Some say ghosts haunt the Coronado Theater and although many people believe this to be nonsense, the theater is offering us a chance to see for ourselves.
"One of the main places, actually he's standing up there right now, Mr Van Matre is standing up there at the balcony." said spirit communicator Mark Dorsett as we walked into the main lobby. We didn't see anything, but he claimed he could.
Are there some ghosts in town? Dorsett has been to the Coronado many times and every time he's goes he sees ghosts. Now he's using his ghost glimpsing gift to offer tours through the historical theater, tours about some things he says he sees.
Dorsett says the Coronado Theater is haunted by three spirits. The first, Willard Van Matre, built the theater and was it's first owner. Miss Kileen, the second ghost, was the first office manager and has been known on occasion to spray people with her flowery perfume. The final spirit, Louis St. Pierre was the Coronado's first theater manager.
Stagehands at the theater have reported being tapped on the shoulder when they were working backstage, even though nobody was nearby. Could it have been the perfectionist poltergeist St Pierre?
"We had another person who at the same time someone was having a personal experience they took a picture and there was a bright orb exactly where the person said 'You got to take a picture right there.'" says Dorsett.
All of the ghosts have their own personalities and hangouts according to Dorsett. He plans to reveal them all on the tour. He even has an explanation as to why these ghosts are still hanging around, including Mr. Van Matre.
"I mean he loves this place. He literally built this theater and when he passed he just couldn't leave it. This is as close to heaven as he needs."
Dorsett says Van Matre likes to stand at the door and welcome people to his theater. Dorsett says none of the spirits are malicious so there is no reason to fear them. __________________
Opened in 1927, the Coronado Theatre in Rockford, IL has a long and storied history. Stars such as Bob Hope, Sammy Davis Jr., Liberace and Milton Berle have all performed there, and the theater was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The theater enjoyed a massive restoration project at the turn of the millennium and had its grand re-opening in 2001. In addition to serving as the home of the Rockford Symphony Orchestra, the Coronado Theatre presents Broadway shows, concerts and other entertainment events.
Do you believe in ghosts, spirits trapped for in a place that they can't seem to leave?
Well, if you're not a believer, you may change your mind after a visit to a Cordelia saloon, built in 1902, that many say is haunted. At one time, Thompson's Corner Saloon was even a brothel.
You'll always find someone there, and some will tell you that includes ghosts.
"There's just still a presence here for the hundred and some odd years that this place has been here," bartender Tiffany Capdeville said.
Paranormal investigators Shannon Mccabe and Paul Dale Roberts have 15 years experience tracking ghosts and checked out Thompson's for themselves.
During their investigation, Mccabe asked if anyone was present. She immediately got an electronic voice phenomena, commonly known as EVP.
"It's pretty hard to debunk when you tell it to do something, and it does," Mccabe said.
And if you happen to notice bras hanging from the ceiling, the story goes that first-timers are asked to leave an item before they go.
Description: This is real FLIR (Forward Looking Infra-red) footage from a Long Beach, CA, Police Department helicopter - Dec. 5, 2004
NOTE: this UFO looks very similar to one captured over Brownsville, TX around the same time. That UFO also had material / plasma falling off of it as well as maneuvering in somewhat controlled flight. As far as I know, no debris was found on the ground. ____________________
UFO Hunters Address UFO Artifact
The UFO Hunters addressed the story of Bob White.
In 1985, near the Colorado - Utah border, White and a traveling companion encountered a large UFO. As the object eventually sped away, an orange object fell from it. White located the artifact, claiming that it was part of the UFO.
He has spent many years trying to prove this, but so far, he has not been successful.
The History Channel series claimed through scientific testing that the metal White recovered matches no known aluminum alloy made on Earth.
If you're skeptical about psychics for humans, imagine what a pet psychic does.
You've probably seen a pet psychic on TV and wondered how they do that and if it is real. Well, meet an animal communicator, and you can decide for yourself.
Janet Ridgeway has been communicating with animals since she was a child, and once she discovered her talent, she wanted to work on developing it further.
“It's something I have had since I was a kid, but really started to notice it as I got older and realized I had the ability to do more than everyone else,” Ridgeway said. “It's just like everything else. It is a learned skill. But, I believe everyone has the capacity to tune into what is going on."
Ridgeway works with all sorts of animals from horses to hedgehogs, reptiles, birds, cats, and of course, dogs.
“It does not matter what kind of animal it is. Each communicates a little differently. Sometimes it is a flash. Sometimes it comes in a conversation,” Ridgeway said.
And as you might expect, they have a lot to say.
“Just about anything a person will tell, but usually they are funnier. It's very entertaining,” Ridgeway said.
If you feel that you have a special connection with the animals around you or want to learn more about how you can develop the skills, Ridgeway teaches classes to help you tune into the voices you have yet to hear.
After a factory had found a 40-million-year-old whale fossil in a limestone kitchen counter, researchers investigated the stone’s fossil-packed Egyptian quarry, which could shed light on the origins of African wildlife.
********************
Are you interested in the paranormal, cryptozoology, UFOs and conspiracies? Go to Phantoms and Monsters Wiki and become a member of this unique network. Start a page on a subject or add your input to an existing page or thread. Phantoms and Monsters updates are posted daily at Twitter. Signup today!
********************
Have you had a close encounter or witnessed something unusual? Send us an email
********************
Anomalist Books - works on maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, strange talents, and unexpected discoveries. Please check out their excellent and diverse catalog
As the sky darkened and Wellington residents were settling in for the night Saturday, members of the Wichita Paranormal Research Society started work at the Chisholm Trail Museum readying themselves for a night of spirit searching.
The group was drawn to the museum for it's nearly 100 years of history – not only the building itself, but also for the articles inside it.
“It's got such interesting history that we decided to investigate and see if we find something paranormal there,” said Investigator and Public Relations Manager Sherry Curry. The group investigates every Saturday and focuses on authenticating evidence and documenting the existence of any paranormal activity via audio, video and other electronic means of equipment.
President of the Chisholm Trail Museum Board of Directors Richard Gilfillan says the building is one of Wellington's treasures and he's not surprised the group took interest.
The building was erected in 1916 by Dr. A.R. Hatcher to house the Hatcher Hospital and Clinic. His son, Dr. A.C. Hatcher, also a doctor, joined the staff in 1949 and later took charge of the clinic after his father's retirement. Dr. A.R. Hatcher died at age 75 in 1960. Then four years later, Dr. A.C. Hatcher, only 46, walked into the hospital with chest pains and died. With no one to run the hospital, it eventually closed and became a museum, Gilfillan said.
The former hospital is now home to everything from military mementos and uniforms, to old hospital equipment, farming tools and even some prehistoric fossils and mammoth bones.
Having spent many hours in the museum taking groups through the history of the County, Gilfillan says he's had children say the place is haunted, though he doesn't quite believe it himself.
“I think it's just the mannequins...they are a little creepy,” the former teacher said. Automatic lights also seem to frighten younger visitors as they blame the change on ghosts.
This isn't the first time the society has been to Sumner County, however.
A trip to the Oxford Mill resulted in some spooky results.
“All of a sudden they heard glasses clanging. They had slid and had clanged into each other,” said Curry. A male voice was recorded saying, “Have a seat” when Curry and another investigator walked outside, while she and another were touched on the elbow, Curry said.
The group has even visited the old Oxford High School in an attempt to make contact with spirits that have been left behind.
“The old high school probably more so than any of them. Nothing happened while we were there but we got a ton of audio back,” she said.
Elliott says there is a story of a student who died in a bus accident and on the audio, he says the society picked up a young girl's voice.
