In addition to clothing, the church produced music and began distributing Christian music and sermons nationally. This is so perverse.. What my mother did was wrong. Ill get my children back, said Nick Amrhein of Huntington, West VA. The smaller compound was now in Fouke, Arkansas, but there were two extant branches in Ft. Smith and Los Angeles. However, one thing is clear, only one of his children (Sion) is born from his legal wife, Sharon. Pebbles Rodriguez claims Alamo married her in 1999 when she was 12. In their prime during the 1970s and early 80s, the oddly paired Alamoshe a puffy Elvis look-alike and she a platinum-haired matroncommanded hundreds of followers, many of them living in what the government called a commune in Saugus remote Mint Canyon. In February 2014, a Miller County judgein the largest personal-injury judgment in Arkansas historyawarded $525 million in actual and punitive damages to seven former members of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2018. Both members of the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries, they were forced to follow countless rules and required permission to go outside. Tony Alamo's Wife, Girlfriend His marital status is not known. The assistant said there were many Scriptural reasons why they divorced. The only thing thats ungodly is if you have a statue of another God., I tried to make the marriage work, Miss Gyllenhammar said. History: Alys went to Tony Alamos house in Fouke, Ark at 11 yrs old to become Alamos wife. From his cell at the federal maximum-security prison in Florence, Colo., Alamo has not only filed an appeal of Spears ruling but also is seeking a new trial without Spears as its judge. He was walking down the hallway in his black regalia and five-inch elevator shoes, Amrhein recalls. 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. [17][18][19][1][2], In June 2013, the federal government filed forfeiture and collection actions in federal court on 27 properties which were owned by members of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries, in an attempt to collect $2.5 million in restitution that Alamo was ordered to pay to his victims. Alamo Mansion in Disrepair, Entered Now on a Dare. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, April 9, 2017, pp, 1A, 9A. [4][5][6][7], Susan Alamo (19251982) was born Edith Opal Horn in Alma, Arkansas. Although Alamo was unable to bring his wife back to life, he intends to keep the controversy over her body alive in court, according to Coie and one of her lawyers, Asa Hutchinson of Ft. Smith. 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. In the midst of his supposed third marriage, a 1986 Arkansas Gazette report concluded that Gyllenhammar had actually been Alamos sixth wife, as he had apparently been married four times prior to Susan. He kept the presses at his print shop running day and night, churning out literature about Satanic conspiracy theories perpetrated against him and the church. Misheal Eden Jones-Williams Unofficial wife of Tony Alamo. 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Tony Alamo quickly predicted that she would be resurrected and kept her embalmed body on display at the Arkansas compound for approximately six months before placing it in a mausoleum. They also ran a nationwide network of lucrative, church-owned businesses, authorities said, including a distributor of designer denim and leather jackets, studded with rhinestones, that sold for $1,000 or more. Anyone can use it regardless of ability, approach, or level of acceptance by recognized authorities in the field. Her name was Brigitta Gyllenhammer, and she lasted two years before divorcing him. Married in Las Vegas, the Alamos soon established their church, also known as the Susan and Tony Alamo Foundation. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Alamo was charged was violating the Fair Labor Standards Act, went to court, then countersued all the way to the Supreme Court. In September 1994, the Federal District Court for the Western District of Tennessee sentenced Alamo to six years in federal prison in Texarkana, Texas. He can be very charming.. The feds had narrowed in Tony fought Coie for custody of Susans remains. On June 8, 1994, he was convicted on one charge of filing a false income tax return and three charges of failing to file a tax return; testimony during the trial revealed that the church had a total income on $9 million during the three years when Alamo paid no taxes. They made a record together, and they cant sing. After years of legal troubles during which he was accused of engaging in abusive behavior against his followers, Alamo was convicted of ten child rape offenses in 2009. When he was a teenager, Alamo left Joplin for the West Coast. DEAR ABBY: I am in love with my best . [11], In 1976, the church relocated to Dyer, Arkansas, where Susan had grown up. Many of these individuals chose to stay on to become Bible students and lay ministers. 