People Magazine Investigates: Cults premieres Monday (9 p.m. According to Alamo, while he was in a meeting at a Beverly Hills investment firm, Jesus came to him and told him to preach the second coming of Christ. Many Hollywood celebrities were seen wearing them, including Michael Jackson, who wore a modified leather Alamo jacket on the cover of his album Bad. When he announced to his followers they would all need to leave the compound in 1991, certain the feds were about to raid the place, Tony took Susans body along. Alamo was living at the time in Tampa, Fla., a fugitive from charges that he had ordered the beating of an 11-year-old church member at the Saugus commune. There is no doubt in my mind.. In addition to clothing, the church produced music and began distributing Christian music and sermons nationally. All Rights Reserved. Beginning in the 1960s in California, erstwhile music producer Tony Alamo became interested in authoritarian religion and, along with his charismatic wife, Susan, began gathering followers. The U.S. Attorney's Office argued that the owners were "owners in name only" because the properties were still under Alamo's control. As the church expanded, it established other churches in Nashville, Chicago, Brooklyn, and Miami Beach. In six months, when she didnt rise from the dead, Tony finally buried her. "Tony was more, I think, the face of that organization, it looks like," Anthony said. The program also charges Tony Alamo with being a child abuser, polygamist and pedophile. Alamo died in federal custody in North Carolina on May 2, 2017. In 1982, the same year that Susan Alamo died,[15] the foundation was discontinued and replaced by the newly incorporated Music Square Church (MSC). Kenya was the son of Diana Elena Williams Alamo, a legal ex-wife of Alamos. He apparently adopted the name Marcus Abad for some time and achieved some modicum of success as a big band crooner in Los Angeles, California. The Alamo Christian Foundation was set up in 1969 by husband and wife Tony and Susan Alamo, born Bernie Lazar Hoffman and Edith Opal Horn. After his wife died of cancer in 1982, Tony Alamo, whose secretive Tony and Susan Alamo Foundation operates another commune in Saugus, predicted that she would be resurrected. Meanwhile, lawsuits filed by former church members accused the couple of controlling their flock with intimidation and beatings. Nicky, 12, and Amanda, 10, but apparently she violated conditions placed on her by the court. The documentary series also features archival footage, including Tony Alamo's videotaped deposition, as well as interviews with former members of the cult and the FBI agent who brought Alamo down.[23][24]. Nickys birthday is on January 4, and he was staying with me for a few days before then. There is nothing I can do to make it go away, but I try my hardest.. He was born Bernie Lazar Hoffman on September 20, 1934, in Joplin, Missouri. It also operated a drug rehabilitation facility, and those who were involved in the church developed several businesses in the Alma area. [13], In 1991 the federal government confiscated the property, finding when its agents arrived that Susan's body had been removed. This project is funded in part by a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan grant award. History: Just 13 years old when she went to Tony Alamos house and became a wife. An assistant called back and said Alamo had divorced Gyllenhammar but would not say where. Alamos first wife, Susan, had died of cancer the year before. In this paragraph, we have covered all details of his relationship and wife in this article. He lost, and would soon lose his tax-exempt status as the lawsuits piled up and dragged on through the 1980s. When Bernie LaZar Hoffman was born on Sept. 30, 1934, in Joplin, Missouri, he wasn't born into a particularly religious household. They made a record together, and they cant sing. Tony Alamo talks to reporters as he is escorted to a waiting police car outside the federal courthouse in Texarkana, Ark. Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, List of organizations designated by the Southern Poverty Law Center as anti-LGBT hate groups, "Tony Alamo, Apocalyptic Ministry Leader Convicted of Sex Abuse, Dies at 82", "Christian Cult Leader and Child Sex Abuser Tony Alamo Dies in Federal Custody". But last month Spears concluded after a weeklong trial that Mr. Many witnesses can verify that Amy has been severely beaten by Alamo on many occasions. In return, their own needs would be met and their children would receive basic education through high school. Asked about his wealth, Gyllenhammar said she is not entitled to any of his property because all of it belongs to the foundation. Miss Gyllenhammar says when the romance cooled, he would often beat her. He became unhinged and, convinced he could raise her from the dead, kept her embalmed body on display for six months with members of his church praying around it. The various publications his ministry