TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: On Friday we recounted our reporting that put Emily Armstrong at a 2020 arraignment for fellow Scientology celeb Danny Masterson. That afternoon she expressed regret that she had been there that day. But there was a word missing from her statement that no one seemed to miss. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“Part-time study, by which an HGC auditor part-time studies the next level while still auditing IS A COMPLETE FAILURE. By actual record they just never make it. Do the steps fully with full attention on each while it is being done. Don’t have the trainee finishing the last one and doing the next one. You’ll rarely get a product. Sharply and efficiently and crisply get each step of the horizontal board full and industriously DONE each in turn. And you’ll make splendid auditors and make them fast.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1972
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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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“The amoeba and the monocell and the cellular form is apparently an endowed thing. OT comes along and says, ‘Let there be chicken,’ you know. That’s about where all that fit. And he endows this and he leaves a sort of a puddle of theta to continue to animate it, you see. Does a few quick tricks with the — you can’t say ‘fingers’ — and you get an endowment. And that apparently is the way which you get cells. That isn’t factual, from a standpoint of experience or anything like that. I don’t mean that there’s data available here by which we’ve suddenly animated matter. But it more or less is a conceptual basis on which bodies are built. And somebody mocks it up and somebody else can keep it running. But there is something to this old gag of, they say, they go out and say hello to the flowers, you know, and they grow better. Well, at a very, very low state that would not be possible, of course. A person isn’t able to reach that far. But they sort of have a dim idea that they could do it, you see. Because way, way back someplace they probably did. So they go out and say hello to the flowers.” — L. Ron Hubbard, September 8, 1966
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“THE PILL: After considerable data on the subject, any bad effects from a birth control pill are handled by changing BRANDS or STRENGTHS (amounts) and with these handled there should be no trouble with dizziness or auditing, according to data from the M.O. Therefore, please note there is NO restriction on taking such pills except to report any odd effects to the MO. The previous MO, whose data was taken, did not do enough research on it. As trouble has been caused by this, it should be broadly known that there is now no restrictions on birth control pills.” — The Commodore, September 8, 1971
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“Dems, including Scientologists, ex-Scientologists and ‘Dem OTs’ are getting their R6 implant restimulated, and becoming Ethics particles. They are intent on destroying civilization. This is why LRH created the Sea Org. To escape this dramatization.”
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2001: A Fox News column on September 5th by Roger Friedman noted the trend for the show Dharma and Greg to feature Scientology celebrities. “Has ABC’s Dharma and Greg become Scientology central for sitcoms? The group already has a vocal member in star Jenna Elfman, who plays Dharma. Elfman is the protege of acting teacher Milton Katselas, also a devotee of the pay-as-you-go cult favored by Tom Cruise, John Travolta and others. Last spring, avowed and outspoken cult member Kirstie Alley appeared in Dharma and Greg’s season cliffhanger as, of all things, a marriage counselor. Now the show has announced a full-time cast addition: Juliette Lewis, former drug addict and star of awful movies like Kalifornia and Natural Born Killers. Lewis is one of Scientology’s foremost celebrity zombies. Last summer at a Creative Coalition panel discussion in Los Angeles about violence in the media, Lewis pushed the Scientology agenda the minute she got her chance. She ambushed moderator Carl Bernstein when she announced that what was really affecting children today was not violence in the media. The real culprit, she said, was psychotropic drugs. Scientologists, including Alley and Elfman, are vehemently against kids with illnesses like Attention Deficit Disorder getting psychiatric treatment or drugs like Ritalin. Dharma and Greg’s very affable co-executive producer Bill Prady told me that the propensity of Scientologists is merely a manifestation of who Elfman’s friends are. ‘Really, stunt casting is the bane of my existence. We go to the cast and say, ‘Who are your friends?’ And, ‘Who can you get?’ Jenna’s friends with Kirstie and with Juliette, so they came. One of our writers is friends with Bob Dylan, that’s how we got him. Right now we’re hoping to get Olivia Newton-John, who’s a friend of someone here. It’s really that simple.'”
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“The conspiracy cult is way scarier and more dangerous than any religious cult. The country is on the verge of a civil war thanks to these cynical manipulators and their feeble-minded, heavily-armed adherents. Alex Jones and the rest should be deported for insurrection.”
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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:
— 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] LIVE: Meghann Cuniff’s reporting sizzled and her photos from Masterson trial were iconic
[TWO years ago] Don’t allow Paul Haggis to mention Scientology in trial, woman suing him asks court
[THREE years ago] Anne Archer is still pitching her Scientology front group ‘Artists for Human Rights’
[FOUR years ago] All of former Scientology mouthpiece Tommy Davis’s appearances in ‘Melania and Me’
[FIVE years ago] Hurricane Dorian’s destruction provides Scientology another chance at make-believe
[SIX years ago] New Scientology escape book ‘Perfectly Clear’ leaves some important questions unanswered
[SEVEN years ago] ‘Leah Remini’ show prompting more ‘ranch kids’ to come forward with agonizing family drama
[EIGHT years ago] Drone footage of Scientology’s secretive Int Base: The reaction from former base employees
[NINE years ago] More proof (from Scientology) that it’s never been a better time to be a Scientologist!
[TEN years ago] Lyman Spurlock, 1945-2014: Imprisoned and abused, a loyal Scientology executive to the end
[ELEVEN years ago] The 1979 Clearwater Sun Editorial the Tampa Bay Times Should Run Today
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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 3,017 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,512 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,027 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,577 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,567 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 4,953 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,448 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,752 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,623 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,175 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,516 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,083 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,002 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,170 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,752 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,012 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,048 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,764 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,328 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,643 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,818 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,369 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,500 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,838 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,691 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,812 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,168 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,471 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,577 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,975 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,851 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,416 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,929 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,183 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,291 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on September 8, 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
