I’m posting three email exchanges I had with Steve Cannane prior to the publication of his book Fair Game. These demonstrate certain relevant facts: he had my contact information; we were communicating; I had provided detailed, accurate, useful data; and he knew this to be true because he sought my data and credited it in his emails.
This thread from early 2014, which concerns L. Ron Hubbard’s “pinks & greys” letter to Mary Sue Hubbard, started when Cannane emailed Jon Atack.
On 29 Jan 2014, at 08:33, Cannane wrote:
Sent from my iPhone
Hi Jon, another question about the great man. Pinks and Grays….what exactly was the old man popping in Tangiers? Was it Benzedrine? whats’ the difference between a ‘pink’ and a ‘gray’?
cheers,
Steve
Atack replied and cced me:
From: jon atack
Sent: Wednesday, January 29, 2014 7:05 AM
To: Steve Cannane
Cc: Gerry Armstrong
Subject: Re: enquiry requestDear Gerry,
Steve is working on a book about the clut in Oz and has some lovely new discoveries to share. If you can add anything to the tale of Ron: The Multiple Drug Abuser, I’d be grateful,
best,
jon
Dear Steve,
as you’ll see, I’ve copied Gerry on this, as the world’s leading expert on pinks and greys. There are good quotes on phenobarbital and benzedrine from the early fifties:
Hubbard said that sedative drugs cause “the individual to walk around in a light hypnotic trance” (SOSII, p.222), and said “Continuous application of sedatives to an individual … make him more suggestible.” (SOSI, p.163). Hubbard admitted testing drugs and gave as one of his conclusions: “So far soporifics have been tested and rejected … That whole block of sedatives like scopolamine, opium, phenobarbital … are of no assistance in Dianetics” (R&D4, p.137). Hubbard’s understanding of this was personal, having explained the damage caused in the highly suggestible state brought about by constant use of phenobarbital, Hubbard said “I know because I made myself a guinea pig on one of those experiments, and trying to get off a soporific was a tough job.” (R&D 1, p.124). He named the barbiturate drug phenobarbital as the soporific to which he had been addicted. It was probably prescribed to him for his purported ulcer in San Diego in 1943. He was still trying to obtain phenobarbital in East Grinstead (as “Dr. Hubbard”) as late as 1965 (Atack, p.185, where the drug is given its British name “nembutal”).
Hubbard also claimed to have administered nitrous oxide to three people (R&D1, p.123). He termed it “a first class hypnotic” (DMSMH, p.363). While he condemned the use of soporifics (though his attitude seems to have been ambivalent in light of his positive comments about narcosynthesis), Hubbard encouraged the use of amphetamines, recommending benzedrine in particular (DMSMH, p.363, p.389 in later editions; R&D1, pp.124, 305, 313; R&D4, p.37). Curiously, although Scientology sponsors Narconon and claims to be drug free, its best-selling publication says “Making one drug immoral and another taxable is a sample of the alcohol engram in society” (DMSMH, p.365). On the same page, Hubbard says that opium, marijuana and phenobarbital are all less dangerous than alcohol. There is no prohibition on Scientologists drinking, however.
On January 31, I replied to Atack and cced Cannane:
From: Gerry Armstrong
Sent: January 31, 2014 7:20 AM
To: ‘jon atack’
Cc: [Steve Cannane]
Subject: RE: enquiry requestDear Jon, Dear Steve:
I have dealt with the pinks and greys question a bit over the last couple of years, mainly because Tommy Davis and his coconspirators told Lawrence Wright and other persons at The New Yorker that I had forged Hubbard’s letter where he stated he was popping those pills.
Steve, do you want me to forward what I wrote or assembled earlier about this? Or what is your need?
My short conclusion was that Hubbard was referring to Darvon or Dextropropoxyphene.
Best,
Gerry
On January 31, Atack emailed:
From: jon atack
Sent: January 31, 2014 8:08 AM
To: Gerry Armstrong
Subject: Re: enquiry requestHi Gerry,
I’d like to see your more extensive investigation. David Mayo told me that on her deathbed, Virginia Downsborough listed the pharmaceuticals on Hub’s shelf when she rescued him (‘Scientology is here to rescue you’) form Gran Canaria. But he hasn’t revealed this information to me (Virginia got as far as telling me that Hub was subsisting on a ‘shelf-full’ of pharmaceuticals, but became bashful when asked precisely what. In fact, she claimed not to know).
