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 Oh, Perez. You look fabulous after all that weight loss. But you just have no reading comprehension, apparently.
We say that because we’ve just watched Perez mangle the Leah Remini story out of all recognition, and the thing is, he’s obviously getting nearly every one of his “facts” from stories we published earlier this week. Perez, for some reason, is trying to turn the story of Leah Remini leaving Scientology into some kind of dishy tale of gay panic. And while it may be hopeless to try and counter his misunderstandings before they circle the globe a few times, we’ll do our best to try. Continue reading Perez Hilton Has Poor Reading Skills: Here’s a Leah Remini Primer for the Word-Challenged
 Two years ago, Michelle Visage was a longtime talk radio host in Los Angeles when she was presented with a tantalizing opportunity. RuPaul wanted her to be a judge on the third season of his VH1 show, RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Visage says she knew it would be great for her career. But she worried that her bosses at CBS Radio, who were conservative and uptight, might have a problem with her asking for permission to do that kind of show. She agonized over the idea of even bringing it up. “I don’t want to hear it. Do it, or I’m going to call the president of CBS Radio myself,” Michelle’s friend Leah Remini told her. “So I called and made it happen,” Michelle says. “If it weren’t for Leah, I may not have had the balls to get this job. She does this stuff. She offers to call the presient of CBS Radio. That’s what a friend is.” But now, Michelle says, Leah’s really learning something about her friends. Continue reading Leah Remini’s Friend, TV’s Michelle Visage, Says Scientologists Are “Scattering Like Roaches” Advertisement
Nicole Remini sounds irritated when we ask her about a report in the Chicago Sun-Times yesterday that claimed her sister, King of Queens actress Leah Remini, had “chatted” with Kirstie Alley to make sure there was no “loss of friendship” between the two over the explosion in news about Leah’s recent defection from the Church of Scientology. “It did not happen, Tony. It did not happen.” Nicole says there’s no truth to the Sun-Times report at all — her sister has not talked with Alley. And she says Leah is disgusted and disappointed that Kirstie and others have not called her to find out what’s really going on. Continue reading LEAH REMINI’S SISTER NICOLE: How We Got Into Scientology, And How Leah Got Out
 The last time Scientology denied forced disconnection — with Tommy Davis on CNN in 2008 — it backfired badly Scientology is spinning as madly as it can. Today, in order to deal with an avalanche of bad news about Leah Remini’s defection, the Church of Scientology put out a statement denying that it forces members to disconnect from each other when it excommunicates someone — or, in church parlance, declares them a suppressive person. Here’s the church’s statement: “Contrary to myths spouted by…anti-Scientologists, the Church cannot and does not ‘order’ any parishioner to disconnect. Such a decision always has been and remains a deeply personal choice made entirely by the individual. This has been spelled out clearly on our website for years.” Here we go again. In 2008, Scientology’s then-spokesman, Tommy Davis, went on CNN and denied that families were subjected to disconnection. That shocked people like Paul Haggis, who knew that his own family had experienced the toxic policy. We’ve talked to many former church members who say Davis’s performance on CNN helped convince them to turn their backs on the church. Continue reading Scientology Claims No Forced “Disconnection” — So Tell Us About Yours
[Never before published photo of Shelly Miscavige courtesy of Claudio and Renata Lugli.]
One of the most intriguing mysteries of the Church of Scientology is the disappearance of Shelly Miscavige, wife of the church’s leader, David Miscavige. A frequent refrain heard from critics of the church is “Where’s Shelly?” — and that question is also central to the recent defection of Leah Remini, who began to break away from the church when she didn’t get a satisfactory answer. Continue reading SHELLY SPEAKS: Scientology Leader’s Banished Wife Says She’ll Get Out “Only One Way”
 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, with your help we’ve learned something about the courses that Scientologists go through on their journey up the Bridge to Total Freedom. We’ve learned about staring contests and study technology and shattering suppression and the Purification Rundown, to name a few. What’s next? CLAIRE: Next up is the Scientology Ethics Specialist course. While not officially a step on the Bridge, it’s a step that every Scientologist does. Also, it has some connection to what we’ve been hearing this week about Leah Remini and Kirstie Alley. THE BUNKER: Do tell! Continue reading Claire Headley Wonders, Was Kirstie Alley Doing Scientology’s “Doubt Formula?”
The Underground Bunker has learned that Scientology celebrities have received their marching orders from the Hollywood Celebrity Centre: They cannot be “in comm” with Leah Remini after we broke the news last week that she has left the church. Continue reading Scientology Celebrities Told Leah Remini is “Not in Good Standing,” Are Ordered to “Disconnect”
Last week, the Church of Scientology claimed in a filing to federal Judge James Whittemore that it needed to depose Boston resident Brian Culkin in Massachusetts because the yoga teacher was too afraid to attend an evidentiary hearing scheduled for September 26 in Tampa, Florida. Culkin feared for his life, the church said, because of nasty comments made at this blog and other reactions after Culkin signed a declaration that the church used to complicate a federal fraud lawsuit brought against the church by Luis and Rocio Garcia of Irvine, California. But now Culkin has hired San Antonio attorney Ray Jeffrey, who has won two recent high-profile cases against Scientology, and Jeffrey has filed a scathing letter that may have left Scientology’s motion in tatters. Continue reading REVERSE WARRIOR: Brian Culkin Hires Ray Jeffrey, Blasts Scientology in Court Filing
 In June, Atlanta attorney Jeff Harris filed a class-action lawsuit against Scientology and its drug rehab network, Narconon, with seven named plaintiffs who are alleging fraud, deceptive practices, and negligence.
Harris had earlier handled a wrongful death lawsuit against Narconon Georgia following the 2008 overdose death of Patrick Desmond, a patient and employee of the Atlanta-area rehab center. The lawsuit was settled this past February, but documents that Harris obtained helped launch ongoing local and state investigations of credit card and insurance fraud, and resulted in a raid of the facility by law enforcement agents. Now, Scientology is fighting back against the class-action lawsuit by having it removed to federal court and filing multiple motions to dismiss. We have the documents. Continue reading Scientology’s Drug Rehab Fights Class-Action Lawsuit With Move to Federal Court
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Oh, Perez. You look fabulous after all that weight loss. But you just have no reading comprehension, apparently.
