97 Fun Facts About Cults

Sharon Tate was married to which film director?

Roman Polanski was Sharon Tate's husband; the director was in London when Manson Family members killed her and four others at the couple's rented Los Angeles home.

Jim Jones's Peoples Temple built its remote jungle commune, Jonestown, in which South American country?

Guyana's jungle held Jonestown, where the commune members went to their deaths on November 18, 1978.

On which Beatles album does the song 'Helter Skelter' appear?

'Helter Skelter' is on The White Album, the Beatles' 1968 double LP officially titled The Beatles; Manson read its lyrics as a coded prophecy.

David Koresh, leader of the Branch Davidians, was born with what surname?

Born Vernon Wayne Howell in Houston, Texas, in 1959, he was 33 when the Waco siege ended in 1993.

In 1969 David Berg took his followers on the road after a 'revelation' that his home state would suffer what?

His group had started a year earlier as Teens for Christ, gathering 'born-again hippies' at a coffeehouse in Huntington Beach.

What did Heaven's Gate members believe was their ultimate destiny?

Members believed their destiny was to shed their bodies and board an alien craft, treating the human body as a mere 'container' to be left behind for the 'Next Level'.

Which federal agency's raid on February 28, 1993 began the Waco siege?

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) tried to serve warrants at the Davidian compound; four ATF agents died in the gunfight, and the FBI then took over the siege.

In what year did the Tate-LaBianca murders, associated with the Manson Family, occur?

The notorious Tate-LaBianca murders, carried out by members of Charles Manson's 'Family,' took place in Los Angeles in August 1969.

In which year did L. Ron Hubbard die?

L. Ron Hubbard died on January 24, 1986, at a ranch near Creston, California, after years living in seclusion.

The Order of the Solar Temple's 1990s murder-suicides took place across which countries?

The Order of the Solar Temple, a neo-Templar cult, was responsible for the deaths of 74 members in murder-suicides that occurred in Switzerland, Canada, and France between 1994 and 1997.

Before moving his followers to South America, Jim Jones headquartered his church in which U.S. city?

From there Jones became deeply involved in local politics and charity work through the 1970s before ordering the jungle commune built in 1974.

Heaven's Gate's two founders claimed to be the 'two witnesses' of which Bible book?

The founders identified themselves with the two witnesses of Revelation 11, prophets who are killed and rise again after three and a half days.

The Branch Davidians were a splinter group of which larger religious denomination?

The Branch Davidians originated as a schism from the Seventh-day Adventist Church, with their own interpretations of biblical prophecy.

Which Manson Family victim was a celebrity hairstylist?

Jay Sebring, Sharon Tate's former fiancé and a Hollywood hairstylist, was one of the five people killed at the Cielo Drive house.

In which U.S. state was the Church of Scientology first incorporated, in 1953?

Hubbard incorporated the first Church of Scientology in Camden, New Jersey, in December 1953, months before a church opened in Los Angeles.

What common term describes the psychological manipulation cults use on members?

Brainwashing, or thought reform, is a term often used to describe the coercive persuasion and psychological manipulation tactics employed by cults to indoctrinate members.

Which cult leader, known as 'Moses David' or 'Mo,' communicated with his followers through 'Mo Letters'?

David Berg, the founder of the Children of God (later The Family International), used 'Mo Letters' as his primary means of communication and instruction to his followers.

The mass suicide of Heaven's Gate members in 1997 was associated with the appearance of which comet?

The Heaven's Gate cult believed that an alien spacecraft was trailing Comet Hale-Bopp, and their mass suicide in March 1997 was an attempt to join this spacecraft.

In which year did Charles Manson die in custody?

Charles Manson died on November 19, 2017, aged 83, at a Bakersfield hospital while serving a life sentence at Corcoran State Prison.

Before founding Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard was primarily known for working in what profession?

Science Fiction Writer is the short version: Hubbard was a prolific author of pulp science fiction and fantasy novels in his early career.