Trust all is well, and that you are planning to visit me in the nearness of time – the first two years of our arty biography of you have been entirely developed by me – so much for Godot!
love,
j
On February 2, Cannane emailed:
From: Steve Cannane
Sent: Sunday, February 02, 2014 4:46 PM
To: Gerry Armstrong
Subject: Re: enquiry requestDear Gerry, thanks so much for the email – I’d love to see what you’ve previously written about this. Am I able to quote from it? Or is it background only? I thought Hubbard was more into amphetamines and booze than opioids…
Regards,
Steve
On February 12, Cannane emailed:
From: Steve Cannane
Sent: February 12, 2014 7:13 PM
To: ‘gerry@gerryarmstrong.org’
Subject: FW: enquiry requestDear Gerry,
Just following up on this email. Am I able to have a look at what you assembled for The New Yorker?
Regards,
Steve
On February 14, I emailed Cannane and cced Atack:
From: Gerry Armstrong
Sent: February 14, 2014 9:40 PM
To: ‘Steve Cannane’
Cc: [Jon Atack]
Subject: RE: enquiry requestDear Steve:
Following are three emails dated January 20 and 26 and February 4, 2011 to Katia Bachko, a New Yorker fact checker, and Lawrence Wright.
I included the complete emails so you can see the context in which I wrote about Hubbard’s pinks and greys comment during his Wall of Fire period. No dark night of the soul for Ron, no abyss. For Ron a flaming wall of fire.
I am not, as Jon jokes, the world’s leading expert on pinks and greys.
Hugh Urban doubtlessly asked me about the reference in 2010 because of mentions in Bent Corydon’s and Jon’s Hubbard biographies.
The New Yorker asked me about the reference because the Scientologists were telling Lawrence Wright that I forged, and disseminated, Hubbard’s letter to Mary Sue Hubbard in which, as I recall, he wrote that he was drinking rum and popping pinks and greys.
I am the world’s leading expert on my alleged forgery of the pinks and greys letter. I am guessing that you are not so much interested in chasing down the forgery charge, but what was going through Hubbard’s mind when he tripped through the wall of fire.
I probably last read the letter in 1982, and it was not referred to in my 1984 trial. During the time I possessed Hubbard’s archive, 1980-81, I got the idea that when Hubbard wrote “pinks and greys” in 1967, he had in mind two-toned caps. I already had an awareness of two-toned narcotic capsules in the 1960’s. There was so much Darvon around that I had probably seen pink and grey caps before I got into Scientology. Then sometime after leaving, I saw some pink and grey Darvon caps, learned about their availability in the 1960’s and just thought they were what Hubbard was talking about.
Maybe he was talking about pink pills and grey pills, I don’t know. And who knows how many pinks pills and grey pills were being sold around the world, and how indicated they were with rum.
I hope this helps. I’ve written Tommy Davis some letters about the forgery BS. But here are the New Yorker emails.
Best regards,
Gerry Armstrong
[address]
-A-
From: Gerry Armstrong
Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2011 5:55 PM
To: ‘Katia Bachko’
Cc: ‘Lawrence Wright’
Subject: RE: Thank you!Hi Katia:
Thanks. Images for the two Ability Magazines I think you’re looking for are attached. Will this do for your purposes? I do not have hard copies that I can easily put my hands on, but if necessary I’ll try.
Here are items I said I’d send you links for:
1. The Breckenridge Decision, filed June 22, 1984 after trial in LA Superior Court in the first Scientology v. Armstrong case: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50k/legal/a1/283.php
Image of the decision: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/ga/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/breckenridge-decision1.pdf
This became the judgment in the case, and was affirmed on appeal in 1991: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50k/legal/a1/3112.php
The Appendix to the LA Court’s Decision contains the history that leads to Scientology suing me and the provenance of the subject documents:
From his extensive knowledge of the covert and intelligence operations carried out by the Church of Scientology of California against its enemies (suppressive persons), Defendant Armstrong became terrified and feared that his life and the life of his wife were in danger, and he also feared he would be the target of costly and harassing lawsuits.
