Although the compelling, well-researched book lacks blockbuster revelations, it mostly delivers on Reitman's promise of an "objective modern history" of the church.
Kim Christensen
kim.christensen@latimes.com
July 4, 2011
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-et-book-20110704,0,6684792.story
Small wonder that L. Ron Hubbard had the creative chops to parlay his 1950s self-help system, Dianetics, into a worldwide religion — and a very lucrative one at that. Hubbard was, after all, a science-fiction writer, a dreamer, a charming teller of tales and the inventor of much of his own history: He fabricated or embellished aspects of his military service, education and personal adventures, not least of them his purported run-in with a polar bear in the Aleutians.
His most famous invention, of course, was Scientology, a controversial religion-without-a-deity that has its own "technology," galactic story line and quirky vocabulary. It teaches that spiritual freedom — the state of "clear" — can be reached through one-on-one counseling known as auditing, aided by a polygraph-like device called an "e-meter." The sessions, along with extensive training courses, can cost Scientologists hundreds of thousands of dollars.
That Scientology has endured for six decades, attracting generations of devotees despite a legacy of secrecy and widespread allegations of intimidation and abuse of its own members, is in itself remarkable. Then again, as Janet Reitman demonstrates in "Inside Scientology: The Story of America's Most Secretive Religion," the church has always found a way, through a "combination of flexibility and mystery" to morph with the times: In its early days in Los Angeles, it reached out to free spirits and hippies, later to celebrities and, more recently, to African Americans and legislators.
Reitman's book, which grew out of an article the Rolling Stone contributing editor wrote for the magazine in 2006, is a well-researched and compelling read, especially for those who start with little knowledge about Scientology, Hubbard or his successor, David Miscavige. While it lacks blockbuster revelations, it mostly delivers on Reitman's promise of an "objective modern history" of the church.
Intertwined with the church's history is that of Miscavige, who spent his teenage years as one of Hubbard's cadre of young aides. He was 25 when he assumed control in 1986, when "LRH" died as a paranoid recluse on a ranch in Creston, Calif., under investigation by the IRS. Miscavige went on to be instrumental in ending "the war" with the IRS and securing the tax-exempt status that deemed Scientology a church, a financial boon.
Sometimes called "the pope of Scientology," Miscavige in the book lives up to previous reports depicting him as a small but intimidating leader, an occasionally unhinged little tyrant alleged to have frequently whomped his top execs. He is said to live much higher on the hog than anyone else, including the elite "Sea Org" members posted to Scientology's international headquarters, or "Int," a former resort near Hemet. Even his beagles, Jelly and Safi, who wore "tiny blue sweaters with commander's bars," fare better than people who have signed billion-year contracts with the church: "Miscavige was known to make his staffers salute the dogs, who held ranks higher than those of many people on the base."
Much of Reitman's material is culled from, and duly credited to, earlier works including Hubbard's own writings, books by his critics and newspaper stories stretching from the Los Angeles Times' groundbreaking series in 1990 to the St. Petersburg Times' multi-part exposé in 2009.
But Reitman obviously has done her own extensive legwork too, digging deep into the details of the death of Lisa McPherson, a "clear" Scientologist who suffered a mental breakdown and died after 17 days in isolation in the church's care in Clearwater, Fla., its spiritual headquarters. Nearly 16 years later, her death is still a rallying point for Scientology's critics.
Reitman also offers up the insights of members from the church's past and present, giving the material a fresh feel and sense of fairness. She balances high-ranking defectors' eyewitness accounts of oppression, abuse and escape with the observations of practicing Scientologists who come across as believers but not robots — and ask some pretty good questions of their own.
"All the people who've come out and told the press these things were in a position to do something about it — to change things," said Natalie Walet, a young Scientologist who doesn't excuse the abuses. "Instead, they stood there and watched. Why?"
It would be easy to deride or dismiss many of Scientology's more eccentric elements, such as the long-held secret story of Xenu, the evil tyrant leader of the "Galactic Confederation." Only after reaching an advanced level are Scientologists taught that he killed his enemies with hydrogen bombs 75 million years ago and then captured their souls, or thetans, and electronically implanted them with false concepts. These altered thetans later glommed on to human bodies, the story goes, causing spiritual harm and havoc for mankind.
Even Tom Cruise, the most famous Scientologist, "freaked out" and was like, 'What the …?''' when he learned of it, according to one former member. But in a nice touch of fair play, another ex-member reminds readers that more mainstream religions also have stories that require a long leap of faith. Water into wine? Raising the dead? How plausible are those?
Hubbard made many claims during his life, but parting the Red Sea was not among them.
Showing posts with label Scientology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scientology. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Confessions of a Raving, Unconfined Nut
From PaulKrassner.com, Website of THE Paul Krassner:
Confessions of a Raving, Unconfined Nut:
Misadventures in the Counterculture
by Paul Krassner — New Expanded Edition
– for $22 (plus $3 S&H)
“Krassner has the uncanny ability to alter your perceptions permanently.”
— Los Angeles Times
“Wickedly funny... Chillingly funny... A convincing look at a man who knows how to wield absurdity.”
— San Francisco Chronicle
“Krassner is one of the best minds of his generation to be destroyed by madness, starving, hysterical, naked — but mainly hysterical. His true wacky, wackily true autobiography is the definitive book on the sixties.”
— Art Spiegelman
“Paul¹s own writing, in particular, seemed daring and adventurous to me; it took big chances and made important arguments in relentlessly funny ways. I felt, down deep, that maybe I had some of that in me, too; that maybe I could be using my skills to better express my beliefs. The Realist was the inspiration that kept pushing me to the next level; there was no way I could continue reading it and remain the same.”
— George Carlin
“He is an expert at ferreting out hypocrisy and absurdism from the more solemn crannies of American culture.”
— New York Times
“Krassner lives in a world where Truth and Satire are swingers, changing partners so often you never know who belongs with whom.”
— Playboy
From Amazon:
Kindle Price: $9.99 includes free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004K1EY0W/thekonformist
In December 2010, the writers’ organization PEN presented Paul Krassner with their Lifetime Achievement Award. This expanded edition of his autobiography — Confessions of a Raving, Unconfined Nut: Misadventures in the Counterculture — provides the reasons for that honor.
He published a groundbreaking satirical magazine, The Realist, from 1958 to 1974, and reincarnated it as a newsletter in 1985. “The taboos may have changed,” he wrote, “but irreverence is still our only sacred cow.” When People magazine called Krassner “Father of the underground press,” he immediately demanded a paternity test. The final issue was published in Spring 2001. All the issues are online at The Realist Archive Project.
His style of personal journalism constantly blurred the line between observer and participant. He interviewed a doctor who performed abortions when it was illegal; Krassner then ran an underground abortion referral service. He covered the antiwar movement; then co-founded the Yippies with Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin (writing a few animated re-enactment scenes for the documentary Chicago 10 four decades later). He published material on the psychedelic revolution; then took LSD with Tim Leary, Ram Dass and Ken Kesey, later accompanying Groucho Marx on his first and only acid trip.
