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Commodores Messenger Book I by Janis Gillham Grady

janisgrady

Patron
I'll hold my breath and turn blue if it helps! :p

You have so much priceless information that it would be heartbreaking to lose if it doesn't get recorded somehow, even just raw audio reminisces.

As an aside, do you know what happened to Nikki Freeman? She must have a wealth of stories.
I'm also surprised that the two surviving LRH children that are out of the church haven't written their own books.

Last I heard, about a year or so ago, Nikki was auditing at AOLA or ASHO. I have not talked to the two Hubbard children you are referring to, so can't answer for them.
 

janisgrady

Patron
Hi Veda, Seems you have a lot to say! I would appreciate it if you will let me tell my story and not jump ahead of me. Many of us have already seen the items you are reposting, which of course are interesting, but right now I would like to be on the stage and tell my story. Thanks Janis

Update: A proof copy of Commodore's Messenger is being printed and will be with me Friday to review and give final authorization to print!!!!
Meanwhile, here is a copy of the review by Dan Koon:

"I was privileged to meet Yvonne Gillham only once in my life, but the radiance she projected was wonderfully blinding. Seven years later I met her daughter Janis and for a dozen years after that she and I developed a friendship that lasts to this day. They say the acorn does not fall far from the tree and I think this is true in Janis’ case.
While on a cruise last year with Janis, her husband Paul, and several other friends, I had the further privilege of reading the manuscript of Commodore’s Messenger. I am certain that anyone who was at one time involved in Scientology, whether as a staff member or public parishioner, will find the book utterly enlightening. For anyone fascinated by the continuing controversies of Scientology, Commodore’s Messenger conveys an inside look into the eye of the hurricane, and by that I mean L. Ron Hubbard and his closest associates. One of these associates was Janis Gillham.
At age 12 she was thrust into a role that no one, not even L. Ron Hubbard himself, could have predicted the outcome, for within not too many years Janis and her fellow Commodore’s Messengers, as they were called, would be running the whole of International Scientology. But that is the story of a later book. Commodore’s Messenger begins by taking the reader into the life of the first family of Scientology in Australia, Yvonne and Peter Gillham and their three children, Peter Jr., Terri and Janis. Life for the Gillhams is not without its challenges in Australia, but nothing compared to what happens when the family moves to England to be nearer to the center of Scientology in East Grinstead south of London.
Things spiral out of control as Hubbard leaves England and takes to the sea, to continue his research into higher spiritual states for mankind, as he puts it, or to escape the long arm of the law as many critics contend. Yvonne and her children soon find themselves enmeshed in Hubbard’s inner circle, Yvonne with Hubbard himself as one of his trusted aides, and the children with Hubbard’s own family. When Yvonne joins the newly established Sea Organization, to support Hubbard in his seafaring adventures, her children find themselves aboard what would become the flagship of Hubbard’s burgeoning navy.
Having children underfoot does not fit well with the serious nature of Hubbard’s plans to expand Scientology’s worldwide impact. So, he determines to make these children useful. He begins using them to send messages to various parts of the organization aboard the Apollo, hence the name Commodore’s Messenger.
With this as a background, know that the story Janis has written comes from the earliest days and the epicentre of Scientology’s Sea Organization. As a messenger Janis was with Hubbard a minimum of 6 hours each and every day and often times much longer. She was privy to all his moods from sunny to thundering; as a messenger, she was intimately familiar with everything happening on board the ship as well as throughout the Scientology network.
But Janis was also her own person and as a teenager she lived a life that few of her peers could ever hope to have lived. I found myself literally agog at some of the early experiences that Sea Org members somehow survived in the organization’s early years. Hubbard’s cavalier regard for the lives of others was astonishing, as Janis relates some of the storms encountered by Sea Org vessels ill-equipped to be piloted by those with so little seamanship training. It is a wonder no one was killed.
I’ll leave you to discover the rest in what I am positive will be an entertaining, sometimes humorous, and fascinating read. Dyed-in-the-wool Scientologist, ex-Scientologist or anti-Scientology critic should avail themselves of the most detailed insider story of L. Ron Hubbard’s life at sea ever written, told by the young woman who was there every step of the way"
 

Veda

Sponsor
Hi Veda, Seems you have a lot to say! I would appreciate it if you will let me tell my story and not jump ahead of me. Many of us have already seen the items you are reposting, which of course are interesting, but right now I would like to be on the stage and tell my story. Thanks Janis

--snip-

Understood.

However, this is a thread on a public board, and a little background might be helpful to those new to the material, and to the greater context of Hubbard's decades long project to "assert and maintain dominion over thoughts and loyalties through mental healing," and by other means.

That said, my lengthy post, featuring some accounts of experiences of notable participants in the Sea Org saga, will be the only such lengthy post.

So, all is cool.


___________​

(Excerpt from review by Dan Koon.):

Having children underfoot does not fit well with the serious nature of Hubbard’s plans to expand Scientology’s worldwide impact. So, he determines to make these children useful. He begins using them to send messages to various parts of the organization aboard the Apollo, hence the name Commodore’s Messenger..."