In addition, Mr. Garrison became afraid for the security of the documents and believed that the intelligence network of the Church of Scientology would break and enter his home to retrieve them. Thus, Defendant Armstrong made copies of certain documents for Mr. Garrison and maintained them in a separate location.
It was thereafter, in the summer of 1982, that Defendant Armstrong asked Mr. Garrison for copies of documents to use in his defense and sent the documents to his attorneys, Michael Flynn and Contos & Bunch.
2. Scientology’s injunction against me filed October 17, 1995 in the fourth Scientology v. Armstrong case: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50k/legal/a4/2623.php
Image of the injunction: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/ga/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/injunction-1995-10-17.pdf3. This site deals with the injunction’s “in concert” issue, and proposes to organize the class of persons acting in concert with me: http://inconcert.xenu.ca/
By making it possible for me to respond to Scientology’s statements about me, you, and of course the New Yorker, are acting in concert with me; for which I thank all of you very much.
4. Scientology’s charge that I had forged the 1967 letter Hubbard wrote to his wife Mary Sue, in which he mentioned drinking lots of rum and popping pinks and greys, is brand new to me, and both bizarre and disturbing. I can kind of see why Scientology would take that position at this point, because the phrase has gone semi-viral. I just did this search:
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22popping+pinks+and+greys%22&hl=en&num=100&lr=&ft=i&cr=&safe=off&tbs=A Ohio State University Professor of Religious Studies Hugh Urban asked me last summer about the pinks and greys and the letter, and I’ll copy the part of my e-mail to him that relates to this issue:
The only copy of the letter that I know of would be inside Scientology. There’s no way of knowing with absolute certainty what Hubbard meant, but I’ve for some time thought “pinks and grays” are Darvon. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dextropropoxyphene
Darvon had been around since the 1950’s. See image: http://www.everydayhealth.com/drugs/images/multum/Darvon%20Compound%2065.jpg
In his letter to Mary Sue, he wrote about drinking rum along with popping pinks and grays. It’s likely he was self-medicating to produce the necessary manic state.
He wrote that in 1938 he stayed up for 4 days straight drinking beer while he cranked out Excalibur. And the thesis for Excalibur came to him, he claimed, while under nitrous oxide for a tooth extraction.
This is from Ron’s Journal 67:
Tape #6709 C2
And this is a tape of 20 September 1967, made on an island in the sea, and it is addressed to all staff and students of Scientology organizations.
[…]
And so I decided that I had better go out and contact an exact point or two, not so much for me, but where things had happened in ages past which were really the beginning of the demise — or were the demise for this civilization as it then existed. Without telling anyone about this – or what I intended to do – I went out and took my life in my hands, you might say, and brought the matter off. The mystery of this universe and this particular area of the universe has been – as far as its track is concerned – completely occluded. No one has ever been able to make any breakthrough and come off with it and know what happened. As a matter of fact, it is so occluded that, if anyone tried to penetrate it, as I’m sure many have, they died.
The material involved in this sector is so vicious that it is carefully arranged to kill anyone if he discovers the exact truth of it.
So in January and February of this year, I became very ill, almost lost this body, and somehow or another brought it off and obtained the material, and was able to live through it. I am very sure that I was the first one that ever did live through any attempt to attain that material. This material I’m talking about, of course, is very upper level material and you will forgive me if I don’t describe it to you in very broad detail because it’s very likely to make you sick, too.
[…]
It is quite aside from the point, but maybe a slight matter of interest, that all of this recent career has been relatively hard on this poor body. I have broken its back, broken its knee, and now have a broken arm because of the strenuousness of these particular adventures. One wonders, then, well, if he is in such good shape, then what is he doing breaking up these bodies? Well, that is the trouble! I have — I have a great difficulty in getting down to the small power level of a body and if suddenly – if something happens in its vicinity – I will suddenly move it or yank it in some direction, and it is very very difficult to keep it in any kind of condition. I’m keeping it alive because it is a symbol and because it is still needful and because it would be upsetting, at least to the wog side of the world, if a symbol of this body were to disappear.
