I will now return to the quote at hand. It seems I've been mentioning alot of terrible movies recently on this site. With that in mind, I figured it would be no stretch to make an addition to that list. You may not realise that Travolta appeared in Battlefield Earth, one of the worst movies of all time. It had a huge budget, but it was still a huge flop. In other words, it makes perfect company for Kazaam. I understand that Travolta played an alien who was hardly recognisable. Apparently, this movie was very important to the Scientology faith. Or something. That the scientology people would make a bad science-fiction movie is no real surprise. That John Travolta would personally want to make a sequel is terrifying.
This quote was actually used by a friend of mine at a roleplaying session. His character was a dishonorable pirate with an incredible tolerance for strong rum. At the time, he was impersonating a priest of scientology in order to rip people off. He would wander the streets, asking for donations from random passerbys. These donations would apparently buy people seats on the 'space-ship' (note the Medieval setting used in this game) which would take them all to safety. Or something. If the prospective donors expressed doubt, this character would merely mention John Travolta's support of scientology. He would then probably use this quote. By mentioning Travolta's name enough times, he could often come away with gold in his pocket. He also once mentioned the leader of their order, the disembodied head of L. Ron Hubbard. One of his best speeches involved taking the donations to an isolated island, away from the prying eyes of the public, where it could be melted down to help build the spaceship. A great speech, and a great character.
Note that I really don't know much about scientology. I hear they like money, though. And I know they have some celebrity endorsements.
Celebrity endorsements can be a powerful thing. At times, the mere mention of a celebrity can instantly justify any cause. This explains why footware companies are willing to pay millions to basketball players who wear their oversized and complicated shoes. Quite often, people can be convinced more easily simply by mentioning random celebrities who may possibly support your cause, rather than by the delivery of a rational argument. As far as that goes, John Travolta serves this role with distinction. His mere mention almost makes Scientology seem like a worthy religion. Of course, this technique is not used nearly enough. I heard a while back that the Republicans used an endorsement by the Rock at their national convention to support 'W' Bush. This certainly earned them some votes, as young people would likely be convinced that the Rock would give the people's elbow to internet-inventor Al Gore. This could really be a great political technique. I would like to see Shaquille O'Neal showing up in the Canadian Parliament to slam-dunk Stockwell Day. The only disadvantage would come if you inadvertently hired an unpopular celebrity. Such as the Naked Chef.
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