How many people died in the Jonestown massacre in 1978?

Over 900: 918 people died on November 18, 1978, 909 of them at the commune, most from a cyanide-laced grape drink; those who resisted were injected.

In which U.S. state was the Children of God founded in 1968?

The group began in 1968 at the Light Club coffeehouse in Huntington Beach, California, where Berg preached to hippies and surfers.

What was the name of the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas?

The Branch Davidians' compound, the site of the 1993 siege, was known as the Mount Carmel Center, located near Waco, Texas.

What did the Children of God call its practice of using sex to win converts?

Flirty Fishing, begun in the mid-1970s, had female members offer sex to win converts and support; Berg framed it as showing God's love.

The Tate murders took place at 10050 Cielo Drive, in which Los Angeles canyon?

10050 Cielo Drive sits in Benedict Canyon above Beverly Hills; Sharon Tate and four others were killed there on the night of August 8–9.

Which cult founded by Joseph Di Mambro and Luc Jouret drew on Rosicrucianism and Theosophy?

The Order of the Solar Temple, founded by Di Mambro with Jouret as its charismatic spokesman, blended Rosicrucian, Theosophical and New Age ideas into its doctrine.

In January 2000 Aum Shinrikyo renamed itself 'Aleph', after the first letter of which alphabet?

Aleph is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet; the renamed group later split in 2007, spawning the offshoot Hikari no Wa.

Heaven's Gate members earned money through a web-design business called what?

Higher Source, the group's web-design firm near San Diego, built websites for local businesses and paid many of the cult's bills.

Which cult leader was nicknamed 'Bo' by his followers, while partner Bonnie Nettles was 'Ti'?

Marshall Applewhite, co-founder of Heaven's Gate, was known as 'Do' (originally 'Bo') to his followers, while Bonnie Nettles was known as 'Ti' (originally 'Peep').

'Drinking the Kool-Aid' comes from Jonestown, but the poisoned drink there was actually which brand?

Aides mixed grape Flavor Aid in a metal tub with cyanide and a cocktail of sedatives; the phrase now means holding a belief without critical examination.

Rajneesh left the United States in 1985 after pleading guilty to what?

Rajneesh pleaded guilty in November 1985 to immigration fraud, including arranging sham marriages for followers, paid a $400,000 fine and agreed to leave the country.

What was the Los Angeles County 'ranch' that served as the Manson Family's main base?

The Manson Family resided at Spahn Ranch, a dilapidated movie set in the Santa Susana Mountains, which served as their primary hideout.

The Order of the Solar Temple was founded in 1984 in which city?

Its leader Joseph Di Mambro was a French jeweller with a history of fraud; his deputy Luc Jouret was a Belgian homeopath.

The Aum Shinrikyo cult, responsible for the Tokyo subway attack, was founded by whom?

Shoko Asahara founded the group in 1984 as a yoga circle that became Aum Shinrikyo, and he was later convicted of ordering the 1995 sarin attack.

Which self-help system, launched in a 1950 book subtitled 'The Modern Science of Mental Health', preceded Scientology?

Dianetics was L. Ron Hubbard's 1950 set of ideas about the human mind, introduced in the book that laid the groundwork for Scientology.

Members of the Order of the Solar Temple prepared for a 'transit' to which star?

The 'transit' was a voyage to Sirius, where they believed Theosophy's ascended masters lived; some members read it more innocently, as simply moving away.

The Branch Davidian siege ended tragically with a fire at their compound on what date in 1993?

The siege ended on April 19, 1993, when fire swept the compound during the FBI's tear-gas assault, killing David Koresh and about 75 followers.

What did the Manson Family's leader claim the Beatles' song 'Helter Skelter' was secretly predicting?

Manson claimed 'Helter Skelter' foretold an apocalyptic race war between Black and white Americans, after which his Family would emerge to rule.

Which cult's name translates to 'Supreme Truth' in Japanese?

