TROUBLEMAKER: SURVIVING HOLLYWOOD AND SCIENTOLOGY

TROUBLEMAKER: SURVIVING HOLLYWOOD AND SCIENTOLOGY. Leah Rimini. Ballantine; 2015.

In part memoir and in part excoriation of the horrible cult of scientology, Remini (with Rebecca Paley) has put together a gripping account of her trials and tribulations with the Cult of Cruise. Rimini, star for many seasons of The King of Queens (formerly she played Carla's daughter on Cheers), was indoctrinated into the cult at an early age, and grew up thinking it was normal to be washing toilets in a motel for $15 a week at the age of fourteen. Living conditions for the lesser scientologists are quite different from the way the "stars" live, and anyone who speaks out about those conditions is branded a "Suppressive Person" and winds up censured or, as real religions would put it, excommunicated. Members of the cult are strongly encouraged to tell on anyone who transgresses, or they will be considered transgressors themselves. Once a sane person decides to leave the "church," they must be cut off from people who remain in the "church," including members of their own family. Rimini makes it clear that the power of the cult has been greatly overestimated both in its numbers and -- despite the success of its most famous members -- in Hollywood (for every Tom Cruise there's an Anne Archer or Kirstie Alley, who is now better known for diet commercials than anything else). Like most cults, the rules for most members don't apply to leaders such as Tom Cruise or his buddy Tom Miscavige,whose wife Shelley has not been seen in public for many years. Rimini filed a Missing Persons report but got nowhere with the police. Perhaps out of embarrassment, Remini sort of downplays the fact that this "religion," founded by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, revolves around the influence of some outer space alien (yes!) This is not the first nor last expose on scientology, but Remini's comparatively high profile may finally make everyone see what a crock of shit it is.

Verdict: Good read which exposes some appalling situations. ***.

TOM CRUISE

TOM CRUISE An Unauthorized Biography. Andrew Morton. St. Martin's Press; 2008.

You won't find much about his films or acting technique in this bio of the movie star, but Morton does delve into the actor's psychology. The book has a rather dull, inauspicious opening, as it details Cruise's early life, and spends far too many pages refuting any claims that the homophobic Cruise might be gay, but Morton is a clever fellow and he knows that the only thing that infuriates Cruise more is any "attack" on his beloved Scientology. An increasingly horrifying read, the book makes clear that Cruise is a dangerous nut job wholly devoted to a "religion" that honestly wants to take over the world. The descriptions of his relationships with wives, girlfriends, family members, and those he wants to indoctrinate into his "faith," are chilling. Morton also delves into Cruise's bizarre relationship with Scientology head David Miscavige, the actor's odd behavior on the Oprah Winfrey show, and his attack on Brooke Shields simply because she took medication to help her deal with post-partum depression. Morton goes behind the scenes of the Scientology cult to expose its fanaticism, grotesque beliefs, and fascistic tendencies to attack and destroy anyone who disagrees with its tenets. [Cruise and his brethren actually compare negative attitudes toward Scientology with the Nazi persecution of Jews, Gays and others!] This is a fascinating, frightening read that reveals the power of, and damage done, by the obsession with celebrity.

Verdict: Excellent! ***1/2.