Hubbard was a bit of a whiner, and invented a number of injuries and illnesses for himself over the years despite what he said in his Admissions.
People dislike cripples. You need never be a cripple. You have never done anything for which you need feel guilty. You never need punish yourself about anything. You are in wonderful glowing health. You never have accidents because you are prudent and poised.
You will live to be 200 years old, both because you are calm and because of modern discoveries to be made in your lifetime. [Ole Doc M]
[…]
When you tell people you are ill it has no effect upon your health. In the Veterans examination you will tell them how sick you are. You will look sick when you take it. You will return to health one hour after the examination and laugh at them.
No matter what lies you may tell others they have no physical effect on you of any kind. You never injure your health by saying it is bad. You cannot lie to yourself. Disgust not sympathy is generated in others by bad health. Injuries are not romantic. They are disgusting in you. You are a child of God. You are perfect. Health is a passport to friends. Women are not impressed by your injuries. Clear exuberant good health is your passport to their hearts. Adventure heroes may sound romantic when injured but it is really a bad comment on their expertness. The truly great adventurer is so expert he is never injured by anything. Dragging a wing is not romantic, it is silly. You will always be in wonderful health and well-being. http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/writings/ars/ars-2000-03-11.html
It is nevertheless quite possible that in 1966-67 Hubbard really was ill, was in some discomfort, and did dose himself with a diet of Darvon and rum.
5. Attorney Ford Greene’s web site: http://www.fordgreene.com/
and contact data:711 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard
San Anselmo, California 94960-1949
[telephone]
[email]I worked with Ford as his paralegal/sole office help in 1991-1995 and he represented me against Scientology during that period. He’s had some major cult cases in his career, got appropriately fair gamed, and he’s now the Mayor of San Anselmo!
I let him know that you might contact him.
6. Organization of United Renunciants section on my site: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/media/our/index.html
As mentioned, the idea is to peacefully move society off the money standard. Note the Marin IJ article: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/media/marin-independent-journal-1992-11-11.html
We talked about currency: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/media/our/present-currency.html7. Also see this recent note that mentions Lawrence Wright’s article, Tommy Davis, pre-emptive black PR, and my nude newspaper posing activities: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/archives/4805
8. Regarding the Armstrong Operation, I mentioned this declaration, which, upon re-reading now, remains a pretty good statement of what went on:
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/decl-1994-02-20.htmlThere are a bunch of related documents here: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/cult/illegal-videotaping.html
And a whole page full of links to black PR and extralegal ops, with some info on “dead agent” you asked about: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/cult/index.html
These are the best copies of the videos I’ve got:
Day One. Gerry meets with David Kluge: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/archives/25
Day Two David Kluge Returns: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/archives/24
Day Three Enter Mike Rinder: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/archives/23
Day Four Mike Rinder returns: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/archives/22
Because this matter involves document authenticity and accuracy, as well as litigation, could you please send me a scan of what documents relating to me Scientology provided New Yorker people, so that I can know for certain what I’m being asked to respond to.
Best for now,
Gerry Armstrong
[address]
From: Katia Bachko
Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2011 10:23 AM
To: gerry…gerryarmstrong.org
Subject: Thank you!Hi Gerry,
It was really nice to speak with you earlier. So, the issues of Ability that we’re looking for are Issue 81 from 1959, and March 1955. Will you let me know if you might have those in your possession, or could connect us with someone else who does? And, feel free to send as much material as possible regarding the other topics we covered.
Thanks again!
Katia
—
Katia Bachko
fact checker
The New Yorker
4 Times Square
New York, NY 10036[telephone]
-B-
From: Gerry Armstrong
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2011 2:14 PM
To: ‘Katia Bachko’
Cc: Lawrence Wright
Subject: RE: Pinks and graysHi Katia:
I haven’t been able to find where it’s stated that the letter was admitted into evidence. If you could send me a link to such a reference it would be helpful.
