TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Tammy Synovec has told us in the past about #Scientology ripping apart her family. Now, she’s found an incredible 1998 letter chastising her late husband for choosing to have kids over dedication to the church. It’s a shocking look at how Scientology actually treats employees. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
——————–
Technology Cocktail
“A couple of years ago some auditors were solving high TA problems by putting hand cream on the pc’s hands when they were calloused and talcum powder on a pc’s hands when they were too wet. Since no research had been done they were censured. Research has now been done on this matter of dry and wet hands. Apparently when a person has taken certain medicines or chemicals, or uses detergent soaps or is in contact with certain chemicals (such as those in some furniture polishes) the ordinary skin oils vanish. These oils are needed to make an electrical contact with the cans. When these oils are absent, there is no adequate electrical contact and the ‘TA is High.’ When a person is deficient in certain minerals or vitamins such as magnesium or B complex, his hands can be excessively wet. Either of these two conditions in hands or feet can produce an incorrect TA position.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1972
——————–
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.
——————–
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
——————–
“As I used to be president of the American Fiction Guild author’s league up in New York, when I was a kid — that’s right, I was a kid — it was very funny to me, I used to laugh myself silly, all of the confession stories written in America are written by unmarried ladies who have reached 40 or 50. Now, there’s nothing wrong with being an unmarried lady reaching 40 or 50. This is perfectly fine. But how come all these confession stories? Yeah, that’s interesting. Because it was out of the current lifetime’s field of experience. I realize now they were writing about past lives, that they were picking it up Whole Track and just putting it in modern dress. But they didn’t know what they were writing about, basically, in this lifetime.” — L. Ron Hubbard, January 2, 1960
——————–
“This very nice tribute and list was sent me by Lt. Cmdr. Joan Robertson:
Dear Sir, Like you, I am burying the old year not praising it. YET — Thank you for the wild and wonderful year we have just finished
for restoring all Tech
for restoring Power
for OT VII
for the Sanity Tech Breakthrough
for the C/S Series
for the EP’s
for revitalizing training
for all the other Brilliant Tech Breakthroughs.
And thank you for the Tech of Admin —
for restoring all Policy
for the Bureaux
for the FEBC, HC, OEC —
Supervisor Courses
for Exec Dirs
the Org Boards
for the Aides Conferences
the personal Conferences
the Personnel Series
the Org Series
the PR Series
this Brilliant Management system
the Org and Product Officer System.
Your help on ship lines and to me as an Aide, an officer, a Con, and as a Being.
And for your trust in me in letting me help.
I pledge again my love, loyalty, devotion and work.
A very Happy New Year — Sir!” — The Commodore, January 2, 1971
——————–
“If you are for Scientology having secrets because people are not ready for them, then you should be OK with the government keeping all its alien secrets from us. They have met with them, worked with them, Apollo 11 actually was checking out ancient alien ruins on the moon, and they kept this secret from us because apparently we are not ready for this information and will go crazy if exposed to it. That’s literally what they think. Well I say this is disgusting, just as it’s disgusting keeping Scientology information from lower level Scientologists. I do not stand for secrets, I think it’s wrong, and I genuinely hate the government for not telling me aliens exist. A Scientology radio show that is pro secrets is boring to listen to, just as the ABC Australia radio show is boring to listen to. They are pro secrets, they wouldn’t dare talk about the government controlling the weather or aliens. They don’t go into any interesting juicy stuff, it’s just PR ‘Oh I like to walk the dog on a Sunday afternoon’ or ‘Yes, sweet jazz music’ type stuff. It’s just so boring, it’s depressing really. It’s forcing people into a lame Truman Show life. You must support freedom of speech and the press. So that’s why I’m against secrets. It makes a worse world. As Hubbard says ‘If someone’s lying to you they are controlling you.’ And omitting data from stuff is a form of lying.”
