — L. Ron Hubbard, May 29, 1963
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“Captain Mary Sue Hubbard has just returned from correcting and bringing off a mission flubbed by three others. She, accompanied by Liz Ausley, did in 3 days what has been hanging fire for nearly 3 weeks. She bulldozed the biggest bank in Spain, bearded the Spanish Security forces and saved us $5500 in fees as well. She got the whole thing handled. MSH is the first SO Missionaire (spring 1967) and on each of the four or five she has run, has achieved consistent Power, having actually saved the day against terrible threats to Scientology in every single instance. We ought to put her under glass. If NATO had her on their payroll they could disband!” — The Commodore, May 29, 1969
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“The problem with the independent field in the US is that they have forgotten the purpose of training and auditing, they are far from being spiritual and it’s tragic there’s no one here to lead. The situation is very serious, as we see the world being taken over by the implanters, they want to drug people, turn them into robots. Every day more and more people won’t be auditable.”
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1997: Grady Ward reported this week that Scientology has stepped up efforts to discredit him, this time with Dead Agent packs sent to his home town of Arcata, California. “I was was informed by Rusty Stoob that the scientologists have launched an ad hominem attack upon me and my children, Adrian and Isaiah, over the internet, purportedly from one ‘Michelle Janney’ of El Segundo, California. Dated May 25, 1997 with a return address of ‘mjanney@mac-mail1.interworld.net’ the letter accuses me of writing ‘pornography’ and suggests that I am a danger to my children. A neighbor whose daughter attend Pacific Union had the pleasure of seeing the Arcata Police Department escort a private investigator who was ‘staking’ out our Vassaide neighborhood a few weeks ago. I have just learned that the same ‘Michelle Janney’ has used the U.S. Mails to send what she describes as ‘pornography’ unsolicited to a mailing list of Arcata homes and businesses. I will be making an ex parte motion for a temporary restraining order Monday and of course I will immediately contact the Postal Inspector and the US Attorney’s office.”
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“I appreciate Shatner for being a survivor and roaring back to be virtually everywhere at once after his wife died and everyone had written him off as a hopeless drunk.”
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Found guilty on two counts on May 31, remanded to custody. Sentenced to 30 years to life on Sep 7.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Next pretrial hearing May 31, 2024.
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud.
Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Some defamation claims were removed by Judge Hammock. Leah seeking to amend her complaint.
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to arbitration.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: motion to file new complaint, hearing on May 29.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration, on hold until appeal over new judge heard.
— Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Ordered to mediation.
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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] For Memorial Day: Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard’s farcical first command
[TWO years ago] Tom Cruise’s hit movie couldn’t come at a better time for his Scientology best bud
[THREE years ago] Mike Rinder on the myth of the ‘reactive mind’ and how Scientology still ropes in new people
[FOUR years ago] What’s $20,000 between friends? LA Mayor Garcetti presents a Scientology gift to city
[FIVE years ago] Scientology planning new series of books to rope in children?
[SIX years ago] Laura D’s attorneys answer Scientology’s latest delaying tactic with a legal blast of their own
[SEVEN years ago] She’s back! Leah Remini builds a case for Scientology aggression in tonight’s A&E special
[EIGHT years ago] It’s a miracle! Scientology put ‘more than 10,000’ people in these 1,000 chairs!
[NINE years ago] 20 questions about Scientology — with answers that get to the center of a dying movement
[TEN years ago] Hey, IRS: Stunning photos inside the lavish personal offices of Scientology’s leader
[ELEVEN years ago] Former Scientology Enforcer Marty Rathbun Examines His Past as the Church’s “Warrior”
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Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Tammy Synovec has not seen her daughter Julia in 2,915 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,410 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,925 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,475 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,465 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,346 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,650 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,521 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,073 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,414 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,981 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,900 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,068 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,649 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,910 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,946 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,662 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,226 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,541 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,716 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,267 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,398 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,736 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,589 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,710 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,066 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,369 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,475 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,873 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,749 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,314 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,827 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,081 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,189 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on May 29, 2024 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, 1995-2023 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2023), 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