The earliest published reference I can find is in Corydon’s Hubbard biography first published in 1987:
Armstrong, told me, among other things, of a letter from Hubbard
to his third wife Mary Sue when Hubbard was in Las Palmas during
1967 at the inception of the Sea Org. This letter is now in the custody
of the court. In it Hubbard tells his wife: “I’m drinking lots of rum
and popping pinks and greys.”
There was no discussion of the content of this letter at my 1984 trial that I’ve been able to find, and I’ve not been able to determine if it was admitted into evidence. It is most likely, from what Corydon wrote in his book in the 1980’s and from my memory, that the letter remained under seal in the custody of the LA Superior Court Clerk until the Hubbard documents were delivered to Scientology in December 1986.
Scientology and Mary Sue Hubbard’s attorneys acknowledged correspondence between Hubbard and Mary Sue that was included in the sealed documents, and argued that this correspondence was private and privileged. But they never claimed that any of these materials were forgeries. These attorneys moved some of that correspondence into evidence themselves, but the documents are not identified well enough in the record for me to be able to determine if the pinks & greys letter was among them.
See, e.g., this discussion at p. 4662, when exhibits are being moved into evidence:
Six B’s is a letter to his wife, I guess.
MR. FLYNN: This letter, Your Honor, shows — it is reflective of six inches of letters of the same type downstairs. We took one letter.
It shows financial transactions between HEC and Mr. Hubbard; payments into Swiss accounts; the receipt of 10 percent of Church funds, all after his resignation.
And as I indicated, there is another six inches of similar type letters downstairs.So here, my attorney Michael Flynn is identifying a letter (Ex, No. 500-BBBBBB) between Hubbard and Mary Sue as reflective of six inches of similar type letters downstairs. “Downstairs” refers to the Clerk’s office in the basement of the LA Superior Court where the bulk of the subject documents remained during the trial.
As far as I know, only Scientology possesses the pinks & greys letter, and it has never been made public. In that Scientology’s representatives are claiming the letter is forged, they should produce it. Good luck, huh.
I hope this helps.
Gerry
From: Katia Bachko
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2011 10:52 AM
To: Gerry Armstrong
Subject: Pinks and graysHi Gerry,
A quick question for you: I keep reading on the web that the ‘pinks and grays’ letter was supposedly admitted into evidence during some court proceedings. Do you know anything about that?
Thanks,
Katia
—
Katia Bachko
fact checker
The New Yorker
4 Times Square
New York, NY 10036[telephone]
-C-
From: Gerry Armstrong
Sent: Friday, February 04, 2011 10:23 PM
To: Katia Bachko ([ ]); Lawrence Wright
Subject: More pinks & greysHi Katia, Hi Larry:
As I understand it, Scientology’s basic or key charge against me to The New Yorker, which I’ve been asked about a number of times in the past couple of weeks, is that I forged documents and inserted these forgeries into the documents that were delivered to Scientology from the office of the Clerk of the LA Superior Court at the time of the settlement of the Scientology v. Armstrong case in December 1986. The one such allegedly forged document that has been identified is the pinks-and-greys (p & g) letter from L. Ron Hubbard to Mary Sue Hubbard during the period when he was in Morocco and the Canaries supposedly developing OT III and starting the Sea Project.
To me it’s obvious that Scientology has the responsibility of producing these documents it claims are forgeries. The charge is serious enough to me that I will also communicate about it to Miscavige, et al. I would think they’d be more than anxious to provide The New Yorker with documents they say I forged. In fact, if Miscavige and his attorneys really believed I forged any of those documents, they would have long since tried to have me prosecuted for such a fraud, and certainly would have made the claim in earlier black PR and in legal proceedings.
Following are some facts and references to documents that support my denial of the forgery charge.
Corydon’s Messiah or Madman was published in 1987. This appears to be the earliest published mention of the p & g letter.
Armstrong, told me, among other things, of a letter from Hubbard to his third wife Mary Sue when Hubbard was in Las Palmas during 1967 at the inception of the Sea Org. This letter is now in the custody of the court. In it Hubbard tells his wife: “I’m drinking lots of rum and popping pinks and greys.”
