Archive for the ‘anomalies’ category

Geico “Peter Pan” Commercial…

November 23, 2015

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By almost anyone’s standard, Peter Pan was rather a strange little dude.  His was a case of arrested development in that he was perpetually a fresh-faced boy who never aged beyond later childhood.  He hung out with a fairy called “Tinkerbelle,” was leader of a group of “lost boys,” and even boasted powers of flight.  As if that didn’t appear to violate laws of man and nature, Peter Pan’s mortal enemy was a pirate captain whose one hand had been lost to a crocodile and replaced with a hook.

You can imagine that the appearance of such a sprite at a reunion of the Class of 1965 would be likely to prove interesting, and a study in contrasts.  So it does in a recent Geico commercial where the forever young Peter Pan tells his classmates that they don’t look a day over 70, and hovers above the gathering, providing entertainment by singing the Sinatra standard, “You Make Me Feel So Young.”

What would make the commercial complete would be if the iconic Progressive insurance agent “Flo” appeared in the role of “Wendy,” the young mother-surrogate to Peter and the “Lost Boys.”  That would make the surreal commercial become even stranger fast as she tried to nag Peter to return to “Neverland,” perhaps appearing as “Tinkerbelle” as well…

“Jersey Devil” Sighting!

October 12, 2015

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The Jersey Devil is perhaps one of the strangest cryptic creatures commonly talked about, and one with a rich backstory.  Said to be the unwanted and accursed child of a witch who lived in the 1700’s, Mother Leeds, the creature is described as having hooves, a goat’s or horse’s head, bat wings, and a forked tail.  A Little Egg Harbor Township resident, Dave Black, recently snapped a picture of an unidentified life form while driving on Route 9 in Galloway, New Jersey.

Originally the observer thought that he was seeing a llama until the creature “spread out leathery wings and flew over the golf course.”  The observer took a picture, and describes what he saw as being a “large, flying mammal about the size of a deer.”  The photo appears to show something with dark brown fur, wings on its back, and cloven feet.  A video taken by a woman named Emily at about the same time also reportedly shows a reddish animal with a long neck and horns…delightful fare for this Halloween season!

Geico Water Hazard Monster!

September 3, 2015

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Golf tends not to be especially thrilling as a spectator sport, but it could be enlivened considerably by making the water hazards truly hazardous, say by putting a Kraken into the water!  Golfer Bill in a recent Geico commercial is having a truly bad round when an enormous tentacle whips out of the water and ensnares him, the golfer flailing helplessly against its iron grip.

The sportscasters in the face of this spectacle are unflappable, commenting in whispered tones about how the golfer’s five iron may not be enough club to handle this situation; he’s gonna lose a stroke on this one!  More of the Kraken then becomes  visible for inspection, and it is truly a beast of Lovecraftian proportions; now this is a sporting event!  Still nonplussed, the sportscasters continue to comment in whispered tones; it’s what they do

I’d pull up a chair and pay to see golf matches like this!  With quicksand, scorpions, and rattlesnakes, perhaps we could also lend new meaning to tired old golf course “sand traps.”- – Now that’s entertainment!

Bigfoot of Ashe County: AIMS Erupts…

April 27, 2015

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Well, it was Round Two with the infamous Cherokee Devil on the S3/Ep08 installment of Mountain Monsters. The AIMS team met with “Aaron,” a supposed Bigfoot expert who maintained that there had been 12 sightings of the Cherokee Devil in the past 3-1/2 years, following which encounters seven of the people involved had simply disappeared! For the Devil to manifest himself, the witness has to be alone.

As team members Buck (pictured) and Huck had experienced previous encounters detailed in the last episode, they decided to venture out at night themselves without the knowledge or approval of the rest of the team. Heading to the shack in the woods where Buck had earlier supposedly been stashed by the creature, they found backwards writing on the walls, and heard scratching sounds. Team leader Trapper was not pleased to hear of their exploits the next day, and the assembled group returned to the shack, almost failing to find it as it had been camouflaged, presumably by the Devil. A spooky dude appeared outside of the shack who made the team members appear eloquent by comparison, and it was ventured that he was one of the seven who had seen the creature and completely disappeared. He did exactly that while the team was checking out reversed writing on the rear of the shed, so there wasn’t much character development there.

