HBO/"Going Clear"
After dropping out of George Washington University in 1932, the Nebraska native started his career as a writer, specifically doing pulp-fiction works for which he would be paid a penny a word.
HBO/"Going Clear"
Most of his writing was science fiction, specifically about missions into space - themes that would later come up again in Scientology's unbelievable theory of how the world began.
HBO/"Going Clear"
That includes terms he would use within the religion, such as "Clear," the level you reach in the church when you're completely free of traumas and unwanted emotions.
HBO/"Going Clear"
His military service is a major part of his persona within the church, which boasts of his multiple medals and his involvement in major battles during World War II.
However, his military records show that most of his service took place in the continental US. "Going Clear" explains the myth Hubbard created about his time at sea and what really happened.
As Gibney says via narration in the film, "He would write that he sunk two Japanese subs. But in fact, just off the coast of Oregon, he opened fire on what turned out to be a log and dropped most of his depth charges on underwater magnetic rocks. When he accidentally shelled a Mexican island, he was relieved of his command."
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
The HBO doc found his 900-page military records revealing the only maladies he ever suffered were mild arthritis and conjunctivitis.
HBO/"Going Clear"
The couple's relationship was rocky. According to the film, during a fight, Hubbard told Northrup he was going to commit suicide if she didn't marry him. In 1946, they married and later had a daughter.
HBO/"Going Clear"
The basic principle in "Dianetics" is that the brain records every experience and event in a person's life, good or bad. The bad experiences are what the book refers to as "engrams," which could hurt supposedly a person if they're triggered later in life. By carrying out "auditing" - being asked many very personal questions by a trained "auditor" - the person can be "cleared" of engrams leading to being "clear," which is a perfectly functioning mind.
But Northrup's writings reveal that Hubbard's motives behind "Dianetics" may not have been based on science or the hope of helping people.
According to her recollections, Hubbard had said to his wife: "The only way to make any real money was to have religion. That's essentially what he was trying to do with 'Dianetics.' Get a religion where he could have an income and the government wouldn't take it away from him in the form of taxes."
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
According to "Going Clear," he responded by fleeing to Cuba with the couple's young daughter. Wright explains in the documentary that Hubbard could not care for the child so he gave her to a mentally challenged mother and daughter who reportedly kept the child in "some kind of cage."
HBO/"Going Clear"
Finally, in 1951, Hubbard agreed to divorce Sarah and she was granted full custody of their daughter.
"When I left him he cleaned out all the joint bank accounts so I wouldn't have any money," Northrup stated in her writings at the time.
By 1952, the popularity of "Dianetics" passed and Hubbard became desperate for money.
He began integrating the ideas from the book into the beliefs and practices of what he called Scientology. For a fee, you could raise up levels. According to Russell Miller's book, "Bare-Faced Messiah: True Story of L. Ron Hubbard," Hubbard started out dictating "Dianetics" to a room of only 38 people. The church today now has a membership of around 50,000, according to the film.
HBO/"Going Clear"
In the late 1960s, as the IRS was investigating him for tax evasion, Hubbard fled the US for the high seas.
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
HBO/"Going Clear"
The church also was enduring tough times. In 1979, as a result of FBI raids, 11 senior people in the church were convicted of obstructing justice, burglary of government offices, and theft of documents and government property.
HBO/"Going Clear"
He left no plans of who would take his place as the face of the church, leaving the door open for the ambitious David Miscavige to raise up the ranks quickly as its president - a position he still holds.
HBO/"Going Clear"
Under Miscavige's rule, the church has grown exponentially. Scientology became recognized as a tax-exempt religion in the US in 1993 and has expanded the church around the world, amassing real-estate holdings worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
As Wright states in the film: "Scientology really is a journey into the mind of L. Ron Hubbard, and the further you get into it, the more like L. Ron Hubbard you become."
Read Scientology's lengthy response to "Going Clear" here.