“We picked up the voice of a little girl and there was nobody in the building with us, not even the employees,” Elliott said.
After infrared cameras were placed on every floor of the museum and the members got their personal equipment ready - the hunt was on as the group split into teams.
Curry and Bob Gilmer took the third floor, an add-on to the building that was used for operations. Climbing the stairs by the light of their flashlights, the two entered the pitch-black third floor and started work. The pair introduced themselves to any spirits in the room and then started to ask questions and make requests.
“We aren't here to hurt you, we just want to communicate,” Curry said. “If you can see me, move towards my green light.” The light on the electro-magnet meter picks up spikes in electro-magnetic currents, which some believe are caused by the paranormal.
Lori Dewinkler and Conway Springs native Donna Chaffin first took the basement and then moved to the first floor military room, calmly repeating questions and requests.
Board member Brian Ferguson and Gilfillan even got in on the act, with Ferguson going down in the basement with the society members and Gilfillan keeping a watchful eye on the infrared camera feeds.
Though the night seemed quiet, the investigators say there was more going on than meets the eye.
“It stayed quiet with the exception of three different incidents on the second and third floor. We had one person at the end of the hall and you would hear footsteps at the other end of the hall and there was nobody down there,” Elliott said. “I was there one time and heard it myself. It definitely sounded like somebody was walking around at the end of the hallway and there was nobody around.”
That's not the only thing the investigators found. While discussions were taking place in the basement, digital audio recorders were able to pick up sounds the society members couldn't hear.
“They were just talking and weren't really asking questions and you hear a voice in the background say, 'It's all right,'” Elliott said. Another incident occurred under similar circumstances, the investigator said, this time with whispers holding a conversation in the background.
Elliott says it's more common to pick up voices on the recorders than to pick up visuals on still or video camera.
“It happens all the time,” he said.
The museum seems to be one of the more active spirit centers in the County.
“It looks like it's pretty on par with the Oxford Mill,” Elliott said. “Regardless, it doesn't seem to care what anyone's doing, it just does it's own thing,” he said of the spirit caught on the recorder.
More results may come in later as more members of the team go over their audio findings, Elliott said.
Though not a believer himself, Gilfillan says he hopes more people will visit as a result of the ghost hunt.
“Maybe this will bring some attention to the museum. A handful of us work down there for nothing and it's strictly to help and promote the town so anything that brings attention to it is welcome,” he said.
NOTE: this is one of the earlier cattle mutilations reported from southern Colorado in March 2009. The photo was taken a few days after the mutilation. The video was made a bit later...in fact, MUFON had already investigated this incident before the video was made. The total number of mutilations in this area since March 2009 is unknown but there have been more reports than usual...Lon
As more Russians purchase mobile telephones and consequently more people carry photographic and filming devices greater numbers of images of the mysterious craft or UFOs that have been seen in Russian skies for decades are brought to the worlds attention.
This craft was filmed above Moscow on 25 April of this year by one mobile phone user. This UFO footage is creating a stir on Russian conspiracy websites and forum participants are split between thinking it is an alien craft, a secret government project or a private experimental plane. All agree that it is too large to be a kite and the consensus leans towards a military craft.
In a scene that could almost be out of a B-grade monster movie, giant spiders have invaded Bowen.
For about six weeks, residents have reported seeing huge bird-eating spiders crawling around their backyards and gardens.
Amalgamated Pest Control Bowen pest technician Audy Geiszler took this incredible photo of one of the spiders he caught wandering across the garden of a restaurant near the town's centre.
Mr Geiszler estimated its body alone was 5cm long, a specimen declared `especially large' by the Queensland Museum. Most grow to be the size of a man's hand.
"It was found in a public area, just wandering around the garden areas. It's a bit scary for the people," Mr Geiszler said.
While at this stage there had only been about five sightings of the giant spiders, Mr Geiszler said it was unusual to see that many in such a short period.
"Normally they live in and around gardens and that type of thing," he said.
"They are very shy. They normally never venture out too far but obviously these ones have been flushed out for some reason.
"It's more than enough to scare a few people. It's not plague proportions or anything.
"That in itself is unusual because you don't normally see these species out in the open."
Queensland Museum spider expert Dr Robert Raven identified the arachnid in Mr Geiszler's photograph as the eastern tarantula, which is also known as the whistling spider (Phlogius crassipes) _ the largest spider in Australia.
The spiders whistle or make a hissing sound when aggravated, which can be heard about 2m away.
Dr Raven said the spider, an especially large individual, was also a male.
"The females remain in their burrows. Because of the nice rain that you've had, you've got plenty of food about with plenty of warmth," he said.
"The spiders have been getting fed and now they're out walking about looking for females to mate with."
Whistling spiders, which are found throughout North Queensland, are burrowing arachnids, living underground in burrows which can be up to 1m deep.
The spiders have been known to eat small birds, however Dr Raven believed it would have been stocking up on insects, small mammals and amphibians.
"They'll go for big insects. They probably feed on toads. They have no problem with cane toads and frogs _ anything big and slow-moving that comes their way."
The bite from a bird-eating spider is not known to be fatal to humans, however it can cause up to six hours of vomiting.
The spider's venom does, however, kill dogs and cats with death occurring within 30 minutes.
Dr Raven believed the spiders would soon return to their burrows.
"It's a little bit late in the season for them by my reckoning, which is probably just saying you've had plenty of rain and they've been locked up inside waterwells or something in the meantime and they're just getting loose," he said.
A love of outdoor activities has led Dennis and Joan Carter across the country. They've seen animals of every stripe and size.
On Monday afternoon, while returning from a weekend camping jaunt at Kerr Scott Reservoir in Wilkes County, the couple was startled to the point of awe when a huge cat crossed in front their vehicle on N.C. Highway 115 in northern Iredell County.
"It was a cat, I'm sure of that," Dennis said. "It didn't look anything like a dog or coyote. It walked and moved like a cat, not like a dog."
The couple said they spotted the animal on Wilkesboro Highway near Taylor Springs Road and Rupard Road. Dennis described it as being light gray in color and about 6 feet long, including "a long curled tail."
The animal was traveling west direction with a "loping" gait until it reached the street.
"And then it took off," Dennis said, "and jumped down into the creek."
The question is: What did the Carters see?
Dennis swears it was a cougar or a big cat very similar to it.
But Tanya Cline, manager of the wildlife habitats at Grandfather Mountain, said such a thing "is extremely unlikely."
As far as she knows, the only two cougars in western North Carolina — Nikata, a female, and Aspen, a male — are under her care at the habitat.
"They have been extirpated from this area," she said, using a term synonymous with "local extinction" and meaning "no longer indigenous."
In other words, cougars used to live in North Carolina but have moved on.
Also, Cline said, cougars (which, she said, are also known as mountain lions, panthers, pumas and upward of 100 other names) are brown or tan in color, not gray.
The Carters, who live just outside Statesville's city limits, are firm about the color of the animal they saw.
So Cline is stumped. She said she has heard rumors of gray-colored cougars but knows of none that has ever been captured.
"One possibility," she said, "is that this was an exotic pet someone had that the owners let go or that got away."
Cline is not denying that the Carters saw a big cat and says there have been other sightings of cougars around the state.
"A lot of people claim to have seen them," she said. "But the State of North Carolina says they're not here."
Greg Jenkins of Wildlife in North Carolina magazine agrees that if the Carters did see a cougar it is almost certainly one that had been in captivity.
"There are people in the state who have them," he said. "And they do get away."
Jenkins re-emphasized that the state's official word on the matter is that there are no naturally wild cougars in the state.