In Confessions, you’ll read about his friendship with controversial comic Lenny Bruce, his association with Hustler publisher Larry Flynt, and his investigation of Scientology and Charles Manson. There’s an entire chapter, “The Parts Left Out of the Kennedy Book,” about his most notorious article.
Tom Robbins: “Thanks to Paul Krassner for continuing to be the lobster claw in the tuna casserole of modern America.”
Arianna Huffington: “Paul Krassner–confidant of Lenny Bruce, co-founder of the Yippies, defiler of Disney characters, publisher of The Realist, investigative satirist extraordinaire--as soon as we decided to create the Huffington Post, I knew I wanted Paul involved. His irreverence was just what the blog doctor ordered.”
Kurt Vonnegut: “I told Krassner one time that his writings made me hopeful. He found this an odd compliment to offer a satirist. I explained that he made supposedly serious matters seem ridiculous, and that this inspired many of his readers to decide for themselves what was ridiculous and what was not. Knowing that there were people doing that, better late than never, made me optimistic.”
Lewis Black: “I have been a fan of his since I was a snot-nosed kid, and his words have been a driving force and influence on my life. If you have read his work before, you know the joys that you are in for. If you haven’t, start reading, and consider this your lucky day. For Paul Krassner is an activist, a philosopher, a lunatic and a saint, but most of all he is funny.”
On the other hand, a couple of FBI agents went to one of his stand-up performances and stated in their report, “He purported to be humorous about government policies.” His FBI files indicate that after Life magazine published a favorable profile of him, the FBI sent a poison-pen letter to the editor, complaining: “To classify Krassner as a social rebel is far too cute. He’s a nut, a raving, unconfined nut.”
In May 2004, he received an ACLU Uppie (Upton Sinclair) Award for dedication to freedom of expression. At the 14th annual Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam, Paul Krassner was inducted into the Counterculture Hall of Fame -- “my ambition,” he claims, “since I was three years old.”
Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 599 KB
Publisher: Paul Krassner (January 18, 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Language: English
ASIN: B004K1EY0W
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Mansonites Converge at El Coyote
http://www.laweekly.com/2009-08-13/columns/the-last-supper/
The Last Supper: Mansonites Converge at El Coyote
By Skylaire Alfvegren
August 12, 2009
El Coyote is Movieland’s idea of a Mexican restaurant: The lighting is garish, the margaritas stiff. Waitresses clad in petticoated, off-the-shoulder cotton fiestas have been serving, as they call it, “authentic California-style Mexican food” to actors and others since 1931, but the blood-red leather booth in the back played host to its most infamous party on the night of August 8, 1969, when actress Sharon Tate dined there with Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski and Abigail Folger. Later that night, the group would be slain by followers of Charles Manson in Tate’s home at 10050 Cielo Drive. Tall, blond, and forever gripping a camcorder, odd-teur Jon Aes-Nihil (director of the gory cult classic Manson Family Movies) gathered his unusual band of miscreants for “the Last Supper” this past Saturday night, as he has done every August 8 since 1979. Manson’s long-standing appeal? “It was the first time the hippies struck back,” one diner commented. Or was it?
Never a true crime buff nor serial-killer dilettante, I had long viewed Manson symbolically — a guitar-strumming ecoterrorist with a Messiah complex, who effectively extinguished the Age of Aquarius, but on this, the 40th anniversary of the Tate/LaBianca slayings, a different picture emerged.
Manson, suspected of being both an FBI informant and agent provocateur, may well have been a patsy. “The FBI took out the Black Panthers, the Yippies, the Weather Underground, and it’s a contention that the murders were orchestrated,” author Adam Gorightly pointed out between sips from a margarita. Manson’s connections to military intelligence, the Church of Scientology, government-sponsored mind-control experiments and the ’60s occult underground ripple through The Shadow Over Santa Susana, Gorightly’s definitive Manson tome, recently rereleased by Creation Books.
Manson referred to his family as “slippies,” and only grew his hair long in the months preceding the murders; but because of Manson, “it was a long time before you saw longhairs portrayed in a positive light.”
Aes-Nihil’s group of historians, writers, musicians and filmmakers traded stories of the weird, twisted Hollywood of old, attracting the attention of a pudgy industry type who, with no prompting, described the “peaceful vibe” surrounding Tate’s house when Trent Reznor recorded “Helter Skelter” there with a not-yet-famous Marilyn Manson. Archivist Aes-Nihil (short for “aesthetic nihilism”) poked his ever-present camera in the man’s face, adding to the hundreds of hours of Manson-related footage he’s acquired over the decades, smirking all the while.
In all the years I’d known Aes-Nihil, I’d always thought it was the Family’s creep factor that had attracted him. But “there’s infinitely more to the Manson thing than Tex Watson killing people,” he explained. “I’m obsessed with the effect the murders had on the ’60s, since I was there, part of a group somewhat like the Family. When the story came out, we didn’t believe it for a second.”
A man of few words, he resumed shooting the party’s chatter: Church of Satan founder Anton La Vey had cursed Tate’s husband, director Roman Polanski, after they’d had a falling-out on the set of Rosemary’s Baby. Drug-addled orgies at the house on Cielo Drive were filmed and later sold on the black market by crooked LAPD cops, who’d stolen them from the crime scene. Family member Patricia Krenwinkel, in correspondence with researcher John Judge, swore she had been a victim of mind control. The acid Manson gave his followers was allegedly of the same, government-issued variety “Son of Sam” killer David Berkowitz had been dosed with while in the military. Standard dinner-party conversation.
Gathering the assembled for a postdinner portrait, Aes-Nihil continued: “Charlie and Sharon [Tate] have been baptized in the well of eternity via mass culture and universal myth. As for Charlie, he’s a modern-day Nietzsche.” This is apparent, he says, in Manson’s unedited interviews. “If a lot of what Charlie has said had been attributed to someone who is politically correct, it would be hailed as genius.”
I heard him out, knowing that many people don’t, and smiled for his camera.
The Last Supper: Mansonites Converge at El Coyote
By Skylaire Alfvegren
August 12, 2009
El Coyote is Movieland’s idea of a Mexican restaurant: The lighting is garish, the margaritas stiff. Waitresses clad in petticoated, off-the-shoulder cotton fiestas have been serving, as they call it, “authentic California-style Mexican food” to actors and others since 1931, but the blood-red leather booth in the back played host to its most infamous party on the night of August 8, 1969, when actress Sharon Tate dined there with Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski and Abigail Folger. Later that night, the group would be slain by followers of Charles Manson in Tate’s home at 10050 Cielo Drive. Tall, blond, and forever gripping a camcorder, odd-teur Jon Aes-Nihil (director of the gory cult classic Manson Family Movies) gathered his unusual band of miscreants for “the Last Supper” this past Saturday night, as he has done every August 8 since 1979. Manson’s long-standing appeal? “It was the first time the hippies struck back,” one diner commented. Or was it?