Miller’s Bare-Faced Messiah was published in 1987. He doesn’t mention the letter, and he had something better, an interview with Virginia Downsborough who was with Hubbard in Las Palmas.
‘We got the Enchanter on the ways in Las Palmas,’ said Downsborough, ‘and we had not been there very long before Ron turned up. Bill Robertson – another Scientologist – and myself went to the post office to post some letters and discovered a telegram there from Ron saying that he was arriving in Las Palmas almost at that minute and wanted to be met. We jumped into a taxi and got to the airport just in time to pick him up as he was coming through Customs. We found him a hotel in Las Palmas and next day I went back to see if he was all right, because he did not seem to be too well.
‘When I went in to his room there were drugs of all kinds everywhere. He seemed to be taking about sixty thousand different pills. I was appalled, particularly after listening to all his tirades against drugs and the medical profession. There was something very wrong with him, but I didn’t know what it was except that he was in a state of deep depression; he told me he didn’t have any more gains and he wanted to die. That’s what he said: “I want to die.”‘
It was important for Hubbard to be discovered in this dramatically debilitated condition at this time, for it would soon be announced to fellow Scientologists that he had completed ‘a research accomplishment of immense magnitude’ described, somewhat inscrutably, as the ‘Wall of Fire’. This was the OT3 (Operating Thetan Section Three) material, in which were contained ‘the secrets of a disaster which resulted in the decay of life as we know it in this sector of the galaxy’.[3] Hubbard, it was said, was the ‘first person in millions of years’ to map a precise route through the ‘Wall of Fire’. Having done so, his OT power had been increased to such an extent that he was at grave risk of accidental injury to his body; indeed, he had broken his back, a knee and an arm during the course of his research.
Virginia Downsborough did not observe any broken limbs, but recognized that Ron needed nursing. ‘I moved into an adjoining room in the hotel to take care of him. He refused to eat the hotel food, so I got a little hotplate and cooked meals for him in the room, simple things, things that he liked. My main concern was to try and get him off all the pills he was on and persuade him that there was still plenty for him to do. He was sleeping a lot and refused to get out of bed.
‘I don’t know what drugs he was taking – they certainly weren’t making him high – but I knew I had to get him over it. I discussed it with him and gradually took them away. He didn’t carry on about it. He had brought a great pile of unopened mail with him from Tangier, a lot of it from Mary Sue, and I got him to start reading her letters. After about three weeks he decided he would get out of bed and he started taking little walks and then he got interested in what was happening on the Enchanter and after that he was all right.’
I had never spoken to Downsborough and didn’t know of her knowledge of Hubbard’s drugs in Las Palmas until I read about it in Bare-Faced Messiah.
Atack’s A Piece of Blue Sky was published in 1990.
Hubbard had spent the last weeks of 1966 “researching” OT3 in North Africa. In a letter of the time, he admitted that he was taking drugs (“pinks and grays”) to assist his research.
Atack’s reference for this statement is:
16. Interview with Gerald Armstrong, East Grinstead, June 1984.
It’s likely that this interview with Atack was the earliest time I mentioned the p & g letter to any writer who later wrote about it.
The Scientology v. Armstrong trial ended June 8, 1984. The Breckenridge decision is June 20, and the same day I flew to London to testify in the B & G Wards case. While in the UK, I met Atack and spent some time talking with him. He’s an ex-Scientologist, and smart guy, and we had lots to talk about. This would have been when the p & g letter was fresh in my mind.
I met Corydon, I believe, before the 1984 trial, and he attended a number of days of the trial. He lived in Riverside, CA, which is about 50 miles from LA. We communicated a number of times about many subjects during that period and afterward. I think, however, that the p & g letter would have come up in our conversations, and Corydon would have recorded or noted my language, after he began his research and interviews for his book.
During that period, I was in Boston, working for attorney Mike Flynn. I was there from September 1985 to January 1987. Bent came out to Boston and stayed with me for a few days in 1986. He spent a lot of time talking to me, and also interviewed Sara Northrup on that trip.
