Either a hilarious parody of a religious text or an informative collection of totally real stories from a definitely real church that could be the foundation-stone of the promised kingdom of peace and harmony—the decision is yours to make. What is the Church of SubGenius? Who is J.R. "Bob" Dobbs, and what kind of truths does he know? What is "Slack" and why do you need it? Will aliens truly descend upon our planet, and can you survive its destruction by becoming a member? Does The Book of SubGenius answer any of these questions? There are no straightfoward answers—you just have to read it yourself.

A bulldada science fiction novel by Lonesome Cowboy Dave DeLuca, the astounding improvisational wizard of The Church of the SubGenius radio show, The Hour of Slack. A little bit A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, a taste of The Firesign Theatre, a dab of Fletcher Brothers cartoons, a dash of Kafka, a splash of Fellini, and a whole fistful of Lonesome Cowboy Dave! It's about twenty years into the future and the lines between television, the Internet and the real world have not merely blurred, they've disappeared. Stan Mozuck is an Advo, part content provider and part detective, with a daunting new assignment: to uncover and report on a mysterious group called the Weirds. These grotesque characters seem to live completely off the grid, yet have extraordinary powers to manipulate and twist not only the social media net but reality itself. Stan's head is already pretty twisted, but when the Weirds climb into it they steer him into a collision course with himself.

At last, the long-awaited sequel to the underground bestseller, The Book of the SubGenius--an even more radical, more twisted, and more hilarious journey into the wild world of "Bob". With an appendix of epistles and apostles, this is the most intoxicating portrait yet of the Church of the SubGenius and its infamous leader.

Conspiracy theories are a ubiquitous feature of our times. The Handbook of Conspiracy Theories and Contemporary Religion is the first reference work to offer a comprehensive, transnational overview of this phenomenon along with in-depth discussions of how conspiracy theories relate to religion(s). Bringing together experts from a wide range of disciplines, from psychology and philosophy to political science and the history of religions, the book sets the standard for the interdisciplinary study of religion and conspiracy theories.

Utilizing contemporary scholarship on secularization, individualism, and consumer capitalism, this book explores religious movements founded in the West which are intentionally fictional: Discordianism, the Church of All Worlds, the Church of the SubGenius, and Jediism. Their continued appeal and success, principally in America but gaining wider audience through the 1980s and 1990s, is chiefly as a result of underground publishing and the internet. This book deals with immensely popular subject matter: Jediism developed from George Lucas' Star Wars films; the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, founded by 26-year-old student Bobby Henderson in 2005 as a protest against the teaching of Intelligent Design in schools; Discordianism and the Church of the SubGenius which retain strong followings and participation rates among college students. The Church of All Worlds' focus on Gaia theology and environmental issues makes it a popular focus of attention. The continued success of these groups of Invented Religions provide a unique opportunity to explore the nature of late/post-modern religious forms, including the use of fiction as part of a bricolage for spirituality, identity-formation, and personal orientation.

Behind-the-scenes hero to anyone who's thrilled by giant monsters duking it out over Tokyo, Eiji Tsuburaya was the visual effects mastermind behind Godzilla, Ultraman, and numerous Japanese science fiction movies and TV showsbeloved around the world. The first book on this legendary film figure in English, this highly visual biography details his fascinating life and career, featuring hundreds of film stills, posters, concept art, and delightful on-set photos of Tsuburaya prompting monsters to crush landmark buildings. A must-have for fans, this towering tribute also features profiles of Tsuburaya's film collaborators, details on his key films and shows (most available on DVD), and features on the enduring popularity of the characters he helped create.