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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Dale Graff.md
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@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ updated: 2026-09-22
---
[[Dale Graff]] is a [[U.S. Air Force]] civilian scientist who played a significant role in the [[Stargate Project|Stargate Project]]. He worked in the Foreign Technology Division at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] in Ohio, where he was responsible for keeping the Air Force and [[Department of Defense|DoD]] planners aware of cutting-edge military research in the [[Soviet Union]] and [[China]].[^1]
[[Dale Graff]] is a [[U.S. Air Force]] civilian scientist who played a significant role in the [[Stargate Project|Stargate Project]]. He worked in the [[Foreign Technology Division]] at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] in Ohio, where he was responsible for keeping the Air Force and [[Department of Defense|DoD]] planners aware of cutting-edge military research in the [[Soviet Union]] and [[China]].[^1]
Graff's interest in [[Psi|psi]] phenomena stemmed from a personal experience in 1968, where he had a profound [[Out-of-Body Experience|out-of-body experience]] while caught in a rip current. This led him to research anomalous mental phenomena, and he later sought to integrate psychic abilities into military applications.[^1]

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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Dave Fravor.md
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@ -3,6 +3,10 @@ category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
alias:
- Dave Fravor
- David Fravor
- Commander David Fravor
summary: "Commander Dave Fravor is a retired U.S."
---
Commander [[Dave Fravor]] is a retired U.S. Navy pilot who is best known as the lead eyewitness in the 2004 [[Tic Tac]] involving the [[USS Nimitz]] Carrier Strike Group. His credible testimony and detailed account of the encounter have been instrumental in bringing the issue of [[Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]] (UAP) to the attention of the public and the U.S. Congress.[^1]

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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Eric Davis.md
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@ -9,17 +9,17 @@ summary: "Astrophysicist and AATIP contractor with high-level security clearance
### Scientific Career and Government Work
Dr. Davis has a long history of consulting for aerospace and defense contractors, including EarthTech, the company founded by [[Hal Puthoff]]. He is known for his brilliant and maverick approach to science, and he has an eidetic memory. He has provided the Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB) and has briefed numerous DoD agencies and congressional committees on the UAP issue.[^1]
Dr. Davis has a long history of consulting for aerospace and defense contractors, including [[EarthTech International|EarthTech]], the company founded by [[Hal Puthoff]]. He is known for his brilliant and maverick approach to science, and he has an eidetic memory. He has provided the Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB) and has briefed numerous [[Department of Defense|DoD]] agencies and [[U.S. Congress|congressional committees]] on the UAP issue.[^1]
### Involvement with AATIP
Dr. Davis was a key scientific contractor for AATIP, working closely with [[Hal Puthoff]] and [[Luis Elizondo]]. He was instrumental in analyzing the physics of UAP and exploring theoretical concepts such as warp drives and traversable wormholes. His expertise was crucial in helping the AATIP team to understand the advanced capabilities of the craft they were investigating.[^1]
Dr. Davis was a key scientific contractor for AATIP, working closely with Hal Puthoff and [[Luis Elizondo]]. He was instrumental in analyzing the physics of UAP and exploring theoretical concepts such as warp drives and traversable wormholes. His expertise was crucial in helping the AATIP team to understand the advanced capabilities of the craft they were investigating.[^1]
### The Wilson-Davis Memo
Dr. Davis is best known as the alleged author of the [[Wilson-Davis Memo]], a document that details a 2002 conversation with Vice Admiral Thomas R. Wilson, then the Director of the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] (DIA). The memo describes Admiral Wilson's discovery of and subsequent denial of access to a secret UAP reverse-engineering program. The leak of this memo has been a significant event in the UAP disclosure movement, providing a detailed account of the existence of a "Legacy Program" operating outside of normal government oversight.[^1]
Dr. Davis is best known as the alleged author of the Wilson-Davis Memo, a document that details a 2002 conversation with Vice Admiral [[Thomas R. Wilson]], then the Director of the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] (DIA). The memo describes Admiral Wilson's discovery of and subsequent denial of access to a secret UAP reverse-engineering program. The leak of this memo has been a significant event in the UAP disclosure movement, providing a detailed account of the existence of a "[[Legacy Program]]" operating outside of normal government oversight.[^1]
In 2020, Dr. Davis made headlines when he told the New York Times that the U.S. government was in possession of "off-world vehicles not made on this earth." His public statements and briefings to Congress have been a major factor in the growing momentum for UAP transparency.[^1]
In 2020, Dr. Davis made headlines when he told the [[New York Times]] that the [[U.S. government]] was in possession of "off-world vehicles not made on this earth." His public statements and briefings to Congress have been a major factor in the growing momentum for UAP transparency.[^1]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Elizondo, Luis. *Imminent*. William Morrow, 2024.

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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Frank Carlucci.md
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@ -7,11 +7,29 @@ summary: "Carlucci's connections extended into the intelligence community, with
born: 1930-10-18
died: 2018-06-03
location: "Scranton, Pennsylvania"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Carlyle Group]]"
start: 1989
role: "vice chairman 1989 to 1993; chairman and managing director from 1993"
fn: 2
- type: director_of
with: "[[Westinghouse Electric Corporation]]"
role: "listed as a director in BDM's 1995 and 1997 filings"
fn: 2
updated: 2026-10-03
---
[[Frank Carlucci]] was a prominent American government official who held several high-level positions, including former [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] deputy director and later [[United States Secretary of Defense|Defense Secretary]]. He was also a member of the board of directors for [[Wackenhut Corporation]].[1]
[[Frank Carlucci]] was a prominent American government official who held several high-level positions, including former [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] deputy director and later [[United States Secretary of Defense|Defense Secretary]]. He was also a member of the board of directors for [[[Wackenhut Corporation]].[^1]
Carlucci's connections extended into the intelligence community, with [[Harold Okimoto]] reportedly working under his auspices for years. Okimoto, a figure linked to the [[Yakuza]] and alleged to be a top Japanese organized crime figure, was also described as an intelligence person who performed services for the [[United States|U.S. government]] during [[World War II]].[1]
Carlucci's connections extended into the intelligence community, with [[Harold Okimoto]] reportedly working under his auspices for years. Okimoto, a figure linked to the [[Yakuza]] and alleged to be a top Japanese organized crime figure, was also described as an intelligence person who performed services for the [[United States|U.S. government]] during [[World War II]].[^1]
### Carlyle and BDM
Carlucci served as chairman of the board of [[BDM Corporation]] from October 1990, when a [[Carlyle Group]]-led investor group bought the company's business and assets for about 126.5 million dollars, until its sale to [[TRW]] in December 1997 (TRW completed its tender offer on December 24 and the merger on December 29, 1997). His filed biography gives him as vice chairman of Carlyle from 1989 to 1993 and chairman and a managing director from 1993, after service as [[United States Secretary of Defense|Secretary of Defense]] from 1987 to 1989; the 1995 filing lists his other directorships as [[Ashland Oil]], [[Bell Atlantic]], [[East New York Savings Bank]], [[General Dynamics]], [[Kaman Corporation]], [[Neurogen Corporation]], [[Northern Telecom]], [[The Quaker Oats Company]], [[SunResorts]], [[Texas Biotechnology Corporation]], [[The Upjohn Company]] and [[Westinghouse Electric Corporation]]. The Carlyle stockholders agreement of October 23, 1990 provided for seven directors designated by Carlyle, five by management and three independent directors, with the board fixed at 13. By 1997 he chaired BDM's compensation committee and sat on its executive and nominating committees. BDM paid Carlyle an annual fee of 500,000 dollars plus expenses; Carlucci owned 35,934 shares before the 1995 offering and 75,560 in 1997. Under the November 1997 merger agreement Carlyle's affiliates, holding 7,660,000 shares (25.8 percent), agreed to tender at 29.50 dollars a share.[^2] The Los Angeles Times of September 19, 1990 reported that [[Loral]] said on September 18 it would sell BDM International to the Carlyle Group for 130 million dollars (the SEC filings give a closing price of about 118 million dollars, adjusted to about 126.5 million dollars in 1991), that Carlyle with partner [[Westinghouse Electric Corporation]] had bid unsuccessfully for all of [[Ford Aerospace]], and that Carlyle said it would name "former Defense Secretary Frank C. Carlucci chairman of BDM."[^3]
---
### Footnotes
[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro’s Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.
[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro’s Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.
[^2]: BDM International, Inc., Form S-1/A, June 26, 1995 (accession 0000950112-95-001766), "Management" and "Certain Transactions"; Form DEF 14A, April 11, 1997 (0000912057-97-012636); Schedule 14D-9, November 26, 1997 (0000950152-97-008353), all at https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/870763/ followed by the accession and .txt; TRW Inc., Form 8-K (0000950152-97-008891), https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/100030/0000950152-97-008891.txt.
[^3]: Dean Takahashi, "Loral to Sell BDM to Carlyle Group for $130 Million," Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles), September 19, 1990, p. 46, https://www.newspapers.com/image/175530103/

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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/James Forrestal.md Normal file
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@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
---
category: "People"
tags:
- Person
- SecretaryOfDefense
- SecretaryOfTheNavy
- DillonRead
- NationalSecurityAct
- BethesdaNavalHospital
- WillcuttsReport
- MJ12
- UFO
alias:
- James Forrestal
- James V. Forrestal
- James Vincent Forrestal
- Jim Forrestal
- Secretary Forrestal
- Forrestal
summary: "Wall Street banker, Secretary of the Navy and first Secretary of Defense who died in a fall from Bethesda Naval Hospital in May 1949 and is named in the Majestic-12 documents."
location: "Washington, D.C."
