Tom Cruise rarely does anything spontaneous. Even his ’seemingly-spontaneous’ couch calisthenics on Oprah’s show in 2005 was deemed to be premeditated. All this over-the-top exuberance for finding his “true love” (third time’s the charm, right?) in actress Katie Holmes after only a few weeks of knowing each other, was surely to help make the transition that much more believable. Sadly, contrived spontaneity rarely goes over well.

In the years following this epic interview, Oprah Winfrey and Tom Cruise’s names have become inextricably linked to one another, and created as they say, an elephant in the room. Oprah for her part, was seen as complicit in giving Cruise a forum to really behave in a disingenuous way. She sat back and while he let the crazy out, all the while secretly wondering “WTF?” is going on. Oprah received zero credibility for her Tom Cruise interview, and while she’s still insanely popular, she knows the whole TC interview hangs over her like a dark cloud.

But what about Tom Cruise? What does he have to gain by going back to Oprah’s couch? He too is dogged with the knowledge he let his inner Scientology-induced weirdo out for all the world to gape upon. Surely he’d be better off letting this connection die a excruciatingly slow death. Or perhaps not.

With all the speculation as to what Oprah will be asking Tom, and what Tom will be shilling this time, why not go to the authority on Tom Cruise, the man who spent two years studying, dissecting and analyzing the world’s most famous, and now infamous actor, NYTimes bestselling biographer Andrew Morton.

I asked Mr. Morton for his thoughts on this upcoming interview and he seemed pretty interested in the process that went into bringing these two forces together once more, considering how poorly it went last time. From Morton:

But wait, there’s more…

Glosslip’s interview with ex-Scientologist Marc Headley in many ways was more of a blow to the Church of Scientology, than ABC’s light coverage of CoS victims Jenna Miscavige (niece of Scientology leader David Miscavige) and actor Jason Beghe’s powerful Scientology video with Mark Bunker of Xenutv.com.

Thanks to the exceedingly gracious efforts of Anonymous, we are able to bring you transcribed information from that interview, so that our hearing impaired, or dial-up users can be privy to this illuminating, yet disturbing details about the Church of Scientology’s inner workings. Marc Headley is not only an amazingly articulate person, he’s also very brave for stepping forward to share this information from deep inside the Church. As Executive Producer at Golden Era Production, the production company owned by Scientology, Headley worked closely with RTC President and CoS figurehead, David Miscavige.

When you read this transcribed interview I ask that you bear in mind, this man, David Miscavige, is a role model to Scientologists around the globe, he is the head of an organization which deems itself as the spiritual salvation for mankind. Please try to imagine any other spiritual leader in this role, and truthfully ask yourself if this conduct is befitting of such an honor:

DO: Good afternoon Glosslip radio listeners, I am Dawn Olsen of glosslip.com, and I am very excited to have a very special guest with me today. It’s Marc Headley, an ex-Scientologist who was with the Church of Scientology for 15 years. He’s got some really very interesting, exciting and sad stories to share with us about his experiences within the Org. He and I talked a few times before while we were setting up the interview, and certainly I’m well aware of the stories he has to tell, so I’m just going to give you a little background here from his bio.

Marc worked at the Scientology international management headquarters in Gilman Hot Springs
from 1990-2005, and he worked for the media production company owned by the Church of
Scientology, Golden Era productions. They’re the ones that put out all those Scientology
commercials and propaganda videos we’ve seen and mocked on the web over the last few months.

Having worked there for quite some time, he ended up becoming the Executive Producer at
Golden Era Productions. He left in 2005 and now lives in California with his family. We’re going to
leave it at that because why he left is very pertinent to this story. First we’re going to begin with
introducing Marc. Hello Marc, thanks for joining us, I’m really excited to have you.

MH: Hi Dawn, great to be here.

DO: And you’re recovering from a cold, so everybody…

MH: Just a little bit hoarse.

DO: Just a little bit hoarse. We’ll try and not make you talk too much. I’m just curious, can you tell us how you became involved in Scientology? I know you still have family members who are in, so let’s go with your background first.

