San Francisco -- The Church of Scientology is known for its famous followers and its reputation for secrecy. In an interview with CBS 5, the great grandson of the church's founder L. Ron Hubbard blasts Scientology, accusing it of destroying his family.
You can't choose your family but Jamie DeWolf wishes he could. In fact he said he is putting himself in danger by just talking to CBS 5.
De Wolf, who lives in the Bay Area, is the great grandson of L. Ron Hubbard, a man he refers to as a "portly red-headed charismatic lying con-man pseudoscience self-help author."
His mother is the daughter of Ron DeWolf, L. Ron Hubbard's son. The son changed his name after he famously left Scientology. Jamie DeWolf said his mother never spoke about the church. "It destroyed and devoured both her grandfather and her father," he said.
Jamie DeWolf never met his great grandfather. But in 2000, he did a one-man show based on L. Ron Hubbard and his son. The video has since become a YouTube sensation, and it didn't go unnoticed by the Church of Scientology.
"Within 2 to 3 days Scientologists were at my door with fake cover stories claiming that they were performers doing a show with me. They had people following me, they were on me immediately," DeWolf said.
But DeWolf has refused to be silenced. He has his own performance troupe, Tourettes Without Regrets, and frequently uses his family as material.
DeWolf doesn't mince words when it comes to what he really thinks about his great grandfather's ministry. He called it a "pyramid scheme that sells secrets and they sell them under the guise of self-help."
While the world speculated on why Scientology's first couple called it quits, DeWolf said it was impossible to believe that it was not a factor in the breakup of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. He believes, "the more (Katie Holmes) saw behind the curtain the more horrified that she probably was."
DeWofl said Holmes was lucky to be able to get out of the church, but the same can't be said for her ex-husband, whom he calls Scientology's "golden mascot."
"Tom Cruise is another victim of the mirage that my great grandfather created around himself," he said.
CBS 5 reached out to the Church of Scientology and they declined a request for an interview, but instead released a statement.
"Despite his public representations and self-promotion, Mr. DeWolf is not knowledgeable about the Church of Scientology or its founder," said spokesperson Karin Pouw.