At St. Hill there were always children about and it never occurred to Hubbard to use them as his personal servants.

After his post Rhodesia emotional collapse and his rebounding by the recreation of himself as the Commodore, complete with Xenu, the "Pink Legs" PL, and the Sea Org, he chose to surround himself with (mostly) young girls. Point is, the explanation for that may be stranger than Dan Koon suggests.


________​


Anticipate eagerly your books.

Many viewpoints, many perspectives, shared about this unusual time, are valuable.

Look forward to reading your unique account.

:)
 

janisgrady

Patron
Understood.

However, this is a thread on a public board, and a little background might be helpful to those new to the material, and to the greater context of Hubbard's decades long project to "assert and maintain dominion over thoughts and loyalties through mental healing," and by other means.

That said, my lengthy post, featuring some accounts of experiences of notable participants in the Sea Org saga, will be the only such lengthy post.

So, all is cool.


___________​

(Excerpt from review by Dan Koon.):



At St. Hill there were always children about and it never occurred to Hubbard to use them as his personal servants.

After his post Rhodesia emotional collapse and his rebounding by the recreation of himself as the Commodore, complete with Xenu, the "Pink Legs" PL, and the Sea Org, he chose to surround himself with (mostly) young girls. Point is, the explanation for that may be stranger than Dan Koon suggests.


________​


Anticipate eagerly your books.

Many viewpoints, many perspectives, shared about this unusual time, are valuable.

Look forward to reading your unique account.

:)

Thanks very much. I appreciate it.
 

Gizmo

Rabble Rouser
Understood.

However, this is a thread on a public board,...........<snip>

As long as I've been on ESMB, you've been posting most interesting & informative from firsthand experiences as have Face, Cowboy & a few others.

I'll always eagerly read every post you make. Thanks for your very important contributions to ESMB over the years.
 
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janisgrady

Patron
Understood.

However, this is a thread on a public board, and a little background might be helpful to those new to the material, and to the greater context of Hubbard's decades long project to "assert and maintain dominion over thoughts and loyalties through mental healing," and by other means.

That said, my lengthy post, featuring some accounts of experiences of notable participants in the Sea Org saga, will be the only such lengthy post.

So, all is cool.


___________​

(Excerpt from review by Dan Koon.):



At St. Hill there were always children about and it never occurred to Hubbard to use them as his personal servants.

After his post Rhodesia emotional collapse and his rebounding by the recreation of himself as the Commodore, complete with Xenu, the "Pink Legs" PL, and the Sea Org, he chose to surround himself with (mostly) young girls. Point is, the explanation for that may be stranger than Dan Koon suggests.


________​


Anticipate eagerly your books.

Many viewpoints, many perspectives, shared about this unusual time, are valuable.

Look forward to reading your unique account.

:)


Veda, your are correct, this is a public board and also your view is most valuable to others. I do not wish to stand in your way of speaking out, but I am trying to use this formu to let people know about my upcoming book so more people can be reached and read first hand, my information about Hubbard.

Here is my update for today:
Amazon.com should be set to take pre-orders of Commodore's Messenger in 72 hrs with Kindle scheduled for release on August 1st. As other outlets are set up to release ebooks and paperbacks, I will let everyone know. Here is a review by Hana Eltringham Whitfield who was also on this journey with me:
"Many themes run through this captivating and in-depth story about L. Ron Hubbard’s Church of Scientology and his Sea Organization. The main one centers on the author, Janis Gillham Grady, and her early years growing up in Scientology as a second-generation adherent, and how she adapted to its strict rules and regulations often without either parent at hand, and how she survived and even flourished there and while in the Sea Organization. Another is Janis’ well researched and compiled history of the Sea Organization itself, its adventures on the high seas and its tussles with non-Scientologists including families of members, port authorities, and even foreign governments. It is an excellent read for anyone wanting to understand more about L. Ron Hubbard, his character and life, and how his followers lived, suffered, and survived.” Hana Eltringham Whitfield
 

FormerScn

Patron
Veda, your are correct, this is a public board and also your view is most valuable to others. I do not wish to stand in your way of speaking out, but I am trying to use this formu to let people know about my upcoming book so more people can be reached and read first hand, my information about Hubbard.

Here is my update for today:
Amazon.com should be set to take pre-orders of Commodore's Messenger in 72 hrs with Kindle scheduled for release on August 1st. As other outlets are set up to release ebooks and paperbacks, I will let everyone know. Here is a review by Hana Eltringham Whitfield who was also on this journey with me:
"Many themes run through this captivating and in-depth story about L. Ron Hubbard’s Church of Scientology and his Sea Organization. The main one centers on the author, Janis Gillham Grady, and her early years growing up in Scientology as a second-generation adherent, and how she adapted to its strict rules and regulations often without either parent at hand, and how she survived and even flourished there and while in the Sea Organization. Another is Janis’ well researched and compiled history of the Sea Organization itself, its adventures on the high seas and its tussles with non-Scientologists including families of members, port authorities, and even foreign governments. It is an excellent read for anyone wanting to understand more about L. Ron Hubbard, his character and life, and how his followers lived, suffered, and survived.” Hana Eltringham Whitfield

I have so much respect for the women like you and Hanah who endured the Commodore. I can't wait for your book to come out!