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Dillon, Read and Company]]"
start: 1916
end: 1940-06
role: "bond salesman, partner 1923, vice-president 1926, president 1937 (Navy service 1917 to 1919)"
fn: 1
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Department of the Navy]]"
start: 1940-08
end: 1947-09
role: "Under Secretary of the Navy from August 1940; Secretary of the Navy from May 1944"
fn: 1
- type: head_of
with: "[[Department of Defense]]"
start: 1947-09
end: 1949-03-28
role: "first Secretary of Defense; succeeded by Louis Johnson"
fn: 1
- type: member_of
with: "[[Majestic-12]]"
start: 1947-09-24
end: 1949-05-22
role: "named as a member in the Eisenhower briefing document and as addressee of the Truman memorandum of September 24, 1947; the FBI file copies carry a hand-lettered word BOGUS"
fn: 3
- type: subject_of
with: "[[U.S. Navy]]"
start: 1949-05-22
role: "board of investigation into his death under Rear Admiral M. D. Willcutts; proceedings approved July 13, 1949; digitized by Princeton from the Forrestal Papers (Box 94, Folder 11)"
fn: 2
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-03
---
James Vincent Forrestal (February 15, 1892 to May 1949) served as [[Under Secretary of the Navy]] from August 1940, Secretary of the Navy from May 1944 and the first [[Secretary of Defense]] from September 1947 until his resignation on March 28, 1949, after a career at the [[Wall Street]] firm [[Dillon, Read and Company]].[^1] He died in a fall from a window of [[Bethesda Naval Hospital]], on May 22, 1949 according to the Navy's board of investigation under [[Morton D. Willcutts]] and on May 23 according to the [[Princeton University]] finding aid to his papers.[^1][^2] The [[Majestic-12]] documents list him as a member and as the addressee of a memorandum attributed to [[Harry S. Truman]]; the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] marked copies of those documents "BOGUS."[^3]
### Dillon Read and the Navy
The finding aid to the Forrestal Papers at the [[Mudd Manuscript Library|Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library]], Princeton University, states that he began on Wall Street in 1916 as a bond salesman for William A. Read and Company, later Dillon, Read and Company, served in the Navy from 1917 to 1919, became a partner in 1923 and the "right-hand man" of [[Clarence Dillon]], vice-president in 1926 and company president in 1937, and left in June 1940 to become an assistant to President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] before his appointment as Under Secretary of the Navy under [[Frank Knox]] in August 1940. It records that he married [[Josephine Ogden Forrestal|Josephine Ogden]] in October 1926 and that they had two sons, [[Michael V. Forrestal|Michael]] and Peter.[^1] It names [[Ferdinand Eberstadt]] as "a close advisor to Forrestal throughout his military career" and as the author of the compromise plan that became the basis for the [[National Security Act of 1947]], which created a [[National Military Establishment]], the [[Department of the Air Force]] and the [[National Security Council]].[^1] As Secretary of the Navy he formed the [[Navy Industrial Association]] to bring Navy personnel and civilian suppliers together.[^1]
The collection history records that his diaries were purchased from the [[New York Herald Tribune]] and donated to Princeton by Clarence Dillon and [[Laurance Rockefeller]] in December 1952, that Josephine Ogden Forrestal gave the papers in January 1953, and that the Forrestal Diaries, edited by [[Walter Millis]], were published in serial form in the Herald Tribune and in book form by [[Viking Press]] in 1951. The correspondence series includes folders for Laurance Rockefeller (1940), [[Nelson Rockefeller]] (1940 to 1948) and [[John D. Rockefeller Jr.]] (1945 to 1948).[^1]
### Resignation, hospitalization and death
Forrestal resigned on March 28, 1949 and was succeeded by [[Louis Johnson]].[^1] A modern editor's note on the [[Charlotte News]] of May 23, 1949 states that he was committed to Bethesda on April 2 following a stay at the home of [[Robert Lovett]] at [[Hobe Sound, Florida]], that [[Drew Pearson]] had reported earlier suicide attempts, that a book of poems edited by [[Mark Van Doren]] containing a partial handwritten transcription of the chorus from [[Sophocles]]' Ajax was found in his room, and that Captain [[George N. Raines]], chief of neuropsychiatry, was the attending psychiatrist from before admission to May 18.[^4]
The two dates of death sit side by side in the sources. The Navy's board of investigation, convened by precept dated May 22, 1949, found that the body was found on a ledge outside room 384 of Building One of the National Naval Medical Center at 1:50 a.m. and pronounced dead at 1:55 a.m., "Sunday, May 22, 1949."[^2] The Mudd finding aid's biographical note states that Forrestal "committed suicide on May 23, 1949" at the National Naval Medical Center lists among its sources [[Walter H. Waggoner]]'s [[New York Times]] article of May 23, 1949; the same finding aid reproduces Truman's statement that Forrestal "was as truly a casualty of the war as if he had died on the firing line."[^1] The Eisenhower briefing document in the Majestic-12 file gives May 22, 1949.[^3]
The Associated Press dispatch of May 22, 1949, printed in the [[Kennebec Journal]] of [[Augusta, Maine]] on May 23, reported that Forrestal, 57, "committed suicide today" and was found dead on a third-floor ledge, the roof of the passageway of the third floor, below the sixteenth-floor window at Bethesda. It quoted the official hospital statement that he took his life "at 2 a.m. (1 a.m. est)" by climbing out of the window adjacent to his room, and stated that a nurse on the seventh floor heard the falling body. The board of investigation gives 1:50 a.m. for the finding of the body (see above); the wire gives "2 a.m." in its own words and attributes it to the hospital statement. The same dispatch reported a bathrobe cord knotted tightly about his neck, said that he wore a dressing gown with the sash wrapped around his neck and that his wristwatch was still running, and said the AP could not tell whether he had contemplated attaching the cord to a radiator and leaping or hanging himself. It reported that a book, "An Anthology of World Poetry," lay open on his radiator to the poem "Chorus from Ajax," with the lines "When reason's day sets rayless, joyless, quenched in cold decay, better to die and sleep" (the dispatch's dashes rendered here as commas) Per Rear Admiral [[Leslie Stone]], the hospital commandant, and the official statement, as the AP reported them, Forrestal had declined his usual sedative that evening, left his room by a door onto the corridor, avoiding the second room of the suite where a doctor was on duty, crossed to the diet kitchen and knotted the cord about his throat; the windows of the room had been enclosed with heavy wire screening. The AP reported that he had entered the hospital seven weeks earlier with "nervous exhaustion resulting from overwork," had been described as greatly improved and permitted visitors and free use of the telephone, and had been visited by Truman on May 6 according to the [[White House]]; that Willcutts ordered a Navy board of inquiry; and that the board was to determine "among other things" why Forrestal was left unattended long enough to reach the window.[^5]
The AP dispatch of October 11, 1949, printed in the Cumberland News of [[Cumberland, Maryland]] on October 12 under the headline "Navy Cleared In Forrestal Death," reported that the Navy court of inquiry found the death "was not caused in any manner by the intent, fault, negligence or inefficiency of any person or persons in the naval service or connected therewith." It stated that Forrestal was admitted on April 2 with "operational fatigue" according to Navy doctors, that the findings were released by Navy Secretary [[Francis P. Matthews]] without explanation of a delay of more than four months, and that a five-man board convened on May 23 on Willcutts's orders and concluded its hearings on May 30, after which the report was drawn.[^6] The Mudd Library scan records that the board reconvened and revised its finding on July 13, 1949 (see below); the AP report states that the hearings concluded on May 30 and does not mention the July session.
### The Willcutts Review Board report
The Mudd Library finding aid for the Rogow Papers on Forrestal states that files on the 1949 board of investigation, "popularly called the 'Willcutts Report,'" are online on the Mudd Library website under the title "Admiral M.D. Willcutts Report on the Death of James V. Forrestal."[^7] The Forrestal Papers finding aid lists a folder, "Willcutts Report on Forrestal's Death" (Box 94, Folder 11), with a digitized scan of 65 images, which includes a [[Judge Advocate General of the Navy|Judge Advocate General's]] cover letter of April 6, 2004 to a [[David Martin (Chantilly)|David Martin]] of [[Chantilly, Virginia]], replying to a [[Freedom of Information Act]] request of March 5, 2004. The letter encloses a copy of the Board of Investigation (309 pages, of which 100 were charged free) and states that exhibit 1 (photographs of the body), exhibit 4 and exhibit 5 (photographs of injuries) were withheld under the privacy exemption of 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6).[^2]
The precept of May 22, 1949, signed by Rear Admiral M. D. Willcutts, Medical Officer in Command of the National Naval Medical Center, named Captain [[A. A. Marsteller]], Medical Corps (retired, on active duty), as senior member, Captains [[Vincent Hernandez]] and [[Harold J. Cokely]], Commander [[William W. Ayres]] and Lieutenant Commander [[James D. Wharton]] as members and Lieutenant [[Robert F. Hooper]] as recorder. The board met on Monday, May 23 at 11:15 a.m. with closed doors, examined the body at the morgue, viewed rooms 1618 and 1620 (the room and the diet kitchen on the sixteenth floor of the tower) and the roof where the body landed, and took testimony beginning May 24.[^2] A photographer's mate testified to taking ten photographs of the body, and a hospital corpsman chief to eleven photographs of the room and building, among them one of a rug with broken glass about two feet from the end of the bed in room 1618.[^2]
Captain Raines testified that Forrestal was admitted at about five in the afternoon on Saturday, April 2, 1949. He described a flight on March 31 with Admiral [[John Gingrich]] to [[Stuart, Florida]], a meeting at Robert Lovett's house with Lovett and [[Artemus Gates]], and the arrival of Eberstadt with [[William C. Menninger]] at Hobe Sound; Raines said that Forrestal had told Menninger he tried to hang himself with a belt, that he and Menninger doubted it, that Forrestal had named sleeping pills and hanging as the two means he would use, and that Forrestal had once sent him a concealed razor blade. Raines said Forrestal's stated means had not included a window, and referred to the bathrobe cord.[^2] The Charlotte News editor's note reproduces parts of the same colloquy.[^4]
The board's finding of facts states that Forrestal died "on or about May 22, 1949" of "injuries, multiple, extreme, received incident to a fall from a high point in the tower," that his behavior in the hospital "was indicative of a mental depression," that treatment and precautions accorded with accepted psychiatric practice, and that the death was not caused by "the intent, fault, negligence or inefficiency" of any person in the naval service. The Secretary of the Navy returned the record in an endorsement stating that "on or about" was ambiguous and "ill advised," since it might imply that Forrestal could have fallen before midnight without the staff knowing; the board reconvened on July 13, 1949 and changed the finding to "about 1:50 a.m. on May 22, 1949," and Willcutts approved the proceedings in revision the same day. Letters in the folder from [[Winfred Overholser]], [[John C. Whitehorn]] and [[Edward A. Strecker]] to the Judge Advocate General state their agreement with the findings.[^2]
[[Hugh Turley]], writing for the [[Hyattsville Life and Times]], stated in 2009 that the [[History News Network]] announced the report's availability in 2004, and that the report offers "new evidence of a struggle in Forrestal's room" in the form of broken glass found on the bed and photographed on the floor. Turley wrote that the transcribed testimony of a corpsman, asked when he last saw Forrestal, was "one forty-five, sir," that Forrestal "was in his bed sleeping," and that the corpsman was in the room; he wrote that the report says nothing of the book of poetry, that the board "did not comment on why the sash" of Forrestal's dressing gown "was around his neck," and that the report "did not conclude Forrestal committed suicide." Turley's article reports that the historians [[Keith W. Olson]] and [[Martin J. Sherwin]] were invited to comment: Olson said "the need for such a study is obvious," and Sherwin wrote "I have always thought Forrestal committed suicide, but this is not because I investigated the manner of his death." Turley's own inference, in the article, is that the report indicates assassination.[^8]
### Majestic-12
The Eisenhower briefing document, dated November 18, 1952, lists Secretary James V. Forrestal among the twelve members of Majestic-12 and states that his death on May 22, 1949 left a vacancy filled on August 1, 1950 by General [[Walter Bedell Smith]]. The Truman memorandum of September 24, 1947, bearing a signature reading "Harry Truman," is addressed "Dear Secretary Forrestal" and states that the matter shall hereafter be referred to only as "Operation Majestic Twelve." The FBI file on Majestic 12 reproduces both with the word "BOGUS" hand-lettered across them.[^3] [[Stanton T. Friedman]] wrote in 2004 that if the briefing document, the Truman-Forrestal memorandum and the [[Cutler-Twining memorandum]] were genuine, "Aliens are visiting earth," the government had recovered "at least one crashed saucer and several alien bodies," and a group of American scientists and military leaders had "kept secret all kinds of information about the visitors."[^9]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Princeton University Library, "James V. Forrestal Papers, 1907-1958 (mostly 1940-1949)," MC051, collection creator biography, collection history, immediate source of acquisition and series 1 folder list, https://findingaids.princeton.edu/catalog/MC051.xml (EAD export, opened 2026-10-03).
[^2]: "Willcutts Report on Forrestal's Death," Forrestal Papers, Box 94, Folder 11, Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, digitized at Princeton Figgy (IIIF manifest https://figgy.princeton.edu/concern/scanned_resources/97bd9b5d-cc16-4f8c-94bf-0763b7228def/manifest), finding aid entry https://findingaids.princeton.edu/catalog/MC051_c04531. Page images (Judge Advocate General letter of April 6, 2004; precept of May 22, 1949; findings; endorsements of June and July 1949; testimony) read directly for the precept and findings pages and by machine OCR for the remainder; names in the testimony transcribed from OCR and not individually verified against the images.
[^3]: FBI, "Majestic 12," file 65-81170, Part 01, pages reproducing the Eisenhower briefing document and the Truman memorandum, https://vault.fbi.gov/Majestic%2012/Majestic%2012%20Part%2001%20%28Final%29/at_download/file (Wayback copy used; page images not machine readable; wording cross-checked against the existing Majestic-12 page).
[^4]: Site editor's note on The Charlotte News, Monday, May 23, 1949, W. J. Cash site, https://www.wjcash.org/WJCash17/Charlotte.News.Articles/5-23-49.htm (a modern summary quoting the board testimony, not the 1949 page).
[^5]: "Forrestal Death Leap / Ex-Defense Sec'y Jumps from 16th Story Hospital Window," Associated Press, Washington, May 22 dateline, Kennebec Journal (Augusta, Maine), May 23, 1949, p. 1, https://www.newspapers.com/image/857767711/
[^6]: "Navy Cleared In Forrestal Death," Associated Press, Washington, Oct. 11 dateline, Cumberland News (Cumberland, Md.), October 12, 1949, p. 1, https://www.newspapers.com/image/58094016/
[^7]: Princeton University Library, "Arnold A. Rogow Papers on James V. Forrestal," MC240, related material note, https://findingaids.princeton.edu/catalog/MC240 (Wayback snapshot of September 24, 2021), linking http://www.princeton.edu/~mudd/finding_aids/willcutts/index
[^8]: Hugh Turley, "Historians Support Inquiry into the Death of James Forrestal," History News Network, citing the Hyattsville Life and Times, https://www.historynewsnetwork.org/article/historians-support-inquiry-into-the-death-of-james Turley's article is the sole source for the passages so cited.
