TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: You may have heard about a court fight in Miami between Scientology donor Grant Cardone and former T-Mobile US CEO John Legere, which in part turns on accusations by Legere that Cardone is not a billionaire. Now, we ask, can a couple of Cardone’s own emails settle that question? [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“Situation: You ask the pc for a withhold about Joe. The pc who says, ‘I heard that Joe . . . ,’ should be asked right there, ‘What have you done to Joe? You. Just you.’ And it turns out he stole Joe’s last blonde. But if the auditor had let this pc go on and on about how the pc had heard how Joe was this or that, the session would have gone on and on and the Tone Arm up and up.” — 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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“I remember trying to pick a little girl up out of a bombed carriage one time, about 1685, and I had quite a lose because I didn’t succeed in making her get on her feet, she was half blown to bits. And mechanisms didn’t work, and so forth, and tried to pick her up and dust her off, you know, as a thetan. And it didn’t work and it gave me a big lose and I got all confused and upset about the thing and then that was an overt not to have done it, you get the idea? But I was guilty of an overt in the first place, I eventually realized and found out, in that I was riding as the, as a bodyguard on this particular carriage, see, and I didn’t do it, you know. Something bad went wrong, see, something bad happened. Well, that’s guilty of an overt act right then. Don’t expect to control a situation that you’ve caused to that degree. Got the idea?” — L. Ron Hubbard, November 25, 1959
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“CLASS X: We have now graduated two Class X Internes. This is a good win and breaks the log jam. It takes quite a while to make a Class X in view of the intervening courses such as SHSBC, Class VIII, Class IX, to which are currently added a long Interneship of Class VII. There has been a very slow making of auditors in the field. The New York Org has just telexed that it has made its first Class IV in a year and a half…We are putting a new regulation into HCOs that 50 percent of all its recruits must go to Tech. In other words, for every two recruits, one of them must be put into full time training. Recent HCOs have had a tendency to neglect the establishment of Tech and Qual Divisions with qualified personnel.” — The Commodore, November 25, 1971
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“I don’t think it is fair to blame Ron for what the Church of Scientology turned into or for any of its actions either. The only people who are doing that are people who either do not really understand Scientology, have a strong misanthropic streak, are covering up their own overts, or possibly some simply have a compulsion to be in the limelight no matter what cost to anyone. I never expected Ron to be perfect in the first place. He never said he was, and in fact he said that he wasn’t. His many accomplishments, however, pass for perfection for many people, including me. His life work is unprecedented in all of history to my recollection. So no, blaming Ron for anything that occurred back then has nothing to do with anything I said or think.”
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1995: The surprising and somewhat confusing story of Jan Peter Mante (aka Snorri Helgarsson aka Newkid) unfolded in numerous postings with week. Excerpts from articles in Trouw, a Dutch national newspaper. “In close collaboration with the US embassy, the scientology church has exposed a swindler. The man tried to sell secret US-government documents to the cult. The documents would allegedly prove that the US government was supporting the Dutch electronic anti-Scientology movement. The blackmailer turned out to be employed as computer-programmer on the US embassy. The programmer, Jan Peter Mante, has been fired this week. The collaboration between the cult and the embassy is extremely remarkable: the cult and the US government have had many disputes in the past. US citizen Frank Marshall, who negotiated with Mante on behalf of the cult and is consultant to a law-firm in the States, regularly reported to the US embassy. Mante claims never to have been interested in money. His only goal was to play a nasty trick on the cult that he hates. When the cult seized the computers of the Dutch Internet-provider XS4ALL, he decided the time to act had arrived. Mante recorded the negotiations on audio-tape and was hoping to be able to show the climax, the actual transaction, to the world press. But his girlfriend, with whom he shared all his secrets, betrayed him to Scientology.”
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“I’ve always wanted to move to Australia. I could hang out at the pub all day with Nick Cave and the Cosmic Psychos, get a dingo, collect funnel web spiders and tiger snakes and swim with white pointers and salties. Send me a ticket and a few thousand dollars to tie up lose ends and I’ll be right over.”
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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, 2023.
— ‘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 November 15.
— 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: Apostate Alex exposes English mayor for sucking up to Scientology
[TWO years ago] There she blows! More Scientology whales spotted, including some surprises
[THREE years ago] As Thanksgiving begins to get back to normal, it’s time to pass the Source again!
[FIVE years ago] Leah Remini calls Beck’s sudden Scientology defection a ‘pussy move’
[SIX years ago] Kirstie Alley calls on her fellow Scientologists to pounce on another disaster
[SEVEN years ago] After a landmark court case, Scientology watchers should be celebrating, not sniping
[EIGHT years ago] That time when Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard didn’t invent surfing in California
[NINE years ago] Lisa McPherson and the doctors: Hamstrung by the ‘spiritual’ needs of a thetan
[TEN years ago] Scientology Armageddon: Now Sears — yes, Sears — is piling on the embattled church
[ELEVEN years ago] SCIENTOLOGY DECLARES ACTRESS LEAH REMINI A “SUPPRESSIVE PERSON”
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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 3,094 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,589 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,104 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,654 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,644 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,030 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,525 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,829 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,700 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,252 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,593 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,160 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,079 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,247 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,829 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,089 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 4,125 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,841 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,405 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,720 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,895 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,577 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,914 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,768 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,883 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,245 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,548 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,654 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,052 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,928 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,493 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,004 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,260 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,368 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on November 25, 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
