Prince Harry’s much‑anticipated memoir Spare has hit the shelves, and true to royal honey‑dripping expectations, it’s flying off the racks. The book promises a candid look at how the Crown’s expectations shaped his life, his stints in the armed forces, and the highly publicized departure from royalty alongside his outspoken American spouse. In this roundup of 10 times members have decided to spill the beans on the secret societies they once called home, the revelations are as juicy as a royal gossip column.
10 Times Members Reveal Hidden Truths
10 John Robison—Freemasons
John Robison was a heavyweight in Britain’s scientific circles—a professor at Edinburgh, an authority on optics and mathematics, and a respected voice in the Royal Society. In the late 1700s he penned the incendiary volume Proofs of a Conspiracy against all the Religions and Governments of Europe, a treatise that peeled back the curtain on the Freemasons and, most famously, the shadowy Illuminati cell that has haunted conspiracy lore ever since. As a Mason himself, Robison could draw on insider knowledge, and his book sold out on release, spawning countless re‑prints.
From his Scottish perch he watched the French monarchy tumble, the church’s power crumble, and the entire Revolution erupt. He blamed the chaos squarely on Masonic influence, arguing that the revolutionaries were nothing more than pawns in a grand, secretive game orchestrated by the Freemasons.
9 Ed Decker—Mormon Church
Born in 1935, Ed Decker grew up inside the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‑Day Saints before branching out to become a leading voice for ex‑Mormons with the group Saints Alive in Jesus. Teaming up with Dave Hunt, Decker co‑authored the controversial book The God Makers, which pulled back the veil on the inner workings of the LDS Church, exposing doctrines and practices that many outsiders never imagined.
His disaffection deepened after encountering other critics of Mormonism, leading him to reject the claim that Joseph Smith was divinely commissioned to restore pure Christianity, and to publicly challenge the church’s foundational narratives.
8 Stetson Kennedy—KKK
Stetson Kennedy, a Depression‑era writer, turned his investigative talents toward the Ku Klux Klan. In 1954 his groundbreaking book The Klan Unmasked revealed the organization’s secret handshakes, passwords, folklore, and the absurdity of their white‑sheet garb. He collected evidence straight from the grand dragon himself, handing it over to the IRS, which secured a $685,000 tax lien against the Klan.
Kennedy’s work also helped draft a legal brief that led Georgia to revoke the Klan’s corporate charter, and he testified in numerous related cases before his death at 94, having spent a lifetime dismantling the terror group’s mystique.
7 Heinrich Himmler—Nazis
Heinrich Himmler, the chief architect of the Holocaust and Hitler’s right‑hand, kept a painstaking diary that survived the war’s ruin. Compiled by his assistant and uncovered in 2013, the journals span over a thousand pages, chronicling daily life, the execution of dissenting Polish officers, and the chilling logistics of the Final Solution, including orders to arm Auschwitz guards with vicious dogs.
While the diaries are stark and personal rather than reflective, they provide an unsettling window into the mind of one of history’s most monstrous figures, documenting the bureaucratic efficiency behind genocide.
6 Jeannie Mills—People’s Temple
Jeannie Mills, alongside her husband Al and their two children, fled the People’s Temple in 1974 after serving as the church’s publication chief (Deanna) and official photographer (Elmer). After leaving, they founded the Human Freedom Center, a sanctuary for defectors, and became vocal critics of Jim Jones’ cult, especially after the Jonestown tragedy.
In February 1980 the Mills family was brutally murdered in Berkeley, sparking rumors of a death‑squad retaliation from former Temple members. Later investigations suggested their son Eddie might have been involved, dampening the theory of a secretive cult‑run execution squad.
5 Leah Remini—Scientology
Leah Remini, best known for her role on The King of Queens, was raised in Scientology from age eight when her mother converted. Her eventual departure was prompted by concerns for her nine‑year‑old daughter, and shortly after she filed a missing‑person report for Scientology leader David Miscavige’s wife, Shelly, who vanished in 2007.
Since leaving, Remini has become a fierce opponent of the church, producing the investigative series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, and actively supporting legal actions against the organization.
4 India and Catherine Oxenberg—NXIVM
Catherine Oxenberg and her daughter India enrolled in NXIVM’s “entrepreneurial” workshops, only to discover a hidden secret society within the group that tore mother and daughter apart. After seven harrowing years, both escaped the sex‑cult’s grip, and Catherine chronicled the ordeal in a memoir detailing her desperate rescue attempts.
India eventually recognized the manipulation, and the cult’s founder Keith Raniere was convicted of racketeering, sex trafficking, and possession of child pornography, sealing the organization’s downfall.
3 Janja Lalich—Democratic Workers Party
The Democratic Workers Party (DWP) emerged in the 1970s as a radical, women‑led Marxist‑Leninist experiment in the United States, championing a strict sectarian approach. Though it dissolved in 1985, its cult‑like adherence to a primitive Leninist doctrine left a lasting imprint.
Former member Janja Lalich endured extreme control: forced name changes, the burning of personal belongings, income restrictions, and isolation from family. After escaping, she became a noted sociologist and author, exposing how such groups recruit and coerce members in works that illuminate the mechanics of cult dynamics.
2 Joe Valachi—The Mafia (aka Cosa Nostra)
Joe Valachi, an American mobster who rose to the rank of sergeant within Lucky Luciano’s Mafia family, turned informant in 1962 after a death threat from Vito Genovese drove him to murder a fellow inmate in a paranoid frenzy. He then spilled the Mafia’s secrets to the Bureau of Narcotics, the FBI, the DOJ, and even the U.S. Senate.
Valachi’s testimony became one of the most influential inside looks on organized crime, earning him a $100,000 bounty on his head, a protective program, and a tragic end when a heart attack finally claimed his life.
1 Carlos Lehder—Medellín Drug Cartel
Carlos Lehder began his criminal career smuggling stolen cars into Canada and the U.S. East Coast, which led him into the orbit of the Medellín cartel. He soon orchestrated massive cocaine shipments, persuading George Jung to use aircraft for transport, and rose to a senior position before falling out with Pablo Escobar.
Arrested and sentenced to life, Lehder’s term was later reduced when he agreed to testify against former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, whose regime had facilitated cartel shipments. After serving a reduced sentence, he entered witness protection, was deported to Germany, and retained his German citizenship.