Rendered in English as 'Aum Supreme Truth', the group became infamous for its attack on the Tokyo subway.

Jim Jones, leader of the Peoples Temple, was born in 1931 in the rural community of Crete, in which US state?

Indiana's rural community of Crete was Jim Jones's birthplace on May 13, 1931.

Heaven's Gate members died in 1997 wearing 'Away Team' patches, borrowing a term from which science-fiction franchise?

Star Trek terms ran through the group's language: the 'Away Team' patches and the idea of a crew leaving Earth for the 'Next Level' were borrowed from the series.

Which sneaker brand did the 39 Heaven's Gate members die wearing, with matching dark clothes?

All 39 wore identical black shirts, sweatpants and brand-new black-and-white Nike Decades, each body covered with a purple shroud.

What was the initial name of The Family International, founded by David Berg?

The Family International underwent several name changes, starting as Teens for Christ before becoming the Children of God, and later The Family.

Why was Charles Manson's original 1971 sentence never carried out?

Manson was sentenced to death in 1971, but the California Supreme Court's 1972 People v. Anderson ruling struck down the state's death penalty, converting his sentence to life.

What was Bonnie Nettles's profession when she met her future Heaven's Gate co-founder?

Bonnie Nettles was a registered nurse when the two met in Houston in 1972 and began travelling together.

David Koresh's adopted name honoured which two figures from the Bible?

David Koresh took 'David' from the biblical king and 'Koresh', the Hebrew form of Cyrus, the Persian king who freed the Jews from Babylon.

One of the 39 Heaven's Gate dead in 1997 was the brother of which actress, Star Trek's original Uhura?

Thomas Nichols, Nichelle Nichols's brother, was among the 39 who died; she had played Uhura since the original 1966 series.

How many years in prison did NXIVM leader Keith Raniere receive in 2020?

The 120-year term followed his 2019 racketeering conviction; every co-defendant had already pleaded guilty.

Within NXIVM, what title did followers use for Keith Raniere?

Followers called Raniere 'Vanguard' and co-founder Nancy Salzman 'Prefect'; members bowed to him and wore coloured sashes marking their rank.

NXIVM's home base was near which U.S. state capital?

NXIVM operated from New York's Capital District around Albany, with headquarters in suburban Colonie and many members living in Clifton Park.

Which Smallville actress became a leading NXIVM recruiter and later a defendant?

Allison Mack, Smallville's Chloe Sullivan, pleaded guilty to racketeering charges in 2019 and was sentenced to three years in prison in 2021.

NXIVM backers Clare and Sara Bronfman were heiresses to which fortune?

The Bronfmans controlled the Seagram liquor empire; their father Edgar Bronfman Sr. told Forbes in 2003 that he believed NXIVM was a cult.

What was the name of the NXIVM-linked secret society in which women were branded?

DOS, short for Dominus Obsequious Sororium, branded women with a symbol and made them hand over nude photographs and false confessions as collateral.

Rajneeshpuram, the Oregon commune of the 1980s, sat in which county?

Rajneeshpuram sat in Wasco County, whose seat is The Dalles; the commune's attempt to swing the 1984 county election led to the salad-bar poisonings.

How many people fell ill in the 1984 Rajneeshee salad-bar poisoning in The Dalles?

751 people fell ill and 45 were hospitalised, but nobody died; the aim was to keep voters home for a county election.

Who was the Rajneesh secretary who ran the Rajneeshpuram ashram from 1981 to 1985?

Ma Anand Sheela, Rajneesh's personal secretary, ran the commune as its de facto chief until fleeing to Europe in September 1985; she later pleaded guilty to attempted murder.

How many Rolls-Royces did Osho's collection eventually number?

The fleet reached 93 Rolls-Royces, bought through the dedicated Rajneesh Modern Car Collection Trust, and was sold off after the commune collapsed.

Which 2018 Netflix series told the story of the Rajneesh commune in Oregon?