MH: What actually happened was my mother, probably in the very early 80’s, got involved in Scientology through a friend.

More and more, she became involved in doing courses and getting auditing. I grew up living
across the street from the Celebrity Center in Los Angeles. So I grew up around Scientologists,
then my mom became a Scientologist and I went to a Scientology school. So from about the age of
six or seven I was indoctrinated into the lingo and the procedures, and all the different things that
Scientologists do. In 1989, I left school, the Scientology school that I was attending, to join the Sea
Organization.

Very shortly from when I joined the Sea Org, I was transferred from Los Angeles to the
Golden Era productions facility, so that’s how I got in. When you grow up in Scientology, the Sea
Org is made out to be the elite of all Scientology so if you can actually go into the Sea Org, it’s
considered a privilege. They have a slogan: “Many are called, few are chosen.” And that’s how they
recruit people.

DO: So, they make it sound like a very elite society, and not everyone, you may be interested but not everyone gets to join, therefore increasing the image of the Sea Org?

MH: That’s exactly correct. You don’t really see when you’re Scientology public, if you’re a parishioner, behind the scenes into the Sea Org. You only see the staff that work at the different churches. A parishioner might never go into a management facility or a confidential location such as Golden Era Productions. They’re not really privy to the goings on there, its very mysterious.
Even when I joined the Sea Org in 1989, I was not aware that there was a facility, even a secret
facility that was up in Hemet. I had no idea, even after I was in the Sea Org for many months. I had
never heard it until I was asked if I would like to go there. So I said “Sure, what it it?”, I didn’t even
know.

I didn’t know who David Miscavige was, I didn’t know who any of the current leaders of
Scientology were, nothing. I had no knowledge of them whatsoever, that’s the view of a kid
growing up in it. So that’s how I ended up at Golden Era Productions.

DO: Now, when you and I talked, I shared with you some experiences that Jeff Hawkins and I talked about. Do you know Jeff?

MH: Yeah, I know Jeff.

DO: I assumed you would have, but there’s a lot of people who’ve come and gone over the years so I shouldn’t assume that people know each other. But he worked with David Miscavige doing marketing, that type of stuff, I figured you could have run into each other. He told a very disturbing story about David actually abusing his staff members and specifically Jeff, he himself was abused.

And he saw a senior Org member get beaten, it was like an open-handed slap to the face
several times. That was David’s way of intimidating staff into doing what he wants and he’s a very
angry man. But you also have some more stories and I’d like you to share that with us, I think it’s
very important because we’re trying to build a picture about a man we don’t know that much about,
you have a lot of insight into that, why don’t you tell us what you know about David Miscavige.

MH: Well, from the time I showed up at Golden Era Productions in 1990, I had been there maybe a few months when I saw David Miscavige physically beat somebody up. And that was in 1990. So it’s not like this just developed over the past five years, there’s a pattern going on.

All the way up until I left in 2005 I’d say that I saw David Miscavige physically strike somebody or slap as you say or punch in the face, I’d say I witnessed myself at least thirty different occasions, myself. And I heard from other people second hand many more instances that occurred. That was the turning point was for me. In late 2004 I was walking through the main factory facility with David Miscavige and I had made a smart-alec comment in response to one of his questions, apparently he’d not had a good day already and my comment was not well received and he proceeded to unload on me.

He punched me in the face at least ten times and my glasses fell off, I was thrown up against a
desk unit, a counter top, and that was the moment right then when I realized I could go no further
down than this, to be beaten by the leader of my so-called church. What else could I do that could
get me in a lower status than that? And I decided that I would strike back. As soon as he saw that in
my eyes, I was grabbed and escorted out of the building and made to take a walk for about an hour
or so. He sent several people off to console me, that he really shouldn’t have done that and he was
really sorry. While I was being escorted out of the room I heard him say to his staffers, “He was
going to hit me back”.

And I thought to myself, “Do you know what? I really was, I really was going to hit you back”. At that point that I started figuring out what I was going to do because I wasn’t going to be staying there much longer. And in January 2005 I left. A lot of people, a lot of Scientologists think that Dave Miscavige is the savior of the church and all those things that he’s done have kept it alive, basically the reason they are still around. That might also be the reason why they’re not going to last, because of the crimes, the physical violence, the emotional and mental torture, that he puts people through, its mind-boggling.

