Hey, Tom Cruise, Why Weren’t You the One to Raise a Stink When This Woman Went Missing?

Dear Tom,

It’s been more than a year since our last open letter to you.

Continue reading Hey, Tom Cruise, Why Weren’t You the One to Raise a Stink When This Woman Went Missing?

Mike Rinder: Is the Leah Remini Anonymous Smear Website Coming Soon?

UPDATE: See below — A possible smear site has just been registered!

Former Scientology spokesman Mike Rinder makes a great point on his website this afternoon: Now that news we broke Monday of Leah Remini leaving the Church of Scientology has spread like wildfire thanks to this morning’s front-page New York Post rewrite, will the church follow its usual playbook and launch an anonymous attack website to smear the King of Queens actress?

What Rinder is referring to is Scientology’s predictable use of leering, salacious but anonymous websites that attempt to smear the reputation of former members who dare to speak out, or journalists who dare to ask impertinent questions. Previously, we wrote a lengthy story about one smear site in particular, which targeted former Scientology executive Marty Rathbun (pictured, at right).

Continue reading Mike Rinder: Is the Leah Remini Anonymous Smear Website Coming Soon?

Scientology Asks For Judge’s Help Because You Were So Mean To Brian Culkin

Comments made on this blog, as well as some posted at Facebook and Operation Clambake, have been entered as evidence in the latest filing by the Church of Scientology in the federal fraud lawsuit brought against it by Luis and Rocio Garcia.

Yes, you read that right. The Church is making issue of mean things that some of you, our commenters, have said on this blog, and some of those comments have been preserved in the federal court record for posterity.

At issue is a legal sideshow that has stopped the Garcias’ lawsuit in its tracks, and will now require an evidentiary hearing that has been moved back to September 26.

Continue reading Scientology Asks For Judge’s Help Because You Were So Mean To Brian Culkin

Indie Scientologists Try to Spoil “Super Power” Release as it (Supposedly) Nears Debut

In January 2012, we spilled Scientology’s “Super Power” secrets — hundreds of never-before-published renderings of what the church’s monster new building in Clearwater, Florida was going to look like, from its basement to its executive offices on the seventh floor. Of particular interest were outlandish contraptions like the Smell Wall, Oiliness Table, Pain Station and other oddities on the building’s space-age fifth floor, where the “perceptics” of Scientologists would be tested.

But seeing all that strange equipment made us wonder: what was the “Super Power Rundown” itself, the special processing that needed a city-block sized, $100-million-dollar edifice that has been under construction for 15 years? What unutterable secrets would be going on in that building? Fortunately for us, a man named Dan Koon gave us a glimpse of some of those secrets.

And now, more than a year later, Dan Koon is spilling the rest of those secrets for the public’s consumption.

Continue reading Indie Scientologists Try to Spoil “Super Power” Release as it (Supposedly) Nears Debut

Claire Headley Shows Us That in Scientology, You Just Can’t Shout at Ashtrays Enough

Claire Headley is taking us on our journey to train as Scientologists. She and her husband Marc were Sea Org workers who escaped from Scientology’s International Base in 2005. She spent years working with Scientology’s “tech,” and was trusted to oversee the auditing of Tom Cruise. Go here to see the first part in this series.

Claire, the farther you take us up the bridge, the more it feels like we’ve been here before. Are you telling us that we’re back to yelling at ashtrays again this week?

CLAIRE: The next step on our journey is Upper Indoc TRs (Upper Indoctrination Training Routines). We did cover some of this earlier, when I first did these on the HQS course.

Continue reading Claire Headley Shows Us That in Scientology, You Just Can’t Shout at Ashtrays Enough

Scientology Leader’s Twin, Denise Gentile, Pleads Guilty to Lesser Charge, Pays Fines

We just confirmed with a clerk at the Pinellas County, Florida circuit court that Denise Gentile — who was facing DUI and pot possession charges — pleaded guilty today to the lesser charge of reckless driving, and agreed to attend DUI school and pay several court costs and fines.

Last week, the Tampa Bay Times reported that on January 22, Gentile was arrested as she was driving her Dodge Durango erratically outside a rental property she owned. Under the driver’s seat was found a black vinyl bag with nine marijuana “blunts,” and Gentile was found to have a blood-alcohol level over the legal limit.

Continue reading Scientology Leader’s Twin, Denise Gentile, Pleads Guilty to Lesser Charge, Pays Fines

SCIENTOLOGY CELEBRITY REBELLION: Leah Remini Dared to Ask, “Where’s Shelly?”

Leah, her mother Vicki, and daughter Sofia

On Friday, we reported that we’d received a tip King of Queens actress Leah Remini had left the Church of Scientology in an angry fit. We asked our tipsters for more information, and we got it.

Over the weekend, we were contacted by several sources with detailed inside knowledge who tell us Remini is breaking away because of the way leader David Miscavige is treating church members, Sea Org workers, and Scientology itself.

According to our sources, Remini has been distancing herself from what she refers to as the church’s “corrupt management” for a few years. And it started with a dramatic scene.

Continue reading SCIENTOLOGY CELEBRITY REBELLION: Leah Remini Dared to Ask, “Where’s Shelly?”

Alanna Masterson’s Dad Calls Connor Cruise “Worst Person in the World” for Her to Date

Joe Reaiche, in his playing days

The Underground Bunker has teamed with Australia’s biggest-selling magazine, Woman’s Day, to bring you a report that should send some reverberations through Scientology celebrity culture.

In its newest edition, which hit store shelves in Australia a few hours ago, Woman’s Day has published a photograph taken last month showing actress Alanna Masterson, 24, and the son of Tom Cruise, Connor, 18, on a recent lunch date.

The magazine and the Bunker teamed up to ask Alanna’s father, Joe Reaiche, for his thoughts on his daughter spending time with Connor.

Reaiche is a former Australian rugby star who now lives on Long Island. When he left Scientology behind in 2005, his entire family cut off ties with him, including Alanna and her half-brother, That ’70s Show actor Danny Masterson.

Reaiche’s views on Alanna spending time with Connor Cruise were not very salutary.

Continue reading Alanna Masterson’s Dad Calls Connor Cruise “Worst Person in the World” for Her to Date

Sunday Funnies VIDEO: Watch Scientologists Who are Fully Stoked!

If you’re like us, there’s truly nothing more inspiring than watching Scientologists talk about how much they love Scientology.

And we’ve never been quite so inspired than we were after watching a new video of rapid-fire testimonials by dozens of Scientologists who have been fully stoked by the Golden Age of Knowledge.

If you’re not really up on Scientology lingo, don’t despair. Because after watching this seven-minute video, things really won’t be any clearer.

But surely, you’ll get a contact high from these enthusiastic folks talking about their big wins on Ron’s wisdom.

Continue reading Sunday Funnies VIDEO: Watch Scientologists Who are Fully Stoked!

Best Account of Life in Scientology? Jon Atack Makes the Case for Counterfeit Dreams

Jon Atack is the author of A Piece of Blue Sky, one of the very best books on L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. He now has a new edition of the book out, and on Saturdays he’s helping us sift through the legends, myths, and contested facts about Scientology that tend to get hashed and rehashed in books, articles, and especially on the Internet.

This week, Jon sent us some thoughts about books written by people who had left Scientology and then described their experiences. We were pleased to see him single out for praise a book that we’ve also held in high esteem.

Continue reading Best Account of Life in Scientology? Jon Atack Makes the Case for Counterfeit Dreams

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