[^9]: Stanton T. Friedman, "Update on Operation Majestic 12 Documents," April 2004, The Black Vault, https://www.theblackvault.com/casefiles/update-on-operation-majestic-12-documents/

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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/John B. Alexander.md
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@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
---
created: 2026-05-15
updated: 2026-09-21
updated: 2026-10-02
title: John B. Alexander
aliases:
- John B. Alexander
@ -21,11 +21,26 @@ tags:
summary: "Army lieutenant colonel who published The New Mental Battlefield in Military Review in 1980, served under Stubblebine at INSCOM during Center Lane, and later ran non-lethal weapons work at Los Alamos."
born: 1937-01-01
location: "New York, New York"
relations:
- type: founded
with: "[[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]]"
start: 1985
role: "convener of the invitation-only group, by his own account in 2011"
fn: 5
- type: employed_by
with: "[[U.S. Army Materiel Command]]"
start: 1984
role: "by his account assigned to the office managing the Army technology base, then in 1984 to the New Thrust project; listed as AMC/USA on Oke Shannon's 1985 attendee list"
fn: 5
- type: member_of
with: "[[The Aviary]]"
role: "membership as alleged: listed as Penguin in a roster published by Richard J. Boylan"
fn: 10
---
Lieutenant Colonel John B. Alexander is a former Green Beret and Special Forces commander in [[Vietnam|Vietnam]] and [[Thailand]], earning the moniker Assassin Six. He holds a PhD in thanatology, the study of death. Alexander became a prominent figure in the [[U.S. Army]]'s exploration of anomalous mental phenomena and human potential[^1].
Lieutenant Colonel John B. Alexander is a former [[Green Beret]] and [[United States Army Special Forces|Special Forces]] commander in [[Vietnam|Vietnam]] and [[Thailand]], earning the moniker Assassin Six. He holds a PhD in thanatology, the study of death. Alexander became a prominent figure in the [[U.S. Army]]'s exploration of anomalous mental phenomena and human potential[^1].
In December 1980, Alexander authored an article titled "The New Mental Battlefield: Beam Me Up, Spock," published in *Military Review*, an official U.S. Army publication. This article was the first time [[Extrasensory Perception|ESP]] and [[Psychokinesis|PK]] were discussed in an official Army publication, asserting that "there are weapons systems that operate on the power of the mind whose lethal capacity has already been demonstrated"[^1]. The article, based on personal experience and open-source information, gained national attention after *Washington Post* columnist [[Jack Anderson]] wrote about it under the heading "Voodoo Warriors of the Pentagon"[^1].
In December 1980, Alexander authored an article titled "The New Mental Battlefield: Beam Me Up, Spock," published in *[[Military Review]]*, an official U.S. Army publication. This article was the first time [[Extrasensory Perception|ESP]] and [[Psychokinesis|PK]] were discussed in an official Army publication, asserting that "there are weapons systems that operate on the power of the mind whose lethal capacity has already been demonstrated"[^1]. The article, based on personal experience and open-source information, gained national attention after *[[Washington Post]]* columnist [[Jack Anderson]] wrote about it under the heading "Voodoo Warriors of the [[Pentagon]]"[^1].
Alexander's esoteric interests caught the attention of [[First Earth Battalion|Task Force Delta]], a high-level Army organization. In 1981, [[Richard G. Stilwell]], the deputy undersecretary of defense, arranged for Alexander's transfer to [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command|INSCOM]] under Major General [[Albert Stubblebine]]. Here, Alexander was put in charge of the Advanced Human Technology Office, interacting with Stubblebine's High Performance Task Force[^1].
@ -33,26 +48,42 @@ Alexander's work at INSCOM focused on developing human technologies to enhance s
He also played a role in the [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] program, particularly after the [[James Randi]] hoax. Alexander suggested using magicians as consultants, and worked with [[Doug Henning]] and [[Jack Houck]] on psychokinesis research, observing spoon-bending parties to understand the phenomena[^1].
After retiring from the military, Alexander joined [[Psi]]'s corporate board in 1990, though he later stated it was a mistake[^1].
After retiring from the military, Alexander joined [[Psi Tech|Psi]]'s corporate board in 1990, though he later stated it was a mistake[^1].
### Publications
* "The New Mental Battlefield: Beam Me Up, Spock" (*Military Review*, 1980)
### The Documents
John B. Alexander, a lieutenant colonel of the [[United States Army|Army]] who had served with the Special Forces in Thailand and Vietnam, published "The New Mental Battlefield: 'Beam Me Up, Spock'" in *[[Military Review]]* in December 1980. Its author note placed him on the staff of the Army's inspector general in Washington after heading the human resources division of the organizational effectiveness office at [[Fort McPherson]].[^2]
John B. Alexander, a lieutenant colonel of the Army who had served with the Special Forces in Thailand and Vietnam, published "The New Mental Battlefield: 'Beam Me Up, Spock'" in *Military Review* in December 1980. Its author note placed him on the staff of the Army's inspector general in [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] after heading the human resources division of the organizational effectiveness office at [[Fort McPherson]].[^2]
### The New Mental Battlefield
The article's note gave him as "with the Inspector General Agency, Department of the Army, Washington, DC," with a B.A. from the [[University of Nebraska]], an M.A. from [[Pepperdine University]], a Ph.D. from [[Walden University]], and a 1980 diploma from the Command and General Staff College. It opened: "Psychotronics may be described as the interaction of mind and matter. While the concepts may stretch the imagination of many readers, research in this area has been underway for years, and the possibility for employment as weaponry has been explored. To be more specific, there are weapons systems that operate on the power of the mind and whose lethal capacity has already been demonstrated." Citing the DIA reports of 1972 and 1975 by [[John LaMothe]] and Louis Maire, [[Thomas Bearden]]'s "Soviet Psychotronic Weapons" in *Specula* (1976), Henry Gris and William Dick's *The New Soviet Psychic Discoveries,* and Ostrander and Schroeder, it stated that "it is generally believed that the Soviets and their allies are well in the lead"; that "the ability to heal or cause disease can be transmitted over distance, thus inducing illness or death for no apparent cause. While this has been demonstrated on lower organisms, flies and frogs, the present capacity for human death is still debated"; that "telepathic behavior modification, which includes the ability to induce hypnotic states up to distances in excess of 1,000 kilometers, has been reported"; that the [[Stanford Research Institute|SRI]] work of Targ and Puthoff "tends to support claims that relatively accurate information can be obtained"; that "the intelligence-gathering capability available through remote viewing or OOBE travel is obvious"; that the Soviets "have applied those techniques against the US Embassy in Moscow" with "extremely-low-frequency (ELF) emissions" of "psychoactive characteristics"; and that "the use of telepathic hypnosis also holds great potential. This capability could allow agents to be deeply planted with no conscious knowledge of their programming. In movie terms, the Manchurian candidate lives and does not even require a phone call." It concluded: "It has been suggested that whoever makes the first major breakthrough in this field will have a quantum lead over his opponent, an advantage similar to sole possession of nuclear weapons." "Clearly, psychotronic weapons already exist; only their capabilities are in doubt."[^3]
The article's note gave him as "with the Inspector General Agency, Department of the Army, Washington, DC," with a B.A. from the [[University of Nebraska]], an M.A. from [[Pepperdine University]], a Ph.D. from [[Walden University]], and a 1980 diploma from the [[Command and General Staff College]]. It opened: "Psychotronics may be described as the interaction of mind and matter. While the concepts may stretch the imagination of many readers, research in this area has been underway for years, and the possibility for employment as weaponry has been explored. To be more specific, there are weapons systems that operate on the power of the mind and whose lethal capacity has already been demonstrated." Citing the [[Defense Intelligence Agency|DIA]] reports of 1972 and 1975 by [[John LaMothe]] and [[Louis Maire]], [[Thomas Bearden]]'s "Soviet [[Psychotronic Weapons]]" in *[[Specula]]* (1976), [[Henry Gris]] and [[William Dick]]'s *The New Soviet Psychic Discoveries,* and [[Sheila Ostrander|Ostrander]] and [[Lynn Schroeder|Schroeder]], it stated that "it is generally believed that the [[Soviet Union|Soviets]] and their allies are well in the lead"; that "the ability to heal or cause disease can be transmitted over distance, thus inducing illness or death for no apparent cause. While this has been demonstrated on lower organisms, flies and frogs, the present capacity for human death is still debated"; that "telepathic behavior modification, which includes the ability to induce hypnotic states up to distances in excess of 1,000 kilometers, has been reported"; that the [[Stanford Research Institute|SRI]] work of Targ and [[Hal Puthoff|Puthoff]] "tends to support claims that relatively accurate information can be obtained"; that "the intelligence-gathering capability available through remote viewing or OOBE travel is obvious"; that the Soviets "have applied those techniques against the US Embassy in [[Moscow]]" with "extremely-low-frequency (ELF) emissions" of "psychoactive characteristics"; and that "the use of telepathic hypnosis also holds great potential. This capability could allow agents to be deeply planted with no conscious knowledge of their programming. In movie terms, the Manchurian candidate lives and does not even require a phone call." It concluded: "It has been suggested that whoever makes the first major breakthrough in this field will have a quantum lead over his opponent, an advantage similar to sole possession of nuclear weapons." "Clearly, psychotronic weapons already exist; only their capabilities are in doubt."[^3]
### INSCOM
He served under Major General Albert Stubblebine at INSCOM during the [[Center Lane]] years. The project manager's record of a meeting with Stubblebine on November 30, 1983, notes "an update on the RAPT training" and that the general "confirmed his decision to hold a 'bonding' ceremony and that it would be lead by LTC Alexander." At a meeting on January 6, 1984, the "recent LTC Alexander problem concerning the debriefing of Russell Targ" was raised: "The CG stated that he was unaware that there was a problem as he had not instructed LTC Alexander to debrief [[Russell Targ|Targ]] because Alexander was not a trained intelligence officer. The CG stated that he would get with Alexander and resolve the issue."[^4]
### Advanced Theoretical Physics Group, 1985
After INSCOM, Alexander wrote in 2011, he was assigned to the [[U.S. Army Materiel Command|Army Materiel Command]], as "the only military officer working in an office comprised of senior civilians that managed the Army's technology base," where in 1984 he was "abruptly given an assignment to take over a huge, but failing project called New Thrust" and met [[Ron Blackburn]], a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel then at the [[Lockheed Aircraft Company]] [[Skunk Works]] in [[Burbank, California|Burbank]]. With Blackburn he drew up an invitation list for a group that he named the [[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group|Advanced Theoretical Physics project]], meeting in the secure facility of the contractor [[BDM Corporation|BDM]], where his former commander Stubblebine was a vice president. He wrote that he used the name "advanced theoretical physics" to "legally avoid answering any UFO [[Freedom of Information Act|FOIA]] requests," and that "as the person responsible for conducting the sessions, I never wrote any reports before or after meetings."[^5] A [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]] visit request of May 8, 1985 names the BDM McLean facility and the purpose, as typed, "Advance Theoretical Physics Conference (20-25 May 1985)," and a page of notes by Houck of May 21, 1985 states the group's objective as "Does the evidence support an R+D project?" [[Oke Shannon]] of [[Los Alamos]] listed Alexander as "AMC/USA" among the attendees of a later meeting.[^6] The attendee list appears on the page for the group.