Never a true crime buff nor serial-killer dilettante, I had long viewed Manson symbolically — a guitar-strumming ecoterrorist with a Messiah complex, who effectively extinguished the Age of Aquarius, but on this, the 40th anniversary of the Tate/LaBianca slayings, a different picture emerged.
Manson, suspected of being both an FBI informant and agent provocateur, may well have been a patsy. “The FBI took out the Black Panthers, the Yippies, the Weather Underground, and it’s a contention that the murders were orchestrated,” author Adam Gorightly pointed out between sips from a margarita. Manson’s connections to military intelligence, the Church of Scientology, government-sponsored mind-control experiments and the ’60s occult underground ripple through The Shadow Over Santa Susana, Gorightly’s definitive Manson tome, recently rereleased by Creation Books.
Manson referred to his family as “slippies,” and only grew his hair long in the months preceding the murders; but because of Manson, “it was a long time before you saw longhairs portrayed in a positive light.”
Aes-Nihil’s group of historians, writers, musicians and filmmakers traded stories of the weird, twisted Hollywood of old, attracting the attention of a pudgy industry type who, with no prompting, described the “peaceful vibe” surrounding Tate’s house when Trent Reznor recorded “Helter Skelter” there with a not-yet-famous Marilyn Manson. Archivist Aes-Nihil (short for “aesthetic nihilism”) poked his ever-present camera in the man’s face, adding to the hundreds of hours of Manson-related footage he’s acquired over the decades, smirking all the while.
In all the years I’d known Aes-Nihil, I’d always thought it was the Family’s creep factor that had attracted him. But “there’s infinitely more to the Manson thing than Tex Watson killing people,” he explained. “I’m obsessed with the effect the murders had on the ’60s, since I was there, part of a group somewhat like the Family. When the story came out, we didn’t believe it for a second.”
A man of few words, he resumed shooting the party’s chatter: Church of Satan founder Anton La Vey had cursed Tate’s husband, director Roman Polanski, after they’d had a falling-out on the set of Rosemary’s Baby. Drug-addled orgies at the house on Cielo Drive were filmed and later sold on the black market by crooked LAPD cops, who’d stolen them from the crime scene. Family member Patricia Krenwinkel, in correspondence with researcher John Judge, swore she had been a victim of mind control. The acid Manson gave his followers was allegedly of the same, government-issued variety “Son of Sam” killer David Berkowitz had been dosed with while in the military. Standard dinner-party conversation.
Gathering the assembled for a postdinner portrait, Aes-Nihil continued: “Charlie and Sharon [Tate] have been baptized in the well of eternity via mass culture and universal myth. As for Charlie, he’s a modern-day Nietzsche.” This is apparent, he says, in Manson’s unedited interviews. “If a lot of what Charlie has said had been attributed to someone who is politically correct, it would be hailed as genius.”
I heard him out, knowing that many people don’t, and smiled for his camera.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Fox reporter: Scientologists wanted him fired
http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/06/15/fox-reporter-scientologists-fired/
Ex-Fox reporter says celebrity Scientologists pushed to have him fired
By Stephen C. Webster
June 15, 2009
Former Fox entertainment columnist Roger Friedman said Monday that he plans to file a wrongful termination lawsuit against his prior employer.
Friedman, who was supposedly fired for reviewing a pirated copy of Wolverine, alleges that celebrity Church of Scientology members Tom Cruise and John Travolta’s wife, Kelly Preston, pressured network management to shake loose the columnist, who has been a critic of Scientology for some time.
“Last August, Friedman went to Memphis for the funeral of his friend and R&B legend Isaac Hayes, who was a Scientologist,” reported the New York Daily News. “Preston was also in town for the funeral. Friedman, who now writes for The Hollywood Reporter, tells us that when Preston saw him at the Peabody Hotel, Mrs. John Travolta loudly blasted him for his columns criticizing Scientology.”
“After [an] alleged meeting between Preston and the Fox executives, Friedman was forbidden from reporting on the death of Travolta’s son Jett, and was also told to take it easy on Tom Cruise’s film Valkyrie,” National Post noted.
“A source” told the Daily News that Tom Cruise may have pushed to have Friedman fired as a condition of his appearance in the upcoming 20th Century Fox comedy “Wichita.” Friedman added that once his review of “Wolverine” was published — which was approved by an editor before publication — Fox’s film studio began dictating the news operation’s next moves.
“Preston and Cruise’s lawyers both issued outright denials. Fox refused to comment,” Gawker noted. “And we might have a ball game.”
The suit will be filed in a New York federal court next week, Friedman’s attorney reportedly said.
Ex-Fox reporter says celebrity Scientologists pushed to have him fired
By Stephen C. Webster
June 15, 2009
Former Fox entertainment columnist Roger Friedman said Monday that he plans to file a wrongful termination lawsuit against his prior employer.
Friedman, who was supposedly fired for reviewing a pirated copy of Wolverine, alleges that celebrity Church of Scientology members Tom Cruise and John Travolta’s wife, Kelly Preston, pressured network management to shake loose the columnist, who has been a critic of Scientology for some time.
“Last August, Friedman went to Memphis for the funeral of his friend and R&B legend Isaac Hayes, who was a Scientologist,” reported the New York Daily News. “Preston was also in town for the funeral. Friedman, who now writes for The Hollywood Reporter, tells us that when Preston saw him at the Peabody Hotel, Mrs. John Travolta loudly blasted him for his columns criticizing Scientology.”
“After [an] alleged meeting between Preston and the Fox executives, Friedman was forbidden from reporting on the death of Travolta’s son Jett, and was also told to take it easy on Tom Cruise’s film Valkyrie,” National Post noted.
“A source” told the Daily News that Tom Cruise may have pushed to have Friedman fired as a condition of his appearance in the upcoming 20th Century Fox comedy “Wichita.” Friedman added that once his review of “Wolverine” was published — which was approved by an editor before publication — Fox’s film studio began dictating the news operation’s next moves.
“Preston and Cruise’s lawyers both issued outright denials. Fox refused to comment,” Gawker noted. “And we might have a ball game.”
The suit will be filed in a New York federal court next week, Friedman’s attorney reportedly said.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Baseless Accusations against John Travolta
http://www.naturalnews.com/News_000645_John_Travolta_Scientology_Freedom_of_Religion.html
Baseless Accusations against John Travolta Demonstrate Cruelty, Intolerance of Pill Pushers and Religion Bashers
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, January 5, 2009
Key concepts: John Travolta, Scientology and Freedom of Religion
The pill pushers of modern medicine are at it again, attacking John Travolta over the tragic death of his son, Jett, claiming (without any evidence, by the way) that Travolta was unwilling to keep his son on seizure medication and, therefore, was responsible for Jett falling and hitting his head, which led to his death.
