Nick Redfern's Blog, page 133

The Origins of a Monster

"Many people have heard of the legendary Abominable Snowman or Yeti. It’s the Himalayan equivalent of the United States’ famous Bigfoot. But not so many, perhaps, know of the origins of the beastly man-monster of the snowy peaks. It’s a reportedly diabolical denizen of the huge Himalayas - a mountain range in Nepal, Tibet that is home to the 29,000-foot-high Mt. Everest. The Yeti is perceived, for all intents and purposes and depending on whom you care to ask, as a giant ape of an unclassified nature, or a surviving example of Gigantopithecus, a huge, gorilla-like animal long thought to be extinct. Others, of a far more skeptical mind, might very well say it’s merely a mixture of hoaxing, folklore, misidentification, and mythology."

That's how I begin my new Lair of the Beasts article for Mania.com on the origins of the Yeti...

Texan Terrors on the Loose...

"One of the many things that I was pleased to find when I moved to Texas to live twelve years ago, is that the Lone Star State has a rich history of accounts of werewolf-type beasts and mysteriously over-sized wolves on the loose. For example, in 1845, at the Devil’s River near Del Rio, south-west Texas, a boy living at San Felipe Springs reported seeing several very large wolves and a creature, with long hair covering its features and that looked very much like a young girl, attacking a herd of goats.

"A hunt was quickly launched by frightened locals, and on the third day the girl was sighted again and cornered in a canyon. She was not alone, however. Rather, she was with a pack of wolves; one of which was shot after it attacked the hunters. The girl was captured and taken to a nearby ranch, where she was quickly locked within the confines of a seemingly secure room. That was not the end of the story, however."

The above words are how I start my latest Mysterious Universe  article that deals with sightings of wolfmen, werewolves, over-sized wolves and much more in the fine state of Texas.

As for the entire article, here it is...

The Texas Paranormal Unity Fest

If you happen to be in Waxahachie, Texas tomorrow, why not come along to the Texas Paranormal Unity Fest?



Ken Gerhard will be speaking on his forthcoming title, Encounters with Flying Humanoids , Lyle Blackburn on his book, The Beast of Boggy Creek , and me on The Pyramids and the Pentagon .

Here's where you can find out all about it...

Faking a Crashed UFO

A crashed UFO in New Mexico, dead extraterrestrials, alien autopsies, and a secret group of scientists: no, we're not talking about Roswell, July 1947. Although you might be forgiven for thinking we are.

Nope. Instead, we're talking about an intriguing novel and its equally intriguing author. Moreover, it's a story that was unleashed on the world less than a year after Roswell, but which contains certain ingredients that eerily parallel what was to come in the ufological field decades later.

The above - and much more - can all be found in my new Mysterious Universe post...

Kent Urban Legends: New Book

Good mate Neil Arnold has a new book out right now. Its title: Kent Urban Legends: The Phantom Hitch-Hiker and Other Stories .

And here's the blurb from the publisher:

"What happens if you dance naked around the Devil's Bush in Pluckley, Kent's most haunted village? Do 'big cats' roam the local woods? Does the Devil appear if you manage to count the 'countless stones' at Aylesford? Is Bloody Mary more than just a childhood rumour? Does a phantom hitchhiker haunt the dark lanes of Blue Bell Hill?

" KENT URBAN LEGENDS is a new book by full-time monster hunter and folklorist Neil Arnold, a strange, quirky and downright weird collection of tales reputedly true yet never proven, passed down through generations and best told around a flickering campfire.

"Chinese whispers, playground murmurs, Internet rumours, and friend of a friend tales are the most potent in that they can embed themselves into a local community despite the fact such yarns are not true. Stories can spread like wildfire despite lacking any detail, causing a snowball effect that can affect an entire village, town or city.

" KENT URBAN LEGENDS looks at a number of stories not just related to the county of Kent, but legends which have spread across the world, varying depending on the storyteller. Have you heard the one about the famous footballer who paid the mortgage of a couple who had booked their wedding on the same day as his?

"Have you heard about the girl whose hair was so dirty that all manner of creepy crawlies took up residence and eventually burrowed into her brain? And what about the woman who chomped down on her Chinese takeaway only to find the remains of some animal? These type of stories are known the world over, and you can guarantee that there's always someone you know who knows someone else this has happened to.