I also met Miller in Boston in 1986 and spent several hours talking with him over two days.
During the years the documents were under seal, 1982 through 1986, Scientology had access to them at any time the Court House was open, and Scientology inventoried all the Armstrong documents. At no time during that period did Scientology claim that it found any forged or even possibly forged documents.
Please see the set of five affidavits executed by Scientology representative Kenneth Long in October 1987 that were filed in the Scientology v. Miller case in the UK.
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/other-sworn-testimony.html
Scroll down to “Long.”
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-05-1.html
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-05-2.html
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-05-3.html
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-07-4.html
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-08-5.html
There are also links to images of these affidavits at the bottom of each document.
Long accuses me of violating court sealing orders by retaining possession of and disseminating certain documents, which I didn’t, and supports his accusation with his logic. But there is no mention in this in any of the Long affidavits that I had forged any of the documents that had been used at trial or remained sealed in the LA Superior Court Clerk’s office.
It should be understood that while Scientology was filing these affidavits in court in the UK, the cult also considered that I was silenced by contract and not permitted to respond to clear my name. In fact, I was threatened with enforcement of the contract during the Miller proceeding if I talked to Miller or his publisher’s attorneys.
The affidavits describe the security actions Long and Scientology took with the Armstrong documents, which Long personally inventoried. Scientology went to extraordinary lengths to make sure that what it’s now claiming happened couldn’t happen. See, e.g.,
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-05-2.html3. I have been deeply involved in the litigation of the case of {Church of Scientology of California and Mary Sue} {Hubbard v. Gerald Armstrong}, Los Angeles Superior Court case number C 420153, since the inception of that litigation on August 2, 1982. During the course of my participation in that litigation, I personally inventoried the materials surrendered pursuant to court order to the Clerk of the Los Angeles Superior Court in September 1982 by Gerald Armstrong and his counsel. I also attended almost every deposition and/or pre-trial proceeding held in that case, and was present as an assistant to counsel throughout each day of the trial proceedings in May and June, 1984.
[…]
[Para. 9] Between the end of trial on June 8, 1984, and the issuance of the temporary stay on June 25, 1984, I caused a watch to be maintained over the area in the courthouse wherein the trial exhibits were stored to ensure that no one, other than trial court personnel, had access to said materials. Additionally, I later personally confirmed with Ms. Rosie Hart, the clerk for the Honorable Paul Breckenridge Jr., the trial judge for the Church’s case against Mr. Armstrong, that none of the trial exhibits were made available to anyone at any time prior to the issuance of the temporary stay order of June 25, 1984.
[…]
[Para. 11] Thereafter, no further public inspection of the trial exhibits was ever allowed by the court, and I have personally confirmed with the court personnel responsible for the caretaking of the exhibits that absolutely no inspection or copying of the trial exhibits was allowed. The final order, which maintained the seal on the trial exhibits until they were returned to the Church in December 1986, is also attached to my previous Affidavit in Exhibit “KDL 19.”
And, e.g., http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50grand/legal/affi-long-1987-10-07-4.html
6. After the Church brought suit against Mr. Armstrong, a Temporary Restraining Order was issued on August 24, 1982. Pursuant to that Order, Mr. Armstrong and his counsel surrendered to the Clerk of the Court approximately 10,000 documents contained in five boxes. I inventoried all of the surrendered materials immediately upon their arrival with the court. These documents were placed under seal and then maintained under seal thereafter by the Clerk pursuant to the preliminary injunction issued on September 24, 1982. From this point onward, all such documents were to be only in the possession of the court.
[…]
10. In reviewing Exhibit “KDL 34” attached hereto, the Court will no doubt note what appear to be “windows,” or gaps between the vacating of one order and the issuance of the next. These “windows” are far more apparent than they were real. To begin with, I maintained, along with my staff, a daily check with each court in which a temporary stay order was pending in order to ensure that I learned the minute a ruling was issued. So before the trial court received any order vacating a sealing order, the Church obtained another order sealing them up again. In actuality, it took 3-5 days for the trial court to receive a vacating order from the Higher Court and before recript I would personally, hand deliver a new stay order. In addition, I also had my staff maintain a watch over the area of the court where these documents were kept during each so called “window” period and no one viewed and/or copied the materials.