A lot of people don’t believe, the stuff they read on the internet, that David Miscavige has done. When I got out of the Sea Org I couldn’t believe the amount of stuff that was on the internet that was absolutely, 100% accurate, of the going ons at the international headquarters or Int Base. So yeah, there’s a lot of stuff on the internet and it’s absolutely true, pretty much I’d say 99% of it is very accurate.

David, while not a “minister” at the Church, is certainly the person who sets policy, creates initiatives and leads his “parish.” By virtue of Miscavige’s role as head of a “religious organization” it is entirely appropriate to set standards of conduct upon him befitting of someone who leads such a wealthy organization. An organization mind you, which prides itself on ethical mores, spiritual guidance and has taken the charge of “obliterating psychiatry,” saving mankind, and ultimately “clearing the planet” of undesirable elements which keep us as a species from becoming enlightened.

Do you suppose Pope Benedict XVI punches, slaps and abuses his flock? Does the Dali Lama do this? What about high ranking Rabbis, Ministers, Reverends and spiritual leaders around the world? Today while sitting in my own house of worship, I tried imagining the leader of my faith doing this. It was laughable, inconceivable.

This man, who cradles babies with the love of a father to all, the person who smiles upon me and all those who stood with me as though the very light of divinity shone through me, and those in my fellowship. This person who asked kindly for my donations to continue their good works, but smiled just as benevolently upon me as they did upon those who couldn’t give. This person who feels their offering of salvation on behalf of their chosen faith, is predicated on the example they set, based on teachings which are thousands of years old. This person wouldn’t dare think it was appropriate to treat another member of their congregation or any other human the way David Miscavige has treated his dedicated Sea Org members as described above.

I wish this were the worst of it, but sadly, the sadism and cruelty is even worse than the abuse Marc discusses above. Regardless of your faith, or lack thereof, we are all expected to treat each other with respect. But this behavior, witnessed first hand, is unforgivable coming from a leader of a so-called “religion.”

Coming up next….how David Miscavige tortured his staff, had members thrown in filthy lakes, and mentally abused and ridiculed his own associates.

UPDATE:

From Scientology-Kills

Some stats from Movie Usenet:

Name: Jason Beghe
Profession: actor
Status: in since 1994, OT4, PTS/SP
Achievement: “monkey shines”
Sources: George 4/97, Celebrity #314, #341, #286, #367

Video above is exclusive to Xenu.TV. All hail Mark Bunker, for he is wise, he has a beard and his beard is wise also. Or as my son calls him “Wise Beer Man!” He’s four. My son, not Mark Bunker

Enjoy an interview with a celeb who isn’t afraid to reveal the truth about Scientology, there’s said to be more video on the way. I can only imagine the damage this will do to those on the fence. There’s rumors that more celebs are about to fall “off the bridge.” We look forward to being there to catch them when they fall. Many people care and want to help.

Some language NSFW. You’ve been warned.

Ice, Ice, Baby my arse! Wife beaters need a good swift kick to the teeth as far as I am concerned, and Robert Van Winkle (aka Vanilla Ice) is no exception. This is Robert’s second arrest for domestic abuse (he was arrested on similar charges in 2004) and that makes it a pattern, not an accident.

According to a report in the Palm Beach Post, Van Winkle went postal on his wife after she purchased a bedroom set:

Deputies arrived at their Wellington home around 7:15 p.m. to find the 40-year-old star, whose real name is Robert Van Winkle, on his motorcycle, two blocks from their home.

He started yelling at me for going out to buy a bedroom set. In front of my daughter,” she told a deputy, the arrest report says. “I’m sorry I can’t say any more until I talk to an attorney.”

Her husband, in turn, told deputies that he and his wife had been arguing since the previous day.

He said his wife is bipolar and takes medication but still has irrational and argumentative episodes and had thrown a picture frame from a rear balcony to the ground, where it shattered near him and their 8- and 10-year-old children.

