Operation Clambake

Some quotes about Author Services Inc (ASI) from the book "A Piece of Blue Sky. Scientology, Dianetics and L. Ron Hubbard Exposed." by Jon Atack!

CHAPTER FIVE
The Religious Technology Center
and the International Finance Police



As the Organization rapidly expands so will it be a growing temptation for anti-survival elements to gain entry and infiltrate, and attempts to plant will be made.
- L. RON HUBBARD, Policy Letter "Security Risks & Infiltration," October 30, 1962


The organizational restructuring of Scientology continued apace through 1982. On January 1, the Religious Technology Center (RTC) was incorporated. RTC took over the trademarks of Dianetics and Scientology.

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International Church management had been taken from the Flag Bureau by the Commodore's Messengers Organization in 1979. The Guardian's Office had been defeated and absorbed by the CMO without bloodshed in 1981. Author Services Incorporated was waiting in the wings to license Hubbard's copyrights to Bridge Publications and New Era Publications, which had separated from the Church, at least on paper. The Church of Scientology International had come into being to assume the management of the Orgs. By 1982 Scientology in the U.K. was already registered as the Religious Education College Incorporated, with its headquarters in Australia. Continental offices each had their own incorporation. It was a hasty attempt to divide the sinking ship of the Church of Scientology of California into watertight compartments.

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Author Services Incorporated is ostensibly a non-Church organization set up to manage Hubbard's affairs as a writer. It was activated in the spring of 1982. Battlefield Earth had been published by this time, and Hubbard had written numerous film scripts intended for Hollywood movies, including the OT3 story, Revolt in the Stars. ASI also collected the author's royalties from the books produced by the two Scientology Publications organizations.
David Miscavige resigned from the Sea Organization to become Chairman of the Board at Author Services Incorporated. The directors of a large share of Hubbard's ballooning personal fortune could not be seen to be members of the very organization which would continue to enlarge that fortune. However, Miscavige maintained his tight control of the Church. ASI was staffed solely with top Sea Org staff who had been allowed to resign their billion-year contracts to join. Only those at Gilman knew that ASI was actually the controlling group. This superiority was demonstrated when ASI staff arrived and started issuing orders even to the Watchdog Committee.
Five of the seven incorporators of the non-profit Religious Technology Center became ASI staff. ASI is a for-profit corporation, which derives most of its income from the Scientology organizations controlled by the RTC.

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Howard "Homer" Schomer, who was the Treasury Secretary of Author Services Incorporated, has testified that money was being channeled frantically into Hubbard's bank accounts during 1982. Schomer was in a position to know since he made the transfers. He has said that during his six months at ASI, about $34 million was paid into Hubbard's accounts. Schomer says this money came mostly from the Church, rather than from book royalties. Yet again Scientology was billed retroactively by Hubbard. Orgs were charged for their past use of taped lectures. They were charged for their past use of Hubbard courses. Schomer says there was a target figure of $85 million by the end of 1982. If this figure was achieved, there would be fat bonuses for ASI staff. Probably acting on Hubbard's orders, the new management called the Mission Holders to a conference at the San Francisco Hilton Hotel on October 17, 1982. At this fateful meeting, any degree of independence the Mission Holders retained was torn away from them. The meeting was also part of the desperate attempt to raise the targeted $85 million.

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