REVISITING "ACTING TEACHER AS CULT LEADER"

I never know what's going to take off here or why. My recent post "ACTING TEACHER AS CULT LEADER" has generated a lot of traffic. Even though the main emphasis was about acting teachers and the psychological power they wield over their students, my references to the University of Delaware's graduate acting program and its involvement with Landmark Education's Forum seminar set off some kind of alarm device with anti-cult activists. Apparently, none of them realized what's been close to common knowledge in the world of institutional theater for years: Delaware kids go to the Forum.

Anyway, a couple of these anti-cult sites (here and here) linked to the post, which somehow led to a Church of the SubGenius site linking to me as well. I am absolutely honored, by the way, that the cult of Slack, the devotees of Bob, have recognized me in this way.

Also, backtracking those sites scored for me a very nice French with subtitles documentary on the Landmark Forum (here)--it's definitely worth watching.

I got many more hits from who knows where, but I do know they came into the site through that post. Some of them were from Delaware, which worried me a bit, you know, lawsuits and such. Who knows what lurks in the hearts of angry Werner Earhard followers? Right, the Shadow knows, but he's not real.

I got some comments, too:

Ron,

Very interesting that Sanford Robbins who you said is on Landmark Education's Board of Directors requires all of his acting students to attend the controversial Landmark Forum course.

Currently, Landmark Education is a defendant in a civil wrongful death lawsuit out of Oklahoma. Do an internet search for Been v Weed and Landmark Education. The suit is for forty million dollars in damages.

Landmark Education has also been investigated three times by the United States Federal Department of Labor, and twice by the French Labour department. After a documentary aired in France to 1.5 million people (search "Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus"), the French Labour department said Landmark Education had to treat its volunteer unpaid laborers in the "assisting program" like employees. Within weeks, Landmark Education shut down their operations in France.

I doubt that Sandford Robbins' acting students know much of this history before deciding to register for their required "course" The Landmark Forum.

Yours,
lgattruth


I'm an LSU alum as well...I find this disturbing.
LSU Alum


Hey Ron,
As a recovering thespian, I really enjoyed your blog on Katselas, Hubbard and Erhard. Born into a family of eccentric blowhards, I started in theatre at six in thrall with a woman who held sway over several generations of aspiring actors on the Monterey Peninsula in the 60s thru the 90s. I loved each of the subsequent, flamboyant Drama Mama's that nurtured my dream to be a Grrrreat AC-tor (must be enunciated like Jon Lovitz). Then in the middle of a production of "Our Town" at UCSD, it suddenly occurred to me that The Theatre (with capital Ts) was full of shit and so was I. It was like a visceral slap, so forceful that I thought that everyone else must surely be able to see me for the big fake I felt like. I almost quit school right then and there, but ended up changing my major to advertising (I know, out of the frying pan and into the reactor core). Many years later I realize that what made me easy prey for The Theatre is what made me easy prey for the likes of Landmark, Deepak Chopra and other magical thinking hoo-hah . . . emotional neediness. It took a long time to realize that, and I wish I could have stayed in the theatre (lower case) armed with that self-realization, but without that insatiable thirst for attention and self-importance, the drive to succeed on stage was lost. I still dearly love the theatre, just from the other side of the proscenium. Thanks again for your thoughtful blog.
Artoo45

Fortunately, this last guy, at least, was more interested in the main thrust of my tirade, acting teachers. Don't get me wrong, though, I'm always happy for the attention and the hits. However, like I said, I fear I've accidentally stepped into somebody else's turf war. I mean, I am opposed to cults generally, although I recognize their right to exist as entities, but some of these organizations, like Scientology, for sure, play hardball--fortunately, as far as I can tell, none of those nuts give a shit about me at all.

Thank god, who may or may not exist.

I think it's best to let my old actor pal Lex, who actually went through the Delaware acting program, have the last word, which I solicited from him via myspace comments:

Werner Earhardt also had sex with a minor and that is one of the real reasons why he ain't here. To be quite honest, stupid young college kids going into acting school all secretly just want to be famous...no matter what they may say about love and passion for the theatre. They deserve to have their minds and egos toyed with. That's what you get for thinking you're going to make a living by avoiding having to do any real work and calling yourself an "artist" instead, when all you really are is just fucking lazy. That's what I think....Ron, since you asked.

PTTP. I'm not sure how involved with The Forum they are anymore. It's 12 years later now. But whilst I was there an anti-cult charge was made against us that some of us volunteered to testify at. But they were claiming such alarmist things against us that just weren't true...we were all hating life and gagging about how hard we had to work all the time, but they weren't doing the things to us that these people who we'd never seen or talked to were saying they were doing to us. Don't worry, University of Delaware or The Forum are not going to come after you.

Okay maybe they WILL come after you. I said that before I had read in depth that you mentioned Sandy and and all. For this particular subject, you might have wanted to ask me 'bout it since I was there and all. There is a new movie documentary called Transformation featuring Sandy and it's all about Earhardt. Did you see the clip of it on my page? Anyway, having said that, please come stick your finger in my pussy and jiggle it around a little....then sniff it.

That Lex, always talking about pussy. The clip to which he refers is here.

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