[[Jacques Vallee]] recorded in 1989 that Hal Puthoff "confirmed John Alexander had gone very high to get [ATP] funded"; Puthoff said that Alexander "briefed the head of [[NORAD|Norad]], the head of the [[United States Space Command|Space Command]], the top guy at [[Strategic Defense Initiative|SDI]]," and that Alexander "was in charge of Directed Energy Weapon work for the Army, over a billion-dollar budget" when he was reassigned to Los Alamos and "lost his power base." Vallee wrote that he was "unconvinced." Vallee's journal for May 11, 1986 records his refusal "to become part of the outer skin of some shadowy organization whose chief's I don't trust."[^7]
A press release and survey packet forwarded to the [[White House]] science adviser [[John Gibbons|John H. Gibbons]] by [[C. B. Scott Jones]] of the [[Human Potential Foundation]] on June 13, 1994 reports "The Alexander UFO Religious Crisis Survey," conducted by [[Victoria Alexander]] of [[Santa Fe]], [[New Mexico]], and funded by the [[Bigelow Foundation]] of [[Las Vegas]] (see [[Robert Bigelow]]); a mailing to 1,000 clergy drew a response above 23 percent, with 77 percent disagreeing that proof of extraterrestrial life would cause a religious crisis. It includes a two-page "Commentary by John B. Alexander, Ph.D." that begins "The results of this survey are very important" and says the data are "counter to the widely held belief frequently posited by many in the UFO community predicting doom and destruction in the wake of verifiable contact," while listing caveats (the respondents were clergy, "approximately 77% did not" return the survey, n=230). Its acknowledgments thank "my fabulous husband, John B. Alexander."[^8]
### Afterward
He retired as a colonel in 1988, his last post the advanced systems concepts office of the Army Laboratory Command, and went to [[Los Alamos National Laboratory]], where he worked on non-lethal weapons with [[Janet Morris]] of the [[U.S. Global Strategy Council]], the body chaired by [[Ray Cline]]. His books include *The Warrior's Edge* (1990, with Richard Groller and Janet Morris), *Future War* (1999), and *UFOs: Myths, Conspiracies, and Realities* (2011).[^5]
He retired as a colonel in 1988, his last post the advanced systems concepts office of the Army Laboratory Command, and went to Los Alamos National Laboratory, where he worked on non-lethal weapons with [[Janet Morris]] of the [[U.S. Global Strategy Council]], the body chaired by [[Ray Cline]]. His books include *The Warrior's Edge* (1990, with [[Richard Groller]] and Janet Morris), *Future War* (1999), and *UFOs: Myths, Conspiracies, and Realities* (2011).[^9]
[[Richard J. Boylan]] listed Alexander as Penguin in a roster of the [[The Aviary|Aviary]], describing him as an Army Intelligence and Security Command lieutenant colonel and director of the non-lethal weapons department at Los Alamos.[^10] [[Melinda Leslie]] told the authors of the [[Loose Threads Report]] that Colonel [[Charles Halt]] said in 2009 that Alexander "aggressively called" him soon after the December 1980 events near [[RAF Woodbridge]] and seemed to know "every detail," which made Halt "very concerned about John Alexander's role in ufology"; the Loose Threads authors write that Alexander has called [[Howard Blum]]'s account of a Pentagon UFO working group "pure poppycock."[^11] In the 2011 book, as quoted there, Alexander wrote of the premise of the group: "While many researchers, and even the general public, indicate they believe the U.S. Government is withholding critical information about UFOs; that is not a position in which I concur."[^5]
### In the Press, 1993 and 1997
*The [[Santa Fe New Mexican]]* of March 1, 1993 printed a story identifying Alexander as a Los Alamos National Laboratory researcher and describing non-lethal weapons as he presented them: infrasound generators that "could be tuned to incapacitate humans," anti-traction lubricants delivered by aircraft, a computer virus to disrupt enemy computers, and weapons to destroy the optical systems of tanks. The story quoted him that such weapons go after command, control and logistics ("If you can take that away, they can't fight"), that he considers them "humane" because they are designed to damage hardware rather than people, and, answering critics who said they could be lethal, that "nothing is 100 percent safe."[^12]
The *[[Deseret News]]* reporter [[Zack Van Eyck]], in a story reprinted in *The [[Uintah Basin Standard]]* of April 29, 1997, identified Alexander as the director for scientific liaison of the Las Vegas-based [[National Institute for Discovery Science]] and as a former director of nonlethal weapons testing at Los Alamos. Alexander was quoted on the institute's observation post on the ranch of [[Terry Sherman|Terry]] and [[Gwen Sherman|Gwen]] Sherman near [[Randlett, Utah]], which Robert Bigelow had bought in September 1996: "There have been some minor observations, but nothing you would stand behind," and "It's like a watched pot." He said any findings would be posted on the institute's web page.[^13]
### Footnotes
@ -60,4 +91,12 @@ He retired as a colonel in 1988, his last post the advanced systems concepts off
[^2]: *Military Review,* vol. 60, 1980, annual index, archive.org item sim_military-review_1980_60_index; the December 1980 issue itself was not obtained. Author note as summarized in search results, not read in the original.
[^3]: Alexander, John B. "The New Mental Battlefield: 'Beam Me Up, Spock,'" *Military Review,* vol. 60, no. 12, December 1980, pp. 47-54, read in a Wayback Machine copy of the Army University Press PDF.
[^4]: Buzby, Brian, memoranda for the record, "Initial Grill Flame Briefing to MG Stubblebine as CG, INSCOM, 30 June 1981" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220001-0), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^5]: Career details from Alexander's own books and publishers' biographical notes, not verified against service records.
[^5]: Alexander, John B. *UFOs: Myths, Conspiracies, and Realities,* 2011, as quoted in Elizondo, Daniel, and The Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," Anomaly Archives, 2022, pp. 17-22, 28-29, 61-62, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf. The book was not opened (lending-only). Sole source for the passages so cited.
[^6]: DOE F 5631.20, May 8, 1985; Houck note of May 21, 1985; Shannon "Attendees" page, as reproduced in the Loose Threads Report, pp. 15, 166, 188 (page images read directly).
[^7]: Vallee, Jacques. *Forbidden Science: Volume Three,* as quoted in the Loose Threads Report, pp. 26-27, and in Basterfield, Keith, "Jacques Vallee and the 'Secret Onion,'" https://anomalyarchives.org/collections/file/atp-aka-secret-onion/. The book was not opened.
[^8]: Jones, C. B. Scott, letter to John H. Gibbons, June 13, 1994, with press release and "The Alexander UFO Religious Crisis Survey," OSTP document 9401410, Clinton Presidential Library, OSTP FOIA 01-22, item 17, https://avalonlibrary.net/Grant_Cameron/Clinton_Presidential_Library_collection/OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022/ (file "1994 06 13_C. B. Scott Jones to John Gibbons").
[^9]: Career details from Alexander's own books and publishers' biographical notes, not verified against service records.
[^10]: Boylan, Richard J. "UFO/ET-Disclosure Policy Splits Covert Network," *Perceptions,* http://web.archive.org/web/20130831033026/http://www.think-aboutit.com/ufo/aviary.htm. Sole source.
[^11]: Loose Threads Report, p. 32, quoting Leslie and Halt; Alexander's characterization of Blum's book also as quoted there. Second-hand; sole source for the passages so cited.
[^12]: Staff story on John B. Alexander and non-lethal weapons (headline and byline partly illegible in the viewer), *The Santa Fe New Mexican*, March 1, 1993, p. 1, continued p. 3, https://www.newspapers.com/image/583579533/ and https://www.newspapers.com/image/583579542/.
[^13]: Zack Van Eyck, "No UFOs or ETs have dropped in at spooky ranch," *The Uintah Basin Standard* (Roosevelt, Utah; reprinted from the *Deseret News*), April 29, 1997, p. 2, https://www.newspapers.com/image/725294178/.

67
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/John Gibbons.md Normal file
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@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
---
category: "Political Figure"
tags:
- Person
- Physicist
- OSTP
- OTA
- ClintonWhiteHouse
- OakRidge
- UFO
alias:
- John Gibbons
- John H. Gibbons
- John Howard Gibbons
- Jack Gibbons
- Dr. John H. Gibbons
- Dr. Gibbons
summary: "Physicist, director of the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment from 1979 and of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from 1993, point of contact for Laurance Rockefeller's UFO inquiries."
born: 1929
died: 2015-07-17
location: "Washington, D.C."
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Oak Ridge National Laboratory]]"
start: 1954
role: "physicist, fifteen years per the White House biography""
fn: 1
- type: director_of
with: "[[Office of Technology Assessment]]"
start: 1979
end: 1993
role: "director"
fn: 1
- type: director_of
with: "[[Office of Science and Technology Policy]]"
start: 1993-02-02
role: "director and Assistant to the President for Science and Technology"
fn: 1
- type: appointed
with: "[[Bill Clinton]]"
reverse: true
start: 1993-02-02
fn: 1
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-02
---
John H. "Jack" Gibbons (January 15, 1929, to July 17, 2015) was born in [[Harrisonburg, Virginia]], took bachelor's degrees in mathematics and chemistry from [[Randolph-Macon College]] in 1949 and a doctorate in physics from [[Duke University]] in 1954.[^1][^2] The [[White House]] biography states that he spent fifteen years at [[Oak Ridge National Laboratory]] studying atomic nuclei, with emphasis on the role of neutron capture in the nucleosynthesis of heavy elements in stars, became in 1973 the first director of the [[Federal Office of Energy Conservation]], directed the [[University of Tennessee]] Energy, Environment and Resources Center for two years, and in 1979 became director of the Congressional [[Office of Technology Assessment]], where he served two six-year terms before his presidential appointment on February 2, 1993 as Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the [[Office of Science and Technology Policy]].[^1] He was a member of the [[Council on Foreign Relations]].[^1] The [[National Academy of Engineering]] lists his years as 1929 to 2015, and the [[American Institute of Physics]] obituary gives his death at [[Crozet, Virginia]].[^2]
### Contacts with Laurance Rockefeller
Gibbons met [[Laurance Rockefeller]] and [[C. B. Scott Jones]] in April 1993, three months into his term, after a request from Rockefeller's attorney [[Henry L. Diamond]] of March 29, 1993; Rockefeller's letter of April 21, 1993 records that Gibbons said he had "not learned that the [[United States]] Government has a body of knowledge on UFOs or ETI that is being withheld from the public."[^3] In the further correspondence described under the [[Rockefeller Initiative]] Gibbons suggested approaching the [[Department of Defense|Defense Department]], proposed an informal inquiry into agency records on the 1947 [[Roswell Incident]], and received from Secretary [[Sheila Widnall]] an interim status report on May 24, 1994, the full Roswell report on February 27, 1996 (with the request to pass it to Rockefeller) and the second volume, *The Roswell Report: Case Closed*, on June 20, 1997. Rockefeller's letter of February 14, 1994 credited Gibbons with the suggestion to begin with a specific incident, and Gibbons's note of August 1994 to Rockefeller says he received the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] material "yesterday."[^3] A handwritten note on Jones's letter of February 17, 1994, signed "JHG" and dated 3/29/94, reads: "Scott Jones used to be associated with Senator Pell. He was formerly a [[United States Navy|Navy]] pilot. The [[Human Potential Foundation]] is funded in part, I believe, by L.R."[^4] In a note to Rockefeller dated 8/19/94 he wrote that he had told Senator [[Claiborne Pell]] of the Air Force report the day before, and a note to "Clay" of the same date encloses the report's summary text and a lecture of his own and thanks Pell for lunch.[^5]
On August 4, 1995 he wrote to President [[Bill Clinton]] that Rockefeller would likely see the President in the [[Grand Teton National Park|Tetons]] and "will want to talk with you about his interest in extrasensory perception, paranormal phenomena, and UFO's"; that "I persuaded Rockefeller to not bother you with this issue but instead to let me talk with defense officials"; that "all evidence points to a failed U.S. Air Force balloon experiment, and no evidence of a 'flying saucer' or cover-up conspiracy"; and that "I've made no secret about my conviction that we must not be too diverted from more earthly imperatives."[^6] A draft letter from Rockefeller to the President of August 23, 1995 proposed that "Your Science Advisor, Jack Gibbons, might be the right person" to coordinate government information on the subject.[^7]
The OSTP files include a letter from the physicist [[Bruce Maccabee]] of January 2, 1997 stating that in April 1993 "at the request of Dr. [[Ronald Pandolfi]] of the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]" he had faxed Gibbons an information paper on UFOs, and Gibbons's reply of April 26, 1995 to the [[Government Accountability Office|General Accounting Office]] that his office had "no direct knowledge of what occurred at Roswell and no records, except for the information I received from the Air Force."[^8]
### Footnotes
[^1]: The White House, "Biography of Dr. John H. Gibbons," Clinton White House archive, https://clintonwhitehouse4.archives.gov/WH/EOP/OSTP/director/Gibbons_Bio.html.
[^2]: National Academy of Engineering, "John H. (Jack) Gibbons 1929-2015," https://www.nae.edu/192022/john-h-jack-gibbons-1929-2015; "John Howard Gibbons," *Physics Today*, December 2015, https://physicstoday.aip.org/obituaries/john-howard-gibbons (birth date and place of death).
[^3]: Henry L. Diamond to Gibbons, March 29, 1993; Rockefeller to Gibbons, April 21, 1993 and later letters; Widnall to Gibbons, May 24, 1994, February 27, 1996 and June 20, 1997, and Rockefeller to Gibbons, February 14, 1994, at http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller_Initiative_Documents.htm.