He denied pushing his wife, the report says. He said he left on his motorcycle so they could cool down.

It’s not the first time he has been arrested in South Florida. In 2004, he was booked into the Broward County Jail on a domestic battery charge, records show.

In addition, a series of driving infractions - including driving with an expired license, driving 74 mph in a 45 mph zone and having illegally tinted car windows - culminated in a warrant for his arrest after he missed a court appearance.

He also was hit with $220 in impounding fees in 2004 when his pet wallaroo and goat escaped in Port St. Lucie and were picked up by animal control officers.

There’s likely more to this story than we are getting, and Mrs. Van Winkle may be a loose cannon herself, but there’s never an excuse to start slapping people around. Just walk away, call the cops, leave, whatever, but don’t start giving beatdowns in front of the kids.

Having witnessed the insane amount of anger which lurks in Vanilla Ice’s heart, it doesn’t surprise me to hear he can’t control himself. During his stint on the “Surreal Life” on VH1, he was often seen having angry meltdowns, including intimidating women on the show. What’s with all the anger people? First Artie Lange, now Vanilla Ice. It’s the recession, I blame the recession. Makes peeps loopy!

Tech problems plagued the exciting premiere for Ian Halperin’s new documentary, “His Highness Hollywood,” including the live radio show I did for Blog Talk Radio on Glosslip Radio.

Fortunately, I videoed the interview and so the parts that were cut off during the radio show were captured live. I will be posting a review of the premiere, which includes appearances by Andrew Morton, a tampered with projector (dun.dun.DUN), Blogcritics Theatre Editor Jon Sobel and many great moments.

Second part is on it’s way. Stay tuned for full review tomorrow.

Update - Second part up now.

Also, BIG PROPS to k for not only carrying the site and doing the Shaun Daily show all by her sick self while I out of town, but she did so all while suffering from the flu AND she also saved the day at the last minute and helped me out with a technical issue.

Glosslip would NOT exist without k, so my eternal gratitude is offered for her excellence.

L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology is quoted as saying:

“Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man really wanted to make a million dollars, the best way to do it would be start his own religion.”

Not to compare religious ideologies or beliefs, but that seems an unlikely foundation for any of the other major religions in the world. It is also important to note that no religion is without its failures, faults, murders, missteps and sordid history. But my conclusion is that Scientology isn’t a religion, and the mere fact that its founder based his ideology on making money goes to prove the point: money is the root of all evil. And tacking the term religion onto a derived set of self-help techniques cobbled together by a man who was previously known for writing mediocre science fiction, is dubious to say the least.

But wait, there’s more…

I had an epiphany of sorts this week. A strange mixture of revulsion and pity swept over me as I pictured Britney in her hyper-sexualized, manic-driven, deranged state complying with her new “boyfriend” Adnan Ghalib’s sexual advances.

As far as I am concerned, Britney is INCAPABLE of making rational, sane and healthy decisions about her life right now. This is not to say she isn’t manipulating the media, behaving in a willfully bratty and selfish way, but those random acts of defiance should not be confused with the sanity the rest of us count on to make appropriate decisions about our lives.

My assertion is Britney is being sexually abused by anyone who chooses to engage in relations with her at this time, this ESPECIALLY includes her new boyfriend - who I will take a step further and state, if Adnan IS in fact engaging in intercourse with Britney, it is NOT consensual and could qualify as rape.

I realize this is a strong statement, but please allow me to explain.

But wait, there’s more…

George Clooney is said to have uttered the following when asked what he thought about Nicole Kidman’s pregnancy announcement yesterday while attending the Critics Choice Awards, his response:

“At least she is older than 16.”

One can only assume this was an apparent dig at Jamie Lynn Spears, who is also pregnant, but at the ripe, old age of 16. Apparently, not all of Hollywood thinks being unmarried, under 18 and pregnant is a good thing.

But wait, there’s more…

 

Where’s my Shocked crayon, because that’s what you’re going to have to color me.  I’m just shocked, I tell ya!

No, apparently Pam and her third hubby, Rick Salomon, couldn’t make it work, despite giving it a whopping seventy-two days of effort:

According to court documents first obtained by CelebTV.com, the former Playboy Playmate has filed for divorce against her husband of just over two months.