"But they're sexy," Jenkins added. "And people want to see them. But they can also kill people." Whatever the Carters saw, they are concerned the animal may do damage to livestock.
Dennis said he contacted the Iredell County Animal Services & Control Department, which directed him to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.
"It has to eat," Carter said. "And it's big enough to be really dangerous."
********************
Are you interested in the paranormal, cryptozoology, UFOs and conspiracies? Go to Phantoms and Monsters Wiki and become a member of this unique network. Start a page on a subject or add your input to an existing page or thread. Phantoms and Monsters updates are posted daily at Twitter. Signup today!
********************
Have you had a close encounter or witnessed something unusual? Send us an email
********************
Anomalist Books - works on maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, strange talents, and unexpected discoveries. Please check out their excellent and diverse catalog
NOTE: Paranormal State video of episode 'Three Like Mine'. One of the better presentations I've seen...though, personally, I think Paranormal State overall is a very well done production. Heather, Matt and their three kids are being harassed nightly by an entity in their Indiana home. Heather has been shaken in bed by a force that says, "Hey" ... followed by the phrase that she thought was, "Three to nine." Psychic medium Michelle Belanger (who is a wonderful medium) helps decipher a message that may be connected to the original property owners. Meanwhile Ryan investigates one of the client's personal connection to the paranormal...Lon
Dr Ciaran O’Keefe is a rarity – a parapsychologist who goes ghost-hunting on TV. He tells Steve Pratt about his haunting experiences and reveals some of the tricks of the spirit world
The verbal appeal “Is anybody there?” is followed by three loud bangs. But this knocking isn’t a ghost responding to the question.
The thumping on the door is a bid by one of our number to attract the attention of those inside Edinburgh’s Blair Street Vaults and get someone to open it.
We – a posse of journalists, psychics, mediums and an internet ghost hunter – are locked out, halting our mission to discover if the spirit is willing to talk to the press at the launch of the country’s biggest ghost festival.
Now in its fifth year, Mary King’s Ghost Fest takes its name from a resident of one of the closes off the Royal Mile until her death in 1644.
The Close was preserved when the City Chambers was built over the site in 1853. The collection of underground houses and spaces that exist today is not only thought to be one of the city’s most haunted locations, but is also an award-winning visitor attraction.
This mix of the spooky and the entertaining seems the perfect place to encounter Dr Ciaran O’Keefe, the voice of reason on Living TV’s Most Haunted programme.
He’s a sceptic in the true sense of the word, explaining: “That means I’m open-minded to the possibility, but have to let the evidence speak. I’ll listen to mediums, to psychics, to stories people tell me about ghosts and be enthralled by them. But I’m also aware of the psychology of what’s going on and the environmental aspects.”
Call him the voice of reason, party pooper or even villain. As he defines it, “the person who, when somebody has some fantastic experience, stands there and says, ‘actually, guys, there may be another explanation for what’s going on and it’s certainly not paranormal’.”
He proves the point by taking us on a tour called The Real Mary King’s Close, following in the footsteps of a Most Haunted show made there. A mysterious tapping noise is heard. In Annie’s room, a marble is thrown across the space. In another, a machine indicates the presence of spirits with a screeching noise.
Medium Ewan leads a seance. We stand in a circle in the near darkness. The question “Is anybody there?” is asked. The silence is broken by the sound of cows mooing. This isn’t a message from beyond, we’re in an old cowshed and the bovine noises are part of the regular show.
Some people feel a slight breeze and drop in temperature.
Back above ground, O’Keefe pulls the carpet from under us by offering an explanation for everything we saw and experienced. He was responsible for the tapping and the marble projectile.
He moved the machine so it made a noise. And the cold was simply a matter of auto-suggestion.
O’Keefe balances the scientific and the spiritual in his work, the showman in him fostered in amateur dramatics. Away from Most Haunted, he’s employed by the University of Toulouse as a doctor of parapsychology.
Specialising in hauntings makes him an even rarer academic species. The majority look at ESP – which takes in telepathy, precognition and clairvoyance – which is laboratory-based, hard science.
None of them, I suggest, tackle the subject so entertainingly as he does. He takes this as a compliment. “Within the academic world, my colleagues know my work speaks for itself.
They also know I wear another hat, my media hat, for shows like Most Haunted and Jane Goldman Investigates,” he says.
His university role includes forensic psychology as well as parapsychology. In both, he’s the sceptic offering alternative explanations.
Along with O’Keefe’s haunting investigations, Mary King’s Ghost Fest features ten days of events for both novice and experienced ghosthunters, everything from online ghostwatching to ghostly family storytelling.
Back in Blair Street Vaults, spiritseeker Paul Rowlands gives us a preview of his paranormal equipment, a light and sound show that, hopefully, will capture the sights and sounds of spirits. He demonstrates EVP – Electronic Voice Phenomenon – that presumes spirits can record their voices on tape. Next they’ll be wanting to audition for Britain’s Got Talent.
Medium Dawn pens the party in a dark, dank room where the only light emanates from a random light generator that emits strange noises if the spirits are raised.
“If you feel a draught, the first thing I’ll say is check there isn’t a breeze coming in from the door or the window,” she says. “Always look for the practical first. It’s easy to let things run away with you on a ghost hunt.”
She suggests ghosthunters sniff each other to get a whiff of perfumes and aftershaves.
It’s not just seeing ghosts, it’s about smelling them as well, she says. “People will say, ‘I know my gran’s with me because I can smell her perfume’.”
If the nose is a vital tool on a ghost hunt, so too, is how you feel. Breathless or cold, for example. Dawn goes very hot when there’s spirit activity. Rather like me after a couple of gin and tonics.
Our presence doesn’t attract spirits, unwelcome or otherwise. No headaches or breathlessness. No draught round the knees. There’s no repeat of a previous visit when Dawn couldn’t see out of one eye. No sign, either, of the ample-bosomed woman encountered earlier that evening. She’s one spirit I wouldn’t mind bumping into.
O’Keefe hopes his Most Haunted tours will be entertaining, but doubts they’ll produce any surprises. “Nothing that would make me stand on a soapbox and say there are such things as ghosts. Unless, of course, a ghost comes up to me, shouts boo and everybody in the room sees it and it’s also videotaped. And who’s to say that wouldn’t happen?”
NOTE: after I posted a video of Ciaran O’Keefe the other day, this interview popped up. Enjoy....Lon
The edict, issued by officials in Hubei province in central China, threatens to fine officials who "fail to meet their targets" or are caught smoking rival brands manufactured in neighbouring provinces.
Even local schools have been issued with a smoking quota for teachers, while one village was ordered to purchase 400 cartons of cigarettes a year for its officials, according to the local government's website.
The move, which flies in the face of national anti-smoking policies set in Beijing, is aimed at boosting tax revenues and protecting local manufacturers from outside competition from China's 100 cigarette makers.
In total, officials have been ordered to puff their way through 230,000 packs of Hubei-branded cigarettes worth £400,000.
China's government has ordered massive government spending at both national and provincial levels to prop up the economy following plummeting demand for Chinese exports abroad, however imposing a cigarette quota is unusual.
"The regulation will boost the local economy via the cigarette tax," said Chen Nianzu, a member of the Gong'an cigarette market supervision team.
China has 350 million smokers, about a million of whom die each year from smoking-related illnesses. Despite anti-smoking campaigns, cigarette taxes form a major component of China's annual tax-take at local level.
Local authorities in Gong'an county are taking the cigarette quota seriously and have established a "special taskforce" to enforce it.
According to a local newspaper account, a teacher from a village middle school said officials burst unannounced into the school at around 3pm one afternoon and started sifting through the ashtray and bins in the staff-room.