[^4]: Jones to Gibbons, February 17, 1994, with note signed JHG and dated 3/29/94, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-17-94.htm.
[^5]: Gibbons, handwritten notes to Rockefeller and to Pell, RID-8-17-94.htm and RID-9-19-94.htm, same site.
[^6]: Gibbons, memorandum for the President, "Inquiry from Laurance Rockefeller," August 4, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-95.htm.
[^7]: Rockefeller, draft letter to President Clinton, faxed August 23, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-23-95.htm.
[^8]: Maccabee to Gibbons, January 2, 1997, RID-1-2-97.htm; Gibbons to William Hunt, GAO, April 26, 1995, RID-4-26-95.htm, same site.

42
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Kit Green.md
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@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ aliases:
- Kit Green
- Christopher Green
created: 2026-05-17
updated: 2026-09-22
updated: 2026-10-02
category: "Intelligence & Government"
tags:
- Person
@ -17,30 +17,35 @@ tags:
- Esalen
- AATIP
- LifeSciences
summary: "Christopher 'Kit' Green was a CIA physician who served as the agency's principal liaison for the SRI remote viewing program from 1972, including handling Uri Geller during the 1972-1973 tests, and later contributed to the AATIP program and published research on UAP encounter injuries."
summary: "Christopher 'Kit' Green was a CIA physician who served as the agency's liaison for the SRI remote viewing program from 1972, handled Uri Geller's tests, and later contributed to AATIP."
relations:
- type: member_of
with: "[[The Aviary]]"
role: "membership as alleged: listed as Blue Jay in a roster published by Richard J. Boylan"
fn: 9
---
Christopher "Kit" Green was a physician and neurophysiologist who served in the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]'s Life Sciences Division, where he functioned as the agency's primary scientific reviewer and liaison for the [[Stanford Research Institute|SRI]] remote viewing program from its inception in 1972. He was among the small number of CIA officers who maintained long-term engagement with anomalous phenomena research, and later continued that work in both academic and government consulting contexts after leaving the agency.
Christopher "Kit" Green was a physician and neurophysiologist who served in the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]'s [[Life Sciences Division]], where he functioned as the agency's primary scientific reviewer and liaison for the [[Stanford Research Institute|SRI]] remote viewing program from its inception in 1972. He was among the small number of CIA officers who maintained long-term engagement with anomalous phenomena research, and later continued that work in both academic and government consulting contexts after leaving the agency.
### CIA Career and SRI Liaison
Green was working in the CIA's Life Sciences Division when physicist [[Hal Puthoff]] initiated contact with the agency regarding proposed research on anomalous mental phenomena. On June 27, 1972, Puthoff wrote to Green at the CIA outlining remote viewing as a legitimate area for scientific investigation, proposing formal experiments at SRI to assess whether the phenomena could be reproduced under controlled conditions. This letter - subsequently released under FOIA and housed in the CIA Reading Room - established the institutional relationship between SRI and the CIA's scientific analysis staff that would persist for more than two decades.[^1]
Green was working in the CIA's Life Sciences Division when physicist [[Hal Puthoff]] initiated contact with the agency regarding proposed research on anomalous mental phenomena. On June 27, 1972, Puthoff wrote to Green at the CIA outlining remote viewing as a legitimate area for scientific investigation, proposing formal experiments at SRI to assess whether the phenomena could be reproduced under controlled conditions. This letter - subsequently released under [[Freedom of Information Act|FOIA]] and housed in the [[CIA Reading Room]] - established the institutional relationship between SRI and the CIA's scientific analysis staff that would persist for more than two decades.[^1]
Green served as the primary CIA officer receiving and evaluating SRI's experimental results during the early years of the program, which was organized under various code names before being consolidated as the [[Stargate Project|STAR GATE]] program. In this capacity he reviewed classified experimental data, participated in briefings, and maintained the agency's formal interest in the research while keeping it within the Life Sciences Division's medical and scientific framework rather than the operational framework of the Directorate of Operations.[^2]
Green served as the primary CIA officer receiving and evaluating SRI's experimental results during the early years of the program, which was organized under various code names before being consolidated as the [[Stargate Project|STAR GATE]] program. In this capacity he reviewed classified experimental data, participated in briefings, and maintained the agency's formal interest in the research while keeping it within the Life Sciences Division's medical and scientific framework rather than the operational framework of the [[Directorate of Operations]].[^2]
### Uri Geller and the SRI Experiments
Green served as the CIA's primary handler and scientific overseer during [[Uri Geller]]'s testing at SRI in 1972-1973. Geller, an Israeli entertainer claiming psychokinetic and clairvoyant abilities, underwent a series of formal laboratory tests under the direction of Puthoff and Russell Targ. Green was responsible for reviewing the experimental protocols, receiving the results, and assessing their implications for the agency. He administered or oversaw medical evaluations of Geller, including neurological and psychological assessments designed to identify physiological correlates of the claimed abilities.[^2]
Green served as the CIA's primary handler and scientific overseer during [[Uri Geller]]'s testing at SRI in 1972-1973. Geller, an [[Israel|Israeli]] entertainer claiming psychokinetic and clairvoyant abilities, underwent a series of formal laboratory tests under the direction of Puthoff and [[Russell Targ]]. Green was responsible for reviewing the experimental protocols, receiving the results, and assessing their implications for the agency. He administered or oversaw medical evaluations of Geller, including neurological and psychological assessments designed to identify physiological correlates of the claimed abilities.[^2]
Green's assessment of the Geller results was qualified: he acknowledged that the experiments produced results he could not explain through conventional means while maintaining that the data did not constitute proof of psychic ability as conventionally understood. He was skeptical of organized programs to train multiple personnel as psychic operatives, believing the evidence supported only that a small number of individuals produced anomalous results under controlled conditions.[^2]
### Sugar Grove and Sensitive Facility Remote Viewing
Green was the CIA officer informed of and involved in evaluating the Sugar Grove incident, in which [[Pat Price]] and [[Ingo Swann]] were provided geographic coordinates corresponding to a classified [[NSA]] signals intelligence facility at Sugar Grove, [[West Virginia]], and independently produced detailed descriptions of the installation. The accuracy of the descriptions - which included internal organizational details not publicly available - created significant concern within the NSA about whether the remote viewing program represented a security vulnerability for highly classified facilities. Green managed the CIA's response to NSA's concerns about the implications of the result.[^2]
Green was the CIA officer informed of and involved in evaluating the [[Sugar Grove, West Virginia|Sugar Grove]] incident, in which [[Pat Price]] and [[Ingo Swann]] were provided geographic coordinates corresponding to a classified [[NSA]] signals intelligence facility at Sugar Grove, [[West Virginia]], and independently produced detailed descriptions of the installation. The accuracy of the descriptions - which included internal organizational details not publicly available - created significant concern within the NSA about whether the remote viewing program represented a security vulnerability for highly classified facilities. Green managed the CIA's response to NSA's concerns about the implications of the result.[^2]
### Esalen and the Soviet Exchange Program
Green's name appears in CIA documents related to monitoring of the [[Esalen Institute]]'s Soviet-American Exchange Program in the late 1970s and early 1980s. His connection to Puthoff and the SRI remote viewing program placed him in the intersection between the CIA's interest in Soviet parapsychology research and Esalen's role as a civilian forum for U.S.-Soviet scientific exchange, including exchange specifically touching on parapsychology and consciousness research. The CIA maintained passive collection on Esalen's Soviet contacts, and Green's position made him a natural node for any intelligence bearing on Soviet research in related areas.[^1]
Green's name appears in CIA documents related to monitoring of the [[Esalen Institute]]'s [[Esalen Soviet-American Exchange Program|Soviet-American Exchange Program]] in the late 1970s and early 1980s. His connection to Puthoff and the SRI remote viewing program placed him in the intersection between the CIA's interest in Soviet parapsychology research and Esalen's role as a civilian forum for U.S.-Soviet scientific exchange, including exchange specifically touching on parapsychology and consciousness research. The CIA maintained passive collection on Esalen's Soviet contacts, and Green's position made him a natural node for any intelligence bearing on Soviet research in related areas.[^1]
### Lawrence Livermore Laboratory Investigation
@ -48,15 +53,28 @@ After several scientists at [[Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory]] reported
### Post-CIA Career
Following his departure from CIA, Green continued academic and research work in neurophysiology and forensic medicine. He was associated with Wayne State University School of Medicine, where he worked in forensic pathology and neurological research.[^2]
Following his departure from CIA, Green continued academic and research work in neurophysiology and forensic medicine. He was associated with [[Wayne State University School of Medicine]], where he worked in forensic pathology and neurological research.[^2]
Green contributed as a consultant and scientific advisor to the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program ([[AATIP]]), the Pentagon's UAP research program that operated from approximately 2007 to 2012 under the direction of [[Luis D. Elizondo III|Luis Elizondo]]. His contribution included review of reported physical and physiological effects on individuals claiming proximity to anomalous aerial phenomena. He published research examining injuries reported by people claiming UAP encounters - a category he termed "exotic wounds" - applying forensic neurological analysis to the reported symptom patterns. This work represented the extension of his long-standing interest in the medical and physiological dimensions of anomalous phenomena from the SRI era into the post-AATIP period.[^3]
Green contributed as a consultant and scientific advisor to the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AATIP), the Pentagon's UAP research program that operated from approximately 2007 to 2012 under the direction of [[Luis D. Elizondo III|Luis Elizondo]]. His contribution included review of reported physical and physiological effects on individuals claiming proximity to anomalous aerial phenomena. He published research examining injuries reported by people claiming UAP encounters - a category he termed "exotic wounds" - applying forensic neurological analysis to the reported symptom patterns. This work represented the extension of his long-standing interest in the medical and physiological dimensions of anomalous phenomena from the SRI era into the post-AATIP period.[^3]
A Defense Electronics article of July 1993 in the CIA's Star Gate files, on closed briefings by the Russian scientist Igor Smirnov on "a computerized acoustic device allegedly capable of implanting thoughts in a person's mind," held from March 17 in northern Virginia and later at the University of Kansas Medical Center, lists among "the non-military attendees" "Dr. Richard Nakamura of the National Institute of Mental Health and Dr. Christopher Green, director of General Motors Corp. (GM) biomedical research department in Detroit"; whether this is the Green of this page the article does not say.[^900]
A [[Defense Electronics]] article of July 1993 in the CIA's Star Gate files, on closed briefings by the Russian scientist [[Igor Smirnov]] on "a computerized acoustic device allegedly capable of implanting thoughts in a person's mind," held from March 17 in [[Northern Virginia|northern Virginia]] and later at the [[University of Kansas Medical Center]], lists among "the non-military attendees" "Dr. [[Richard Nakamura]] of the [[National Institute of Mental Health]] and Dr. Christopher Green, director of [[General Motors]] Corp. (GM) biomedical research department in [[Detroit]]"; whether this is the Green of this page the article does not say.[^4]
### UFO-Related Contacts, 1986 to 1997
[[Mark Pilkington]] wrote in *[[Mirage Men]]* of a meeting with Green, whose interest in UFOs, he wrote, went back "some three decades to his time as the CIA's 'keeper of the weird' at the Office for Science and Technology," adding: "Really he was a senior science analyst, but a small part of his work involved intelligence to do with remote viewing (RV), UFOs and other hot paranormal topics of the 1970s." Pilkington described Green as "a close and long-standing friend of Rick Doty" ([[Richard Doty]]), whom he "talked about with unguarded warmth and respect." Asked about silver spheres from [[Yosemite National Park|Yosemite]], Green said, in Pilkington's account, "We have reconnaissance craft that fit that description," and of quiet helicopters "disguised" as UFOs to probe security and nuclear installations, "I'm pretty sure that it happened." Pilkington wrote that at a Denny's restaurant "back in 1986" Green, Puthoff and [[Jacques Vallee]] "distilled what they knew about the subject into what has become known as the 'core story,'" and quoted Green as stating the core story: "The ETs came here, maybe once, maybe a few times. Either through accident or design, the US government acquired one of their craft. The only problem was that the physics that powered the craft were so advanced that for decades we humans have struggled to understand it or to replicate it." He described "paraphrenia," a delusion a person can "confine and control," as the category into which many believers fall.[^5]
Vallee wrote in May 1986 that he intended to present "strong comments about the Secret Onion project" to Green; Vallee's name for the project is the [[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]] of [[John B. Alexander]]. According to the [[Loose Threads Report|Loose Threads]] authors, Puthoff said Green received an invitation to the group's meetings but did not attend, and Green told Vallee in 1989 that he was reluctant to take part unless the initiative had an official funding stream. In an entry of August 1990 Vallee recorded Green as dismissing [[Howard Blum]]'s 1987 account of a secret UFO group as an allusion to the proposal of Alexander and [[Ron Blackburn]] that "went nowhere," adding that he had gone to see [[Jack Vorona]], who "told me, 'They never let me in on it!'" In February 1990 Vallee wrote that Blackburn "had co-organized a national panel on UFOs" with Green, "who never told me about this." Green's 2007 curriculum vitae, as quoted by the authors of the Loose Threads Report, lists him as chairman of an "Independent Science Panel, Office of the Undersecretary, Operations Research, DO Army (1989 to present)" and as a member of the [[National Research Council]] Committee on Biotechnology in the Year 2020 from 1989 to 1992.[^6]
An April 15, 1993 transcript of a call between [[Ronald Pandolfi]] and [[C. B. Scott Jones]] has Pandolfi say, of the briefing prepared for [[Laurance Rockefeller]]'s visit to the [[White House]] science adviser [[John Gibbons|John H. Gibbons]], "Kit was supposed to meet with Jack yesterday and supposed to give us some guidance today if there is any additional follow-up or what his reactions were." The person who supplied the transcript to the White House called it "purported."[^7] In a letter of March 29, 1997 [[Richard Farley|C. Richard Farley Jr.]] wrote to Gibbons that Green "terms 'myth-making'" the efforts of "cultists and culture-change agents employed in ongoing efforts by Laurance Rockefeller, with his attorney [[Henry L. Diamond|Henry Diamond]] and former Pell aide (and intelligence 'rogue') C.R. 'Scott' Jones."[^8] [[Richard J. Boylan]] listed Green as Blue Jay in a roster of the [[The Aviary|Aviary]]; the passages of the Pilkington interview read do not use the term.[^9]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Puthoff, Harold E. Letter to Christopher Green, CIA, June 27, 1972. CIA FOIA Reading Room, cia.gov/readingroom. CIA document CIA-RDP96-00791R000200030006-8 (released). Kripal, Jeffrey J. *Esalen: America and the Religion of No Religion*. University of Chicago Press, 2007, pp. 381-385.