——————–
1998: Television show 60 Minutes aired a piece on the demise of the Cult Awareness Network due to Scientology this week. James Cherry provided a transcript. Some excerpts: “LESLEY STAHL: There was a time, if you were worried about your son or daughter being in a cult, you could get help from a small, nonprofit organization called the Cult Awareness Network, or CAN, for twenty years the nation’s best-known resource for information and advice about groups it considered dangerous. Among them was Scientology, a church not known for turning the other cheek. And while Scientology did attack its enemies in the past, Church officials say they don’t do that any more. But recently, the Cult Awareness Network was forced into bankruptcy, and its leaders blame the Church of Scientology. KENDRICK MOXON: I don’t know if she’s a topless dancer or not. STAHL: Did you tell our producer that you didn’t believe that was true? MOXON: I told your producer that I thought, looking at Cynthia Kisser, it seemed improbable that she could have been a topless dancer because of the way she looks. STAHL: Yet despite his own view and the evidence from Investigator Shomers, Moxon, also a minister in the Church, persisted in bringing it up. MOXON: I mean, we’ve got a declaration already indicating that she had been a topless dancer. STAHL: I can’t believe you’re continuing to talk about her being a topless dancer! STAHL: Were you a topless dancer? CYNTHIA KISSER: No, and later the person that they claimed told them that retracted it…issued a retraction saying that it wasn’t true. KISSER: I got hit with twelve suits in one week! I would open the door, a process server would give me a suit. They were suing us all over the country, sometimes simultaneously. STAHL: In all, CAN was hit with more than fifty lawsuits. Even though most of the suits were eventually dropped or won by CAN, she says the cost of defending them, nearly two million dollars, drove CAN to the brink of bankruptcy. HEBER JENTZSCH: I would say that the individuals who were involved definitely wanted to do something about CAN. What are you going to do when they’re trying to destroy you? Look, if you’re a Jew, no Jew is going to cry about the fact that the Nazi party is gone. If you’re an African American, no one is going to cry that the KKK is gone. I’m not crying because CAN is gone, OK? They were a vicious group — STAHL: My question is, would you concede that at least part of what happened with those lawsuits was a deliberate attempt to harass and intimidate them into silence? JENTZSCH: No, absolutely not — STAHL: Well, you’re not going to make us believe that there were these thirty or fifty lawsuits that all sprang up, you know, just… serendipitously. MOXON: They didn’t spring up serendipitously. A number of Scientologists came to our firm and said, ‘I’m being discriminated against by CAN.’ We have these complaints in the computer. STAHL: We deny the Church’s accusation that we have a conflict of interest in this story, because producer Richard Bonin has an aunt who’s a lawyer involved in litigation against the Church. Though that’s true, our producer’s aunt Leta had nothing to do with our story.”
——————–
“Alex Jones and L. Ron both became millionaires by selling people crazy. The $64,000 question is whether it was (A) a cynical scam (B) they’re both insane (C) all of the above.”
——————–
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, 2023. Appeal brief due by December 23.
— ‘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 January 13, 2025.
Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Some defamation claims were removed by Judge Hammock. Judge Hammock’s ruling is on appeal.
— 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. Judge Upindra Kalra’s ruling denying Scientology’s motion to strike is on appeal.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration, gets ruling to depose Jane Doe 1.
——————–
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?
——————–
THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Ooh la la! Scientology is bursting about its soon-to-open Paris cathouse
[TWO years ago] A video that answers, what’s it like in Scientology with business so down these days?
[THREE years ago] TODAY: Scientology wants you to make a resolution to fork over every penny in 2022
[FOUR years ago] Worst part in the Scientology ‘arbitration’ ruling? Danny Masterson can participate.
[FIVE years ago] Graham Berry shares a Scientology secret with us that might explain everything
[SIX years ago] Scientology smears ‘Aftermath’ guest with info from his supposedly confidential files
[SEVEN years ago] Scientology’s original case of ‘disconnection’ — L. Ron Hubbard and his doting mom and dad
[EIGHT years ago] David Miscavige has plenty of new Scientology buildings set to open in 2017
[NINE years ago] Scientology’s 2016: CNN plans to give L. Ron Hubbard his best press in decades
[TEN years ago] LEAKED RENDERINGS: What Scientology’s (post-KCET) new media center will look like
[ELEVEN years ago] Scientology’s snitching culture: Jefferson Hawkins explains the ‘Knowledge Report’
[TWELVE years ago] Scientology Giving this “Internet” Thing a Whirl
——————–
Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Joe Reaiche (1958-2024) did not see his daughter Alanna Masterson in his final 6,999 days.
Tammy Synovec has not seen her daughter Julia in 3,132 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,627 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,142 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,692 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,682 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,068 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,563 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,867 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,738 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,290 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,631 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,198 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,117 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,285 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,867 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,127 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,163 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,879 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,443 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,758 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,933 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,615 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,952 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,806 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,921 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,283 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,586 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,692 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,090 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,966 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,531 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,042 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,298 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,406 days.
——————–
Posted by Tony Ortega on January 2, 2025 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