Well, the master plan was to use Buck as bait, placing him in a protective cage on the bridge trap that had been constructed but unused during the previous episode. Buck however took it upon himself to sneak out undetected late at night to go one-on-one with the Devil, who he felt would not appear if the trap was set, being that the Devil could read minds and all. The episode was reminiscent of The Blair Witch Project as Buck went first to the shack and then to the bridge trap by his lonesome, all the while thoughtfully video-journaling his thoughts for our convenience…


As the youngest member of the AIMS team sat alone on the bridge trap, the Cherokee Devil apparently manifested itself to him, although we in the viewing audience saw nothing; this is a low-budget show, after all. Buck was apparently able to drive the beastie off by uttering the Cherokee word for “leave,” a trick apparently communicated to him by the little Cherokee girl whose ghostly presence had been perceived in association with the Devil. – – Wasn’t that convenient?!

 

The Rocky Mountain Demon Wolf…and More on “True Supernatural!”

April 14, 2015

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Once again the Destination America channel has spawned a new show on the strange and the unexplained, this one called True Supernatural, a title which in itself may be an oxymoron. The introductory episode I viewed rehashed an artifact from the alleged alien abduction of Barney and Betty Hill in 1961, alternating with a story on an as of yet unidentified “demon wolf.” Rather than running one storyline through to completion, the show spent several minutes on one tale then bounced to the other, going back and forth in this fashion until this viewer at least was annoyed…it’s not like there were any commonalities between the stories being covered!

Now many of us are familiar with the classic Betty and Barney Hill abduction tale, and aliens are apparently pretty rough on human clothing, tearing and staining Betty Hill’s blue dress, which was the artifact examined.  A pink powder was left on the upper portions of the dress which unfortunately was lost when the victim aired the dress out. The stains remained, however, and persist on the dress to this day.  Speculation exists as to whether the stains may harbor alien DNA, but despite testing by six labs, none can identify the powder, extract DNA from the stains, or even reproduce the stains on the dress fabric by human means.  This might even suggest that the aliens in question did not even have DNA, at least as we would recognize it.  Betty Hill’s poor damaged dress continues to exist in university storage, and if a smart lawyer ever catches up with said aliens, they’re gonna be smacked with major damage claims, not to mention pain and suffering!

Now the town of Ennis, Montana has the stuffed remains of an unknown species referred to as the Rocky Mountain Demon Wolf, a gigantic and ferocious creature.  Reports of the creature’s predations date back to the 1880’s, with the specimen shot in 1886.  The animal has an oddly-shaped head, and slopes off towards its hind quarters, rather like a hyena.  It’s hide is so tough that it’s reportedly resistant to arrows and even bullets, making it hard to kill.  Known to take sheep and dogs, modern killings recorded in 2005 and 2006 suggest that perhaps the creature may still be active.  As to what the animal is, speculations range wildly from a mutant wolf to a hybrid to a wolf with birth defects caused by exposure to heavy metals.  Wilder still are speculations that this demon wolf may be a primitive canine, a kind of prehistoric remnant or “Lazarus Species.”  

DNA testing on the Demon Wolf has been delayed due to the fact that two groups are claiming ownership of it, and the courts must decide who to award it to before such work can be performed.  With the glacial pace of some court proceedings, I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for that ruling!

