Love Cults

Approx. 1925-50
"Fifty years before the hippies made 'free love' an international phenomenon, love cults flourished all over Southern California. In 1934, for example, there was a 'nest of love' at 1028 Santee Street were women were forced to 'speak in tongues,' perform 'devil dances' and engage in 'soul mating' with 'spiritual husbands.' Five years later, the High Priestess Regina Kuhl caught the attention of the authorities when she was caught 'indoctrinating' male students at L.A. City College into her 'Temple of Thelma,' or Purple Cult. (Apparently she had set up a temple in the basement of one of the dorms where she'd don robes, chant a few highly suggestive passages from Aleistar Crowley's Book of Law, i.e. 'embrace the power of the lifted lance,' and engage in sexual intercourse with multiple partners.) Seven years later, Henry 'King Daddy' Newson was arrested for running his own sex camp in Whittier called Ten Oaks. According to newspaper reports, he molested sixteen underage girls -- mostly runaways -- over the course of two years, while teaching them the 'beauty' of sexual intercourse. (Several girls claimed that he 'controlled' their minds through hypnosis.)" [Paul Young, L.A. Exposed: Strange Myths and Curious Legends in the City of Angels (New York: Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Griffin, 2002): 181]

(created 15 December 2002)
Source: Paul Young, L.A. Exposed: Strange Myths and Curious Legends in the City of Angels, New York: Thomas Dunne/St. Martin's Griffin, 2002