Three "non-compliant" cigarette butts were discovered by the "cigarette marketing consolidate team" which informed the teacher he had violated the related civil servants "cigarette usage rule" After some negotiation the school was spared a fine, but subjected to "public criticism" for "undisciplined practices"
The search for the Yeti or Bigfoot of Shoria Mountain in Russia is set to continue as the snows melt and the weather warms in Siberia. The expedition will commence in June 2009 and will be headed by Valery Kimiev and Professor Nikolai Skalon, the head of the department of Zoology at the Kemerovo State University. Local’s are still alleging they have seen the bigfoot type creature in the area surrounding the Azass Caves on many occasions. One local will be joining the expedition, Hunter Michael Kiskarov who claims to have seen a Yeti more than once.
The local head of government Vladimir Tashtagol has received 14 written reports by residents of remote villages around the area of the Azass caves and the nearby Mrassu river claiming to have seen these creatures in recent years. The Cryptids are described as being two meters tall, with reddish black hair that resembles that of a brown bear. The Azass cave is several kilometres deep and it is believed the Yeti or Yeti’s dwell deep in its interior. Some believe that the creature is a lone neanderthal survivor or the sightings have been of one of a number the species, part of a small colony that represents the world’s last Neanderthals.
********************
Are you interested in the paranormal, cryptozoology, UFOs and conspiracies? Go to Phantoms and Monsters Wiki and become a member of this unique network. Start a page on a subject or add your input to an existing page or thread. Phantoms and Monsters updates are posted daily at Twitter. Signup today!
********************
Have you had a close encounter or witnessed something unusual? Send us an email
********************
Anomalist Books - works on maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, strange talents, and unexpected discoveries. Please check out their excellent and diverse catalog
The storyline for Angels & Demons, which stars Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor, centers on a plot by the Illuminati, a secret society of intellectuals, who are intent on gaining revenge for a brutal massacre of their predecessors by the Church centuries ago. Although the society once existed, there is no historical evidence that its members were butchered by Catholics.
The Rt Rev Malcolm McMahon, the Bishop of Nottingham, warned that the film could stir up anti-Catholic sentiment."This is so outlandish, it's total rubbish," said Bishop McMahon, who is one of the Church's most senior bishops. "It's mischievous to stir up this kind of anti-Catholic sentiment. It's a gratuitous knocking of the Church and I can't see any reason for it."
Ron Howard, the director of Angels & Demons - expected to become the first blockbuster film of the summer when it is released this month - has fired back that Catholics will enjoy the movie, which is based on a previous novel by The Da Vinci Code's author, Dan Brown.
His comments will intensify a feud between some prominent Catholic leaders and the Da Vinci Code team over claims that the film smears the Church.
The bishop, who chairs the Church's Department of Evangelisation and Catechesis, said that Catholics were "getting tired" of the sensational stories and plotlines contained in Brown's novels and subsequent film adaptations. "I don't think that Catholics will be interested in seeing this as it's so far removed from the truth," he added.
Brown's book includes a number of other episodes guaranteed to upset the faithful - including a Pope conceiving a child via artificial insemination, thereby circumventing celibacy rules. Sony Pictures has declined to say whether those incidents make it to the movie.
Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights in the US, accused Howard and Brown of "smearing the Catholic church with fabulously bogus tales".
The frenetically outlandish plot of Angels & Demons centers on a race against time by Harvard professor Robert Langdon (Hanks) to thwart a plot by the Illuminati to blow up the cradle of Catholicism with an anti-matter bomb during the conclave to elect a new pope.
But Mr Donahue is exasperated by the way that he says Brown and Howard blend fact, fiction and conspiracy theory.
"I have never dealt with two more disingenuous people," he told The Daily Telegraph. "They wouldn't dare treat any other religion like this."
Howard responded in forthright fashion, "Let me be clear: neither I nor Angels & Demons are anti-Catholic. And let me be a little controversial: I believe Catholics, including most in the hierarchy of the Church, will enjoy the movie for what it is - an exciting mystery, set in the awe-inspiring beauty of Rome."
The Vatican, which was predictably offended by the Da Vinci Code plot that involved Jesus fathering a child with Mary Magdalene, did not allow Howard to film in its churches or property. "Normally we read the script," a Vatican spokesman said. "But this time it was not necessary - the name Dan Brown was enough."
There has also been high-level discussion within the Holy See about whether to urge a boycott of the film, according to Italian media reports. It took that step with The Da Vinci Code, but the film enjoyed staggering box office takings of $758 million and some Vatican insiders fear their high-profile opposition backfired.
"Let's be careful not to play their game... by giving them free publicity," said Archbishop Velasio De Paolis, the Vatican economics minister, who still made clear his derision for the book as a "manipulation in anti-Christian key of people, events and history".
But Sony Pictures is not backing away from the controversy and will stage the film's world premier on the Vatican's doorstep in Rome on May 4, 10 days before it opens in British cinemas.
"We do not believe the film is anti-Catholic, and we don't believe the nearly 40 million people worldwide who purchased the novel were confused by the fact that this is a fictional mystery thriller," said Steve Elzer, the studio's senior vice-president.
Jack Valero, a spokesman for Opus Dei UK, which is portrayed as a secretive, all-powerful sect in the Da Vinci Code, criticized the new film's central plot.
"It's bizarre and a total fabrication," he said. "I find it offensive, as will other Catholics, but I'm not going to bother spending too much time thinking about it."
But he found some agreement with Sony Pictures. "If anything, this will give us a chance to talk about the Catholic Church and the real things which happen within it," he said.
The furor can be doing no harm to the prospects for Brown's eagerly-awaited follow up The Da Vinci Code. His publishers announced this month that the first print run for the September launch of The Lost Symbol will be five million copies - arguably a modest initial total for a sequel to the bestselling hardcover adult novel of all time, with 81 million copies in print worldwide.
NOTE: first off...it's a novel. It's fiction. It's more than dogma vs. science. For those who have read the book and who try to stay impartial, it's a very good blend of intrigue, wit and history. The basic question, who is good or evil...or is there no real distinction? I'm looking forward to the film, though, I hope it is not edited as much as 'The Da Vinci Code'. If you read 'Angels and Demons', please post your comments...Lon
Rams Head Tavern has procedures for hustling people out the door who try to linger past the 2 a.m. closing time. It's the ones who seem to want to hang around for centuries that make some on the staff come unglued.
The popular tavern, eatery and music venue at 33 West St. traces its roots back to 1703, when a young brewer named Benjamin Fordham decided to stake his fortune on slaking the thirst of the local colonists. The spot where the building stands today was first owned by St. Anne's Parish, then subleased to a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Samuel Chase, and later operated as a tavern and "house of entertainment" before the 18th century came to a close.
Given its spirited history, the notion that the tavern has picked up a few ghostly spirits along the way draws people looking for more than a cold beer and pub fare. Last Friday night, a dozen people affiliated with the Maryland Ghost and Spirit Association gathered in the "tea room" on the main floor for a dinner and ghost tour.
Server Beca Vietri whetted the group's appetite not only for the dinner specials, but for the ghost hunting to follow.
"She's terrifying. I see her all the time. She freaks me out. I've got plenty of stories," said the waitress before she hurried off to collect drink orders.
The "she" Vietri was referring to is Amy, a young woman from the tavern's early days who met her demise while "entertaining" a gentleman caller, so the story goes. (Annapolis Ghost Tours owner Mike Carter said his guides often skip over Amy's line of work when children are on tour.)
"If you're near a hot guy, you're going to feel a cold chill," said hostess Kim Sheehan in explaining how to detect Amy's presence.