The truth is that modern medicine's pill pushers are responsible for at least 98,000 deaths each year of American children, adults and senior citizens, and that's according to the conservative figures of the Journal of the American Medical Association. More reliable figures put the actual number of Americans killed by modern medicine (and all its pharmaceuticals) at 783,000 people a year. Yet there's no outrage about all those people who are killed by medicine. Instead, these pill pushers are focusing on the accidental death of a child belonging to a family of courageous citizens who have had the presence of mind to keep their child off psychiatric medications and focus on nutrition rather than drugs to support their child's health.
That pushers of conventional medicine would exploit this tragic death of John Travolta's son to attack both his sensibilities and his religious beliefs is yet another example of the cruelty of modern-day pill pushers. To them, the death of John Travolta's son is a "win" because in their minds, it "proves him wrong" about his belief system.
That's a delusional logic set, of course, because the nature of Jett's death (an accidental fall) has nothing whatsoever to do with Travolta's beliefs about protecting his child from psychiatric medications. At the same time, what about all those kids on SSRI drugs that end up committing suicide? The same people accusing Travolta today are never found blaming SSRI drugs for the suicidal actions of teens. To them, drugs are always good, and a lack of drugs is always bad. That's their religion in a nutshell.
Speaking of religion, I find it disgusting to watch people use this tragic death to level yet more attacks on the Church of Scientology. When Catholic priests rape their choir boys, it's all just hushed up and allowed to continue, but when a Scientologist suffers a random, tragic accidental death, they're subjected to relentless attacks that can only be called hate-motivated assaults on religious freedom.
For the record, I am not a Scientologist. I have, however, had the opportunity to personally meet many current and former members of the Church of Scientology, much like I know many members of the Mormon church, many of conservative Christian churches and of course lots of new age spiritual people who aren't associated with any organized religion at all. The one thing I've learned in all this is that those who would attack the members of another religion over their beliefs are violating their own Church, whatever Church that may be. Religious freedom, in the minds of too many people, only applies to YOUR OWN religion, not to other people's religions. And that's not religious freedom at all; that's just zealotry.
I am one of the few people you'll ever meet who truly, honestly and irrevocably believes in genuine religious freedom. What does that mean? It means that if I held a party at my house, you'd meet people there from all kinds of spiritual beliefs and backgrounds: Christians, Catholics, Scientologists, Mormons, Buddhists, Islamists, New Age Spiritualists and even some Athiests and Hinduists, too. And why is that? Because I know and respect people in each of these religious traditions, and I don't condemn people for following a religious belief system. The only "religion" I attack is what I call the "Cult of Pharmacology" which doesn't count as an organized religion in the first place.
I've noticed that there are various levels of tolerance among the population for attacking various religions. Attacking Scientology, for example, is considered "okay" by lots of people because Scientology seems strange to them. Attacking the Jewish religion, however, is considered a hate crime, even as Israelis are right now murdering innocent civilians in Gaza with a military assault that targets universities and schools. If you dare say anything against Israel, you're immediately considered a blasphemous hate crime promoter, and if you live in Germany, they can actually lock you up in prison for even questioning the official version of events like the Holocaust. Just ask David Irving, who actually spent time in prison for questioning the official explanation of the Holocaust.
By the way, I'm not a Holocaust denier, and I don't support David Irving's views. But I do support his right to EXPRESS his views without being arrested as a criminal.
Speaking of holocaust deniers, virtually all Americans are "Native American Holocaust Deniers" because the revisionist version of U.S. history taught in schools conveniently leaves out the Holocaust that was committed against the Native Americans by everybody from Christopher Columbus on down the line. So why aren't all the American people doing time in prison for denying the Holocaust committed against Native Americans? Because the White Man wrote the history books, of course!
My point in all of this is that very few people truly operate on anything even resembling truth, honesty or religious freedom. They simply attack opponents of their own limited views or beliefs, leaving no room for someone else to disagree on important issues like history or religion.
And this is ultimately why we have so much violence in our world: A culture of global intolerance dominates our world today. People cannot tolerate a competing belief system, or the questioning of "official" history, without being censored, arrested or imprisoned. Because freedom of speech is now considered a crime if it contradicts the beliefs of those in power.
These attacks on John Travolta demonstrate the amateurish, hate-filled assaults on religious freedom that permeate western culture. Most people only believe in religious freedom for their own religion. Most people only believe in freedom of speech for their own beliefs. And when it comes down to it, most people ultimately only believe that their OWN kind of people deserve to live in this world at all.
And that's one of the reasons why the human race remains such an immature, infant race that still hasn't emerged from its self-centered growth stage. Nations act like children (Israel throws a temper tantrum!), and almost no national leader is able to function like a healthy adult and focus on creating a brighter world for future generations. It's mostly just conflict, bickering and con games, all engineered by the so-called "leaders" of our world who continue to be the most infantile humans of all.
As Noam Chomsky famously said, "If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all."
I've created a short quiz about freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom of thought. Take that quiz and see if you *really* believe in freedom, of if you're just deluding yourself. You'll find that quiz here:
http://www.naturalnews.com/025225.html
Check out that quiz if you want to see whether you truly believe in freedom for others.
Baseless Accusations against John Travolta Demonstrate Cruelty, Intolerance of Pill Pushers and Religion Bashers
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, January 5, 2009
Key concepts: John Travolta, Scientology and Freedom of Religion
The pill pushers of modern medicine are at it again, attacking John Travolta over the tragic death of his son, Jett, claiming (without any evidence, by the way) that Travolta was unwilling to keep his son on seizure medication and, therefore, was responsible for Jett falling and hitting his head, which led to his death.
The truth is that modern medicine's pill pushers are responsible for at least 98,000 deaths each year of American children, adults and senior citizens, and that's according to the conservative figures of the Journal of the American Medical Association. More reliable figures put the actual number of Americans killed by modern medicine (and all its pharmaceuticals) at 783,000 people a year. Yet there's no outrage about all those people who are killed by medicine. Instead, these pill pushers are focusing on the accidental death of a child belonging to a family of courageous citizens who have had the presence of mind to keep their child off psychiatric medications and focus on nutrition rather than drugs to support their child's health.
That pushers of conventional medicine would exploit this tragic death of John Travolta's son to attack both his sensibilities and his religious beliefs is yet another example of the cruelty of modern-day pill pushers. To them, the death of John Travolta's son is a "win" because in their minds, it "proves him wrong" about his belief system.
That's a delusional logic set, of course, because the nature of Jett's death (an accidental fall) has nothing whatsoever to do with Travolta's beliefs about protecting his child from psychiatric medications. At the same time, what about all those kids on SSRI drugs that end up committing suicide? The same people accusing Travolta today are never found blaming SSRI drugs for the suicidal actions of teens. To them, drugs are always good, and a lack of drugs is always bad. That's their religion in a nutshell.
Speaking of religion, I find it disgusting to watch people use this tragic death to level yet more attacks on the Church of Scientology. When Catholic priests rape their choir boys, it's all just hushed up and allowed to continue, but when a Scientologist suffers a random, tragic accidental death, they're subjected to relentless attacks that can only be called hate-motivated assaults on religious freedom.
