Kathleen Turner, an actress known for her sultry and soothing vocal tones, donated voiceover for a soon to be released documentary titled “Answering The Call,” which according to its press kit “reveals the plight of Ground Zero workers and their illnesses.”
But it looks like Ms. Turner may be “answering the call” of Scientology.
The documentary by Lou Angeli was produced and written by diehard Scientologist Bunny Dubin (see credits).
Dubin won a Scientology Freedom Medal in 2001 for her efforts as a volunteer minister at Ground Zero. She and her husband are both big givers and active promoters of the controversial church, which has been called a “cult.”
Another Scientologist Geoff Levin provided original music for “Answering The Call.”
Not mentioned in the film or press kit is that Scientology volunteers were eventually asked to leave Ground Zero, a tragedy they arguably seemed anxious to exploit.
Disturbing is the way that Dubin apparently shaped “Answering The Call” into a vehicle that can be used by Scientology like an infomercial to promote a controversial project that was dumped by the New York Fireman’s Union amidst much bad press in 2003.
The documentary press kit states that Ground Zero workers have “found relief through the New York Rescue Workers Detoxification Project, a program partially funded by actor, Tom Cruise.”
And as everyone knows Tom Cruise is Scientology’s number one celebrity booster and winner of its Freedom Medal of Valor.
Maybe Kathleen Turner doesn’t know the details regarding every charity she supports, but there can be no doubt that Cruise knows it all, just ask Matt Laurer.
The process that is the pivotal centerpiece for the documentary’s cited “detoxification project” is called the “purification rundown” invented by the founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard.
The rundown is a religious ritual that is reportedly “neither medically safe nor scientifically verified.”
According to the documentary press kit the purification rundown is “a precise regimen that includes doses of the vitamin niacin, exercise, saunas, repeated showers and the digestion of a small amount of polyunsaturated oils.”
However, the chief medical officer for FDNY Dr. Kerry Kelly said, “The essence of their program is you stay in it until you suddenly wake up and say, ‘I feel great.’ It’s hard to have faith in a program like that.” Kelly concluded that there is no “objective evidence” to support the claims made by the program reported the NY Daily News.
“While we are aware some members of the department have availed themselves of the program, we in no way endorse it,” NY Fire Department Deputy Commissioner Francis X. Gribbon told the New York Times.
Prominently featured in “Answering The Call” are two paid members of the Advisory Board of the Scientology-linked project, retired fireman Joseph Higgins and Dr. David Root.
To better understand the labyrinth of links between Scientology and such programs click here.
But despite all the ties between Scientology and the project none of these connections are explicitly made clear within the documentary. There is only a passing reference about Church of Scientology volunteer ministers.
Kathleen Turner was center stage for the press conference held yesterday after the preview of “Answering The Call” at the Lutnick Theater inside the USS Intrepid, a floating museum moored at Manhattan’s Pier 86.
Standing next to the actress was Bunny Dubin who has said that her work as a volunteer minister is part of an ongoing “crusade” for Scientology.
Interestingly, all the proceeds from the documentary will be given to actor Denis Leary’s Firefighters Foundation. This is the second time Cult News has reported links between Leary, Cruise and Scientology.
Dubin announced at the press conference that she hopes to create a national network based upon the success of “Answering The Call,” which may mean this documentary could prove to be a promotional bonanza of free advertising for Scientology.
Note: This is not the first time an actress has donated voiceover work regarding some dubious documentary. Rosie O’Donnell was hooked into providing such services for free by a “homophobic cult” in 2002.
