37 Facts About David Miscavige

David Miscavige is an American Scientologist who is serving as the second and current leader of the Church of Scientology.

David Miscavige joined the Sea Org, a management group for the Scientology organization, then later joined the Commodore's Messenger Organization, a group within the Sea Org that carried Hubbard's orders to subordinates.

David Miscavige rose to a leadership role by the early 1980s and was named "Chairman of the Board" of RTC in 1987, the year after Hubbard's death.

David Miscavige has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation due to allegations of criminal activities within the Scientology organization.

David Miscavige is named as a defendant in numerous lawsuits involving his role in the organization.

David Miscavige was born in Bristol, Pennsylvania on April 30,1960.

David Miscavige's family joined the Church of Scientology in 1971 and eventually moved to the organization's world headquarters at Saint Hill Manor in West Sussex, England.

The family returned to Philadelphia within a few years, where David Miscavige attended Marple Newtown High School.

In 1976, with his father's permission, Miscavige left high school on his sixteenth birthday and moved to Clearwater, Florida, to join the Sea Org, a Scientologist organization established in 1968 by founder L Ron Hubbard.

David Miscavige was appointed to an elite group of young Scientologists within the Sea Org called the Commodore's Messenger Organization, which Hubbard had established to carry out his personal errands and deliver executive directives to Scientology management.

In 1981 David Miscavige had begun the year as a cameraman at Gilman Hot Springs and a junior member of the Commodore's Messenger Organization.

David Miscavige ended it in charge of the Watchdog Committee and the All Clear Unit which he announced was now senior to CMO International.

When Hubbard went into hiding with Pat and Annie Broeker in 1980, David Miscavige became the sole link between Hubbard and church leaders, secretly relaying Hubbard's orders from the Broekers.

In early 1981, David Miscavige set up the All Clear Unit "which was allegedly designed to work towards a situation when Hubbard could come back on lines"; to be "All Clear" for Hubbard to emerge from hiding.

In 1982, David Miscavige set up a new organizational structure to insulate Hubbard from personal liability and to handle his personal wealth through a corporate entity outside of the Scientology network.

David Miscavige established the Religious Technology Center, an entity responsible for licensing Scientology's intellectual property, and Author Services Inc to manage the proceeds.

David Miscavige has held the title of Chairman of the Board of the RTC since the organization's founding.

In October 1982, David Miscavige required Scientology Missions to enter new trademark usage contracts which established stricter policies on the use of Scientology materials.

When Hubbard died in 1986, David Miscavige announced his death to Scientologists at the Hollywood Palladium.

Shortly before his death, an apparent order from Hubbard circulated in the Sea Org that promoted Scientologist Pat Broeker and his wife to the new rank of Loyal Officer, making them the highest-ranking members; David Miscavige asserted this order had been forged.

Since David Miscavige assumed his leadership role in Scientology, there have been numerous accounts of illegal and unethical practices by the Church and by David Miscavige himself.

At the meeting with Goldberg, David Miscavige offered to cease Scientology's suits against the IRS in exchange for tax exemptions.

Until the late 2010s, David Miscavige worked primarily from Scientology's Gold Base near Hemet, California.

One of the largest projects of David Miscavige's career is the Flag Building, originally called the "Super Power Building," which is described as the spiritual headquarters of Scientology.

David Miscavige reportedly took up permanent residence at the Flag Building in the late-2010s.

Scientology representatives have consistently denied abuse by David Miscavige, insisting that the allegations come from apostates motivated by bitterness or attempting to extort money from the organization.

David Miscavige is the subject of ongoing lawsuits involving child abuse, human trafficking and forced labor.

David Miscavige was investigated as part of wide-ranging investigation into Scientology by the FBI in 2009 and 2010, which focused particularly on criminal activities at Gold Base, against which the FBI had planned a raid before the investigation was discontinued.

Scientology launched the Scientology Network, a DIRECTV broadcast and OTT streaming service, on March 12,2018, with David Miscavige introducing its inaugural broadcast in a rare on-camera appearance.

The court overseeing the case was told by counsel for the plaintiffs that David Miscavige was evading service in the case over a period of months, with at least fourteen attempts being made to serve the summons.

The evasion included David Miscavige ordering the security team at his house to prevent the summons from being delivered.

The court found the allegations sufficiently credible that it ordered that David Miscavige be served through the office of the Secretary of State of Florida.

David Miscavige is married to fellow Sea Org member Michele Diane "Shelly" David Miscavige, who has not been seen in public since August 2007 when she was spotted being escorted to her father's funeral.

In 2012, after gaining access to the full Internet via Kindle, Ron David Miscavige discovered new information about the church and subsequently left the Church of Scientology.

Jenna Miscavige Hill, Ronnie Miscavige's daughter and David Miscavige's niece, remained in the Sea Org until 2005; she subsequently became an outspoken critic of Scientology and published a book in 2013 titled Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology And My Harrowing Escape.

David Miscavige is a close friend of actor Tom Cruise and served as best man at Cruise's wedding to Katie Holmes.

David Miscavige removed himself from the Church and worked on the film Eyes Wide Shut until 1999 when Miscavige sent Marty Rathbun to successfully "retrieve" Cruise and convince him to continue training.