For the record, I am not a Scientologist. I have, however, had the opportunity to personally meet many current and former members of the Church of Scientology, much like I know many members of the Mormon church, many of conservative Christian churches and of course lots of new age spiritual people who aren't associated with any organized religion at all. The one thing I've learned in all this is that those who would attack the members of another religion over their beliefs are violating their own Church, whatever Church that may be. Religious freedom, in the minds of too many people, only applies to YOUR OWN religion, not to other people's religions. And that's not religious freedom at all; that's just zealotry.
I am one of the few people you'll ever meet who truly, honestly and irrevocably believes in genuine religious freedom. What does that mean? It means that if I held a party at my house, you'd meet people there from all kinds of spiritual beliefs and backgrounds: Christians, Catholics, Scientologists, Mormons, Buddhists, Islamists, New Age Spiritualists and even some Athiests and Hinduists, too. And why is that? Because I know and respect people in each of these religious traditions, and I don't condemn people for following a religious belief system. The only "religion" I attack is what I call the "Cult of Pharmacology" which doesn't count as an organized religion in the first place.
I've noticed that there are various levels of tolerance among the population for attacking various religions. Attacking Scientology, for example, is considered "okay" by lots of people because Scientology seems strange to them. Attacking the Jewish religion, however, is considered a hate crime, even as Israelis are right now murdering innocent civilians in Gaza with a military assault that targets universities and schools. If you dare say anything against Israel, you're immediately considered a blasphemous hate crime promoter, and if you live in Germany, they can actually lock you up in prison for even questioning the official version of events like the Holocaust. Just ask David Irving, who actually spent time in prison for questioning the official explanation of the Holocaust.
By the way, I'm not a Holocaust denier, and I don't support David Irving's views. But I do support his right to EXPRESS his views without being arrested as a criminal.
Speaking of holocaust deniers, virtually all Americans are "Native American Holocaust Deniers" because the revisionist version of U.S. history taught in schools conveniently leaves out the Holocaust that was committed against the Native Americans by everybody from Christopher Columbus on down the line. So why aren't all the American people doing time in prison for denying the Holocaust committed against Native Americans? Because the White Man wrote the history books, of course!
My point in all of this is that very few people truly operate on anything even resembling truth, honesty or religious freedom. They simply attack opponents of their own limited views or beliefs, leaving no room for someone else to disagree on important issues like history or religion.
And this is ultimately why we have so much violence in our world: A culture of global intolerance dominates our world today. People cannot tolerate a competing belief system, or the questioning of "official" history, without being censored, arrested or imprisoned. Because freedom of speech is now considered a crime if it contradicts the beliefs of those in power.
These attacks on John Travolta demonstrate the amateurish, hate-filled assaults on religious freedom that permeate western culture. Most people only believe in religious freedom for their own religion. Most people only believe in freedom of speech for their own beliefs. And when it comes down to it, most people ultimately only believe that their OWN kind of people deserve to live in this world at all.
And that's one of the reasons why the human race remains such an immature, infant race that still hasn't emerged from its self-centered growth stage. Nations act like children (Israel throws a temper tantrum!), and almost no national leader is able to function like a healthy adult and focus on creating a brighter world for future generations. It's mostly just conflict, bickering and con games, all engineered by the so-called "leaders" of our world who continue to be the most infantile humans of all.
As Noam Chomsky famously said, "If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all."
I've created a short quiz about freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom of thought. Take that quiz and see if you *really* believe in freedom, of if you're just deluding yourself. You'll find that quiz here:
http://www.naturalnews.com/025225.html
Check out that quiz if you want to see whether you truly believe in freedom for others.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Kool Website of the Week: GoldenAgeStories.com
http://www.goldenagestories.com
Robalini's Review: Whatever the merits of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard was sure one hell of pulp writer. Check out this site for a treasure trove of resources for fans of Hubbard's classic pre-Dianetics fictional yarns...
L. Ron Hubbard Pulp Fiction Books and Stories from the Golden Age: Book Video, Books Online, Audio Books
Read book excerpts, watch video clips, get free book cover posters, listen to old time radio show audio book story clips, and buy L. Ron Hubbard fiction book titles in the Golden Age Stories Science Fiction, Western, Mystery and Adventure book series by New York Times best selling author L. Ron Hubbard. Explore the Interactive Pulp Fiction Universe Flash site and online book store, join the book club, register for the Itunes Book Podcast.
Robalini's Review: Whatever the merits of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard was sure one hell of pulp writer. Check out this site for a treasure trove of resources for fans of Hubbard's classic pre-Dianetics fictional yarns...
L. Ron Hubbard Pulp Fiction Books and Stories from the Golden Age: Book Video, Books Online, Audio Books
Read book excerpts, watch video clips, get free book cover posters, listen to old time radio show audio book story clips, and buy L. Ron Hubbard fiction book titles in the Golden Age Stories Science Fiction, Western, Mystery and Adventure book series by New York Times best selling author L. Ron Hubbard. Explore the Interactive Pulp Fiction Universe Flash site and online book store, join the book club, register for the Itunes Book Podcast.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Isaac Hayes' History With Scientology
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,401321,00.html
Isaac Hayes' History With Scientology
Monday , August 11, 2008
By Roger Friedman
My friend, Isaac Hayes, died on Sunday, and his passing leaves many unanswered questions.
The great R&B star, actor, DJ, performer and family man, the composer of “Soul Man,” “Hold On I’m Coming” and other hits by Sam Moore and Dave Prater like “When Something Is Wrong with My Baby,” also was a member of the Church of Scientology.
Isaac was found dead by his treadmill, but conveniently missing from the wire stories was a significant fact: in January 2006, Isaac had a significant stroke. At the time, the word went out only that he had been hospitalized for exhaustion.
But the truth was, Isaac, whom I’d seen just a couple of months earlier when he headlined the Blues Ball in Memphis, was in trouble. Having lost the rights to his songs two decades earlier, he was finally making some money voicing the character of Chef on “South Park.” But “South Park” lampooned Scientology, so the leaders wanted Isaac out.
Push came to shove on Nov. 16, 2005, when “South Park” aired its hilarious “Trapped in the Closet” episode spoofing Tom Cruise and John Travolta. “South Park” creator Matt Stone told me later that Isaac had come to him in tears.
“He said he was under great pressure from Scientology, and if we didn’t stop poking at them, he’d have to leave," Stone said.
The conversation ended there. Isaac performed Chef’s signature song at the Blues Ball a week later with great delight. Although he was devoted to Scientology, he also loved being part of “South Park.” He was proud of it. And, importantly, it gave him income he badly needed.
But then came the stroke, which was severe. His staff — consisting of Scientology monitors who rarely left him alone — tried to portray it as a minor health issue. It wasn’t. Sources in Memphis told me at the time that Isaac had significant motor control and speech issues. His talking was impaired.