Bigfoot of Lincoln County on “Mountain Monsters”

April 13, 2015

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The reality show “Mountain Monsters” is back for a new season, and regretably none of the principal characters appears to have gotten a haircut or had dental work done. In the S3/Ep04 installment, the hillbilly-styled hunters went in pursuit of a hellhound that had eluded them in a previous season only to acquire as a bonus a Bigfoot clone as well…

Now the hunt was on in Lincoln County, West Virginia where a farmer named “Jay” reported seeing a canid creature that stood about 4′ high at the shoulder and weighed in at about 500 lbs.  A second farmer, “John,” saw the creature and produced a trail camera picture that showed the tail and head of a rather long creature shown in profile, putting to rest speculation that the hellhound was a bear.  More interesting was the fact that the farmer also claimed to have seen a Bigfoot-type creature standing seven to eight feet tall and peering into his window one night.  It was speculated that perhaps the Bigfoot creature was associating with the hellhound, in the same fashion that a human hunter might run a dog!

Well, expert trap maker Willy and tracker “Wild Bill” built a trap in the cornfield of farmer John, with netting inside of it intended to slow the hellhound and spring the trap.  During the final night’s hunt, both hellhound and BIgfoot prints were found, and amidst a confusion of yelling, bad lighting, and poor camera angles team leader “Trapper” was knocked down, presumably by the crafty hellhound.  The passage of something moving through the cornfield could be seen which caused movement of the corn stalks over an area.  More dramatically, team member “Willy” was at that point supposedly grabbed by the shoulder and dragged about 30 yards, presumably by the Bigfoot.  

Racing in chaotic and noisy pursuit of whatever had manhandled one of their members, the team came upon a clearing where they found an inverted 20′ tree rammed into the ground and surrounded by a number of rock piles.  The team questioned whether this discovery was of a navigational aide or perhaps had ceremonial significance to the Bigfoot.  With a great deal of oaths and expletives, the team declared their intent to further pursue Bigfoot wherever the trail might lead them…

…Will the AIMS team ever catch a Bigfoot? – – And wouldn’t you like to knock around with a hellhound? The answers to these and other perplexing questions await us…

The John Keel Files Special…

April 4, 2015

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Many of us are familiar to at least a degree with the Mothman saga, and the S3/Ep09 2015 installment of Monsters and Mysteries in America spent the full episode on Mothman, emphasizing the investigative role of pioneering paranormal journalist John Keel. Now Keel was on assignment from Playboy magazine to look into UFO’s, and together with area reporter Mary Hyre looked into the hundreds of Mothman sightings that occurred up and down the Ohio River within only two months of time, especially within the area of Point Pleasant, West Virginia.

…now Mothman is described as standing about seven feet tall, and resembling a cross between a man and an alien with wings. A number of sightings had occurred in the so-called TNT area, where old abandoned bunkers had stored explosives during the World War II era. The most intensive time of sightings occurred between November of 1966 and December of 1967, but Mothman was actually just the headliner in what was actually a cluster of paranormal events. In addition to Mothman, lights were seen in the skies, the presence of which attracted dogs which were later found slaughtered and drained of blood. Cattle mutilations were also reported, and a bloodmobile was supposedly attacked at night by a UFO which gripped it in mechanical arms until the presence of other car lights drove it off. Point Pleasant also saw an influx of “Men in Black,” those dark-clad, sunglasses-wearing figures that some see as government operatives while others regard as aliens. MIB’s supposedly tried to intimidate key investigators, including Mary Hyre and her niece. John Keel was contacted by various unknown entities over the phone even after he had left Point Pleasant, and he had the impression that some of them could foretell the future.

The convergence of all of these strange events seemed to be building towards something dire, and sure enough the Silver Bridge collapsed on December 15th, 1967 during rush hour, killing 46 people in the worst bridge collapse in U.S. history. Mothman was said to have flown over the bridge prior to its collapse…

…new sightings of Mothman and related encounters are said to continue, with a reported frequency of one perhaps every month or two. One man interviewed had seen the Mothman while a child in his parent’s car, and he returned to the area to experience another encounter as an adult, when he saw a black figure emerge out of what was described as a shimmering curtain. The gentleman involved speculated that perhaps Mothman was a Thunderbird, some kind of ancient being, or perhaps a multidimensional creature.