[^2]: Jacobsen, Annie. *Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis*. Little, Brown and Company, 2017.
[^3]: Lacatski, James T., Kelleher, Colm A., and Knapp, George. *Skinwalkers at the Pentagon: An Insider's Account of the Secret Government UAP Program*. RTMA, 2021. Elizondo, Luis. *IMMINENT: Inside the Pentagon's Hunt for UFOs*. Morrow, 2024.
[^900]: "DoD, Intel Agencies Look at Russian Mind Control Technology, Claims," July 1993, reprinted from *Defense Electronics,* CIA-RDP96-00792R000600150001-5. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. The article gives no CIA affiliation and the identification is not confirmed.
[^4]: "DoD, Intel Agencies Look at Russian Mind Control Technology, Claims," July 1993, reprinted from *Defense Electronics,* CIA-RDP96-00792R000600150001-5. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. The article gives no CIA affiliation and the identification is not confirmed.
[^5]: Pilkington, Mark. *Mirage Men.* 2010, chapter "The Man in the White Coat," https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf. The "keeper of the weird" and Denny's statements are Pilkington's narration; the "core story" and "paraphrenia" passages are quoted from Green. Sole source for the passages so cited.
[^6]: Vallee, Jacques. Journal entries of May 11, 1986 (*Forbidden Science: Volume Three,* p. 242, as quoted in Basterfield, Keith, "Jacques Vallee and the 'Secret Onion,'" https://anomalyarchives.org/collections/file/atp-aka-secret-onion/), and February and August 1990 (as quoted in Elizondo, Daniel, and The Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," pp. 21 and 66-67, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf, which does not name the volume; the period is that of *Forbidden Science: Volume Four*). Neither book was opened. Sole source for the passages so cited.
[^7]: "Telecon: Ron Pandolphy and Scott Jones," April 15, 1993, enclosure to Farley's letter of April 29, 1995, Clinton Presidential Library, Office of Science and Technology Policy FOIA 01-22, item 46, https://avalonlibrary.net/Grant_Cameron/Clinton_Presidential_Library_collection/OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022/1995%2004%2029_C.%20Richard%20Farley,%20Jr.%20to%20John%20Gibbons%20-%20OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022%20-%20item%20no%2046.pdf.
[^8]: Farley, C. Richard, Jr., letter to John H. Gibbons, March 29, 1997, OSTP FOIA 01-22, item 75, same collection.
[^9]: Boylan, Richard J. "UFO/ET-Disclosure Policy Splits Covert Network," *Perceptions,* http://web.archive.org/web/20130831033026/http://www.think-aboutit.com/ufo/aviary.htm. Sole source.

29
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Paul Bennewitz.md
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@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ relations:
role: "target of the disinformation operation Doty described in 2005"
fn: 4
created: 2026-10-01
updated: 2026-10-01
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Paul Fredrick Bennewitz, recorded by the [[Air Force Office of Special Investigations]] (AFOSI) in October 1980 as a civilian born on September 30, 1927 in [[Kansas]], was the president of [[Thunder Scientific]], an [[Albuquerque]] maker of humidity equipment with contracts at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]], and lived in the Four Hills section of Albuquerque, adjacent to the northern boundary of the base's Manzano area.[^1][^2][^3] By his own account to AFOSI he had spent fifteen months by October 1980 photographing lights and recording electronic signals over Manzano and Coyote Canyon; he took the material to AFOSI and was interviewed by [[Richard Doty]]. In 2005 Doty said that AFOSI had convinced Bennewitz the signals were alien in order to protect what was happening at Kirtland, and that the effort included planted objects and helicopters near [[Dulce, New Mexico]].[^4]
@ -81,15 +81,31 @@ On December 5, 1983 the Air Force Intelligence Service told [[KOB-TV]] that AFOS
Moore wrote in FOCUS in 1989 that in September 1982 there were, as far as he knew, only three copies of the Aquarius document: one that he had passed to Bennewitz for safekeeping, one in safekeeping elsewhere, and one in his briefcase on a trip to [[San Francisco]]. There he had a morning meeting with a man who turned out to be an associate of the New York researcher [[Peter Gersten]]; that afternoon his car was broken into and his briefcase stolen. Four months later a copy of the same document, with annotations Moore had pencilled on it, turned up in Gersten's hands, and Moore wrote that he had never received a satisfactory explanation of how Gersten obtained it. The 1990 report adds that the break-in occurred on September 13, 1982 and was reported to the San Francisco police, and states that the government had motives of its own in wanting to discredit Gersten, who at the time was pursuing [[Freedom of Information Act]] suits and planned to make a federal case of the [[Cash-Landrum incident]]. According to the authors Gersten began circulating the document to a few members of the UFO community in early 1983 without endorsing it as authentic; they wrote that whether the break-in was engineered remains unknown.[^15] Klass wrote that the researcher [[Robert Todd]] established in early 1983 that the teletype Doty had provided to Moore was bogus.[^16]
### The Albuquerque Tribune, April 8, 1983
The Albuquerque Tribune of Friday, April 8, 1983 printed on page 6, as a jump from page A-1 under the headline "U.S. reports tell of sightings," an account of Air Force reports on Kirtland. It described Bennewitz as "president of a local electronics firm" living adjacent to the northern boundary of the Manzano base, and reported that he said he saw four "saucer or hat-shaped objects lined up behind the outside fence" of the Manzano area on February 2, 1980, and filmed them from about 2,500 yards. It quoted an Air Force report written months later as saying he produced still photographs and 2,600 feet of 8mm film "depicting unidentified aerial objects flying over and around Manzano Weapons Storage Area and Coyote Canyon Test Area," and reported that the investigator, Miller, a former Project Blue Book investigator, concluded only that "no conclusions could be made whether these objects pose a threat to Manzano-Coyote Canyon areas." It reported that on November 19 (1980) Bennewitz was told the Air Force would not investigate and "was not in a position to evaluate the information and photographs he has collected," and that former Senator [[Harrison Schmitt]] had inquired why the Air Force declined; the AFOSI forms above date the corresponding statement to Doty and November 17, 1980.[^17]
The Tribune quoted George Pearce, the Kirtland public affairs officer, as saying Bennewitz "said he was in contact with alien beings through his computer and wanted us to investigate," and that he told Bennewitz Project Blue Book had ended in 1969, and quoted Colonel John Aday, Kirtland chief of public affairs, as saying UFOs are no threat to national defense and that he had "no idea" what the 1980 sightings were. It reported that Bennewitz had briefed UFO enthusiasts in Albuquerque earlier that week, saying there was an alien base inside a mesa near [[Dulce, New Mexico|Dulce]], that the aliens intended to enslave the earth, that he had seen aliens on a video screen, "green and about 4 feet tall," and that cattle mutilations supplied the aliens' needs through gene splicing; the paper said he planned a book. It also reported that the Kirtland sightings were described in Air Force reports sent to the [[Mutual UFO Network]] in December 1982, and quoted MUFON international director Walter Andrus, by telephone from [[Seguin, Texas]], as saying MUFON had filed Freedom of Information Act requests and that the reports had been held confidential until MUFON received the documents; the paper gave MUFON as having more than 1,000 members, about a dozen in New Mexico.[^17] A search of the newspaper archive also lists an [[Albuquerque Journal]] item of April 9, 1983, page 5, and an [[Alamogordo Daily News]] item of April 11, 1983, page 12, which were not read.