In March 2006, news came that Hayes was resigning from “South Park." On March 20, 2006, I wrote a column called “Chef’s Quitting Controversy,” explaining that Hayes was in no position to have quit anything due to his stroke. But Scientology issued the statement to the press saying Hayes had resigned, and the press just ate it up. No one spoke to Isaac directly, because he couldn’t literally speak. "Chef” was written out of the show.
Isaac’s income stream was severely impaired as a result. Suddenly there were announcements of his touring, and performing. It didn’t seem possible, but word went out that he’d be at BB King’s in New York in January 2007. I went to see him and reported on it here.
The show was abomination. Isaac was plunked down at a keyboard, where he pretended to front his band. He spoke-sang, and his words were halting. He was not the Isaac Hayes of the past.
What was worse was that he barely knew me. He had appeared in my documentary, "Only the Strong Survive," released in 2003. We knew each other very well. I was actually surprised that his Scientology minder, Christina Kumi Kimball, with whom I had difficult encounters in the past, let me see him backstage at BB King’s. Our meeting was brief, and Isaac said quietly that he did know me. But the light was out in his eyes, and the situation was worrisome.
But the general consensus was that he needed the money. Without “Chef,” Isaac’s finances were severely curtailed. He had mouths to feed to home. Plus, Scientology requires huge amounts of money, as former member, actor Jason Beghe, has explained in this space. For Isaac to continue in the sect, he had to come up with funds. Performing was the only way.
In recent months, I’ve had conflicting reports. One mutual friend says that Isaac had looked and sounded much better lately at business meetings. But actor Samuel L. Jackson, who recently filmed scenes with Isaac and the late Bernie Mac for a new movie called “Soul Men,” told me on Saturday that Isaac really wasn’t up to the physical demands of shooting the movie. (Neither, it seems, was Bernie Mac.)
Sam Moore, who recorded those Isaac Hayes songs in the '60s and loved the writer-performer like a brother, told me Sunday when he heard about the death: “I’m happy.” Happy, I asked? “Yes, happy he’s out of pain.” It was one of the most beautiful ideas I’d ever heard expressed on the subject of death.
But there are a lot of questions still to be raised about Isaac Hayes’ death. Why, for example, was a stroke survivor on a treadmill by himself? What was his condition? What kind of treatment had he had since the stroke? Members of Scientology are required to sign a form promising they will never seek psychiatric or mental assistance. But stroke rehabilitation involves the help of neurologists and often psychiatrists, not to mention psychotropic drugs — exactly the kind Scientology proselytizes against.
What will come next, I’m afraid, is a wild dogfight among family members for Isaac’s estate. His song catalog (with David Porter) is one of the greatest in music history. Isaac lost the rights to his big hit songs in 1977. But thanks to something called the Songwriters Act, his heirs — whoever they are determined to be — automatically get the rights back as the songs come up for copyright renewal. I guarantee this will not be pretty. Isaac Lee Hayes has over 300 original compositions listed with BMI, from the Sam & Dave songbook to Carla Thomas’ “BABY (Baby)” to his monumental instrumental “Theme from SHAFT.”
None of this should ever take away from who Isaac Hayes really was: a great friend, a warm congenial man with a big heart and a big laugh. He had married again right before his stroke, and was very happy. If he hadn’t had the stroke, I am certain he would have recorded a new album. There was talk of it after the stroke, but nothing materialized. When we made and promoted “Only the Strong Survive,” he was a masterful musician with a great mind and a wicked sense of humor. His loss at 65 is simply way too early and very tragic.
Isaac Hayes' History With Scientology
Monday , August 11, 2008
By Roger Friedman
My friend, Isaac Hayes, died on Sunday, and his passing leaves many unanswered questions.
The great R&B star, actor, DJ, performer and family man, the composer of “Soul Man,” “Hold On I’m Coming” and other hits by Sam Moore and Dave Prater like “When Something Is Wrong with My Baby,” also was a member of the Church of Scientology.
Isaac was found dead by his treadmill, but conveniently missing from the wire stories was a significant fact: in January 2006, Isaac had a significant stroke. At the time, the word went out only that he had been hospitalized for exhaustion.
But the truth was, Isaac, whom I’d seen just a couple of months earlier when he headlined the Blues Ball in Memphis, was in trouble. Having lost the rights to his songs two decades earlier, he was finally making some money voicing the character of Chef on “South Park.” But “South Park” lampooned Scientology, so the leaders wanted Isaac out.
Push came to shove on Nov. 16, 2005, when “South Park” aired its hilarious “Trapped in the Closet” episode spoofing Tom Cruise and John Travolta. “South Park” creator Matt Stone told me later that Isaac had come to him in tears.
“He said he was under great pressure from Scientology, and if we didn’t stop poking at them, he’d have to leave," Stone said.
The conversation ended there. Isaac performed Chef’s signature song at the Blues Ball a week later with great delight. Although he was devoted to Scientology, he also loved being part of “South Park.” He was proud of it. And, importantly, it gave him income he badly needed.
But then came the stroke, which was severe. His staff — consisting of Scientology monitors who rarely left him alone — tried to portray it as a minor health issue. It wasn’t. Sources in Memphis told me at the time that Isaac had significant motor control and speech issues. His talking was impaired.
In March 2006, news came that Hayes was resigning from “South Park." On March 20, 2006, I wrote a column called “Chef’s Quitting Controversy,” explaining that Hayes was in no position to have quit anything due to his stroke. But Scientology issued the statement to the press saying Hayes had resigned, and the press just ate it up. No one spoke to Isaac directly, because he couldn’t literally speak. "Chef” was written out of the show.
Isaac’s income stream was severely impaired as a result. Suddenly there were announcements of his touring, and performing. It didn’t seem possible, but word went out that he’d be at BB King’s in New York in January 2007. I went to see him and reported on it here.
The show was abomination. Isaac was plunked down at a keyboard, where he pretended to front his band. He spoke-sang, and his words were halting. He was not the Isaac Hayes of the past.
What was worse was that he barely knew me. He had appeared in my documentary, "Only the Strong Survive," released in 2003. We knew each other very well. I was actually surprised that his Scientology minder, Christina Kumi Kimball, with whom I had difficult encounters in the past, let me see him backstage at BB King’s. Our meeting was brief, and Isaac said quietly that he did know me. But the light was out in his eyes, and the situation was worrisome.
But the general consensus was that he needed the money. Without “Chef,” Isaac’s finances were severely curtailed. He had mouths to feed to home. Plus, Scientology requires huge amounts of money, as former member, actor Jason Beghe, has explained in this space. For Isaac to continue in the sect, he had to come up with funds. Performing was the only way.
In recent months, I’ve had conflicting reports. One mutual friend says that Isaac had looked and sounded much better lately at business meetings. But actor Samuel L. Jackson, who recently filmed scenes with Isaac and the late Bernie Mac for a new movie called “Soul Men,” told me on Saturday that Isaac really wasn’t up to the physical demands of shooting the movie. (Neither, it seems, was Bernie Mac.)