Well, everyone’s got to believe in something. I believe I’ll have a diet Coke…

Demon Panthers; Helicopter Crew Meets UFO; Doppelganger

March 28, 2015

wpid-wp-1427508717485.jpegThe S3/Ep08 episode of Monsters and Mysteries in America featured a cryptid, an otherworldly encounter, and a paranormal experience, a bit of something for everyone!  In Alexander City in Illinois in the Shawnee National Forest (Devil’s Kitchen sector) lurks a never-identified feline creature, similar to a black panther but at over 9′ in length much larger.  The panther is further extraordinary in that it can apparently appear and disappear.  Accounts of the demon panther date back to the mid-1800’s, with a butler working on the exterior grounds of a mansion reportedly attacked in July of 1917 but the attacker never found.  More recently in fall of 1969, cryptozoology investigator Loren Coleman traveling as a passenger in a car saw a large black panther crossing the road, wishing to exit the vehicle to search for tracks which he was not able to do as his companions wished to leave the vicinity.  A bit later in fall of 1969, Mike Busby was out driving late at night when his car quit, causing him to exit the vehicle to work on the engine.  The panther then pounced on him, and the situation was dire until he went limp and the headlights of another vehicle caused the creature to break off the attack.  Remarkably, the panther was then seen to walk off into the woods on its hind legs! The police thought that the panther was a large wolf, although the victim knew better and suffered a lengthy recovery from the attack…

…there are those that believe that we all have a doppelganger, a “double walker” that is essentially a duplicate of a living person although they are a kind of imperfect evil twin that may be bent on replacing their mainstream version.  Abraham Lincoln supposedly saw a pale and deathly image of himself in a mirror, a vision which his wife interpreted to mean that he would not survive his term of office.  In Oviedo, Florida a family was reportedly invaded in April of 2003 by a duplicate of one 17-year-old daughter which both the girl’s mother and her sister reported seeing.  The duplicate could supposedly open doors and perform actions in the physical world.  The doppelganger even appeared to the young woman at work, and to the mother at home after the daughter had gone off to college…creepy, huh?

Lastly, an incident was covered in Louisville, Kentucky where two air police officers in a helicopter were pursued by a UFO in February of 1993.  The supposedly alien craft circled and chased the hopelessly outmatched helicopter, eventually shooting three fireballs at them which required emergency evasive action.  The UFO was described as moving quickly with no visible means of propulsion, and it vanished following the encounter.  Two police officers on the ground also reportedly saw the strange craft but were unable to pursue it.  The segment also touched upon a January of 1948 incident when planes unsuccessfully chased UFO’s, as well as a 1955 encounter when a family saw small alien creatures outside of their farmhouse, later finding glowing material left on the ground. – – Where is Fox Mulder when we need him?!

 

Mantis Man; Spottsville Monster; Tornado Phantoms…

March 23, 2015

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In the S3/Ep07 installment of Monsters and Mysteries in America, the first segment concerned a huge, hostile Bigfoot-type beast reported in Spottsville in the northwest part of Kentucky. Reports of the creature date back to 1892, but the segment largely concerned the Nunnelly family who in 1975 moved to a farm house in the back woods, where they sensed something strange. Chickens went missing, and two brothers in the family found a dog carcass, later finding eight dogs killed and mutilated in the same manner. Family members heard rustling sounds in their yard, and reported seeing a seven to nine foot tall hairy creature with piercing eyes covered with hair and emitting the odor of rotten eggs…

…well, the family reported coming under siege from the creature, who would rattle their door knobs and screech on their porch. They repeatedly called the police, who would investigate and discover nothing, finally refusing to come further. Deciding to take matters into their own hands, family members and friends staged a stake-out on their roof one night. They heard sounds, released their dogs, and fired with shotguns into the area with no result. They finally left the house, fearing for their lives. One unrelated Kentucky native put out a recorder in the general area, and recorded an eleven second scream which wildlife experts said matched no known species…

…on a more benign note, the second segment concerned “butterfly people,” luminous beings of light with wings who were reported seen largely by children during a devastating tornado in Joplin, Missouri which occurred on May 22nd, 2011. The entities reportedly shielded people from debris during the tornado. Curiously, forty to fifty children reported seeing the same thing, which only one adult witnessed, describing the beings as angels or guardians.

