David Marius Guardino

Biography of Psychic David Marius Guardino

David Guardino rose to prominence in the world of the occult in the 1970s, billing himself as the World’s Greatest Psychic and the Psychic to the Stars. His unconventional calling led him from his home in Oregon, to Las Vegas, to Tennessee.

He claimed to possess the power of telekinesis, or psychokinesis – the ability to control objects or thoughts from a distance. He said his psychic ability was a gift from God, although he described himself as an atheistic existentialist and hedonist. His clientele included business people, entertainers and politicians. Although many people benefited from his services, others didn’t; he spent most of his later life running from disgruntled clients, creditors, his nine former wives, and the Internal Revenue Service.

Over the course of 35 years, David Guardino claimed to have contacted the deceased John Lennon, Marilyn Monroe, and Adolf Hitler. His interviews with celebrities (alive and dead), predictions and séances were published in the supermarket tabloids like National Examiner and The Globe (tabloid) (Tragically, in 2001, the offices of American Media Corporation in Boca Raton, Florida, were attacked with anthrax. The building and its contents – including David's writings – were destroyed. However, David's father had maintained a scrapbook of David's news clips through the years. Those scrapbook files are listed below, along with legal documents from court cases.)

Legal issues dogged him almost from the beginning. In 1979 while known professionally as “Jamil”, he sued his partners for allegedly cheating him out of his psychic business in Portland, Oregon. The Oregon Attorney General’s Office got involved after eight of David’s former clients complained that he had not followed through on his promises – like curing paralysis and growing hair on a bald head. David counter-sued the State of Oregon for prejudice against his psychic business.

David Guardino’s flamboyant lifestyle deeply concerned and embarrassed his parents and siblings. None of them truly believed his claims of telekinesis. But his mother refused to give up on him. For more than three decades, she fought an intense spiritual warfare on David’s behalf. Her efforts finally led to his return to his Christian roots just before he died, disgraced and penniless in the Federal Correctional Institution, a prison for inmates with medical issues, in Fort Worth, Texas.

The eldest of six children, David was born August 24, 1942, to Mariano J. (Monte) Guardino and Harriet Smith Guardino. He lived a middle-class life in California and Oregon, graduated from Southern Oregon University, and began a career as a social worker. He died May 10, 2007 at age 64 from complications of obesity and diabetes.

Court Records

1. State of Oregon, ex rel James A. Redden, Attorney General of Oregon, Plaintiff, v. David Guardino, aka Jamil, Defendant, Judgment by Stipulation, ORCP 67F, No. 16-80-01619, February 15, 1983.
2. United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee v. David Guardino, Defendant-Appellant. United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit – 972 F.2d 682, Submitted and Argued June 16, 1992, Decided August 14, 1992, before Circuit Judges Keith and Ryan, and Senior Circuit Judge Krupansky.
3. United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. David Guardino, Defendant-Appellant. No. 91-6212, United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit. May 22, 1992.
4. United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. David Guardino, Defendant-Appellant. No. 91-6212, United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit. May 22, 1992.
5. Order, Case No. 94-6386, United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, November 15, 1994, Claim: Ms. Eunice Holt James, Chief of Probation and Pretrial Services, U.S. Courts, Probation and Pretrial Services Division.
6. Motion, In the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville, David Marius Guardino, Plaintiff, vs. Steve Cus Sr. et al., Defendants, No. 3:94-CV-108, Exhibit 18, August 22, 1994.
7. USA v. Payne, Defendant Wendy L. Payne (aka Golden), U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee (Knoxville), Case # 3:00-cr-00175-1, filed November 8, 2000.
8. U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee (Knoxville) Civil Docket for Case # 3:02-cv-00687, Guardino v. USA, et al., Assigned to: District Judge Thomas W. Phillips, 12/5/2002.
9. Order No. 03-5089, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, David M. Guardino, Petitioner-Appellant, v. United States of America; Department of the Treasury; Internal Revenue Service; Special agent Bruce McMillan, Respondents-Appellees, March 21, 2005.
10. Motion to Expedite Briefing and Submission, United States of America Plaintiff/Appellee v. David Marius Guardino Defendant/Appellant, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Case No. 07-5246, March 28, 2007.