Rams Head staff members recalled that during construction in the 1990s to expand operations, workers found Amy's name supposedly scratched into a wall in the cellar. They'll also point out where the bedpost from the bed in which she died protrudes through the ceiling of the "down bar" in the building's lower level.
Beverly Litsinger, president of the Maryland Ghost and Spirit Association, claims to have taken a photo on an earlier visit of Amy's ghostly figure and passed the shadowy image around the table for attendees to see. After dinner, she took a few more pictures before her camera batteries died, something she blamed on the ghostly presences. "They borrow (energy) from wherever they can," she said.
Table busser Eddie Hartman is not too concerned about Amy, or the ghostly old woman who some claim to have seen in the tea room. It's the presence he sometimes feels when's he's down in the liquor cage late at night that has him spooked.
"I locked it up at 2 o'clock one night. I'll let you hear what it sounded like," he said, as he grabbed the front of the chain-link enclosure in the tavern's cellar and shook it back and forth. "The whole cage was shaking and I freaked out," he said. "Crazy stuff happens."
Following the meal and tour, attendees fanned out throughout the building with ghost-busting equipment: electromagnetic field detectors, temperature gauges, motion detectors and a pair of divining rods like those used to detect water underground.
"Something's definitely in this room. They're spinning like crazy," said Litsinger as she held the two metal rods in front of her and their ends twirled in the air.
In her day job, the Randallstown resident works as a consultant for nonprofit groups. She has 5,000 to 6,000 people from across the country on her ghost society contacts list and leads ghost tours throughout the state. Some of her favorite haunts for ghost investigations are Westminster Hall in Baltimore, Gabriel's Inn in Ijamsville, the covered bridges of Thurmont, and Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. She said television shows like "Ghost Hunters" have heightened interest in her tours.
At Rams Head, company officials have a collection of stories of silverware mysteriously turned upside down, liquor bottles popping off shelves and drinks spilling over for no apparent reason (especially at table 32). Whether there's something otherworldly going on is a matter for debate, but if ghost stories can help scare up extra business in a down economy, manager Scott Haney is willing to believe.
"I grew up when Caspar was on TV," he said. "Ghosts don't have to be scary. If they help sell beer, even better."
That's one explanation Pat Linse, co-founder of the California-based Skeptics Society, can get behind. "If I were an entrepreneur, I would promote a ghost. It's fabulous for business," she said.
In general, there's a rational explanation for the odd occurrences attributed to ghosts, Linse said - but that shouldn't spoil the fun. "Ghosts in taverns are generally innocuous and fun things. My advice to people is just to keep it fun and silly."
As she sat in the Joshua Hempsted House's modernized kitchen Saturday night, stooped casually over a quadrant-screen surveillance monitor, Christine Kaczynski could have been mistaken for a security guard ensuring nobody entered the premises.
But Kaczynski, director and founder of the Connecticut Paranormal Research and Investigations Team, was scouring for evidence of unearthly intruders. Team members flitted across her monitor as they moved through the house to capture audio footage in the hopes that, upon later analysis, it would reveal whether the house is haunted.
“There was a light orb that zigzagged through the old kitchen, and they caught that on video,” said Rochelle Simon, director of communications and marketing for Connecticut Landmarks, which runs the property.
“We have had paranormal experiences at our museums, and visitors always ask us, 'Is this place haunted?' and that's why we're doing this,” Simon said.
Four of the 12 properties operated by Connecticut Landmarks are undergoing paranormal investigations this spring with the first one at the 331-year-old Hempsted House. CT-PRI was at the larger house for more than four hours Saturday while Simon and site administrator Rick Spencer went to the smaller stone house across the property and opened a package of Oreos.
The six CT-PRI investigators went beyond the roped areas in the low-ceilinged, shadowy rooms to perch their infrared cameras — lenses like large, solitary eyes with red irises — at advantageous angles. The transmitted images were black and white except for the light filtering through one room's street-facing windows, which glowed orange on the screen.
Members scattered through the darkened house, avoiding the uncanny, toddler-sized doll perched in one room downstairs. They wielded voice recorders while talking to potential ghosts and inviting them to interact. Spirits speak in three- or four-word phrases, sometimes clearly and sometimes garbled, Kaczynski said, at sound levels the human ear can't hear unaided but that computer programs can decipher. Some members of CT-PRI are “sensitive,” able to feel where spirits might linger as people in adjacent rooms can sense one another's presence but cannot see each other until opening the door between them. Others are just fascinated.
“There's somebody there that I'm not seeing visually that's existing in a whole different dimension,” Kaczynski explained.
While CT-PRI set up their equipment early in the evening, Spencer, the site administrator, moved through the house and related past instances of unexplained activity.
“One guide was doing a tour and came up here and saw that wheel moving,” he said, motioning to a spinning wheel in an upstairs room.
He deadpanned: “He had to change his pants. He didn't really have to change his pants. I would've had to change mine.”
Jan Forcier, of CT-PRI, entered the room to ask Spencer about former uses of a space downstairs.
“We do feel a bit of energy there,” Furcier said.
Spencer explained that, before that site became a bedroom, it was a workshop space where Joshua Hempsted carved things like tombstones.
Another time at the house, Spencer said, workers restoring the roof saw a blonde woman walking from room to room. In the stone house, a spinning wheel expert once descended the stairs and asked who was lurking in the vacant second floor.
Kaczynski emphasized that the team works to eliminate all possible explanations for any phenomena their footage reveals before deeming it a spiritual presence, and that they do follow-up research on any findings to confirm it.
“They were matter of fact about it, and made it pretty clear to me that they needed to really analyze the data, like, 'Oh, that's interesting. Let's mark that down and we'll go back and take a very close look at that,'” Simon said.
NOTE: most people would say initially that this is an airplane...but the low level flight on the second video (I think) brings that into question. On the first video, a filter was added at 1:40 to help define the shape. I'll leave it up to the readers...Lon
Paul Sinclair of Yorkshire in the UK has been fascinated by UFOs for as long as he can remember but only really got involved in ufology after his first sighting. ‘It involved me and a work colleague. It was at a place called Sledmere on the East Yorkshire Wolds (hill country). It was a bright sunny day and the UFO was just hovering above some trees. What we saw was a structured object of huge size hovering above a field.’ Ever since then Paul has been regularly gazing at the skies. ‘I am the guy who sits in the darkness observing hour in hour out. I am looking for real proof.’
Obviously Paul was excited when he managed to film the footage below on May 1 2009, which he believes may well be an extraterrestrial spaceship, but Paul insists his search for an alien presence in East Yorkshire is far from over.
‘The Wolds UFO phenomenon is real and the dedication needed to sit on the remote Wolds during winter in freezing cold conditions is no less a task than that of a wildlife film maker.’
‘I don't know of anyone else doing this in the UK, I’m not talking a once in a blue moon organised sky watch.' another UK based UFO hunter noted.
'I have built up a good relationship with the local farmers in the area' Paul continued 'You would think that due to the nature of our subject that I would get a few raised brows. The plain fact is that most of them have seen the UFOs. One even told me about following what he called an actual space ship as it silently glided across the tops of trees on his land. His wife, daughter and her then boyfriend also saw it. He told me that the next day he sat and wrote a full account of the sighting as he never wanted it to change in his mind over the years.’
Paul is hardly the first person to suspect that a UFO gateway to earth might exist in the Yorkshire area and UFO activity in Yorkshire is well documented and very extensive.
Many in the UFO community will admire Paul Sinclair’s dogged resilience and devotion to this important topic. Undoubtedly when disclosure on the alien issue does come about it may well be thanks to the efforts of people like Mr Sinclair.