Wild Wild Country premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2018 before arriving on Netflix that March.

Congressman Leo Ryan was shot dead in 1978 at an airstrip in which Guyanese settlement?

Ryan's party was ambushed at the Port Kaituma airstrip as they tried to fly out; his aide Jackie Speier was wounded and later became a congresswoman herself.

What honour did Congress posthumously give Leo Ryan in 1983?

Congress awarded Leo Ryan the Congressional Gold Medal in 1983, five years after he was killed while investigating Jonestown on behalf of constituents.

Jonestown's formal name was the Peoples Temple what Project?

Jonestown's official title was the Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, a supposed farming commune carved out of remote jungle from 1974.

What did Jim Jones call the Jonestown emergency drills where mass suicide was rehearsed?

Jones called the drills 'White Nights'; on at least two occasions a simulated mass suicide was acted out after a 'revolutionary suicide' vote.

According to the official autopsy, how did Jim Jones himself die at Jonestown?

Jones died of a gunshot wound to the head, which the pathologist judged consistent with suicide, though who fired the shot was never settled.

Members of the Unification Church are informally known by what nickname?

'Moonies', from founder Sun Myung Moon's name, became the standard media label for members during the 1970s; the church regards it as a slur.

Sun Myung Moon's 1982 mass wedding of over 2,000 couples was held at which New York venue?

Madison Square Garden hosted the Blessing of 2,075 couples on July 1, 1982, then the largest mass wedding ever staged in the United States.

Which newspaper was founded in 1982 by a media group associated with Sun Myung Moon?

The Washington Times launched in May 1982 under News World Communications, the Moon-linked group that also owned the wire service United Press International.

Sun Myung Moon was convicted in the U.S. in 1982 of what offence?

Moon was convicted of tax evasion and conspiracy in 1982 and served 13 months at the federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut.

The Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God was based in which country?

The movement was based at Kanungu in south-western Uganda, where hundreds of members died in a church fire and a series of poisonings and killings in March 2000.

Which self-styled 'Moses' led the Ant Hill Kids commune in Quebec and Ontario?

Roch Thériault, who styled himself 'Moses', named the group after watching his followers build the commune while he rested, likening them to ants.

Who founded Synanon in 1958?

Charles 'Chuck' Dederich, a recovering alcoholic, founded Synanon in Santa Monica in 1958 as a drug-rehabilitation program before it became an alternative community.

In 1978, Synanon members planted a de-rattled rattlesnake in the mailbox of Paul Morantz, a man of what profession?

Lawyer Paul Morantz had just won a suit against the group on behalf of people Synanon had detained.

In which year was FLDS leader Warren Jeffs added to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list?

Jeffs joined the Ten Most Wanted list in May 2006 and was caught that August in a traffic stop near Las Vegas; he was later convicted in Texas of child sexual assault.

In 2002 the Raëlian company Clonaid claimed the birth of a cloned baby with what name?

Clonaid announced 'Eve' on December 27, 2002; chief executive Brigitte Boisselier never produced evidence, and a Florida lawyer sought a guardian for the child.

Love Has Won leader Amy Carlson was known to followers by what title?

Carlson called herself 'Mother God', creator of the universe; HBO's 2023 series Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God told the group's story.

South Korea's early COVID-19 outbreak among Shincheonji members centred on which city?

A 61-year-old member known as 'Patient 31' infected fellow churchgoers.

Who is known as the 'father of deprogramming'?

Ted Patrick began deprogramming in the early 1970s; his methods included abduction and detention for days or weeks, which eventually brought kidnapping charges.

Cult expert Steven Hassan's model of control is known by what four-letter acronym?

BITE stands for control of Behavior, Information, Thoughts and Emotions, the four domains Hassan says destructive cults manipulate.

Self-proclaimed prophet Jeffrey Lundgren murdered the Avery family in 1989 in which Ohio town?

