TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Last year Scientology leader David Miscavige had a lot to prove about the church’s comeback from the pandemic with the first IAS gala in England since 2019. Tom Cruise made a very conspicuous showing as well. But would Top Gun appear again this year? The proof is in. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“Above havingness there is doingness, and above doingness there is beingness, and above beingness there is communicatingness, and above communicatingness there is knowingness, and above knowingness there is postulatingness, and so we see we have a long way to go above havingness in order to get to the top activity of a thetan, which is making postulates, or unmaking them.” — 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 condemnation of science is long overdue and, what do you know, has already occurred on the European continent and has occurred even in a more advanced state in England. Today the word science is so bad that when I started calling what we’re doing Scientology I got in to a minor revolution. It wasn’t anything but the fact that the English people today believe that science has let them down but thoroughly. And anything with science connected with it is something they rather smile sarcastically about. It’s not that they’re interested in humanity. They just know science doesn’t work. And what do you know, they’re drawing right back out of science. They are not following scientific method worth a nickel.” — L. Ron Hubbard, October 28, 1953
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“AOLA: It is reported very quiet there — still peaceful. People very polite. No hum. No body traffic. Way below confusion. My guess is when our CO Mission hits it will go up into total confusion, find a major stable datum, began to cool off, find the new CO and begin to be an org again. A Former CO of AOLA is flabbergasted at the number of 41 staff members to run an AO. AOs run on high volume with half that many. We are putting in a big stable datum. The terminal of a ‘backed up CO.’ The two orgs we’ve sent ‘backed up COs’ to are zooming! Here goes the third.” — The Commodore, October 28, 1969
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“The fundamental principle of Scientology is in the defining of the nature of our being. We are spiritual beings who do not owe our existence to any Creator or God. In Christian terms that is the ultimate heresy. However, it is also fundamental that we survive in this universe as a co-existence which is God. Our survival is irrevocably entwined with that of others. We are immortal beings who have become involved in games after games of increasing complexity until arriving in this latest manifestation which entrapped most into fallacious concepts.”
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1995: The controversy continues: Does Scientology artificially inflate the sales of Hubbard’s books? Wolf Trip provided a first person account this week. “In the 70’s a program ran which had the stated purpose of bringing DMSMH back to #1 rating. I was responsible for the selling of over 20,000 copies of DMSMH. Staff members of Missions and orgs around the world were sent out to buy copies. The mission I ran at the time was involved in a library plan to buy a copy for every library in the USA. Did it work? Of course it did. With people of my considerable talent doing the selling it was a given. The book reseller market uses the NYTimes list as a barometer for ordering. Usually all it takes to get a book on a roll is to give it a shove upward. If the book’s content doesn’t generate sales, I’d guess 8 million church members buying their relatives a copy will. This is not only illegal, it’s shameful.”
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“Being an old school punk/junkie I wish I had a buck for every bad thing I’ve ever heard said, written or depicted about people of my ‘ilk.’ Never mind all the verbal and physical assaults me and my friends had to endure back in the day from the supposedly ‘normal’ people. It goes with the territory called ‘freak.’ Get use to it. Wear it as a badge of experience.”
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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] PODCAST: Big protest planned for Scientology in England, and Alex fills us in
[TWO years ago] Danny Masterson shatters suppression, Scientology style, as his trial heats up
[THREE years ago] Israel’s Ministry of Justice threatens to ‘dismantle’ Scientology’s Tel Aviv Ideal Org
[FOUR years ago] Scientology chiro pleaded guilty to fraud, but we may get to see a sort of trial anyway
[FIVE years ago] Thetan-tastic: Alan Arkin and Michael Douglas skewer Scientology on ‘The Kominsky Method’
[SIX years ago] Scientology so desperate for Narconon patients, new offer drops all pretense of separation
[SEVEN years ago] Ray Emmons, 1942-2017: Clearwater’s cop who sniffed out Scientology’s secrets
[EIGHT years ago] Talking with Tiponi Grey, who quit her Scientology job and announced it on YouTube
[NINE years ago] Troublemakers: The women who won’t keep quiet about Scientology
[TEN years ago] Finally, Scientology has an answer for last year’s Super Bowl power outage
[ELEVEN years ago] Scientology’s Trust Issues: A Possible Garcia Legal Strategy?
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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 3,066 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,561 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,076 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,626 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,616 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,002 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,497 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,801 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,672 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,224 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,565 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,132 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,051 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,219 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,801 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,061 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,097 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,813 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,377 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,692 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,867 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,549 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,887 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,740 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,855 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,217 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,520 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,626 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,024 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,900 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,465 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,977 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,232 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,340 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on October 28, 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