offered, such as The Vatican Moscow Washington Alliance, detailed his conspiracy theories. Even so, why werent my children in school last week? Years after his wife's death, Tony began taking child brides, as young as 8 years old, and in 2009, he was sentenced to 175 years in prison for transporting young girls across state lines for sex. Always the promoter, the Alamos established their theological foundation as staunchly anti-Catholic, promoting conspiracy theories about how the Pope, United Nations and mainstream media stood behind the US.. Presidency. A few years later, her estranged daughter, Christhiaoan Coie, successfully sued him in 1995 for access to her mothers body for burial. Tony and Susan Alamo on one of their album covers. She converted to Pentecostal Christianity in childhood. Saying he appreciated the articles about Alamo, Amrhein insisted, Ill keep the kids. History: Alys went to Tony Alamos house in Fouke, Ark at 11 yrs old to become Alamos wife. Its putting closure to it, finally, said Alamos stepdaughter, Christhiaon Coie of Reseda, who sued Alamo literally over her mothers dead body and for whom the legal decision represents a symbolic burial of her mothers and her tortured past. Its no wonder you get rich when you dont pay your bills. He took all my jewelry and gave it to Elizabeth. Alamos Fort Smith attorneys say they do not know if Alamo divorced Gyllenhammar and if he properly married Amrhein. Tony Alamo and his wife, Susan, established a church in Nashville called the Music Square Church, located near Printers Alley. He was heard on over a dozen radio stations in the U.S. and more in Africa, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines. Sign up to receive breakingFront Page Detectivesnews and exclusive investigations. Some sources say that they changed their names to Tony and Susan Alamo after their marriage, though Tony Alamo has claimed that he changed his own name earlier to mimic the Italian-American singers who were popular at the time. Georgia cop killed on first shift in retaliation for an arrest hour earlier, investigators say, Remains Found And Believed To Be Man Reported Missing In May 2021, Brother Accused Of Murder, Subscribe to Front Page Detectives Newsletter. At its height, the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries had thousands of followers around the country, according to the AP. Gordon, Ronald J. Little Rock, AR. They charged him with several counts related to his tax issues. Polygamy Garb Born of Rules: Garment Rules Used to Control Women's Individuality, Former Cult Members Say, Calvary Chapel congregation stunned as Chuck Smith announces that he has lung cancer, Man sentenced to 15 years in 'Vampire Cult' Murder, Religious lies, conmen, and coercive control: How cults corrupt our desire for love and connection, Israeli police detain man suspected of running abusive cult, Cult experts hope pending Aum Shinrikyo cult trial will raise awareness, UK: Cults watchdog faces danger of being shut down, UK: Cult information charity faces Charity Commission curb, reportedly after Scientology complaint, Israel symposium to explore legislation aimed at curbing cults, South Australias Chief Prosecutor: Create special laws for cults, Research Cults, Abusive Churches, Spiritual Abuse, Undue Influence, and More, Tony Alamo Ministries is listed as a hate group by SPLC, Tony Alamo: Storied evangelist still preaching, Federal Grand Jury Seated In Fort Smith To Hear Tony Alamo Case, Tony Alamo Christian Ministries: Inspection of mattresses allowed in suit. Im not jealous. Siege of the Alamos. People Weekly, June 13, 1983, pp. The term 'cult expert' is not protected. All Rights Reserved. [8] Converting from Judaism to Christianity, she became an itinerant evangelist before she met Hoffman. With the assistance of some church members, the Alamos produced records and tapes. Tony Alamo (born Bernie Lazar Hoffman; September 20, 1934) is an American religious leader and convicted child sex offender.He and his late wife Susan are best known as the founders of an organization currently known as Tony Alamo Christian Ministries.The organization is based in and around Fouke and Alma, Arkansas, United States, and has been referred to as a cult. A judge granted Alamo the maximum sentence for his crimes,175 years in prison. Online at http://www.religionnewsblog.com/8506 (accessed February 23, 2023). The monthly gross went from $50,000 to $120,000.. Amrhein said he suspected his former wife might flee the country to avoid the custody hearing in West Virginia next week. Sadly, there are many more under age children that were forced by Alamo to be another one of his wives. In November of that year, the judge sentenced him to 175 years in prison. All Rights Reserved. She married Solomon Lipowitz, and together, they had a daughter. [9], Tony and Susan Alamo founded the Alamo Christian Foundation in 1969 in Hollywood, California. DEAR ABBY: I am in love with my best . When Bernie, sometimes called