### Moore's account
At the 1989 MUFON symposium Moore, quoted by [[Curt Collins]], said: "I would play the disinformation game, get my hands dirty just often enough [while trying] to learn as much as possible about who was directing it and why." He said Bennewitz was convinced he was receiving alien radio transmissions and had written a home computer program to translate them into English, that the program could as easily assign "alien" translations to ordinary Morse code, and that [[J. Allen Hynek]] had also examined it.[^17] In a 2000 letter to the newsletter [[Saucer Smear]], Moore wrote that Hynek's role was providing Bennewitz a carefully crafted means of decoding the supposed alien transmissions; on a radio program in 1994 he said that Hynek "was under contract to the Air Force and I have a copy of that contract in case anybody wants to contest this."[^17] The researcher Janet Smith wrote to Saucer Smear in 2000 that Moore had told her in the early 1980s that he had "squirreled Bennewitz away in Canada for his own protection."[^18]
At the 1989 MUFON symposium Moore, quoted by [[Curt Collins]], said: "I would play the disinformation game, get my hands dirty just often enough [while trying] to learn as much as possible about who was directing it and why." He said Bennewitz was convinced he was receiving alien radio transmissions and had written a home computer program to translate them into English, that the program could as easily assign "alien" translations to ordinary Morse code, and that [[J. Allen Hynek]] had also examined it.[^18] In a 2000 letter to the newsletter [[Saucer Smear]], Moore wrote that Hynek's role was providing Bennewitz a carefully crafted means of decoding the supposed alien transmissions; on a radio program in 1994 he said that Hynek "was under contract to the Air Force and I have a copy of that contract in case anybody wants to contest this."[^18] The researcher Janet Smith wrote to Saucer Smear in 2000 that Moore had told her in the early 1980s that he had "squirreled Bennewitz away in Canada for his own protection."[^19]
William L. Moore said that he first became aware of Bennewitz through the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization board after moving to [[Arizona]] in 1979, in connection with the hypnotic regression by Dr. [[R. Leo Sprinkle|Leo Sprinkle]] of a woman who reported watching a cattle mutilation and being taken aboard a craft, and Bennewitz's belief, as a physicist with electronics equipment, that the aliens had implanted a communication device in her; that Bennewitz called his effort "Project Beta" and told APRO in late 1979 that he had detected signals from UFOs; that [[James Lorenzen]] described Bennewitz as "prone to make great leaps of logic on the basis of incomplete data"; that he first met Bennewitz in early 1981 and kept in fairly regular contact until mid-1985; and that "the prime objective of the counter intelligence people who swarmed around Bennewitz between 1980 and 84 seemed to be the maintenance of a high-level security net around the radio signals he was intercepting," which he was "unable to determine why" was a priority.[^20]
Moore said "there is no question that Paul was receiving some sort of electromagnetic signal on his equipment, and it is equally certain that his photos and films do depict unusual lights," most filmed over the Kirtland-Sandia complex, and that "the real question" was whether they were UFO related or related to "some classified government project." He said that by mid-1982 Bennewitz's account contained two groups of aliens, a secret treaty with the government broken by the "grays," an underground base under Archuleta Peak near Dulce, and an atomic powered ship that crashed there; that he and others who examined Bennewitz's photographs and independently obtained pictures of the same area could not see what Bennewitz saw; that Bennewitz's home computer program assigned words and sentence fragments to individual pulses and could as easily be applied to Morse code, and that shuffling the components of the printouts produced messages saying "virtually the same thing"; and that J. Allen Hynek had independently examined the program.[^20] He described driving to West Mesa after Bennewitz pointed out maneuvering lights as alien craft, finding helicopters with searchlights, one passing about 300 feet overhead, and being told by Kirtland the next day that a search and rescue training mission had been flown there; Bennewitz was still making the same claims in 1984.[^20]
Moore said that "the entire story of a secret treaty between the US government and the aliens, of exchanges of technology... of aliens allegedly having implanted hundreds of thousands if not millions of human beings" came about "as a result of the disinformation process," that he provided "regular reports on its effectiveness to some of the very people who were doing it to Paul," and that "I watched Paul become systematically more paranoid and more emotionally unstable": Bennewitz kept guns and knives around his house, installed extra locks, said the aliens came through his walls at night and injected him, suffered insomnia, and on one visit ate none of his lunch while smoking 28 cigarettes in 45 minutes. Moore said he urged him to drop the subject, that Bennewitz said things were getting bad, and that "not long afterward, I heard he had been hospitalized and was under psychiatric care." He added that "perhaps Paul had merely stumbled upon signals generated from some sophisticated high-level government project whose security people had hit upon UFO related disinformation as their ultimate cover," or had found "a real although somewhat less sensational government UFO project, which elected to disinform him," and that "from what I knew of all of this, its purpose was strictly to discredit Bennewitz and nothing more."[^20]
[[Mark Pilkington]], writing from the videotape of the speech and from Greg Bishop's *Project Beta* (2005), gave a narrative in which Moore met "Falcon" at a restaurant in Albuquerque after a call on or about September 8, 1980, and at a second meeting on September 30 Falcon came with Richard Doty and said he worked for the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]]; none of these details appear in the caption transcript of the speech, which says only that Moore was approached in early September 1980 by a well-placed individual in the intelligence community and that Doty was the liaison. Moore denied ever being paid.[^21][^20] Moore wrote in the 1990 report that "Falcon" designated Doty as middle man in October 1980 and that the anonymous Weitzel letter sent to APRO in July 1980 was "bait" written by Doty, which Moore, then the APRO board member in charge of Special Investigations, received for action.[^10]
Pilkington reported Moore's account that Hynek brought a computer to Bennewitz in mid-1981 which Moore said Hynek told him the Air Force had instructed him to deliver, without saying where it came from, and that the printed "decodes" of pulses it produced included lines such as "VICTORY OUR BASES OBTAIN SUPPLIES FROM THE STARSHIP."[^21] Pilkington wrote that after Bennewitz's presentation at Kirtland on November 10, 1980 the only people remaining were AFOSI and [[National Security Agency]] representatives, that the NSA decided to let him continue intercepting, and that an NSA intercept of a Soviet communication mentioned Bennewitz as a possible source; the last two points are Pilkington's statements without a cited document, and differ from the account Bishop gave on *Coast to Coast AM* in 2005, already on this page.[^21] Pilkington wrote that when Moore last visited Bennewitz in 1987 Bennewitz was barely sleeping or eating.[^21]
### Doty's account and the hospitalization
Doty described what he called a two-tier approach. AFOSI first showed intense interest in everything Bennewitz had; the National Security Agency later became involved because it was extremely interested in his equipment, which Doty said was tapping a type of communication he should not have been able to receive. AFOSI then became friends with him, which Doty called what one does in counterintelligence, began vetting him and began feeding him information. According to Doty, AFOSI did not have to say much because Bennewitz already had the idea; Bennewitz had told the agents that if he tapped into something he wanted to be told, which AFOSI would not do because it did not know who his friends were. Doty said the agents told him instead that he had tapped into something unknown and proposed to work on it together, and turned everything he gathered around so that it appeared alien in origin. He said that disinformation was a primary tactic of United States intelligence in the 1960s, 1970s and into the 1980s, that the most effective version gives the target enough credible information to lead him along, and that "this is an art that is taught. I didn't come up with all of this by myself, I was trained," at a counterintelligence and counterespionage school.[^4]
Doty said on Coast to Coast AM that AFOSI chose to convince Bennewitz rather than obtain a search warrant and seize his property, which "would cause a lot of publicity." Asked whether Bennewitz had needed psychiatric care, Doty said, "Yes, and I visited Paul a number of times," and that he tried, through Bennewitz's son, to tell him the earlier information was untrue, against his commander's orders.[^4] In a letter to Saucer Smear in 2000 Doty wrote that he never believed Bennewitz was in contact with extraterrestrials, and Moseley wrote that Doty told him the National Security Agency independently worked to steer Bennewitz deeper into his belief system and tapped his telephone; Klass replied that the agency does not tap the lines of resident citizens.[^5][^18] Bishop said on the same broadcast that Bennewitz spent about three months in a mental hospital around 1988, that intelligence officers wanted to learn what he knew and with whom he was speaking, and that the [[Soviet Union]] was their concern. Bishop also said the base was then tracking Soviet satellites, a point he said he drew from the testimony of a few people who worked at Kirtland.[^4]
Doty said on Coast to Coast AM that AFOSI chose to convince Bennewitz rather than obtain a search warrant and seize his property, which "would cause a lot of publicity." Asked whether Bennewitz had needed psychiatric care, Doty said, "Yes, and I visited Paul a number of times," and that he tried, through Bennewitz's son, to tell him the earlier information was untrue, against his commander's orders.[^4] In a letter to Saucer Smear in 2000 Doty wrote that he never believed Bennewitz was in contact with extraterrestrials, and Moseley wrote that Doty told him the National Security Agency independently worked to steer Bennewitz deeper into his belief system and tapped his telephone; Klass replied that the agency does not tap the lines of resident citizens.[^5][^19] Bishop said on the same broadcast that Bennewitz spent about three months in a mental hospital around 1988, that intelligence officers wanted to learn what he knew and with whom he was speaking, and that the [[Soviet Union]] was their concern. Bishop also said the base was then tracking Soviet satellites, a point he said he drew from the testimony of a few people who worked at Kirtland.[^4]
Doty said there were four operations pertaining to UFOs; he named those against Bennewitz and [[Linda Moulton Howe]] and said there were two others against groups of people.[^4] Bishop said Bennewitz died about a week before Bishop first travelled to Albuquerque to begin interviews for his book.[^4]
@ -111,5 +127,8 @@ Doty said there were four operations pertaining to UFOs; he named those against
[^14]: Moore and Shandera, MJ-12 Documents, "The Aquarius Document (Feb. 1981)" and "The Aquarius Teletype," pp. 7 to 9, quoting Moore in FOCUS, June 30, 1989, p. 13, and September 30, 1989, p. 8.
[^15]: Moore and Shandera, MJ-12 Documents, "The Aquarius Teletype," pp. 8 to 9, quoting Moore in FOCUS, June 30, 1989, p. 13.
[^16]: Philip J. Klass, Skeptics UFO Newsletter no. 44, March 1997, pp. 1 to 3, https://cdn.centerforinquiry.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/docs/SUN/SUN44.pdf
[^17]: Curt Collins, "Bill Moore and UFO Disinformation Accusations," Blue Blurry Lines, April 29, 2022, https://www.blueblurrylines.com/2019/12/bill-moore-on-hynek-and-vallee.html , quoting Moore's speech at the MUFON Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989 (published in the MUFON UFO Journal, November and December 1989), Moore's letter in Saucer Smear, August 10, 2000, and Moore on Don Ecker's UFOs Tonite, June 11, 1994. The speech text itself was not obtained.
[^18]: James W. Moseley, ed., Saucer Smear, vol. 47, July 15, 2000, "Missives from the Masses" (letters of Richard Doty, Philip J. Klass and Janet Smith), http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/v47/ss000715.htm (printout of June 14, 2013), pp. 6 to 8.
[^17]: "U.S. reports tell of sightings," Albuquerque Tribune (Albuquerque), April 8, 1983, p. 6 (jump from p. A-1; no byline visible), https://www.newspapers.com/image/784735876/
[^18]: Curt Collins, "Bill Moore and UFO Disinformation Accusations," Blue Blurry Lines, April 29, 2022, https://www.blueblurrylines.com/2019/12/bill-moore-on-hynek-and-vallee.html , quoting Moore's speech at the MUFON Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989 (published in the MUFON UFO Journal, November and December 1989), Moore's letter in Saucer Smear, August 10, 2000, and Moore on Don Ecker's UFOs Tonite, June 11, 1994. The speech text itself was not obtained.
[^19]: James W. Moseley, ed., Saucer Smear, vol. 47, July 15, 2000, "Missives from the Masses" (letters of Richard Doty, Philip J. Klass and Janet Smith), http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/v47/ss000715.htm (printout of June 14, 2013), pp. 6 to 8.
[^20]: William L. Moore, "UFOs and the U.S. Government, Part I," address to the MUFON International UFO Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989, video recorded by Ron Regehr (Internet Archive item bill-moore-1989-mufon), read in the caption transcript of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUfimKiS-po; captions mis-render names ("Benowitz," "Dodie") and quotations follow the caption wording.
[^21]: Mark Pilkington, *Mirage Men* (2010), chapters "Aviary," "The ET Factor" and "The Bennewitz affair" sections, https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf

4
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Richard Bissell.md
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@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ tags:
- 1950s
- 1960s
category: "Intelligence & Government"
summary: "Richard Bissell was the CIA's Deputy Director for Plans from 1958 to 1962 who managed development of the U-2 spy plane program, authorized ZR/RIFLE (the assassination planning unit) under William Harvey, and organized the Bay of Pigs invasion - resigning in February 1962 after the invasion's failure."
summary: "Richard Bissell was the CIA's Deputy Director for Plans from 1958 to 1962, managed the U-2 program, authorized ZR/RIFLE under William Harvey, organized the Bay of Pigs invasion and resigned in February 1962."
born: 1909-09-18
died: 1994-02-07
location: "Washington, D.C."
@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ The combination of his economic and administrative skills, his connections to th
### The U-2 Program
Bissell's most technically significant achievement was managing the development of the Lockheed U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft from 1954 onward. Working with Lockheed's Kelly Johnson and the Skunk Works division at a secret facility ([[Area 51]] at Groom Lake, Nevada), Bissell managed the program from concept to operational deployment in approximately eighteen months. The U-2 conducted its first operational overflight of the Soviet Union in June 1956.
Bissell's most technically significant achievement was managing the development of the Lockheed U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft from 1954 onward. Working with Lockheed's Kelly Johnson and the [[Skunk Works]] division at a secret facility ([[Area 51]] at Groom Lake, Nevada), Bissell managed the program from concept to operational deployment in approximately eighteen months. The U-2 conducted its first operational overflight of the Soviet Union in June 1956.
