TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: A casting agent is holding seminars for 8- to 18-year-olds on how to audition in Hollywood. What she isn’t saying is that she’s a longtime Scientology member and FSM who makes money getting new people into the church. Her ex explains why parents should be very concerned. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
——————–
Technology Cocktail
“In R3RA Narrative running you are handling one single narrative incident, such as an accident, a physically or emotionally painful experience, an illness, loss, or period of great emotional stress, which is not, ordinarily, part of a chain. You are running that one incident many, many times through to erasure. The clue to erasure of a narrative incident lies in locating earlier beginnings to the incident. It will be found that the pc finds earlier and earlier moments when he was told or had an awareness that the incident was going to occur. Thus, in running R3RA Narrative, it is the earlier beginning that takes precedence, and that is what the auditor asks for after each run through a narrative incident. Only if the incident starts to grind (no change of content, etc.), after having repeatedly searched for an earlier beginning, would you ask for an earlier similar narrative incident. This data on earlier beginning is a new breakthrough on narrative incident running and erasure, and the NED auditor should fully understand it and the tech on which this additional difference between the two procedures is based.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1978
——————–
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
——————–
“If we don’t know how to date accurately, we are soon going to have a case which isn’t producing any tone arm action. Well, there’s the importance of dating. The greatest importance of dating is accuracy. Now, this doesn’t mean accuracy down to the last microsecond. You can still do approximate dating. Of course, it makes my brains creek a little bit when somebody says 10.5 trillion trillion years to me. I can see this enormous span, don’t you see, of the life term of this planet, according to modern science, can be dropped into that date at random! Approximately 10.5 trillion trillion years ago. You could just drop this solar system’s whole history, you see, into that date several times and never miss it! Well, is it 10.51? 10.52? Oh, my God. Do you know what you’ve got there? The difference between 10.51 trillion trillion years ago, and 10.52 trillion trillion years ago? You go figure it out some time, and you see what I mean. That’s a lot of years. Vast panorama. And your brain will go ‘creak’ underneath this sort of thing.” — L. Ron Hubbard, July 17, 1963
——————–
“The watches have been worrying about submarines and radio messages. The radio message was a call to all ships for weather data and barometer readings from Radio Marseille. The ‘sub’ seen on radar yesterday appearing at 5.5 miles, 15 minutes later vanishing at 6 and then much later reappearing at 15 miles and vanishing was probably a whale. They hang around here, what few there are left in the world.” — The Commodore, July 17, 1969
——————–
“There is a three person team who are continually attacking productive people in the FreeZone. They know who they are. They feel like it’s productive to publicly attack and invalidate people who are productive and getting people up the bridge. Their only product is upset.”
——————–
1998: The Edmonton Examiner published an apology this week to Professor Stephen Kent. The Examiner distributed Scientology’s Freedom magazine as an insert in the paper. Freedom attacked Professor Kent in the insert. “In early June of 1998, the Edmonton Examiner inadvertently distributed copies of the Freedom Journal to some Edmonton homes. The Freedom Journal is published by the Church of Scientology International and made certain allegations concerning University of Alberta Professor Stephen A. Kent (Ph.D.). The Edmonton Examiner is not aware of any basis for the printed allegations and was wrong to distribute material which represented Professor Kent in a derogatory manner. Further, the Edmonton Examiner apologizes to Professor Stephen A. Kent for any embarrassment caused and sincerely regrets its role in the distribution of this material.” The Examiner also included a statement from Dr. Kent. “The insert was especially critical of, but vague about, my presentations in Germany last summer about Scientology itself. From reading the libelous article, no one could know that I was speaking about human rights issues to German government officials and others who were investigating Scientology. No individual took responsibility for being author of the piece against me, nor did the publication identify any individual publisher or editor. I only can surmise that no one associated with the publication has the integrity to stand behind its contents. This debate saddens me, since I know that many ordinary members believe that Scientology has helped them and does good community work. These people, however, do not have access to the important information about the actions of the group’s upper level management, which trace back to the founder himself.”
——————–
“When you get to the end of OT 8 he tells you that everything up until then was a BIG WHOOPS. Sorry kids, I had it wrong all along, but now I’m on the right road to total freedom. Wheeeeeeee!”
——————–
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. DA’s response to appeal brief due July 14.
— ‘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 July 7.
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. Leah’s appeal brief was filed June 3. Oral arguments are probably next.
— 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 Does’ response to Scientology’s appeal brief is due July 3.
— 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. Trial has been set for January 10, 2028.
——————–
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] ‘Going Clear’ is at Netflix, and Scientology still doesn’t want you to see it
[TWO years ago] Scientology and statistics: How L. Ron Hubbard’s fetish for bureaucracy lives on
[THREE years ago] A 2004 photo reminds us of Danny Masterson’s punchy DJ persona. But will his jury see it?
[FOUR years ago] How many Scientologists are in your town, part two: Getting down to the details
[FIVE years ago] Scientology’s antivaxx warrior Leigh Dundas unleashes another amazing Two Minutes Hate
[SIX years ago] Leah Remini’s ‘Aftermath’ nominated for another Emmy: Tell her your favorite scenes
[SEVEN years ago] In Colombia, Scientology’s ‘Casa Hubbard’ has a pretty interesting neighbor
[EIGHT years ago] New book peels back the cover on Scientology celebs and their legendary acting coach
[NINE years ago] VIDEO: A look inside Scientology’s program to rally Russian members after police raids
[TEN years ago] The Surviving Scientology podcast: Growing up in the Age of Miscavige
[ELEVEN years ago] A Scientology death will be examined Wednesday night on the ID network
[TWELVE years ago] Scientology Claims No Forced “Disconnection” — So Tell Us About Yours
——————–
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.
Mike Rinder (1955-2025) did not see his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in his final 7,589 days.
Tammy Synovec has not seen her daughter Julia in 3,328 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,832 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,338 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,888 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,878 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,264 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,759 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 6,063 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,932 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,486 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,827 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,394 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,313 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,481 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 5,063 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,322 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,359 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 4,075 days.
Marie Poulin has not seen her mother June in 3,639 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,954 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 3,129 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,811 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 5,148 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 10,002 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 5,117 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,479 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,888 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,278 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 4,162 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,727 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,238 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,498 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,602 days.
——————–
Posted by Tony Ortega on July 17, 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