********************
Are you interested in the paranormal, cryptozoology, UFOs and conspiracies? Go to Phantoms and Monsters Wiki and become a member of this unique network. Start a page on a subject or add your input to an existing page or thread. Phantoms and Monsters updates are posted daily at Twitter. Signup today!
********************
Have you had a close encounter or witnessed something unusual? Send us an email
********************
Anomalist Books - works on maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, strange talents, and unexpected discoveries. Please check out their excellent and diverse catalog
Ettington Park, a unique Victorian Neo-Gothic Country Manor hotel six miles from Stratford-upon-Avon has a Shakespearean connection; Shakespeare was a friend of the Underhill family that resided there, having leased the property for 100 years from the Shirley family, and socialized as well as hunting there with the Underhills.
Behind the impressive Victorian Gothic exterior lays a complex building with a very long history. Ettington Manor has gone through many alterations and extensions over the centuries with the addition of buildings, conversions of rooms to other functions, heightening of the roofline and addition of tall chimneys and turrets.
In 1935, it became a nursing home and during WWII was a prisoner of war camp. In 1983, the house and 40 acres of land were leased to the Isis Hotel Company and after a multimillion-pound restoration opened as a luxury hotel. Today it is managed and operated by Hand Picked Hotels, Ltd., as a four star property. It is considered by the British Automobile Association as the most haunted hotel in Britain.
After the overnight flight to Heathrow and the more than two-hour trip to the hotel, I would not have sensed a ghost even if I wanted to. However, according to the now retired night manager Michael G. M. Kenny, the following is a brief list of paranormal phenomena at the hotel.
Reception Area: The night before Christmas Eve, a floating candle was seen on the neo-Elizabethan oak mantle piece; a shadowy presence is felt by the entrance and reception desk; the ghost of a man and his dog crosses the reception area and disappears into the Library.
Main Staircase: The ghost of Mary, a servant girl that died after a fall has been seen.
Conservatory: An elderly Victorian lady with a very strong presence has been seen and footsteps can be clearly heard of a woman walking back and forth.
Great Drawing Room: Many voices heard, particularly of women, in what appears to be a family musical gathering; a bare-footed Edwardian lady is seen in the bay window on the right-hand side; doors and curtains open and shut; the ghostly presence of a boy is felt.
Library: A flying book (poltergeist phenomenon); male voices and the sounds of billiard balls; a cold spot to the right-hand side of the fireplace; ghost of a priest with a sense of humor!
Suite Corridor: The Grey Lady (believed to be a former governess).
And many others, in other parts of the hotel including priests and monks, a gamekeeper, an army officer and an elderly woman.
As the sun sets tonight, and Halloween day turns to Halloween night, curiosity will draw seekers of the paranormal to investigate the unknown universe of ghosts and spirits. Halloween night ignites the minds and spirits of both the living and the dead, giving paranormal investigators one special night to connect the two universes.
Don’t believe in ghosts? Tell that to the ghost hunters at the Mordecai House, in downtown Raleigh.
Hair-raising research
Paranormal investigators first took an interest in the historic house when strange, reoccurring events continuously puzzled guests. Using electronic voice phenomena recordings and precise photography, these investigators have found physical proof that paranormal life exists within the Mordecai House.
EVPs are sounds picked up on a recording device for which there is no known physical source.
Chris Roberts, co-founder of P.A.S.T Researchers, recalled one EVP that revealed the voice of a man reading a letter that had been delivered to the Mordecai House more than a century ago. On another occasion, his crew picked up the unmistakable voice of a young boy talking inside the empty house. He explained that the voices of children are often the easiest to detect because “they want you to know they’re there.”
Finally, the most spine-tingling EVP the P.A.S.T Researchers detected was the faint but clear voice of a woman uttering a haunting plea to the investigators. Although her voice barely reached a whisper, her two short words, “Get out!”, keep paranormal investigators eager to learn more.
Still skeptical? The P.A.S.T Researchers have also captured “orbs” and “mists” on camera, which only exist when physical energy is present.
According to Roberts, the researchers have photographed multiple orbs in the kitchen of the house, where George Burke, a past resident, allegedly committed suicide. In addition to the orbs, the researchers have captured unexplainable mists that are visible in one photograph, but disappear in the following photograph taken less than a second later.
These paranormal professionals have even tried to recreate the mists by blowing smoke or steam in front of the camera lens, but none of their attempts can recreate the ghostly original, said Roberts.
The Haunting History
According to Erin Callis, the mansion’s assistant director, the Mordecai House is Raleigh’s oldest standing mansion built by Joel Lane in 1785, as a wedding gift for his son, Henry. According to Mordecai investigators, the Mordecai House thrived as a plantation for decades, until the Civil War swept through the South, leaving the Lane family fortune in shambles.
After the war, Polly Lane and Moses Mordecai married and moved into the house together. However, the next generations of children born into the house were forced to live in the shadow of ruins left by the Civil War.
For this reason, the P.A.S.T Researchers said they believe the Mordecais' great sorrows have caused them to cling to the house that was once home to the most powerful families in Raleigh, ultimately tying the family to its house, this time as ghosts.
The spirits that remain attached to the house are now forced to tap on the windowpanes of life, waiting helplessly for a resolution that may never come.
Burke Little was the last Mordecai descendant, and last owner, to ever sleep in the house. Upon his death in the 1960s, the curse of bad fortune that plagued his distant relatives finally ended.
However, until Burke’s death, the curse had wrapped its fingers around each member of his family, leaving the spirits of his relatives to forever linger in the Mordecai house.
A fateful landmark
Following Burke’s death, the Mordecai house became a landmark in Raleigh, allowing tourists and historians to visit the historic site.
But soon after the tours began, guests started to notice unusual and unexplainable things occurring inside the house, Jeremy Ogborn, a Mordecai employee, said. Investigators attribute these strange events, unquestionably, to the generations of Mordecais, still clinging to the past, who now want to make their presence known as the rightful owners of the house.
On multiple occasions, Callis said guests have explained feeling patches of cold air in the hallways, when the rest of the house felt hot and balmy from the summer air. Others have reported portraits of past residents spontaneously falling off walls at the mention of a family member’s name, while others have heard silverware ratting in its drawer with no one else present in the room.
“It’s usually fun working inside the Mordecai house,” Ogborn said, “When something unusual happens, like strange footsteps or voices, we always try to find some kind of explanation — but sometimes, you just never know.”
I never met them nor did I ever see them, although I did feel them. At least I sensed their being or sensed their having been. Are you as confused as I may be?
In 1952 when I was employed as an usher at the Jefferson Theater in downtown Beaumont, I was ushered into a wonderland of days gone by.
So vivid and so plentiful are my memories of that grand old vaudeville/road show opera house that I do not know where to begin. So I’ll start at the beginning of my employment with that establishment.
The first thing my manager showed me was the dressing room area. These rooms were located on the second floor backstage. This is where I went to change from my street clothes to my usher’s uniform.
In my dressing room, mirrors behind makeup counters lined the walls. There were light sockets surrounding the mirrors.
The bulbs were missing but one easily could see how the room must have looked back in the 1920s and 1930s when things were in full swing.
Road shows and vaudeville acts performed regularly at the Jefferson.
By the way, The Jefferson got its name from Beaumont being the Jefferson County Seat.
Old wooden straight-back chairs still lined the makeup counter. Many times I sat in one of those chairs and looked at myself in the mirror. I sensed the presence of those performers who in the past sat in that same chair looking in that same mirror. The feeling was uncanny. Never before had I experienced such sensations as making contact with those generations who preceded me in that room.