On Dec. 14, Anderson filed a claim for dissolution of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences.

Anderson, 40, and Salomon, 39, a longtime pal, tied the knot on Oct. 6 at the Mirage Hotel Las Vegas. It was the third marriage for both.

Another Hollywood photo op publicity stunt pathetic attempt at grabbing headlines marriage bites the dust.  Such a good example for their children, are these wonderful, exlemplary parents.  It really shows the kids the meaning of compromise, working through one’s differences, and making absolutely sure one wants to make this level of commitment.  I aspire one day to be just like Pam.

Well, without the hepatitis, of course.

That’s probably what sunk the marriage…their respective diseases didn’t get along.

EDITED TO ADD:  According to the NY Daily News, Pam posted a note on her website that says they are “working things out”.  Who knows what’s going on in Pammy’s head?  All I know is that this is twice now she’s married and filed for divorce in a fast hurry.  Whether she goes through with it remains to be seen, but she seems to view her marriages as disposable as a used lipstick.

No one should need another reason to love Johnny Depp. He’s anti-Hollywood, he loves and dotes on his two children, he’s remarkably talented, handsome AND sexy and lives his life in an unassuming way. That should be enough, yet, once again he gives back to the masses who adore him by also being designated as the “Best Celebrity Autograph Signer.”

CNN reports:

Johnny Depp “likes to talk to fans and get to know them while signing,” says an autograph dealer.

The 44-year-old actor is the most gracious celebrity — for the third year in a row — on Autograph magazine’s annual list of the “10 Best and 10 Worst Hollywood Signers.”

“Though soft-spoken and laid-back, [Depp] likes to talk to fans and get to know them while signing,” New York autograph dealer Anthony Risi explains in the December issue, now on newsstands. “He’ll sign more than one item when he has time, too.” Video Watch Depp muse on his murderous new movie »

The magazine said editors compiled input from autograph-collecting judges based in Europe, New York and California in ranking the celebs.

This doesn’t surprise me. Because Johnny has chosen to live way off the beaten Hollywood path on a farm in rural France, he likely has spared his psyche and family the trauma of being constantly hounded for autographs. This makes giving autographs and interacting with his fans a rare and special treat. Even the reclusive like to be appreciated. Johnny, thank you for being such a great celeb. You make me not want to light the rest of Hollywood on fire for being full of raging c*cksuckers.

So who else made the “nice list” of gracious autograph signers:

2. Matt Damon
3. George Clooney
4. Jack Nicholson
5. Rosario Dawson
6. John Travolta,
7. Katherine Heigl
8. Jay Leno
9. Dakota Fanning
10. Russell Crowe — wait, Russell Crowe? Crowe, who has a history of throwing temper tantrums, ranked among the worst signers on last year’s list. But in a turnaround, the magazine said, the 43-year-old actor “started treating fans great, signing, taking pictures and chatting them up.”

Wow, that last one is surprising. And Jack Nicholson? Hmmm…well good for him!

And who sucks rotten eggs for being poor sports when it comes to signing autographs?

1. Will Ferrell
2. Tobey Maguire
3. Joaquin Phoenix
4. William Shatner
5. Renee Zellweger
6. John Malkovich
7. Julie Andrews
8. Bruce Willis
9. Teri Hatcher
10. Scarlett Johansson.

Weird, Will Ferrell is the worst? I mean sure, I can see William Shatner being a dick, and definitely John Malkovich, and certainly Teri Snatcher. But what climbed up Renee Zellweger, Julie Andrews and Bruce Willis’ asses? And honestly, Joaquin’s probably too drunk to realize he’s being asked for an autograph and Tobey Maguire’s just a weirdo. Scarlett? Who the hell knows what her problem is. Trying to avoid stalkers most likely. The magazine did caution us however, “keep in mind that even the best signers don’t sign sometimes, the worst sometimes do, and that just because they’re on the worst list doesn’t mean they’re bad people.”

I don’t know, I am pretty sure that John Malkovich is a bad person.