Last was the account of the Mantis Man, a huge, hideous, insectile-type creature reported in Hacketstown, New Jersey. The monster was described by two unrelated fishermen as standing about seven feet high, having mandibles, and large intense black eyes. One observer described the creature as fading as it moved up the river bank where it was spotted, leading to speculation that perhaps the beast was using camouflage and blending into its surroundings. The second observer reported hearing a humming and feeling tingling sensations, and seeing the mantis-man spread its wings when observed by him in a threatening gesture. The fisherman felt like the big bug was somehow sucking information from him. It also eventually vanished as if into a fog. Speculation followed that the giant, scaly creature was psychic, and may have even been an insectile type of alien…better summon multiple exterminators for this one!

Carolina Reptile Man; Succubus; Napa Rebobs…

March 13, 2015

 

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The Carolina Reptile Man is a cold-blooded reptilian beast recently profiled on Monsters and Mysteries in America that supposedly preys upon unsuspecting campers along the South Carolina coast.  Legends of the creature go back hundreds of years to Native American accounts of “men with tails” in the Smoky Mountains, with more recent sightings dating to 2008 and twenty years before that…

…in 1988, an African American youth was reportedly attacked in his car by the reptilian, which perched on his roof and clawed at his windows.  Later, a crop duster about to take off had the creature appear in his flight path.  In August of 1990, a 19-year-old man was camping, and had his sleep interrupted by a yellow-eyed reptilian.  He repeatedly cracked his bull whip at it, but the spry creature snatched the whip from him, and bit the end off!  Beating a hasty retreat to put distance between himself and the Reptile Man, the subject was later picked up by a Native American, who told the camper that he was lucky he had only run into one of them (dramatic pause with music)!

Now we turn to the girl of your nightmares; the Succubus!  Reported in incidents from South Boston, Virginia, the succubus is a demonic female entity, a literally hot date with fiery eyes and heat to her skin who tries to collect male souls, stealing first breath and then life. Legends of the succubus extend back to stories of Lillith in the biblical Old Testament.  It’s in the nature of the succubus to first appear in dreams, then gradually gain physicality; to banish them, you need to drive them off by faith. 

A former prison counselor was profiled who had extensive dealings with sexual offenders, becoming tainted by them and getting into a darker lifestyle.  A succubus descended upon him one night, paralyzing him in bed until he drove it off by force of will.  A former heavy metal rock musician in 1990’s Springfield, Missouri who led a life of sex, drugs, and rock & roll reported visitations from a succubus who assaulted him.  Alluring at first, the succubus became a powerful, grotesque hag.  Able to finally drive the demon off, the rocker was thereafter compelled to live a more upright life.

Finally on Partrick Road in Napa Valley, California tales of Rebobs, flying monkeys, have lured thrill seekers for sixty years, with multiple sightings having occurred in the 1960’s and 1970’s.  In one incident, campers on Partrick Road heard screaming like a female voice.  Falling asleep, a male in the group later awoke to find large scratch marks across his torso.  Leaving, they later returned in their car, at which time something jumped in front of their vehicle and climbed a tree.  The creature was said to be larger than a man, to be dark and furry with wings, and to emit a terrifying screech.  Called “Rebobs,” these monkeys gone terribly wrong were said to be the creations of a mad scientist who made mutant simian creatures that eventually got loose, and made the area their home. 

A 1997 case cited involved a couple who went in search of the rebobs, going up Partrick Road and struck with a chilling cold.  They eventually found a gothic-looking, abandoned house where they heard and saw a red-eyed creature.  It fixed them with a penetrating stare, and gave them a feeling of lasting fear…