"Urban legends come in all shapes and sizes, but for the most part they are tales of horror - confined to mist-enshrouded lanes and eerie woods, but with KENT URBAN LEGENDS you'll also find out what happens if you play a heavy metal record backwards, or if some horror movies are cursed. You'll also find out if the Chelsea Smilers really did slash the mouths of school children in the 1980s, and what really happened to the woman who had a Killer In The Backseat of her car.

"Whilst tales of the Bunnyman, The Hook, and The Babysitter & The Man Upstairs may seem to have their origins in the USA, Neil proves that there's more to these scare stories than meets the eye, and delves into similar tales from Kent often involving lone female motorists and cavorting couples brave enough to venture into the night.

"From video nasties, to phantom viruses, from chain letters, to tales of monstrous bogeymen and out of place animals, KENT URBAN LEGENDS is one book you won't want to read before camping, driving, babysitting, or eating a meal! Be warned...the bogeyman is real after all!

" KENT URBAN LEGENDS , with a foreword by Janet Bord ( Alien Animals ), is an essential book to be read by candlelight! Available from Amazon and all good bookshops, priced £9.99."

The MIB Get Effed Up

Last night I was on EffedUpStories radio (is there a better name for a radio show? Probably not!).



The subject: my book, The Real Men in Black .

You can find the show here as a podcast.

And here at YouTube.



A lot of ground was covered, such as (a) the case of Albert Bender; (b) the parallels between the MIB and vampires; (c) MIB and connections with Ouija boards; (d) the Mothman saga of Point Pleasant, West Virginia; (e) the creepy and "dead"-looking appearance of the MIB; and (f) a great deal more of a sinister and weird nature...



 

Sci-Fi or Insider Info?

When people with government, military and intelligence ties write sci-fi novels that are UFO-themed, are they just writing novels, or might they actually be revealing a few insider secrets, in the form of "faction"?

That's the question asked in my latest Mysterious Universe article...

Stalking the Herd

I'd say for anyone interested in UFOs, Forteana, and conspiracy-theories, Chris O'Brien's next book - Stalking the Herd, due out later this year - will be essential reading.

Here's the blurb from the publisher on the book:



COMING THIS FALL: Stalking the Herd
The Cattle Mutilation phenomenon is an on-going mystery that has endured for almost 50 years, and no definitive book has been written about this subject in over 30 years. What have we learned, if anything...—countless reports later? Who or what is behind the death and disfigurement of livestock reported as mutilated around the globe?

Stalking the Herd is the first objective, in-depth examination and analysis of this controversial, multi-layered mystery and this book scrutinizes the various explanations that have been proposed over the years. Are the skeptics correct? Are these deaths only due to predators and scavengers? Or is the military—government somehow involved monitoring “mad-cow”? Is it ritual “cultists” as the evidence would suggest? Or even ETs as some have proposed? Regardless of who is responsible, what are the motivations behind perpetrating the greatest unsolved serial crime spree of all time?

Stalking the Herd addresses these questions in-depth and also offers an objective look at the history of our incestuous, venerated relationship with cattle; the first domesticated livestock. Is there a connection between these ritualistic cattle deaths and humankind’s ancient practice of animal sacrifice? Why are there no Brahman cattle mutilations in India where cattle are revered to this day? Are aliens gathering genetic material for unknown purposes? What about the thousands of pound of scientific forensic evidence? Is it Aliens and do we have a need to know?

Christopher O’Brien has devoted 20 years investigating and researching hundreds of these unexplained livestock deaths and, if real, assessing the potential implications for humanity. With the help of a handful of unsung “mutologist” proto-scientific pioneers, O’Brien has synthesized an insightful explanation that may help explain this puzzling mystery— a mystery that may have profound implications for our rapidly-growing beef-eating culture.

Betty, Barney and the Military

Over at Mysterious Universe there's a new article from me that looks into one aspect of the famous Betty and Barney Hill "alien abduction" case that often gets overlooked.

What that might be? The interest shown in the case by the military...

Saturday and Bigfoot

So, what did I do Saturday? Well, I hung out at the Texas Bigfoot Conference in Fort Worth. Here's a couple of shots - one of me with Lyle Blackburn (the author of The Beast of Boggy Creek ) and the other with Josh Gates of Destination Truth . It was a cool day and a good time was had by all!