He had volunteered as a tour guide at the historic Kirtland Temple next to his church-owned home.

What nickname did the media give Adolfo Constanzo's occult drug gang in Matamoros?

The press dubbed the gang the 'Narcosatanists' after the 1989 murder of American student Mark Kilroy led police to their ranch and its ritual killings.

The 39 Heaven's Gate bodies were found in 1997 in a mansion in which San Diego suburb?

The bodies were found on March 26, 1997, in a rented mansion in Rancho Santa Fe, a wealthy enclave north of San Diego, that the group called 'The Monastery'.

Each Heaven's Gate member died carrying what in their pockets?

Each body carried a $5 bill and three quarters, $5.75 in all; former members said the cash was standard for trips out, enough to avoid vagrancy laws and make a phone call.

Father Yod opened the Source Restaurant, a health-food spot, on which famous LA stretch?

Yod, born Jim Baker, died in 1975 after hang gliding off an Oahu cliff with no prior experience.

The Twelve Tribes communities are known for running which chain of restaurants?

The Yellow Deli chain began in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1973, where the group itself had sprung from the Jesus movement a year earlier.

In Anne Hamilton-Byrne's Australian cult The Family, children's hair was dyed what colour?

The children's hair was dyed peroxide blonde so they looked like siblings; all were given the surname Hamilton-Byrne and kept at a property on Lake Eildon.

South Korea's Grace Road Church relocated in 2014 to which Pacific nation?

Grace Road moved hundreds of members to Fiji in 2014, where its businesses grew to include restaurants, farms and construction firms; leader Shin Ok-ju was jailed in Korea in 2019.

In what year did Aum Shinrikyo carry out its first sarin attack, in Matsumoto?

The Matsumoto attack of June 1994 targeted judges hearing a land dispute against the cult; it came nine months before the Tokyo subway attack.

Shoko Asahara was born with what name?

Asahara was born Chizuo Matsumoto in 1955 in Kumamoto Prefecture, to a poor family of tatami-mat makers, and was partially blind from birth.

In which year was Shoko Asahara executed?

Asahara was hanged on July 6, 2018, with six other senior Aum members; the executions had waited until the trials of fugitives arrested in 2012 ended.

Manson follower Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme drew a gun on President Ford in 1975 in which city?

Fromme pointed a pistol at Ford in Sacramento's Capitol Park on September 5, 1975; she claimed she had come to lobby him about California's redwoods.

Which Los Angeles prosecutor co-wrote the 1974 bestseller Helter Skelter about the Manson trial?

Vincent Bugliosi, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted Manson, wrote Helter Skelter with Curt Gentry; it won the 1975 Edgar Award for Best Fact Crime.

How many days did the Waco siege last?

Communication with those inside was handled by telephone by a group of 25 FBI negotiators.

Which U.S. Attorney General approved the FBI's final assault on the Waco compound?

Janet Reno, newly confirmed as Attorney General, approved the tear-gas assault after being told conditions were deteriorating and children were being abused inside.

Solar Temple co-leader Luc Jouret was known as a practitioner of what kind of medicine?

Jouret lectured on ecology and alternative medicine through the Amenta Club, the group's public face.

How long is the service pledge signed by recruits to Scientology's Sea Org?

The pledge is taken on initiation, and the Sea Org staffs the church's most senior organisations.

In Scientology's Xenu story, captured beings were placed around what before being bombed?

In OT III, Xenu flew the frozen beings to Earth, stacked them around volcanoes and detonated hydrogen bombs; the account appears in confidential Operating Thetan materials.

Japan's Ho No Hana sect was nicknamed for its founder diagnosing people by examining what?

Hogen Fukunaga charged $900 a reading, which fuelled suspicion he was pocketing the money.

The word 'cult' derives from the Latin cultus, meaning what?

Cultus means 'worship' or 'care', from the verb colere, to cultivate; 'cult' entered English in the 1600s simply meaning homage paid to a deity.