People like me, and there are a lot of us, really do need to learn the true history of Scientology.
 

TheOriginalBigBlue

Gold Meritorious Patron
It would be nice to see Ex-Messengers assemble a list of LRH’s reference library. For example, The Twelve Rules for Straight Thinking, Applied to Business and Personal Problems – 1935, 1938, 1947, by William J. Reilly, was very popular prior to Dianetics and Scientology and it was even based on two of the author’s previous works. LRH would have certainly read it and it looks like it could have been the basis for the Data Series.

http://biglibrary.co/download/twelv...applied-to-business-and-personal-problems.pdf

https://www.amazon.com/Straight-Thinking-Business-Personal-Problems/dp/B000B65MLK
 

CommunicatorIC

@IndieScieNews on Twitter
AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER ON AMAZON - Commodore's Messenger: A Child Adrift in the Scientology Sea Organization, by Janis Gillham Grady. Automatic delivery to your Kindle device or app on August 1, 2017.

https://www.amazon.com/Commodores-Messenger-Adrift-Scientology-Organization-ebook/dp/B0742Q7H2F/

wCcccEt.png
 

CommunicatorIC

@IndieScieNews on Twitter
Jon Atack wrote:

"As a young girl, Janis was also the object of Hubbard’s attentions. She managed to push him away, but his attempt raises the question: why did a man in his 50s seek the constant attention of teenage girls? And was he successful with other “Messengers”?"

This^ was later deleted, I wonder why.

https://whyweprotest.net/threads/ne...y-by-janis-gillham-grady.133089/#post-2613015
Tony Ortega has addressed this:

http://tonyortega.org/2017/07/22/ja...tacks-take-and-an-excerpt/#comment-3430764537

* * * * * BEGIN QUOTATION * * * * *

TonyOrtega • 25 minutes ago

Sorry for the confusion on today's post. I was literally at the gate about to board a long flight when I got a call from Janis Grady telling me that Jon Atack had misremembered something from her book. She assured me that at no point in her book does she say she had to push away Hubbard from some kind of advance. Jon agreed that we should pull out that paragraph until I had a chance to add an editor's note. Which I will do when I get home, which is pretty soon, now that I'm in a cab from the airport.

* * * * * END QUOTATION * * * * *

EDITED TO ADD:

Tony Ortega has now added the following Editor's Note to the main story.

* * * * * BEGIN QUOTATION * * * * *

Editor’s note: An earlier version of Jon’s review contained a paragraph which referred to Janis, as a young girl, fending off an advance by L. Ron Hubbard. We removed that paragraph when it turned out that Jon was thinking of something from another book, Steve Cannane’s Fair Game, which refers to Janis’s sister, Terri, also one of the “Messengers,” dodging an attempt by Hubbard to kiss her.

* * * * * END QUOTATION * * * * *
 
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janisgrady

Patron

Gib

Crusader
My book is now available in paperback at https://www.createspace.com/7196129
It will be available on Amazon either this Friday or Monday, but if you want to order it right now - go to createspace.com/7196129, can't wait to hear what you all think of it.

Hi Janis,

I'm looking forward to read your book.

I have a question, and maybe it's in your book or not. But I'm wondering if you recall any books on Hubbard's bookshelf on the Apollo or anytime afterwards, or any books he read that you are aware of or recall? Did he mention any authors of books?
 

SanDiegoMember

Howard Dickman
Nothing grabs the media's attention than something that is successful. The more of Janis' books that are sold the more attention it will get thus creating more book sales.

This book has to be a huge thorn in the mighty midgets side. Her book will create waves. I hope to see her on the talk show circuit where she can really do some good.

Please support this endeavor of Janis to get her unique story out. I just ordered two paperbacks for delivery on August 1.

More power to you dear Janis.
 

Enthetan

Master of Disaster
* * * * * BEGIN QUOTATION * * * * *

Editor’s note: An earlier version of Jon’s review contained a paragraph which referred to Janis, as a young girl, fending off an advance by L. Ron Hubbard. We removed that paragraph when it turned out that Jon was thinking of something from another book, Steve Cannane’s Fair Game, which refers to Janis’s sister, Terri, also one of the “Messengers,” dodging an attempt by Hubbard to kiss her.

* * * * * END QUOTATION * * * * *

Given what we know of LRH's libido as of the 50's and 60's, it seems odd that he would surround himself with cute girls, and yet there are no stories of him doing anything with them. Taking into account what LRH said in his Affirmations about his issues with impotence, I've long wondered if that was the reason he surrounded himself with cute young women (an effort to arouse himself). But it looks like it was ineffective. We don't seem to hear about LRH having affairs during and after the ship days.
 
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