Tony Alamo
Encyclopedia
Tony Alamo 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. On July 24, 2009, Alamo was convicted on 10 counts of interstate transportation of minors for illegal sexual purposes, rape, sexual assault, and contributing to the delinquency of minors. On November 13, 2009, he was sentenced to the maximum punishment of 175 years in prison.
, to Jewish Romanian parents in 1934. As a child he moved with his family to Montana
, where he was briefly employed as a delivery boy for Helena's Independent Record
newspaper. In the early 1960s, Hoffman moved to Los Angeles
, California
, where he assumed the names Marcus Abad and Mark Hoffman and pursued a career in music, mounting a major publicity campaign to hype singer Bobby Jameson
in 1964. He was briefly incarcerated for a weapon-related offense.
Hoffman married Helen Hagan (born Helen Alice Muller) in 1961. On May 25, 1964, the couple had a son, Mark Anthony Hoffman. While married to Helen, he met aspiring actress Susan Lipowitz (born Edith Opal Horn), a Jewish convert to evangelical
Christianity who was nine years older than Hoffman and married to a man whom Hoffman later described as a "small time Los Angeles hood". After both Hoffman's and Lipowitz' divorces, Lipowitz and Hoffman married in a 1966 Las Vegas, Nevada
, ceremony, and the couple legally changed their names to Tony and Susan Alamo.
Together, the couple established the Tony and Susan Alamo Christian Foundation
in 1969 in Hollywood, California. They also manufactured and sold a line of "Tony Alamo" brand sequined denim jackets, a business that eventually landed Alamo in prison for tax evasion
. Susan delivered the sermons on the Alamos' syndicated TV program during the 1970s while her husband appeared to sing a gospel song. Susan was later diagnosed with cancer and died on April 8, 1982. Alamo stated she would be resurrected and for six months he had her body on display "while their followers prayed". After 16 years, her body was given to her family.
In 1984, Alamo married Birgetta Oyllenhammer, owner of a clothing design and manufacturing company in Southern California. Tony continued making clothes, under the brand name "Tony Alamo of Nashville", and Michael Jackson was one of his customers, owning two bib shirts of this brand. He then married Elizabeth Amrhein. After a custody battle, they lost control of her children. For a time Alamo had a retail store in Nashville, Tennessee
, called The Alamo of Nashville. Alamo was convicted of federal tax evasion in 1994. He completed a prison sentence and was released on December 8, 1998. He then went to a halfway house in Texarkana.
Alamo's followers sometimes distribute tracts of his writings publicly. The tracts predict impending doom and Armageddon
and invite the reader to accept Jesus
as their savior. The tracts condemn Catholicism
, the Pope
and the United States government as a Satan
ic conspiracy behind events such as 9/11, the attack on Pearl Harbor
and the John F. Kennedy assassination
. Tracts currently being distributed include a picture of Alamo circa 1986. In a tract distributed shortly before the siege
of the Branch Davidian
establishment in Waco, Texas
, Alamo protested the media's use of the word "compound" to describe the campus of his seminary and the word "cult" to describe his ministry.
officer John C. Mooney Jr., stating that Alamo's term of supervision had ended on December 7, 1999. The letter did not explicitly state that Alamo's suffrage
had been restored.
The Arkansas Secretary of State's office issued a statement saying that the county clerk did not have the authority to challenge a ballot on those grounds, and Alamo's ballot was ultimately accepted. However, Smith was defeated by candidate Terry Purvis with a tally of 216-151.
investigation. This investigation involved allegations of physical
and sexual abuse
and allegations of polygamy
and underage marriage. According to Terry Purvis, mayor of Fouke
, Arkansas
, his office received complaints from former ministry members about allegations of child abuse
, sexual abuse
and polygamy
since the ministry established itself in the area. In turn, Purvis turned over information about the allegations to the FBI. Alamo denied the child abuse allegations. On September 25, 2008, Alamo was arrested by Arizona police and FBI agents in Flagstaff, Arizona
, on a federal warrant out of Texarkana, Arkansas, federal court (case number 08-40020) on charges that he transported minors (as early as 1994) over state lines for sexual activity in violation of the Mann Act
. On October 17, 2008, he pleaded not guilty, and his case was set for trial.
On October 22, 2008, Alamo's former followers testified in court during a preliminary hearing that Alamo had practiced polygamy
and had taken an eight-year-old girl as a wife. On December 2, a judge in Arkansas unsealed a federal indictment that included eight new charges against Alamo. The 74-year-old Alamo, who remained jailed while awaiting trial, originally faced two charges of taking minor girls across state lines for sex. The eight new counts were similar and involved four new alleged victims. His trial began on July 13, 2009, and on July 24, 2009, Alamo was found guilty on all ten federal counts.
On July 28, 2009, shortly after his conviction, Tony Alamo again made headlines by calling himself "just another one of the prophets that went to jail for the Gospel
". He was sentenced to 175 years in prison on November 13, 2009. On January 13, 2010, each of five women who testified to sexual abuse by Alamo was awarded US$500,000 in restitution, for a total judgment of US$2.5 million.