Sam Moore, who recorded those Isaac Hayes songs in the '60s and loved the writer-performer like a brother, told me Sunday when he heard about the death: “I’m happy.” Happy, I asked? “Yes, happy he’s out of pain.” It was one of the most beautiful ideas I’d ever heard expressed on the subject of death.
But there are a lot of questions still to be raised about Isaac Hayes’ death. Why, for example, was a stroke survivor on a treadmill by himself? What was his condition? What kind of treatment had he had since the stroke? Members of Scientology are required to sign a form promising they will never seek psychiatric or mental assistance. But stroke rehabilitation involves the help of neurologists and often psychiatrists, not to mention psychotropic drugs — exactly the kind Scientology proselytizes against.
What will come next, I’m afraid, is a wild dogfight among family members for Isaac’s estate. His song catalog (with David Porter) is one of the greatest in music history. Isaac lost the rights to his big hit songs in 1977. But thanks to something called the Songwriters Act, his heirs — whoever they are determined to be — automatically get the rights back as the songs come up for copyright renewal. I guarantee this will not be pretty. Isaac Lee Hayes has over 300 original compositions listed with BMI, from the Sam & Dave songbook to Carla Thomas’ “BABY (Baby)” to his monumental instrumental “Theme from SHAFT.”
None of this should ever take away from who Isaac Hayes really was: a great friend, a warm congenial man with a big heart and a big laugh. He had married again right before his stroke, and was very happy. If he hadn’t had the stroke, I am certain he would have recorded a new album. There was talk of it after the stroke, but nothing materialized. When we made and promoted “Only the Strong Survive,” he was a masterful musician with a great mind and a wicked sense of humor. His loss at 65 is simply way too early and very tragic.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
'In Search Of The Great Beast 666'
Aleister Crowley, self proclaimed "The Great Beast" and known by the press as "The Wickedest Man in the World", was perhaps the most controversial and notorious individuals in British History. This dramatically reconstructed film unearths the barely believable and shocking facts surrounding a man who was voted in a BBC poll to be one of the most influential Britons of all time.
Was he related to US President George Bush? How was he connected to the founder of Scientology, NASA, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Jack the Ripper, Winston Churchill, Ian Fleming and how did this Occultist, Spy, Poet, Writer and accomplished Mountaineer come to know and influence so many other remarkable people?
Featuring the Voice of Joss Ackland and Music Score by Rick Wakeman
Check Out The Official Movie Website Here:
www.aleister-crowley-666.com
Check Out The MySpace Site Here:
http://www.myspace.com/aleistercrowleyfilm
Check Out The YouTube Trailer Here:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WpOZX5vTO00
Was he related to US President George Bush? How was he connected to the founder of Scientology, NASA, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Jack the Ripper, Winston Churchill, Ian Fleming and how did this Occultist, Spy, Poet, Writer and accomplished Mountaineer come to know and influence so many other remarkable people?
Featuring the Voice of Joss Ackland and Music Score by Rick Wakeman
Check Out The Official Movie Website Here:
www.aleister-crowley-666.com
Check Out The MySpace Site Here:
http://www.myspace.com/aleistercrowleyfilm
Check Out The YouTube Trailer Here:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WpOZX5vTO00
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Tom Cruise Had Spielberg's Family Doctor Picketed
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/11/29/tom-cruise-had-spielberg_n_74731.html
Tom Cruise Had Spielberg's Family Doctor Picketed By Scientologists
Katherine Thomson
November 29, 2007
Deep in the December issue of Vanity Fair is an interesting throw-away line about Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg. Bryan Burrough wrote a lengthy article called:
Showdown at Fort Sumner
Two years after Paramount purchased DreamWorks, Hollywood is transfixed by one of the nastiest breakups ever. As Sumner Redstone and David Geffen went to war (over Steven Spielberg?), the author got it from both sides.
The article is online, and on page 3 of the online copy, at the end of a paragraph on Tom Cruise being "fired" by Redstone, is this:
Spielberg felt the actor's antics had hurt his own movie, 2005's War of the Worlds. Far worse, though, had been an episode when Spielberg told Cruise the name of a doctor who had prescribed medication to a relative and the doctor's office was subsequently picketed by Scientologists.
The Cruise dismissal, however, was nothing compared to the sudden firing of Freston as Viacom's C.E.O., two weeks later....
Vanity Fair has stringent fact checkers. To repeat "when Spielberg told Cruise the name of a doctor who had prescribed medication to a relative and the doctor's office was subsequently picketed by Scientologists."
The sentence begs the question, what kind of doctor and medication? Could it be psychiatric? Cruise and Scientology have a well-documented opposition to psychiatry, and now it seems Spielberg has a documented dislike of Cruise.
Tom Cruise Had Spielberg's Family Doctor Picketed By Scientologists
Katherine Thomson
November 29, 2007
Deep in the December issue of Vanity Fair is an interesting throw-away line about Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg. Bryan Burrough wrote a lengthy article called:
Showdown at Fort Sumner
Two years after Paramount purchased DreamWorks, Hollywood is transfixed by one of the nastiest breakups ever. As Sumner Redstone and David Geffen went to war (over Steven Spielberg?), the author got it from both sides.
The article is online, and on page 3 of the online copy, at the end of a paragraph on Tom Cruise being "fired" by Redstone, is this:
Spielberg felt the actor's antics had hurt his own movie, 2005's War of the Worlds. Far worse, though, had been an episode when Spielberg told Cruise the name of a doctor who had prescribed medication to a relative and the doctor's office was subsequently picketed by Scientologists.
The Cruise dismissal, however, was nothing compared to the sudden firing of Freston as Viacom's C.E.O., two weeks later....
Vanity Fair has stringent fact checkers. To repeat "when Spielberg told Cruise the name of a doctor who had prescribed medication to a relative and the doctor's office was subsequently picketed by Scientologists."
The sentence begs the question, what kind of doctor and medication? Could it be psychiatric? Cruise and Scientology have a well-documented opposition to psychiatry, and now it seems Spielberg has a documented dislike of Cruise.
Monday, July 16, 2007
John Travolta becomes the perfect woman
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml;jsessionid=XTZTTLZ5YYNP5QFIQMFSFFOAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/arts/2007/07/13/nosplit/bftravolta11.xml
John Travolta becomes the perfect woman
13/07/2007
When John Travolta finally agreed to star in his first musical since 'Grease', he had some very firm ideas about just how voluptuous his character should be, he tells John Hiscock
When you've been a sexy teen idol, a tough action star, danced with Diana, Princess of Wales and been nominated for two Oscars, you think long and hard when someone asks you to put on a dress and portray an outsized, overly protective mother.
John Travolta thought for 14 months before saying "Yes."
The decision was a good one, because he makes a sweet, lovable Edna Turnblad, who sings, dances and is madly in love with her husband, played by Travolta's old pal and fellow former Broadway hoofer Christopher Walken, in the third incarnation of John Waters's musical, Hairspray.
