WITH BO AND PEEP, A CHORE EVERY 12 BEEPS

TIME first wrote about Marshall Applewhite and his group in 1975. Four years later the magazine interviewed Paul Groll, a follower of Applewhite and Bonnie Lu Nettles (then known as Bo and Peep), for a story in the Aug. 27, 1979, issue on their secret camp. An excerpt:

Each minute, 24 hours a day, a musical beep sounds across the camp from a command tent ("Central"). During the day, at 12-beep intervals, the disciples check Central for their next task. Among their duties: camp chores, perimeter guarding and stints as "rotating eyes" (monitoring campers' conduct and reporting violations).

Bo and Peep have "thousands of rules," reports Groll, but "they never force anyone to do anything." During one three-month phase, members constantly wore hoods over their heads and peered out through mirrored eye slits. The usual uniform is a brightly colored windbreaker over a jumpsuit. Gloves are worn at all times. Members can say yes, no or "I don't know" but otherwise communicate only by written messages. They study the Bible, forswear sex, drugs and alcohol. They are, however, permitted to watch TV newscasts and read newspapers to emphasize the differences between the values of the camp and the outside world. The newspaper obituaries, stock-market reports and sports pages are clipped out because they are considered distracting.

At the two daily meals (called "lab experiments"), a blackboard in the dining tent lists "formulas" that specify the menu (PA for potatoes, CA for cake). The food must be consumed with meticulous care to reduce noise. Bo and Peep usually shop for food and supplies personally. They always pay cash.

The Two proclaim that Bo has been Jesus, Elijah and Moses in his former lives. The spacecraft is imminently expected. It will carry believers to an enigmatic "garden" where they will get "energy" from their coequal, the King of Kings, alias Chief of Chiefs, the god who created Planet Earth. Believers will live eternally in hairless, toothless bodies that are free of disease and decay.