Saucer Smear - Vol 23 No 20 - 1976

Magazine Overview

Title: SAUCER CRUISE
Issue: Vol. 23, No. 20
Date: May 5th, 1976
Publisher: SAUCER AND UNEXPLAINED CELESTIAL EVENTS RESEARCH SOCIETY

This issue of "Saucer Cruise" is a non-scheduled newsletter that delves into various UFO-related topics, including a television program, personal encounters, and reader correspondence. The publication maintains a critical yet engaged tone, particularly regarding contactee testimonies and the broader UFO community.

"Tomorrow" Show Replay and Betty Hill Testimony

The newsletter opens with a reflection on a late 1975 episode of Tom Snyder's "Tomorrow" Show, which featured contactee Betty Hill and UFO lecturer Stanton Friedman. The editor expresses skepticism about Hill's testimony, not due to the content itself, but the casual manner in which she related her alleged UFO abduction from 15 years prior. The editor questions if Hill is merely tired of repeating the same story or if there's a deeper reason for the perceived lack of conviction. Stanton Friedman is described as being highly paid to support every detail of Hill's story, suggesting his objectivity may be compromised by the lecture circuit. A notable omission pointed out is the fact that Betty Hill's husband, Barney, was Black, which the editor feels should not have been hushed up, though it doesn't affect the incident's validity. The editor also recalls a brief encounter with Betty Hill at an APRO meeting in Baltimore around 1971, where she was accompanied by Coral Lorenzen.

The show's latter portion featured New York Ufologist Lee Speigel, who is criticized for disgracing himself in the eyes of orthodox ufology by appearing at the North Hudson Park seance. Local MUFON agents are reportedly furious about this event. The newsletter concludes this segment with "Final conclusions from having watched this TV show: None."

Personal Encounters in West Virginia

The newsletter then shifts to personal encounters, detailing a visit to West Virginia with former UFO personality Gray Barker. The editor met Jennings Frederick, who is described as having encountered a creature called "Vegetable Man," as reported in Barker's Newsletter #235. Frederick and his mother have had numerous other sightings and contacts.

During the same trip, the editor visited Strange Creek, West Virginia, where they met Richard Taylor, an amateur astronomer and UFO enthusiast. Taylor has had several sightings, including a cigar-shaped UFO observed near the Moon through a telescope. Taylor is seeking correspondence with other UFO enthusiasts and provides his address: Strange Creek, West Virginia 26639.

More About Crashed Discs

This section revisits the topic of "crashed discs," prompted by correspondence with a person named Ted Zilch. The newsletter mentions a publication called "1954 Flying Saucers at Edwards AFB," published by BSRA, which suggests the Edwards AFB rumor stems mainly from trance information and an early BSRA associate named Gerald Light.

An updated version of the "crashed disc" thesis is presented from "The Ohio Sky Watcher" (Vol. 1, No. 1, Nov. 1974), which references a 1974 lecture in Florida by Robert Spencer Carr. Carr claimed that Wright-Patterson Field in Dayton, Ohio, houses the frozen bodies of 12 "little men" who died of decompression after their flying saucer landed in the Mojave Desert in 1952. Additionally, two crumbled UFOs are allegedly stored in Hangar #18.

The newsletter includes a letter from Riley Crabb, Director of BSRA, recounting a meeting with an Air Force colonel in Mesa, Arizona, about seven or eight years prior. The colonel discussed a UFO that crashed in northern Mexico in 1949. Information obtained by a university physicist indicated the craft was 99 feet in diameter and carried the dead bodies of small, human-type beings, apparently killed by rapid decompression from a broken window. The propulsion and control methods were a mystery. The colonel also mentioned a separate, smaller UFO, about 30 feet in diameter, which he claimed had three different crews involved in its recovery to obscure its origin. He also noted having listened to one of the editor's lectures.

Letters to the Editor

Several letters are included:

• George Fox, a UFO and psychic researcher, praises the newsletter as "such a beaut. Beyond compare."
• John J. Robinson, who publishes his own UFO newsletter, expresses skepticism about "The Sirius Mystery," noting that ancient civilizations had depictions of sea creatures but questioning information about star worship and white dwarfs.
• A letter from China describes a tribe descended from people who came from another planet, with recordings made by "space people." It also mentions Von Daniken's rocks and space people with helmets.
• An anonymous letter criticizes the newsletter for being "saturated in pomposity, haughtiness, and pretentiousness" and "too highly opinionated," rating Ted Zilch at "80 cents" compared to Dr. J. Allen Hynek's "one to five."
• Brandon Blackman, a writer and former movie star, expresses enjoyment of the newsletter's humor, finding it a welcome diversion.

John Keel's "Censored" Blast and Other News

John Keel's comments, which were "censored" due to space constraints, are published. Keel questions how the CIA permits the newsletter's circulation and accuses the editor of violating an agreement with Gray Barker. As the new editor of "Pursuit," Keel states that the editor's name will never be used in their journal and that any attempt to subscribe or join will be rejected. He also ominously suggests that Barker's associates might "break your kneecaps."

Briefs from Here, There, & Nowhere

• Thanks are extended to Eugene R Steinberg for suggestions, none of which were accepted.
• Dr. Leon Davidson believes John Kennedy's assassination was the work of a group within the CIA. Information is available via his sheet "Inside, Straight" (#33).
• A person named "Hoppy" in Georgia is publishing a zine; details are available at 6905 Eunice Drive, Riverdale, Ga. 30274.
• UFO pioneers Rick Hilberg and Robert Easley have launched "UFO Magazine News Bulletin." Carol J. Hilberg is noted as the token female staff member.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue are skepticism towards certain UFO testimonies, particularly contactee accounts, while maintaining an interest in the "crashed disc" phenomenon and personal sightings. The editorial stance appears to be critical and opinionated, as noted by a reader, but also values humor and direct reporting of UFO-related news and correspondence. The publication engages with the broader UFO community, referencing other newsletters and organizations, while also expressing internal disagreements and criticisms.