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". They named the group the Alamo Christian Foundation before forming the . The U.S. Attorney's Office argued that the owners were "owners in name only" because the properties were still under Alamo's control. By. He served slightly less than four years, was transferred to a Texarkana halfway house, and by Christmas 1998, he was a free man again. (AP) Amy Eddy and Pebbles Rodriguez are speaking out about how they were controlled by apocalyptic cult leader Tony Alamo in an upcoming documentary. They made the trip to Las Vegas in 1966 to tie the knot, each leaving their respective spouses. They were awarded the largest sum of damages in Arkansas history $525 million dollars. Im not jealous. Church members branched out to begin small businesses within the nearby community of Alma, Arkansas. Eddy was 14 and Rodriguez just 12 when they. Siege of the Alamos. People Weekly, June 13, 1983, pp. 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. Miss Gyllenhammar says when the romance cooled, he would often beat her. His motions allege that Spears cannot objectively judge the case because he was endorsed by local newspaper editor Jack Moseley. 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. Over the years, Alamo has alternately admitted and denied that he knew of the corpses whereaboutsmost recently maintaining he had no control over the theft or return. He claimed that he recorded a hit record single in the early 1960s, Little Yankee Girl, and that he was asked to manage musical acts including the Beatles, the Doors, and the Rolling Stones. I have a right to be angry, says Pebbles. Speaking of which: One way in which you can support us at no additional cost to you is by shopping at Amazon.com. When it became clear she wouldnt survive, she told church members she believed she would rise from the dead. You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. I was at a party not long ago with Julio Iglesias and Elizabeth Taylor. After he hooked up with Susan, his ambition, combined with her knowledge of Pentecostal life, along with the burgeoning pro-Jesus counterculture movement of the mid-1960s, resulted runaway success. 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. on July 23, 2009. 100 Rock Street He has written and spoken favorably about polygamy over the years. By the 1970s, Tony Alamo Christian Ministries had established particularly strong footholds in Arkansas, as well as maintaining outposts in California. Authorities said the body was removed from its quiet hilltop the same night that dozens of Alamo followers fled the Dyer compound. Tony Alamo (19342017) was born Bernie Lazar Hoffman to a Jewish family. Click on the link above to open the article, Fashion designer claims he wont sign legal papers even though he married another woman. March 1, 2023 3:00am. [1][2] In the 1960s, he worked in Hollywood as a pop singer under the names Mark Hoffman and Marcus Abad. Hed lost his best friend, business partner and favorite wife and she was only 56. Major funding provided by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. In February 1991, Alamo ordered his followers to vacate the Arkansas compound prior to a federal raid and to bring along the body of Susan Alamo. Alamo, 74, faces up to 175 years in prison, plus fines that could total $2.5 million. On September 20, 2008, state and federal officials raided Alamos Fouke (Miller County)compound as part of a two-year investigation into allegations of child abuse and child pornography. She and her son are mistreated more than the others and are both referred to as "nigger" by Alamo. Its embarrassing to have a husband who gives stupid interviews and gives out crazy literature, she went on, referring to his statements that the country is run by the Vatican. It also operated a drug rehabilitation facility, and those who were involved in the church developed several businesses in the Alma area. Theme Ported to Wordpress by Kaushal Sheth . A hearing was held the day after her arrest. 2833. Communal living was a staple of the Music Square Church. Her brother, Erik, who is out of the group, called Ark Child Protection in 2000, but no action was taken. The monthly gross went from $50,000 to $120,000.. His father was a poor immigrant from Romania who settled the family near Joplin, Missouri in the 1920s. They launched a national television ministry in the 1970s. And when she was 17, he took her virginity after making her one of the three "wives" he had at the time. But no. They legally changed their names to Tony and Susan Alamo. But Coie said she believes the dark-haired preacher did it because he knows no bounds of decency, because he could use her [Susan Alamo] two times around like a marionette to control [their followers].. Additional support provided by the Arkansas General Assembly. Elizabeth Mercado Unofficial wife of Tony Alamo. He was working as a music promoter. It would be three more years before Alamo followers would finally deliver Susan Alamos remains to Tulsa, Oklahoma, for proper burial under Coies supervision. Pre-European Exploration, Prehistory through 1540, European Exploration and Settlement, 1541 through 1802, Louisiana Purchase through Early Statehood, 1803 through 1860, Civil War through Reconstruction, 1861 through 1874, Post-Reconstruction through the Gilded Age, 1875 through 1900, Early Twentieth Century, 1901 through 1940, World War II through the Faubus Era, 1941 through 1967, Divergent Prosperity and the Arc of Reform, 19682022, https://www.villagevoice.com/2008/05/13/the-barely-legal-empire-of-tony-alamo/, Divergent Prosperity and the Arc of Reform (19682022). In return, their own needs would be met and their children would