I have stories about Kevin and Linnah for ya
Anybody have stories about Linnah or Kevin McPherrin back in the 70's at Sydney Org?
I have a few
Summer of ’72. Well, summer in Sydney, that is. That’s when they arrived at the org there.
First thing I remember hearing about Linnah and Kevin was that a couple from the US were on their way to Sydney to take the course, so we were all excited at the prospect of these two showing up.
Both young college grads from Chicago and recently married, Kevin and Linnah had flown to Japan, planning to make their way down through South East Asia to Australia. At some point in their journey (I seem to recall) they found the book Dianetics, liked what they read, and arranged to do the course in Sydney, their intended destination.
That journey was an adventure in itself! They were such a cool couple!
Linnah arrived first actually, having hitch-hiked across Australia all the way from Perth, even managing to snag a flight in a private plane at one point. Quite a feat for a young woman alone (and pregnant!)
Kevin was still in Kupang, in Portuguese Timor, trying to sell their boat-a diesel-powered fishing vessel they bought in Singapore and sailed in (or rather, had motored in) all the way south and east through Indonesia along the Sumatran and Javanese coasts, to Bali and beyond.
They were the proverbial hippie couple. Both tanned, young and striking. Attractive, though not in a conventional sense.
Linnah was sort of a cross between a sun-bleached blonde girl-next-door and…..well, a native American or cave woman. Darryll Hannah comes to mind especially in her role in Clan of the Cave Bear. Linnah was virtually silent-very, very soft-spoken when she spoke at all. And her mode of dress was primarily arcadian. She preferred rustic adornment such as a short leather strip beaded at the end in her hair, a feather or feathers, a handmade leather, beaded pouch, that sort of thing. Though blonde, her hair was quite thick, bordering on curly, uncut and long, parted in the middle. There was nothing “Chicago” about her at all. She was not coy or seductive in any way. Just very basic, straight, sincere, and completely unsophisticated. Capable and enduring.
She rarely, if ever, wore pants. It was a dress or shorts. And she looked like she would much prefer to go barefoot at every opportunity if she could. If not that, then sandals.
I don’t know how she did it, but somehow she managed to stay perpetually tanned.
She looked like she could be quite comfortable in the absence of modern conveniences of any kind whatsoever. While pregnant, for instance, she carried the baby high and it showed no more than a round, volleyball-sized bump. You read these stories of native women leaving to go into the forest alone to give birth, then reappearing later in the day, babe in arms, quite prepared to return directly to their work. That was Linnah.
I remember Kevin the day he arrived also. He had extremely long hair, down to his waist. Fairly tall, with a big, quite distinctive nose that on anyone else would look obtrusive but on him, not.
Kevin was a swimmer in college and had the broad chest and shoulders and narrow waist and hips to show for it.
Kevin was like a cool version of the Fonze. Seriously. His laugh, his body motions…. his “look” was just cool, but somehow unaffected. There was just something about him you could not dislike.
Later on he cut his hair but it was still shoulder-length. And he was an artist of sorts. (more on that later).
A very physical guy. Big arms, always kept himself in good shape.
His is a classic rags to riches story. More on that later too.
Yeah. I have a ton of stories about them.
Very interesting lives.
Kevin later was to become quite instrumental in the exposing in court of some of the more unsavory aspects of the organization. But that was some years later.
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