With the Federal Bureau of Prisons
ID number 00305-112, he is currently incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Terre Haute, Indiana.
In November 2011, Alamo's attorney reported that Alamo had been hospitalized with a heart attack, and that he suffers from double pneumonia and a liver ailment. On November 19, 2011, Alamo's attorney announced that Alamo had been released from the hospital.
Fouke, Arkansas
Fouke is a town in Miller County, Arkansas, United States. It is part of the Texarkana, Texas - Texarkana, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area...
and Alma, Arkansas
Alma, Arkansas
Alma is a city in Crawford County located in the western part of U.S. state of Arkansas, along I-40 about 13 miles from the Oklahoma border. Alma's population is 4,734, making it the sixth largest city in the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, United States, and has been referred to as a cult. On July 24, 2009, Alamo was convicted on 10 counts of interstate transportation of minors for illegal sexual purposes, rape, sexual assault, and contributing to the delinquency of minors. On November 13, 2009, he was sentenced to the maximum punishment of 175 years in prison.
Life and career
Hoffman was born in Joplin, MissouriJoplin, Missouri
Joplin is a city in southern Jasper County and northern Newton County in the southwestern corner of the US state of Missouri. Joplin is the largest city in Jasper County, though it is not the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 50,150...
, to Jewish Romanian parents in 1934. As a child he moved with his family to Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, where he was briefly employed as a delivery boy for Helena's Independent Record
Independent Record
The Independent Record is a daily newspaper printed and distributed in Helena, Montana. Its has a daily and Sunday circulation of approximately 14,000, according to a September 30, 2005 Audit Bureau of Circulations Publisher Statement...
newspaper. In the early 1960s, Hoffman moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where he assumed the names Marcus Abad and Mark Hoffman and pursued a career in music, mounting a major publicity campaign to hype singer Bobby Jameson
Bobby Jameson
Robert Parker Jameson , known as Bobby Jameson, is an American singer and songwriter, who was briefly hyped as a major star in the early 1960s and later recorded with The Rolling Stones, Frank Zappa and others...
in 1964. He was briefly incarcerated for a weapon-related offense.
Hoffman married Helen Hagan (born Helen Alice Muller) in 1961. On May 25, 1964, the couple had a son, Mark Anthony Hoffman. While married to Helen, he met aspiring actress Susan Lipowitz (born Edith Opal Horn), a Jewish convert to evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
Christianity who was nine years older than Hoffman and married to a man whom Hoffman later described as a "small time Los Angeles hood". After both Hoffman's and Lipowitz' divorces, Lipowitz and Hoffman married in a 1966 Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, ceremony, and the couple legally changed their names to Tony and Susan Alamo.
Together, the couple established the Tony and Susan Alamo Christian Foundation
Alamo Christian Foundation
The Alamo Christian Foundation is a Christian denomination which has at times been referred to as a cult. The current status of the church is hard to determine after the church's founder, Tony Alamo, was arrested numerous times, beginning in 1991 and culminating in his 2009 conviction as a child...
in 1969 in Hollywood, California. They also manufactured and sold a line of "Tony Alamo" brand sequined denim jackets, a business that eventually landed Alamo in prison for tax evasion
Tax evasion
Tax evasion is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Tax evasion usually entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities to reduce their tax liability,...
. Susan delivered the sermons on the Alamos' syndicated TV program during the 1970s while her husband appeared to sing a gospel song. Susan was later diagnosed with cancer and died on April 8, 1982. Alamo stated she would be resurrected and for six months he had her body on display "while their followers prayed". After 16 years, her body was given to her family.
In 1984, Alamo married Birgetta Oyllenhammer, owner of a clothing design and manufacturing company in Southern California. Tony continued making clothes, under the brand name "Tony Alamo of Nashville", and Michael Jackson was one of his customers, owning two bib shirts of this brand. He then married Elizabeth Amrhein. After a custody battle, they lost control of her children. For a time Alamo had a retail store in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, called The Alamo of Nashville. Alamo was convicted of federal tax evasion in 1994. He completed a prison sentence and was released on December 8, 1998. He then went to a halfway house in Texarkana.
Armageddon
Armageddon is, according to the Bible, the site of a battle during the end times, variously interpreted as either a literal or symbolic location...
and invite the reader to accept Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
as their savior. The tracts condemn Catholicism
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, the Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
and the United States government as a Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
ic conspiracy behind events such as 9/11, the attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
and the John F. Kennedy assassination
John F. Kennedy assassination
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
. Tracts currently being distributed include a picture of Alamo circa 1986. In a tract distributed shortly before the siege
Waco Siege
The Waco siege began on February 28, 1993, and ended violently 50 days later on April 19. The siege began when the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms attempted to execute a search warrant at the Branch Davidian ranch at Mount Carmel, a property located east-northeast of Waco,...
of the Branch Davidian
Branch Davidian
The Branch Davidians are a Protestant sect that originated in 1955 from a schism in the Davidian Seventh Day Adventists , a reform movement that began within the Seventh-day Adventist Church around 1930...
establishment in Waco, Texas
Waco, Texas
Waco is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas. Situated along the Brazos River and on the I-35 corridor, halfway between Dallas and Austin, it is the economic, cultural, and academic center of the 'Heart of Texas' region....