I mentioned this to other ushers. They too had experienced the same sensations. Some even went as far as to say they believed the spirits of the old vaudeville performers still frequented those dressing rooms. I cannot dispute their opinions. I only know what I felt.
One day I needed a coat hanger to hang up my street shirt while working my shift. I could not find one. Just as I turned away from the closet to drape my shirt across one of the chairs, a coat hanger hit the floor behind me and bounded my way. I picked up the hanger and said, “thank you” not knowing for sure if I was speaking to anyone or not. If there are spirits in that dressing area, they seem friendly and willing to help out.
Thus springs a question, “Are those dressing rooms in the Jefferson Theater haunted?” Certainly I am not one to suggest anything bordering on the supernatural.
But wait. Here’s more. There was an old marquee mounted on the front of the building. In fact it’s still there. The marquee was composed of three sections. The front main section faced Fannin Street. Then there were two smaller side sections. One of these faced Orleans Street and the other faced Pearl Street.
One of my assignments was to change out that marquee every time the movie changed. One movie ran from Friday through Monday. Another one ran from Tuesday through Thursday. This meant that I changed the marquee on Monday and Thursday nights of each week.
Dragging out that 16-foot step ladder was an experience in itself. Every time I climbed that rickety old ladder and inserted those old letters into those old marquee slots, I sensed the spirits of those who in years gone by had climbed that same ladder and handled those same old letters. Once again, the feelings were uncanny.
Spirits or no spirits, working at the Jefferson was an experience that I treasure. Yes, I never met them nor did I ever see them.
Fresh sightings of a mysterious black beast and the discovery of a mutilated deer this week added more credibility to the stories of a big black cat prowling Norfolk.
The new evidence came after various of tales of a mysterious panther-like black animal being spotted in north Norfolk and close to Norwich, north and east of the city boundary.
The mutilated deer was found by two teenagers, 18-year-old Diana Turner and a friend, as they walked along Weavers Way near Stepping Stone Lane just outside Stalham.
The teenagers took a photograph of the carcase which they later showed to Barrie Slater, the father of Miss Turner's boyfriend.
Mr Slater said they had struggled to think of anything else that could have caused the damage - other than a large, and perhaps feral, dog. He said: "There is nothing around big enough to do that much damage. It appears to have had its neck broken which is the sort of thing big cats do. It's an enormous bite."
Mr Slater contacted the News about the deer after seeing newspaper photographs of huge scratches supposedly left by a big cat on a tree near North Walsham on Sunday.
Jill Nobbs saw a large, dark coloured animal in the field at the bottom of her garden in Blofield.
She said: "The creature was about the size of a Labrador but longer and thinner and it ran extremely quickly.
"There were no signs of anyone walking a dog. I believe it was a wild animal, probably a puma."
She added that the animal was chasing something red - possibly a fox or a small deer.
Shaun Baxter, a househusband from Bowthorpe, near Norwich, said he saw the "black panther" leaving his mark while out shooting rabbits in a field off Bacton Road between North Walsham and Edingthorpe.
********************
Are you interested in the paranormal, cryptozoology, UFOs and conspiracies? Go to Phantoms and Monsters Wiki and become a member of this unique network. Start a page on a subject or add your input to an existing page or thread. Phantoms and Monsters updates are posted daily at Twitter. Signup today!
********************
Have you had a close encounter or witnessed something unusual? Send us an email
********************
Anomalist Books - works on maverick science, unexplained mysteries, unorthodox theories, strange talents, and unexpected discoveries. Please check out their excellent and diverse catalog
Researchers want to know what's on the bottom of Lake Tahoe and kicked off a month-long research program to study its clear waters Thursday, by launching a small submarine into its depths.
The Undersea Voyager Project Team says they are studying fault lines, tsunami hazards and any invasive species that lie beneath the surface.
Researchers selected Lake Tahoe because it's one of the deepest lakes in the world.
"We know we're going to find invasive species of the invertebrates, as well as the algae species that are here, but I'm also very interested in the cultural artifacts, sunken boats things of this nature," said Scott Cassell of the Undersea Voyager Project.
The human-piloted two-man submarine will conduct experiments up to 1,600 feet below the lake's surface. Officials say the procedures will serve as training for the crew, prior to their 27,000 mile circumnavigation of the world's oceans in addition to gathering information about the lake to share with the scientific community, the local community and others.
Using a human-piloted submarine, a remotely operated vehicle and volunteer dive team, the captain and crew will conduct the month-long experiments.
Officials say the Undersea Voyager Project is a non-profit organization established to circumnavigate and study the Earth's oceans--27,000 miles--at depths of 100 to 1,000 feet, utilizing human-piloted submersibles.
They say the project will advance and communicate scientific understanding of the oceans, their interrelationship with climate, and human impact on the marine environment to a global audience.
According to a news release from organizers, the project would "blow out of the water the late marine expert Jacques Cousteau's alleged claim, 'the world is not ready for what's beneath Lake Tahoe.'"
NOTE: with the amount of UFO activity in the area I wouldn't be surprised if this research team has Unidentified Submerged Objects (USOs) on their list for possible discovery. Stay tuned...Lon
As part of our recent day at the Edinburgh Science Festival exploring the science of ghosts, Ciaran O’Keeffe presented a two minute summary of Most Haunted. For those of you who don’t watch the show, Most Haunted is a very popular TV programme in which presenter Yvette Fielding, medium Derek Acorah and parapsychologist Ciaran O’Keeffe ‘investigate’ alledgely haunted locations.
Here is Ciaran’s very funny two minute summary of the show….
There is more HERE ....interesting posts at badpsychics.co.uk NOTE: for the record, I consider Ciaran O’Keeffe and David Wells to be very professional, truthful and above board. I have had the opportunity to meet and talk with most of the 'Most Haunted' crew over the years and have watched most of the investigation productions. Personally, I question much of what occurs on the show and how it's presented. This is not a condemnation of 'Most Haunted' overall but as a cautionary footnote. I'd be interested in your opinion...Lon
The following anecdotes were selected from emails I have received recently. Please send your experiences to Phantoms and Monsters. __________
Several years ago, I used to walk to the Fashion Valley Shopping Center during my break from the Union Tribune newspaper. One morning, while walking in the shopping center, I noticed a short man, maybe no more than 4'11" walking with 2 men, maybe 6' tall or more. The short man was walking between the two tall men. The 3 were wearing very neatly pressed blue work clothes with caps. The short one had a big head, and odd development around the upper eye bones. Each man on either side 'escorting' the short man was a very clean cut, healthy, attractive black and white man. For some weird reason, I mentally told him welcome. I don't understand why I didn't walk up closer to the 3 men but did walk by them and they were no more than 6' away. I always remembered this experience though everyone thinks I'm nuts. I got the impression that the 2 men were showing the short man some of human civilization in a relatively safe environment.
Lai Quon-Oyama ____________________
I've always believed in and been interested in the paranormal. I live in Southwestern Pennsylvania and have been a firefighter for over five years.
We have a ghost in our fire department. It's an old member who died many years ago and many of our members, myself included, have had experiences with "Uncle Al" as we call him. There have been many times where someone has experienced sounds, noises and just odd feelings while being in the fire department. We have had a game room added onto our department after our member had already died, so he cannot pass into the new room, but you can feel his presence in the doorway.
One of the most memorable experiences I have had with Uncle Al was one day when I was in the engine bay office with 2 members, Ken and myself (this has occurred before when I was alone). We could hear chairs being knocked off of the tables in our social hall. We went upstairs to investigate, and all the chairs looked like they were pushed off the tables.
