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Leah Remini announces divorce in the most Leah Remini way possible

[Remember the TLC series ‘It’s All Relative’?]

TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: After Leah Remini posted last night that she and Angelo Pagan were amicably divorcing, there were stories on every entertainment outlet possible. And what a Leah Remini move: A touching message that is a perfect example of why we have respected and admired this woman for so long. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]

 
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Technology Cocktail

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“Enrollment is done no matter how informal the course is. A waiver of accident or damage holding the school not responsible, must be signed by the student and, if a minor, by his parents or guardian on any tape course. An enrollment invoice showing full course payment must be in the hands of the supervisor, giving the date of enrollment, home address and local address. A roll book has every student’s name, address and the course enrolled in and date. This must not be omitted as it is the only permanent record and is often resorted to to prove contentions.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1971

 
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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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Source Code

“I was in a hospital one time and my stomach wall wouldn’t heal. Been messed up. And so they kept feeding me custard. And after about the 465th custard, I just had some kind of an inkling I was coming around a little bit. Actually, what was wrong with me was I was utterly exhausted. I’d just been in combat theater after combat theater, you see, with no rest, no nothing between. And it sort of came to me that this was not the sort of a diet that I myself would select of my own free choice. So I used to slide out with a good-looking nurse, and — beg your pardon, she was a WAVE. And she knew where there was a wonderful Chinese noodle parlor. And so after I’d eat my custard, she would come in and we would go out the back gate and we’d go down and I’d have several egg foo yungs. And you know, soothing things like sweet and sour pork, you know, and so forth. I started to feel better, started to get back on my feet again. And it was those custards — I kept telling the doctors, you see — those custards were absolutely marvelous, particularly when served in Chinese restaurants under some other name. you weren’t supposed to eat anything else, you see. So then finally, finally, through the connivance of a couple of hospital corpsmen and several pals in the Marine, why, I got the wrong meal ticket issued to me, and there was a special diet table where they fed people nothing but steak! So I do know where all the steaks went that the civilians didn’t get, because they were all served at that table. Huge piles of steaks would come in, you see, and I’d demolish four or five of these steaks and feel much better. The medicos never found out about this. And I finally got restored to duty, ‘Certified for continental limits of the United States only. To stay where a proper diet and ration and adequate rest are assured.’ And of course, the next piece of paper back of that says, ‘Ordered to the Fifth Amphibious Force,’ you see.” — L. Ron Hubbard, August 30, 1961

 
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Avast, Ye Mateys

“HATS: Lack of hattedness is what makes an activity look inefficient. It’s what makes lines rough. HASs and HCO are responsible for hatting. Full and competent Hatting makes an org efficient and easy to work in.” — The Commodore, August 30, 1971

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“It’s NOT ENOUGH to just be Scientologists or going up the Bridge. The World has gone crazy and it will only get worse. The Church of Scientology is nowhere on sight. Scientology has gotten a bad name. Not enough auditing is occurring not to say anything about making auditors. You want more? There is ONE more thing that is even worse: AI is coming, artificial intelligence and that will put even more Automaticity in life. People believe they are soulless bodies or even animals. That’s rather grim. Only a strong group of people who can work together can do something about it and be heard. I don’t see any other way.”

 
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Past is Prologue

1999: Keith Henson posted an update on Robert Cipriano, a former witness for Scientology who is now working with his former target, Graham Berry. “Cipriano walked outside and somehow ended up with Moxon’s private investigator, Edwin Richardson, who drove him to an airport hotel. At approximately 9:30 a.m. Cipriano telephoned Graham. Cipriano told Berry that Moxon had told him by telephone that a group of them (from OSA) were on their way to pick him up and take him to an ‘old’ attorney somewhere on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. This ‘old’ attorney would ‘make everything all right’ and Scientology would give him another car, another apartment and ‘his life back.’ Graham had a friend keep Cipriano on the telephone as he raced to the hotel near the airport. While Graham was in transit his friend could hear over the phone Edwin Richardson continuously banging on Cipriano’s door. At Cipriano’s request he is now in a ‘safe house’.”

 
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Random Howdy

“Mooser, I wish you would stop telling people to set their activity to private. It’s important to be able to read the previous comments to figure out if they’re some nutjob troll or a real Scientologist, for example.”

 
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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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SCIENTOLOGY: FAIR GAME

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] L. Ron Hubbard 2.0 still awaits trial, but the Freezone is buzzing about his origin story
[TWO years ago] Freezone news: LRH 2.0 indicted by grand jury, new center opens in Buenos Aires
[THREE years ago] Scientology wants your toddler on the cans, and here’s evidence of it
[FOUR years ago] Danny Masterson presses for Jane Does suing him to identify themselves as hearing nears
[FIVE years ago] Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard has some ideas about your ‘eternity’
[SIX years ago] Kiosk-Gate: LAPD told Masterson accuser its Hollywood site was compromised by Scientology
[SEVEN years ago] DOX: L. Ron Hubbard’s son called him a junkie and sex pervert in FBI’s Scientology files
[EIGHT years ago] Scientology petitions California Supreme Court over disqualified judge in forced-abortion case
[NINE years ago] ‘Miss Lovely’ in London: Paulette Cooper writes another chapter in her amazing story
[TEN years ago] Scientology training includes how to physically pull cash away from a reluctant patsy
[ELEVEN years ago] BBC Tracks Down Audio of 7-Year-Old Scientologist Neil Gaiman

 
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Scientology disconnection, a reminder

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 3,008 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,503 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,018 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,568 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,558 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,439 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,743 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,614 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,166 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,507 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,074 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,993 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,161 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,743 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,003 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,039 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,755 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,319 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,634 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,809 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,360 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,491 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,829 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,682 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,803 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,159 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,462 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,568 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,966 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,842 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,407 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,920 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,174 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,282 days.

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on August 30, 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

 

Tony Ortega at Rolling Stone

 

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