, Alamo protested the media's use of the word "compound" to describe the campus of his seminary and the word "cult" to describe his ministry.
Suffrage
Alamo voted in the 2006 runoff election in Fouke, Arkansas, in support of incumbent Mayor Cecil Smith. This vote was challenged by Miller County Clerk Ann Nicholas on the grounds that Alamo is a convicted felon. Alamo presented a signed letter from probationProbation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
officer John C. Mooney Jr., stating that Alamo's term of supervision had ended on December 7, 1999. The letter did not explicitly state that Alamo's suffrage
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
had been restored.
The Arkansas Secretary of State's office issued a statement saying that the county clerk did not have the authority to challenge a ballot on those grounds, and Alamo's ballot was ultimately accepted. However, Smith was defeated by candidate Terry Purvis with a tally of 216-151.
Child abuse case
On September 20, 2008, federal and state investigative agents raided the Arkansas headquarters of the ministry, which is a 15 acres (6.1 ha) compound near Texarkana, Arkansas, as part of a child pornographyChild pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
investigation. This investigation involved allegations of physical
Physical abuse
Physical abuse is abuse involving contact intended to cause feelings of intimidation, injury, or other physical suffering or bodily harm.-Forms of physical abuse:*Striking*Punching*Belting*Pushing, pulling*Slapping*Whipping*Striking with an object...
and sexual abuse
Sexual abuse
Sexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
and allegations of polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
and underage marriage. According to Terry Purvis, mayor of Fouke
Fouke, Arkansas
Fouke is a town in Miller County, Arkansas, United States. It is part of the Texarkana, Texas - Texarkana, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, his office received complaints from former ministry members about allegations of child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
, sexual abuse
Sexual abuse
Sexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
and polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
since the ministry established itself in the area. In turn, Purvis turned over information about the allegations to the FBI. Alamo denied the child abuse allegations. On September 25, 2008, Alamo was arrested by Arizona police and FBI agents in Flagstaff, Arizona
Flagstaff, Arizona
Flagstaff is a city located in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In 2010, the city's population was 65,870. The population of the Metropolitan Statistical Area was at 134,421 in 2010. It is the county seat of Coconino County...
, on a federal warrant out of Texarkana, Arkansas, federal court (case number 08-40020) on charges that he transported minors (as early as 1994) over state lines for sexual activity in violation of the Mann Act
Mann Act
The White-Slave Traffic Act, better known as the Mann Act, is a United States law, passed June 25, 1910 . It is named after Congressman James Robert Mann, and in its original form prohibited white slavery and the interstate transport of females for “immoral purposes”...
. On October 17, 2008, he pleaded not guilty, and his case was set for trial.
On October 22, 2008, Alamo's former followers testified in court during a preliminary hearing that Alamo had practiced polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
and had taken an eight-year-old girl as a wife. On December 2, a judge in Arkansas unsealed a federal indictment that included eight new charges against Alamo. The 74-year-old Alamo, who remained jailed while awaiting trial, originally faced two charges of taking minor girls across state lines for sex. The eight new counts were similar and involved four new alleged victims. His trial began on July 13, 2009, and on July 24, 2009, Alamo was found guilty on all ten federal counts.
On July 28, 2009, shortly after his conviction, Tony Alamo again made headlines by calling himself "just another one of the prophets that went to jail for the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
". He was sentenced to 175 years in prison on November 13, 2009. On January 13, 2010, each of five women who testified to sexual abuse by Alamo was awarded US$500,000 in restitution, for a total judgment of US$2.5 million.
With the Federal Bureau of Prisons
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
ID number 00305-112, he is currently incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Terre Haute, Indiana.
In November 2011, Alamo's attorney reported that Alamo had been hospitalized with a heart attack, and that he suffers from double pneumonia and a liver ailment. On November 19, 2011, Alamo's attorney announced that Alamo had been released from the hospital.
External links
- Tony Alamo (1934–) at Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & CultureEncyclopedia of Arkansas History & CultureThe Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture , a web-based reference work, is a project of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies at the Central Arkansas Library System and is the only state encyclopedia sponsored by a public library...
- Tony Alamo ministries
- TonyAlamoChurch.com
- Bernie Hoffman, aka Tony Alamo, of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries, Convicted of Sexual Exploitation Offenses (2009-7-28, BackgroundNow.com)
- Intelligence Report Article on Tony Alamo's Resurgence
- Alamo Ministries Watch Group: Tony Alamo News - Verifiable Facts & Opinions
- Nailing Tony Alamo (A Catholic response)
- Dept. of Labor decision against Alamo Foundation
- Recent Tony Alamo Interviews
- Tony Alamo at WN
- Tony Alamo on John Paul II
- Genocide tract