Mark, met Susan in 1965, they were both on their second marriages--at least thats what he told her. It was also extremely anti-Catholic, only accepted the King James Version of the Bible, and its members adhered to a moral code which condemned and forbade the use of drugs, homosexuality, adultery, birth control, and abortion. In 1984, Tony Alamo married what was either his fourth or sixth wife, as there have been claims he was married four times before he wed Susan. Shown here in 1993 at Alamos birthday party before she became a wife and again after she was unofficially married to Alamo. Attorney Susan James of Montgomery, Ala., who represented Alamo during the trial in Ft. Smith, Ark., noted that Alamo was challenging Spears decision and said he had denied all of Coies allegations. It would later be determined that the church was mostly optics, as it became the way an increasingly erratic and unhinged Tony evaded paying any taxes on his growing fortune. Creating an account gives you access to all these features. On December 2, 2010, the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld his conviction and sentence. [1][2] He was 82 years old. Tony traveled far from his midwestern roots. Coie, a 45-year-old singer, said last week she had not expected a monetary award but sued to preserve some semblance of her mothers dignity. And when she was 17, he took her virginity after making her one of the three "wives" he had at the time. Ive been trying to divorce him since the end of January, she said. Long Waits, Short Appointments, Huge Bills. The show was awarded the Fringe's Encore Producer Award. In the reported belief that she would rise from the dead,[4] her embalmed body was kept on display for six months,[8] before it was entombed in a heart-shaped marble mausoleum on church property. Susan became ill with breast cancer in the late 1970s, just as shed reached the height of her business success. Again, followers worked in these businesses for practically nothing. Dear Abby: My boyfriend is using me for sex and money. She said Alamo had sent her a telegram saying they were divorced, but she has been unable to get a divorce decree either in Van Buren or Nashville because he will not appear in court. T he imprisoned Evangelist preacher Tony Alamo, who sexually abused young girls he considered to be his wives, has died after serving more than seven years of a 175-year prison sentence,. Additional support provided by the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation Inc. Sharon Ast-Kroopf-Hoffman Legal wife of Tony Alamo. Rate and review titles you borrow and share your opinions on them. Tonys behavior after Susans death became troubling, but it turned out he had a long history of shady dealings and violent confrontations dating back to his days in Los Angeles. Alamo to Return Body of Wife after 7 Years. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette,July 24, 1998, pp. He can be very charming.. As young girls, Amy Eddy and her best friend, Pebbles Rodriguez, did not have any control of their lives. Families Torn by Their Loved Ones Faith in Tony Alamo. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette,June 11, 2000, pp. Despite repeated efforts to reach him, Alamo would not discuss the case. They say they were planning a honeymoon cruise for later, Amrhein said. Susan focused on recruiting and preaching. [11], In 2016, award-winning playwright Ernest Kearney produced his one-man show My Alamo War for the Hollywood Fringe Festival in Los Angeles, California. Jordan (Kenyas son) was born in Alamos house and Alamo currently refers to him as the bastard and the nigger. She later claimed her husband beat and drugged her and demanded she undergo plastic surgery to make her look like Susan. The full weight of the crimes hed committed was finally coming to light, and in 2014, a judge from Miller County, Arkansas, ruled in a case brought by seven ex-cult members. In 1990, Alamo failed to appear in court to answer these charges and was ruled guilty in default. In 1982, his wife Susan Alamo (ne Edith Opal Horn) died of cancer. Her mother Suzanne and step-father, Bob Streit, are still with the Alamo group. The girls grew up in Fouke, Arkansas, where they lived on a compound of the eponymous religious organization created in the late 1960s by Tony Alamo and his wife, Susan. 1A, 11A. Alamo went on to own a health club and work in the music industry. Tony renamed the business and ran the organization as a benevolent and energetic father figure. He remained in prison until his death in May 2017 . [11] The church's projects included Nashville's largest country and western clothing store. His age is 88Years. Sensing that a panicky Alamo might move the body, Coie had obtained a restraining order, taped to the tomb, that forbade anyone from disturbing it. Online at https://www.villagevoice.com/2008/05/13/the-barely-legal-empire-of-tony-alamo/ (accessed February 23, 2023). 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