[…]
12. Following the issuance of the “Roes” order on December 20, 1984, the 178 trial exhibits were never again unsealed. These 178 trial exhibits, the other tiral exhibits which had been left sealed throughout, and the 9,000 documents nver entered into the trial, were then returned to the Church in December 1986.
Please also see this declaration I executed March 15, 1990 and filed in the appeal Scientology had taken from the 1984 Breckenridge decision: http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50k/legal/a1/2149.php
Particularly, see paras. 20 – 39.
Also see my declaration executed December 25, 1990 and filed in the same Armstrong I appeal
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50k/legal/a1/2173.php
Note particularly, paras. 17 – 20, which deal with Long’s false charges that I violated court orders.
Then see this declaration executed by Long March 26, 1990 and filed in the Armstrong I appeal:
http://www.gerryarmstrong.org/50k/legal/a1/2167.php
Ken Long inventoried the subject Armstrong documents while they were in the possession of the LA Superior Court Clerk, and obviously checked these documents against his inventory, or could/should have checked them against his inventory, to come up with the facts he alleges in his affidavits filed in Scientology v. Miller.
The Long affidavits’ false charges against me of violating court orders were instrumental in bringing me back into public opposition to Scientology following the December 1986 “settlement.”
Maybe before The New Yorker prints, you could ask Scientology/Davis/Miscavige/et al. to be able to interview Ken Long on his knowledge of what was contained in the Armstrong documents, his inventory, etc., to get to the bottom of the narrow and apparently pivotal issue and charge that I had forged some of those documents, specifically the pinks-and-greys letter.
Best regards,
Gerry
On February 15, I received an email from Atack:
From: jon atack
Sent: February 15, 2014 3:43 PM
To: Gerry Armstrong
Subject: Re: enquiry requestThanks Gerry. David told me a year ago that Virginia D had told him the contents of the famous OT3 drug shelf on her deathbed. But he didn’t remember, and my attempts to remind him have fallen on stony ground. If you are in touch with him, he might be willing to tell you. He did say that they were psychiatric drugs and that he would take contra-indicated medicines (Nibs said that he used to give uppers and downers to groupies as a date rape drug, but we all know how reliable Nibs is). I imagine he was taking speed with the Darvol.
love (and to Caroline),
On February 17, I replied to Atack and cced Cannane:
From: Gerry Armstrong
Sent: February 17, 2014 8:25 AM
To: ‘jon atack’
Cc: [Cannane]
Subject: RE: enquiry requestHi Jon:
I don’t think I’m close enough to David Mayo to question him to get an ancient third hand memory of old mother Hubbard’s drug cupboard.
I didn’t mention to Steve, and it isn’t in what I sent to the New Yorker, because their interest was in the alleged forgery of the pinks and greys letter, but it’s fairly common knowledge that Hubbard was dosing himself with testosterone. It might have been his drug of choice among other drugs of choice, but testosterone was in his drug diet as early as the 1940’s and well past his wall of fire incident in the 1960’s. I think he sought the aggression and swinish suspicion it could give him, and didn’t interpret his paranoia as paranoia.
Gerry
On February 17 I received an email from Cannane who cced Atack:
From: Steve Cannane
Sent: February 17, 2014 5:14 PM
To: ‘Gerry Armstrong’
Cc: [Jon Atack]
Subject: RE: enquiry requestDear Gerry,
Thanks very much for all of this, a great help. That is some very thorough referencing. Yes, I was more interested in what Hubbard was on at the time, than the cult’s allegations.
You both may be interested to know I just tracked down an 82 year old former private eye living in the Australian outback, who in 1968 spied on the then emerging newspaper publisher Rupert Murdoch and 12 Australian parliamentarians. No wonder Murdoch called them a creepy evil cult recently.
The private eye played double agent and fed information back to Murdoch and the politicians. And he’s kept his affidavit from the time detailing his work for the cult…. A researcher’s dream!
Thanks again.
Best,
Steve