Oh wow, what a treat it was to get to talk to both “Brothers Broken” — musicians and former Scientology Sea Org members Geoff and Robbie Levin — for our podcast this week.
We’ve discussed their story before: They were the core members of the band People! that had a big 1968 hit, “I Love You,” but then were sucked into Scientology and helped Yvonne Gillham as she was creating the Hollywood Celebrity Centre.
Robbie soon soured on the Sea Org and left, and then Scientology’s toxic “disconnection” policy kept them apart as Geoff spent a total of 46 years in the organization, becoming a mainstay of the Celebrity Centre and creator of some Scientology’s most iconic music.
Finally, after Geoff nearly died and began making his way out of Scientology, the brothers were reunited and People! was reformed. But disconnection has not loosened its grip, as Scientology has separated Geoff from his own grown children.
Now, after several years of hard work, Geoff and Robbie are premiering their documentary in theaters, and you have a chance to go!
Here are the dates and times.
The US premiere of Brothers Broken…
Cinequest Film Festival, San Jose, CA
Sunday August 20: Hammer Theatre Center, 4:30 pm
Saturday August 26: Mountain View ShowPlace ICON Theatre & Kitchen, 11:30 am.
Also, the Los Angeles premiere...
At the Studio City Film Festival
Sunday Sept 3, Laemmle NoHo 7, 5240 Lankershim Blvd, North Hollywood, 7:30 pm
But today’s podcast is about more than what’s in the movie. In fact, Robbie told us a story about David Miscavige we’d never heard before, and it’s really something: In 1983, Robbie and Geoff threw a party for Scientology’s celebrities as a way to lure in Miscavige, and it worked! You have to hear Robbie tell this tale.
Once again, choose your poison. You can listen to the audio podcast (above) or watch the video version at YouTube, which is embedded below.
Hoax 1983 document coming up again?
We can certainly understand Amy Scobee’s excitement about being sent what appears to be a 1983 document written by David Miscavige and ordering, in typical foul language, to have fake footage of L. Ron Hubbard created to pass off as genuine to gullible Scientologists. Amy featured it in a video yesterday, suggesting that it was a new leak.
In fact, that document has been floating around online since at least 1995, and it purports to come from a year, 1983, that we’ve noticed was the source of some questionable documents from breakaway factions that were taking advantage of the absence of L. Ron Hubbard.
In a 1999 sworn declaration in the Wollersheim lawsuit, Miscavige himself testified that this particular document, titled “RE: SMASH SQUIRRELS PJT” was a forgery that had been certified as such in a previous court matter:
The resultant attempts to harass me in litigation extended to not just creating false allegations, but false documents as well. In 1984, a former church staff member then employed by one of those splinter groups, created a document entitled SMASH SQUIRRELS PJT. This forged document, allegedly written by me, purported to show that the taped message by Mr. Hubbard denouncing their movement was actually created by me through use of a digital sampling device. Putting aside that lie, no digital sampling device was, or is to this day, capable of accomplishing such a task. Moreover, the digital device referred to, and by which I allegedly accomplished this impersonation of Mr. Hubbard's voice, was an early generation musical instrument, capable of replicating a short sample of natural sounds for use in playing music. Notwithstanding the absurdity of the allegation, the ramifications of this forgery had a severe impact on me. It implied I intended some form of harassment of apostate Scientologists (colloquially called "SQUIRRELS" in Scientology). The document was widely circulated to Scientologists and to the government in an attempt to discredit me. It also was circulated by civil litigants, and continuously used against me in litigation. I had to fight this issue for years, until the document was examined in 1993 in a Freedom of Information Act case, Miscavige v. IRS, No. CV 88-7341 TJH (C.D. Cal.) by Special Master Jack Tenner, who found that it was, in fact, a forgery. That conclusion was affirmed in an order issued by Judge Terry J. Hatter of the United States District Court for the Central District of California. [Ex. E, order of Judge Hatter.]
So, while we are always skeptical of claims by Miscavige, the least we can say is that the authenticity of this document has been heavily questioned numerous times over many years, and it is not a new leak.
We’re sorry to spoil the party, but we tend to believe that this document is most likely not what it purports to be.
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Thank you for reading today’s story here at Substack. For the full picture of what’s happening today in the world of Scientology, please join the conversation at tonyortega.org, where we’ve been reporting daily on David Miscavige’s cabal since 2012. There you’ll find additional stories, and our popular regular daily features:
Source Code: Actual things founder L. Ron Hubbard said on this date in history
Avast, Ye Mateys: Snapshots from Scientology’s years at sea
Overheard in the Freezone: Indie Hubbardism, one thought at a time
Past is Prologue: From this week in history at alt.religion.scientology
Random Howdy: Your daily dose of the Captain
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PODCAST: When the ‘Brothers Broken’ lured David Miscavige to their Hollywood celeb blowout!