The story, as most people know by now, is set in Baltimore during the 1960s TV dance craze and centres on Edna and Wilbur Turnblad and their daughter Tracy (played by screen newcomer Nikki Blonsky), who graduates from outsider to celebrity trendsetter while kicking down racial barriers on local television.
Edna was portrayed in the original 1988 movie by the transvestite Divine and in the subsequent Broadway show by Harvey Feirstein.
But in this version, which the film's producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron describe as a "re-invention" based on the stage musical, the first choice for the role was always Travolta. They had originally chosen him for the Billy Flynn role in Chicago, but it went to Richard Gere after Travolta turned it down.
"When they asked me to be Edna Turnblad I said, 'Gee, 32 years as a leading man… why me? What makes you think I'd be the perfect woman?'
"It took me a year and two months to decide to do it. It was a long and arduous decision."
He was finally convinced by director-choreographer Adam Shankman's vision and passion.
"He basically said to me, 'I take this movie personally and if it doesn't come out right, I'm going to die.' And I said, 'Whoa, I've got to go with that guy,' because musicals don't work unless every throttle's on full, so when I got the sense everybody cared, then I said, OK.
"I had the biggest musical in history, Grease, and I wanted to leave it like that, so excuse the pun but it took a lot of grease to get me back in the frying pan."
He was so determined to create the Edna he wanted that he rejected several versions of the fat suit designed for him until he was given one he considered made her suitably curvaceous and voluptuous.
"It wasn't real to me to make her like a refrigerator," he says. "I said, 'Make her as big as you want as long as you give her a waist and make her pretty because it will be more interesting, more appealing and more entertaining.' I wanted people to enjoy looking at her, because if she's grotesque, it's not fun.
"My challenge was making sure I was convincing as a woman, so I drew on a library of memories of watching great female performances in the theatre and on film and in my family, and I used role models like Sophia Loren, Anita Ekberg, Elizabeth Taylor… these women with voluptuous shapes."
He had to spend up to five hours a day encased in a full body suit weighing more than 30lb with five separate gel-filled silicone prosthetic appliances for parts of Edna's face. But it had its compensations.
"I'm happy to be a man, but I miss being groped," he says, laughing. "Everybody tried to grope me all day. Suddenly having breasts and a big bottom gained me so much attention. Men and women wanted to feel my breasts and feel my bum. I must be a slut because I didn't care. Men were flirting with me and I was being given power I never had before. I found it fascinating. Women have power I didn't know they had."
Hairspray is a testament not only to 53-year-old John Travolta's versatility, but to his ability to defy the rules of Hollywood and continue to thrive.
In a business where the adage "they never come back" is especially true, he returned to Hollywood's A-list after languishing in semi-obscurity for a decade and is now as much in demand as he was when his portrayal of the posturing Italian-American Tony Manero in Saturday Night Fever, one of the signature films of the 1970s, earned him an Oscar nomination and international stardom.
Maybe it is due to his well-reported affiliation to the Church of Scientology, but he gives off the aura of almost unnatural calmness. He is remarkably easy to talk to and has an unexpected quality of being able to laugh at himself.
He and his actress wife Kelly Preston avoid the Hollywood social scene, preferring to remain at home some 100 miles up the coast, with their two children, Jett, 15, and seven-year-old Ella Bleu, who is already a budding actress.
An avid flier since he was 16 years old, Travolta also owns a fly-in/fly-out house in Florida, where he lands his Gulfstream 11 and customised 707 jets on a private runway, taxiing right up to the house.
Although he is all movie star nowadays, Travolta is a man who has paid his showbusiness dues. When he was six years old, he took dancing lessons from Gene Kelly's brother; he made his stage debut when he was 12 in Who Will Save the Plowboy?, dropped out of high school when he was 16 to begin work in summer stock and made his Broadway debut in 1974 in Over Here! with the Andrews Sisters.
But after achieving worldwide fame with Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Grease (1978), he became trapped for nearly 10 years in a series of forgettable flops. He was in danger of becoming one of Hollywood's forgotten men until, in 1985, at a party at the White House, Diana, Princess of Wales asked him to dance and he was once more making headlines around the world.
"That was an amazing moment for her and for me because at that time I was having a dip in my career and no one was very interested in me," he says. "But with Princess Diana I was suddenly the only thing that mattered in America to her and I was reborn. I was like, 'Wow! I matter to someone again.' "
Then Quentin Tarantino and Pulp Fiction (1994) restored his acting credibility and won him his second Oscar nomination. Since then, he has thrived in films such as Get Shorty (1995), Broken Arrow (1996), Michael (1996), Face/Off (1997), Primary Colors (1998) and Swordfish (2001), while emerging unscathed from such critically assailed flops as Battlefield Earth (2000).
His most recent film, Wild Hogs (2007), was a huge financial success, and he is due to start work soon on the Walt Disney film Old Dogs, which co-stars his wife and daughter. He is also awaiting a final script for Dallas, the movie version of the 1970s television series in which he is due to play JR.
"As you get older you have to force yourself to have new dreams," he says. "For instance, I've been flying for 37 years but now teaching others to fly is interesting for me. Sometimes you have to find new angles on life to keep you interested, like sharing successes and inspiring and helping others. You have to go out of your way to activate your dreams and keep them going in this third chapter of your life."
'Hairspray' is released on Friday July 20
CROSS-DRESSING AT THE MOVIES
Some Like It Hot (1959)
"Have I got things to tell you!" says Jerry (Jack Lemmon) to Joe (Tony Curtis). "What happened?" "I'm engaged!" "Congratulations! Who's the lucky girl?" "I am!"
The absolute mother of cross-dressing comedies, Billy Wilder's movie remains a thing of beauty - not, perhaps, something that could be said of the suspiciously big-boned Daphne and Josephine.
Mrs Doubtfire (1993)
Robin Williams is like a kiddy in a sweetshop as the husband who, after an acrimonious divorce, decides to pretened to be Euphegenia Doubtfire, nanny extraordinary, in order to spend more time with his children.
It all requires mammoth suspension of disbelief, but there's a nicely waspish edge to the script and much of it is far funnier than it has any right to be.
Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
Alec Guinness plays pursed-lipped Suffragette Lady Agatha, the fourth of eight members of the D'Ascoyne family (all played by Guinness) murdered by Dennis Price in pursuit of the dukedom he believes should be his.
"I shot an arrow in the air/She fell to earth in Berkeley Square," he says gaily after downing her hot-air balloon.
Tootsie (1982)
Dustin Hoffman's portrayal of a struggling young actor who turns himself into a middle-aged woman to get a part - and thereby gains an unwelcome insight into life on the other side of the sexual divide - won him an Oscar nomination. His biggest problem with the role? Getting the voice right, he said.
The Crying Game (1992)
If you've never seen this film, stop reading now, because the revelation that the sexy, sultry Dil (Jaye Davidson) is actually a boy is the plot's big twist, helping to make this one of Neil Jordan's biggest hits. Much confusion among male viewers who found themselves fancying her/him.
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