receive basic education through high school. In 1966, Tony was arrested on a gun charge, a felony for which he served jail time. On December 2, 2010, the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld his conviction and sentence. I knew how he thinks, and what he might do, she said. Today, the girl born into the Alamo church is a grown woman, as is her younger sister, and Coies pride in both her daughters is immense. In 1975, the Alamos purchased land in Dyer, near Alma, and there established the main branch of the Music Square Church, which later was called the Holy Alamo Christian Church Consecrated before its present name was adopted. Tony and Susan Alamo on one of their album covers. "SCVHistory.com LW3595 | People | Tony Alamo: "Cult Evangelist Tony Alamo Convicted On Sex Charges", "Christhiaon Coie Speaks Out About Her Stepfather, Tony Alamo", "Evangelist guilty of taking minors across state lines for rape", "Feds Target Jailed Evangelist Tony Alamo's Property", https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/3587, "Ministry of Evil: The Twisted Cult of Tony Alamo" (press release), "Ministry of Evil: The Twisted Cult of Tony Alamo Review: Hell on Earth", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alamo_Christian_Foundation&oldid=1134183205, 1982 disestablishments in the United States, American members of the clergy convicted of crimes, Christian organizations established in 1969, Pentecostal denominations in North America, Christian organizations disestablished in 1982, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 17 January 2023, at 11:22. Magazines, Digital By the time the church was at its height in 1980, they had their own television ministry and were bringing in tens of thousands of dollars each week. He keeps his life private but we will mention it as we found. She is seeking a sizeable monthly alimony so she can take care of the bills she claims he hasnt paid. You are here: Home | Preacher Tony Alamo Told to Return Wifes Remains. Theyd been tipped off by three former members, all men whose sons had been taken to California after their ex-wives married other Alamo Church members. Moseley testified during the missing-body case that Alamo had phoned him after the corpses disappearance and acknowledged ordering its removal. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Alamo quickly declared bankruptcy, and his related businesses collapsed. They were even told who they were going to marry: the 62-year-old leader of their apocalyptic group. "[16] MSC sued and lost in the United States Court of Federal Claims. The following month, Susan Alamo was re-interred in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He wont sign the papers.. I doubled the business at the Alamo of Nashville store. The child on the right is Lizzy and Alamos daughter, Antoinette. I still do, said Coie, who last saw her mother in 1971 when she quit the sect against her parents wishes. He's a convicted tax evader and a flamboyant evangelist who once ran what authorities called a multimillion-dollar, Saugus-based cult. The ministry has buildings in Moffett and Muldrow. 25-Apr-1925, m. 1966, d. 8-Apr-1982 cancer) Wife: Birgetta Oyllenhammer (m . Alamo, who was born Bernie Lazar Hoffman, died Tuesday at the age of 82 while in custody at a federal prison hospital in Butner, N.C., the Bureau of Prisons said, according to the Associated Press. She met Alamo in 1983 while he was buying clothes from her for his Nashville store. The other children (Tabor and Antoinette) were conceived during Alamo and Kroopfs marriage and the biological mothers (Lydia Willis and Elizabeth Mercado) are in the group and currently living with (or near) Alamo. Tony Alamo, a Jewish kid from Joplin, Missouri, met his perfect match when he first laid eyes on the woman of his dreams in Hollywood. In September 1994, Alamo was sentenced by the Federal District Court for the Western District of Tennessee to six years in the Federal Correctional Institution in Texarkana, Texas. July 11, 1993. Hughes, Dave. Upon his release, the ex-felon returned home: back to his now humbler Tony Alamo Christian Ministries. Amrhein, who owns a real estate agency, said Alamos followers have gone to Huntington to pass out literature that says Amrhein beat his children and is emotionally unstable. While they live states apart Pebbles, a stay-at-home mom who is in the process of getting a divorce, is in the Phoenix area with her two young sons; and Amy is studying to get into college in Oklahoma City, where she is also raising two boys with her boyfriend they are forever linked and speak with each other daily. After a decade of building the church, Susan and Tony moved everyone to Dyer, Arkansas, just outside Fort Smith near the Oklahoma border. Shown here with their son, Sion. Mrs. Alamo, 33, a soft-spoken woman whose second child is due to be born Tuesday, said she expected the raid, if not Friday then someday. On the cover of his album Bad, Michael Jackson is wearing an Alamo-painted jacket. For more about the harrowing experiences of Amy Eddy and Pebbles Rodriguez and how they reclaimed their lives, watch tonights episode of People Magazine Investigates: Cults at 9 oclock ET on Investigation Discovery. In 1982, his wife Susan Alamo (ne Edith Opal Horn) died of cancer. 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