Super $cientologists! Kirstie Alley & Kelly Preston Recognized At Special Church Ceremony — How Much Did They Pay?
Nov. 21 2014, Published 6:57 a.m. ET
Tom Cruise gets all the spotlight for being a superstar celebrity Scientologist, but RadarOnline.com has learned that he has some competition for the title of David Miscavige’s prize pupil: Scientology expert Tony Ortega tells RadarOnline.com that Kirstie Alley and Kelly Preston were recently recognized at church ceremonies for their achievements in the church — accomplishments that he says came with a six-figure price tag!
Ortega recently posted a photo on his blog, The Underground Bunker that he says shows Preston celebrating her completion of Operating Thetan Level 7 at Scientology headquarters in Clearwater, Florida. Ortega also claimed that a trusted source confirmed to him that Alley had recently completed that level, and earned a prized “Superpower Certificate" as well.
According to Ortega, it’s a major achievement for any Scientologist. “OT Seven can take people years,” he told RadarOnline.com — and as such, it comes with a hefty price tag.
Using previously published Scientology price lists, Ortega makes an estimate of the cost of reaching OT 7 to be roughly $138,540.
“That’s pretty conservative,” he claimed. “The price depends on the level. Each level involves data that you are supposed to learn and then auditing. The auditing, you purchase in 12.5 hour blocks. It all works out to about $800-1000/hour.”
What’s more, he said, OT 7 courses must be completed at the church’s base in Clearwater Florida, adding travel and housing expenses to the tab for some Scientologists.
That’s chump change for Hollywood stars like Alley and Preston, but Ortega says that the value of their money to the church is priceless.
Noting that Alley and Preston made the commitment to finish their levels around the time former Scientologist Leah Remini got her reality show, Ortega says, "I think maybe Miscavige or one of his top people went to Kirstie, Nancy Cartwright, a Simpsons voice actress, Kelly and said, ‘You need to set an example. Finish your levels, go to graduation.’”
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"Partly it was motivated by Leah getting a show,” Ortega believes. “It seemed like a coordinated campaign. All three of them finished Seven this summer.”
“It’s surprising, because Cruise is there, Travolta’s there … then all of a sudden all three finished in month and went to graduation,” he said. “These are women who are top celebrity Scientologists."
