When rabid Scientologists got into a fistfight with US marshals to protect L. Ron Hubbard

[Lancaster Dodd’s Philly arrest in ‘The Master’]

After we got a fun new look at the early days of Dianetics through the never-before-published letters of Don Rogers recently, it motivated us to dive back into some similar documents that our fearless researcher, R.M. Seibert, located for us.

Continue reading When rabid Scientologists got into a fistfight with US marshals to protect L. Ron Hubbard

Scientology asks court to freeze Laura D’s forced-abortion case for a long-shot appeal

[Laura DeCrescenzo and Bert Deixler]

We told you that Bert Deixler, Scientology’s top-flight attorney, had filed a notice that the church planned to appeal a federal court ruling even after getting shot down in its latest attempt to throw up a roadblock before Laura DeCrescenzo finally gets her day in court this August on her 9-year forced-abortion lawsuit.

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Jack Parsons is getting his star-turn next month, but we’ll have to wait for L. Ron Hubbard

The effort to bring to television George Pendle’s excellent 2006 book about Jack Parsons, Strange Angel, is finally nearing fruition as a Ridley Scott-produced series premieres on the streaming service CBS All Access on June 14.

Continue reading Jack Parsons is getting his star-turn next month, but we’ll have to wait for L. Ron Hubbard

Scientology’s elaborate use of child labor for pennies an hour, spelled out in black and white

[Sunny Pereira, 15]

Sunny Pereira has become a very effective technical expert here at the Bunker, helping us understand Scientology’s arcane ideas. And lately, she’s been going back over some of her own career in the church, and digging out some documents, the sort you don’t see every day.

Continue reading Scientology’s elaborate use of child labor for pennies an hour, spelled out in black and white

Russia’s ineffective Scientology crackdown includes smearing foreign leaders

[Andrej Kiska with Barack and Michelle Obama in 2016]

Rod Keller cuts through some of the propaganda coming out of Russia to get a little closer to what’s actually happening there.

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When Scientology leader David Miscavige targets you for a beatdown: A Jefferson Hawkins classic

Last week, we enjoyed an excerpt from Marc Headley’s 2009 book Blown for Good, a stunning narrative by a longtime Scientologist describing his life in the church and how he broke away. Another account with a similar theme which came out a few months later was the remarkable Counterfeit Dreams by Jefferson Hawkins.

Continue reading When Scientology leader David Miscavige targets you for a beatdown: A Jefferson Hawkins classic

Scientology’s founder in 1948: Dianetics was ‘unfrigidizing’ women into ‘nymphos’

[Hubbard in 1948]

A 1948 letter written by L. Ron Hubbard that Lawrence Wright quotes in his 2013 history of Scientology, Going Clear, is going on the auction block in New York on June 14, and it’s really fun to see it in its entirety on the Christie’s website.

Continue reading Scientology’s founder in 1948: Dianetics was ‘unfrigidizing’ women into ‘nymphos’

Living with Scientology ‘disconnection’: ‘It’s important to never give up hope’

[Renata and Flavio]

Last week, we asked the people on our “Scientology disconnection, a reminder” list — which appears at the end of each story here at the Bunker — about how they are coping with the church keeping them from their loved ones. The result was an emotional outpouring from the people on the list and from the readers of this website.

Continue reading Living with Scientology ‘disconnection’: ‘It’s important to never give up hope’

Scientology’s smear campaign against Mike Rinder takes a more disturbing turn than usual

[Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey and Taryn Teutsch]

For years, Scientology and its operatives have attacked former spokesman Mike Rinder with one particular accusation.

Continue reading Scientology’s smear campaign against Mike Rinder takes a more disturbing turn than usual

Scientology files notice of appeal in time-wasting federal court attack on forced-abortion case