Ken and I went back downstairs and left everything as is and not long later (maybe 10 mins) we hear the chairs moving again. We went back upstairs and all the chairs were set back up onto the tables. I am not making this up.
Another experience with Uncle Al occurred when I was standing in the bathroom, which is in the social hall (the part where Al can roam around). It was about midnight and I looked out the window at least 5 mins previous and noticed no members cars except mine were in the lot. Soon, I heard someone calling my name. The sounds were coming from the doorway to the stairwell. I can also hear people walking around in the bays again and people stepping on the grates on the floor. I went downstairs to investigate, looking out the window again...no cars in the lot. I go to the door to the engine bays and see that the lights were off. There is always the sense of being watched by Uncle Al, be it one person, or 10 people in the fire house...you can always feel a presence of someone or something watching you. ____________________
Back in 1966, over Lake Michigan, Michigan City, Indiana, I witnessed a UFO. Clear sunny afternoon, near the shore, 1/2 mile away from me, about 100 feet high, dimensions of about 3 football fields wide by 60-80 ft. No noise, just stationary in mid air.
I watched for about 20 minutes, then it disappeared. I was also visited by 2 strange men after that. Since I was almost 13 years old, that is all I can remember
For the record, I wish to report that in the summer of 1950, I had a close encounter with a UFO, which lasted for at least 20 minutes. After a short time, I mentally asked to go for a ride. I would have been about 4 and a half years old at the time, so I had not yet learned to be afraid of such an object. When I got a mental reply, "No. Not now. Not yet." I got angry, and proceeded to shoot, with my single shot cap gun, 3 rolls of caps at it!!! Well, a few minutes later it, after moving silently, to the West, then moved East behind the trees again, I lost sight of it.
Over twenty years later, as a young adult, I saw both a photo and on television a short film of the UFO in which the late George Adamski claimed he had met a visitor from Venus. This I thought was interesting, because as I am a Libran sun sign, and am ruled by the planet Venus, that was a strange coincidence. All I can say, with certainly, is I had this strange, but fascinating experience. Sincerely, Fred E Schollars, Kansas City, MO.
Hello my name is Chris Bledsoe I had an experience In Fayetteville N.C. on the Cape Fear River.
There was a show on the Discovery Channel called UFOs Over Earth: The Fayetteville Incident. The spiked craft looks very much like what I saw hovering just 10 feet over the ground in front of my truck less than 300 feet away. It was laying on its side the spikes were vertical and it was glowing very bright white and the spikes were also rotating. The spikes are not new...I have seen them and up close. "There is nothing impossible with UFOs". I think this video is real. Thank You Chris
The date of July 16, 1969 was the day of the launch of Apollo 11 and the initial kick-off for the first landing of the human race on our neighbour, the moon. The global importance of this major historic event was very evident at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. It was Moon Shot Day! Many famous people from all over the world gathered in the VIP launch viewing area near the Apollo LCC (Launch Control Center).
The security was at its highest level with VIP guests present from every nation on earth. One guest was in attendance whom I had supported during his political career, Senator Barry M. Goldwater of Arizona. He had been the Republican Presidential candidate in 1964 running against President Lyndon B. Johnson. He had lost by a wide margin, but, we in Florida had delivered him a victory in Brevard County, Florida and the Space Port area and pride in ourselves regarding that minor accomplishment. In 1968, Goldwater won back his Senatorial seat in Arizona.
Senator Barry M. Goldwater was a former Major General in the United States Army Air Corp wanting to be a fighter pilot of a P-47 Thunderbolt and/or a P-51 Mustang aircraft, but was assigned to deliver various aircraft to combat areas. He had flown an estimated 160 plus other planes during his WW II and civilian years. I was also informed that he had been checked-out in an SR-71 Blackbird. That was VERY impressive to learn.
Being a registered Democrat supporting a Republican candidate in Florida did not gain me any favour through my lifelong political party in Florida. I constantly lived with insults and jokes which supplemented my involvement in UFO research. McCleland has always been a maverick.
During the long countdown of the Saturn V Apollo 11 launch vehicle, I took a breakfast break from the LCC and walked to the nearby VIP guest viewing site in hopes of meeting Senator Goldwater. As I scanned the numerous people gathered, I asked one of our security guards if he was aware of the location of Goldwater? He pointed his finger to an open field nearby saying "Do you see that guy over there setting up his camera tripod, Mac? That's Senator Goldwater".
I had my camera around my neck in hopes of having a photo opportunity with the Senator. I strolled across the crab grass turf as he was setting up his personal camera.
I was surprised he was alone except for a half dozen other guests that were nearby also setting up their cameras. I introduced myself and he responded with a polite greeting.
He asked if I was a guest in the VIP area. I chuckled a bit and said, no sir, I am not yet a VIP. He smiled, and said, yes, I know how you feel.
I had the same experience in the past. We talked about his earlier effort to gain the Presidency and I told him about my personal efforts in Brevard County. He thanked me saying at least he had won here in the Cape area.
I seriously pondered my next question concerning UFOs and finally asked him if he would discuss the subject with me? I was surprised he had no Secret Service Agents or NASA Public Affairs personnel hovering around him. I explained my position at KSC and my being the NICAP Unit-3 Director for Major Donald E. Keyhoe at KSC. He had met Keyhoe in DC years before.
He approved our discussion on the UFO subject and we began our exchange of information.
I began by saying it was obvious he had a deep abiding interest in UFOs and possible visits of alien races to earth. He said, "That is accepted fact in Washington and especially at the Pentagon, young man." I had some understanding of his alleged statements regarding UFOs in the past and brought up the popular story of his effort to gain entry into a special storage area at Wright-Patterson AFB that purportedly had alien artifacts in it. He said, "Yes, that's the main event concerning me and UFOs."
I was under the impression that a U.S. Senator with a past as a Major General in the U.S. Army Air Corp and a member of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence for many years would carry some weight in my allowances to enter such an area of military secrecy. I was rudely awakened to reality very swiftly when I was denied passage. It had me angry enough to discuss it with a personal friend of mine in the military and inquired why my position in the U.S. Senate had no such allowance?
My friend, General Curtis LeMay, Chairman of the Military Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon VERY angrily told me that I had no need to know. He gave me a lot of HELL about my activities at Wright-Patterson.
He threatened to end our friendship for life! My God, Mac, that surprised the hell out of me." LeMay added, "you stay clear of our mutual friend, "Butch", too. ( meaning General William "Butch" Blanchard) his having been at Roswell (later Walker) Army Air base and the 509Th., will not gain you any favour for knowledge of that Roswell crash claim."
Goldwater said, "Mac, Butch Blanchard was also a very valued friend of mine since WWII." He was the person who announced that a disc had crashed near Roswell in 1947. This cussing out did awaken me to one fact, that the UFO situation is the highest level of national secrecy. Much higher than the H-Bomb was and more than anything else that is known within the Pentagon, FBI, CIA, DIA, NSA, etc. That is, nothing is higher security than aliens being here on this planet. Then I realized Curtis was correct. And I never again approached him on the subject. That seemed to prove to me that UFOs were a fact, and do exist. But, are they all aliens? I highly suspect a majority are!
Clark C. McClelland, former ScO, Space Shuttle Fleet, KSC, Florida 1958 to 1992. Former Director, NICAP Unit-3 at Cape Canaveral and KSC, former MUFON Assistant Florida State Director, and former Director, Kennedy Space Center MUFON Unit, KSC.
Some say ghosts haunt the Coronado Theater and although many people believe this to be nonsense, the theater is offering us a chance to see for ourselves.