By 1960, the U-2 program had produced invaluable intelligence on Soviet nuclear and missile programs, bomber deployments, and military-industrial infrastructure. The program was ended as a Soviet overflight tool when [[Francis Gary Powers|Gary Powers]] was shot down over Sverdlovsk on May 1, 1960. The diplomatic crisis that followed - [[Dwight Eisenhower|Eisenhower]] first denied then admitted U.S. responsibility, collapsing the Paris Summit - was a direct consequence of the program Bissell had managed.[^1]

38
10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Richard Doty.md
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@ -44,8 +44,13 @@ relations:
with: "[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]]"
role: "said in 2005 that the FBI investigated him in 1988 or 1989 over the MJ-12 documents"
fn: 5
- type: member_of
with: "[[The Aviary]]"
start: 1986
role: "as alleged by Robert M. Collins in Exempt from Disclosure, 'the surrogate Falcon'; Doty denied in 1989 that he was the Falcon of the 1988 television program"
fn: 23
created: 2026-10-01
updated: 2026-10-01
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Richard Charles Doty served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] from September 17, 1968 to September 30, 1988, retiring as a master sergeant at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]], and was commissioned an officer of the [[New Mexico State Police]] on December 1, 1988.[^1][^2] From May 29, 1979 his recorded assignments were with units of the [[Air Force Office of Special Investigations]] (AFOSI) at Kirtland, where he was the special agent named in the October 1980 reports on [[Paul Bennewitz]].[^3][^4] In 2005 he told the radio host [[Art Bell]] that he had given Bennewitz disinformation on orders.[^5] [[Robert Hastings]] and [[Philip J. Klass]] have named him as "Falcon," the intelligence source whom [[William L. Moore]] described as the origin of material on [[Project Aquarius]] and the [[Majestic-12]] papers; Doty and Moore have both denied it.[^6][^7]
@ -100,9 +105,27 @@ On September 15, 1988 a special agent of the Air Force Office of Special Investi
On November 30, 1988 the chief of the New Mexico State Police told Officer Richard C. Doty that he was commissioned effective December 1, 1988 as a junior patrolman at an annual salary of $19,279, assigned to [[Grants, New Mexico|Grants]].[^2] The personnel file released in 2021 under the state Inspection of Public Records Act, 321 pages, records a Hazardous Materials Safety Board Level I certificate issued in June 1989, a notice that he was not selected for the explosive ordnance disposal team in May 1991, his appointment as a team member on December 1, 1994, and his appointment as temporary commander of the unit on December 27, 1999. On April 25, 2000 the chief assigned four other officers to report to Sergeant Doty in Albuquerque on April 28 for explosive ordnance disposal support to the [[Secret Service]] during Vice President [[Al Gore]]'s visit. He was removed from the team effective July 2, 2005, per correspondence submitted by his lieutenant and himself. A benefits record dated February 9, 2015 gives December 1, 1988 as his date of hire, February 13, 2015 as the end of coverage, and "Employee retired" as the reason. The state withheld his military discharge, disciplinary records and performance appraisals. The requester's description of the file as beginning "circa August of 1988 as a Staff Sergeant" does not match the commission letter.[^2]
### Letters and statements of 1988 and 1989
On March 5, 1988 Doty wrote to [[Larry W. Bryant]], who had sought his service record under the [[Freedom of Information Act]] and had written to the *[[Alexandria Journal]]* about Doty and [[Linda Moulton Howe]], that "a total of sixteen writers, journalists and newspaper reporters have tried to obtain information about me through the FOIA channels over the past seven years" and none had succeeded; that Howe had telephoned him in early 1983 about the 1980 Kirtland incident and that he met her in April 1983 in the offices of AFOSI District 17 after receiving permission from his supervisor, the meeting lasting about an hour and being "monitored by two of my supervisors"; that her questions "were centered around MJ-12, extraterrestrial beings, Project Aquarius and some other subject matter about the history of UFOs," on which he told her he had no knowledge; that "I can say, without a doubt, I never showed her any such document"; that she herself raised "a so-called 'Project Aquarius' briefing paper for [[Jimmy Carter|President Carter]]"; that the government investigated him over it and "I was totally cleared"; that he made only a "Memo for Record" of the April 1983 meeting, filed in his safe for a year and destroyed; that he had telephone conversations or short meetings with her over eighteen months and none after August 1984; and that "I know of no Government operation past or present that involved Ms. Howe or her research about UFOs." The letter ends with the sentences "I know of no secret Government investigation of UFOs. I have never heard of MJ-12 or any secret Government agency that investigates UFOs."[^20]
Howe's own account differs: she wrote that in the April 9, 1983 meeting Doty showed her a "Briefing Paper for the President of the United States of America," said he would call her using the code name "Falcon," followed by calls from others including a "Tom," and in June 1983 said he was officially out of the project; she responded to the denial with a sworn statement and her correspondence.[^20] The statement Hastings attributed to her, that Doty identified himself as Falcon and said Moore gave him the name, is not in her book. See Linda Moulton Howe.
In a letter of March 3, 1989 to a correspondent whose name is deleted, Doty wrote that he had spent eight years with AFOSI at Kirtland and had been assigned in West [[Germany]]; that "my last two years of service was in the Services career field, but not as a cook"; that while assigned to AFOSI District 70 at Wiesbaden he "performed duties as a counterespionage specialist" and in 1986 "was involved in a sensitive operation" that supervisors "seen ... as being unauthorized," so that "I was asked to leave AFOSI, which I did voluntarily"; that "I never lost my top secret security clearance"; that "If I should base my decision on information that I had access to during my Government Service, I would have to say, yes, Earth has been visited. However, I am not 100 percent certain that the information I had access to was entirely accurate"; that his father was never a Blue Book investigator but an uncle was; and that "the story that I am the Falcon mentioned in the Television program last October" was untrue, "I have been exonerated by Government Investigative Agencies regarding that matter."[^21] He also wrote that a book due out that fall would discuss "inaccurate statements made by CAUS regarding me" and that "this matter involving CAUS will come to an end soon after legal action has been taken." The 1984 chronology on this page shows no 1986 entry; Klass had written in 1997 that Doty was dismissed from AFOSI within two years of a 1985 transfer for turning in bogus claims about his activities.[^7]
### Moore's statements about Doty, 1989
William L. Moore said on July 1, 1989 that the liaison who contacted him after Falcon's approach of September 1980 was "AFOSI agent Richard Doty, a man who has since become quite controversial in his own right and who many people have mistakenly assumed is the Falcon himself"; that the name Falcon was coined by himself and Jaime Shandera in 1984 and Doty was "the Sparrow" in their usage; that in mid-1987, at Falcon's suggestion and with Doty's concurrence, they began hinting that Falcon might be Doty; that Doty was "much better at following orders and implementing the schemes of others than he is at coming up with ideas of his own"; that Doty, stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base at the time, was involved in the 1977 humanoid episode there, which Moore called "a special counterintelligence training exercise in the creation and dissemination of this information," though "not in any capacity where he would have been responsible for creating the documents"; and that Doty wrote the Weitzel letter of July 1980.[^22]
### Chapter in Exempt from Disclosure
In a chapter of *[[Exempt from Disclosure]]* credited to him and headed as "taken from a set of four interviews done by Bill Moore and Jaime Shandera in the 1980s and later updated," Doty stated that he was born February 15, 1950 in New York State and "retired from the United States Air Force in November 1988 as a Master Sergeant" (the personnel record on this page gives September 30, 1988); that in July 1969 at a top secret facility 15 miles southeast of [[Indian Springs|Indian Springs Air Force Base]], where he was a security policeman, a civilian who gave his name as Mr. Blake spoke to him after a saucer-shaped object was towed from a hangar and said "someday you'll know the true story about that object"; that after arriving at AFOSI District 17 at Kirtland in May 1979 he was briefed in his first year into three special programs, the second on collecting information about UFOs, the briefing for which Mr. Blake attended, and the third on safeguarding Air Force technology by methods that included "disinformation"; that a UFO incident at Ellsworth Air Force Base "turned out to be a hoax and the sergeant involved in faking the DD 1569 was punished and dismissed from the Air Force"; that he read an official document that "mentioned a 'Project Aquarius,' which contained 16 volumes of information"; and that [[Kit Green]] related that [[Richard Helms]] told him "Always believe what Richard Doty tells you about UFOs."[^23] In a statement of February 21, 2005 quoted in the same book Doty said Moore "had several sources within the U.S. Government," that he met Moore "with an NSA investigator" on one occasion, and that "during the Bennewitz affair, I met Moore with FBI agents."[^23]
[[Mark Pilkington]] wrote that in late 1981 Doty and Moore, with Bob Pratt, planned a book to which Doty would contribute as "Ronald L. Davis," titled first "Majik 12" and then "The Aquarius Project," a source Pilkington attributes to Brad Sparks and Greenwood's 2007 paper (not obtained).[^24]
### Statements in 2000
In June 2000 the publisher [[James W. Moseley]] reported in Saucer Smear, after telephone interviews, that Doty told him he had visited [[Area 51]] and had been told alien technology was kept there, though his clearance was not high enough to see it, and that Doty said he told Bennewitz years afterward that he had been hoaxed.[^20] In a letter to the July 2000 issue Doty wrote that Moore "was a coded source for OSI," "was paid for his information" and "was used to provide disinformation to Ufologists"; that "two alien spacecrafts crashed in the desert of New Mexico in the summer of 1947" and the government recovered five bodies and one live alien that lived until 1952; that "we don't have any UFOs at Area 51"; and that "during my OSI days, I did perform disinformation operations against many different targets, but everything I did was sanctioned by our Government." Moore wrote in the same issue that he could confirm Doty's comments about Bennewitz and the "energy balls," one of which he had seen briefly in Bennewitz's home.[^8]
In June 2000 the publisher [[James W. Moseley]] reported in Saucer Smear, after telephone interviews, that Doty told him he had visited [[Area 51]] and had been told alien technology was kept there, though his clearance was not high enough to see it, and that Doty said he told Bennewitz years afterward that he had been hoaxed.[^25] In a letter to the July 2000 issue Doty wrote that Moore "was a coded source for OSI," "was paid for his information" and "was used to provide disinformation to Ufologists"; that "two alien spacecrafts crashed in the desert of New Mexico in the summer of 1947" and the government recovered five bodies and one live alien that lived until 1952; that "we don't have any UFOs at Area 51"; and that "during my OSI days, I did perform disinformation operations against many different targets, but everything I did was sanctioned by our Government." Moore wrote in the same issue that he could confirm Doty's comments about Bennewitz and the "energy balls," one of which he had seen briefly in Bennewitz's home.[^8]
### Statements in 2005
@ -110,7 +133,7 @@ On [[Coast to Coast AM]] on February 27, 2005 Doty, with the author [[Greg Bisho
On the same broadcast Doty said he was briefed in a room at the Air Force special security office on a recovery at Roswell by a colonel and a civilian, with a classified 16mm film, and that his 1979 briefing included the statement that in the early 1950s the government had placed Air Force intelligence personnel as advisers to motion picture companies, beginning with a film he named as The Day the Earth Stood Still, to condition the public for a release. He also said that he learned after leaving OSI, in a room with six or seven retired intelligence officers, that a government operation from 1977 or 1978 until 1982 had taken organs from cattle, horses, elk and deer for a biological agent prevention system, and that it had been arranged so that the public would attribute the mutilations to aliens; he said he had no official knowledge of it at the time.[^5]
On July 11, 2013 Rojas wrote to the Air Force asking whether Doty had acted under orders when, as Doty has said according to Rojas, he lied to two senators, broke into a civilian's home and distributed forged documents. AFOSI released records on Rojas's [[Freedom of Information Act]] request on August 2, 2013; Rojas wrote that its public affairs office then stopped speaking with him and that he had received no answer. Rojas wrote that Gabe Valdez of the New Mexico State Police told him he was present when Doty flew Bennewitz over Dulce, that Doty told Bishop and retired Army Colonel [[John B. Alexander]] of the break-in, and that Doty says he was demoted at one point, which the military records Rojas obtained do not show.[^21]
On July 11, 2013 Rojas wrote to the Air Force asking whether Doty had acted under orders when, as Doty has said according to Rojas, he lied to two senators, broke into a civilian's home and distributed forged documents. AFOSI released records on Rojas's Freedom of Information Act request on August 2, 2013; Rojas wrote that its public affairs office then stopped speaking with him and that he had received no answer. Rojas wrote that Gabe Valdez of the New Mexico State Police told him he was present when Doty flew Bennewitz over Dulce, that Doty told Bishop and retired Army Colonel [[John B. Alexander]] of the break-in, and that Doty says he was demoted at one point, which the military records Rojas obtained do not show.[^26]
### Footnotes
@ -133,5 +156,10 @@ On July 11, 2013 Rojas wrote to the Air Force asking whether Doty had acted unde
[^17]: Susan Cooksey, Freedom of Information Manager, Air Force Intelligence Service, letter to Peter L. Clarke, KOB Television, December 5, 1983 (reply to request of November 18, 1983), printout of a reproduction at http://www.openminds.tv/wp-content/uploads/KOB-TV-Bennewitz-FOIA.pdf
[^18]: Moore and Shandera, MJ-12 Documents, "The Aquarius Document (Feb. 1981)" and "The Aquarius Teletype," pp. 7 to 9, quoting Moore in FOCUS, June 30, 1989, p. 13, and September 30, 1989, p. 8.
[^19]: FBI, "Majestic 12," file 65-81170, Part 01, 24 pages: SAC Dallas airtel to Director, October 25, 1988; Director to FBI Dallas, teletype, December 2, 1988; https://vault.fbi.gov/Majestic%2012/Majestic%2012%20Part%2001%20%28Final%29/at_download/file
[^20]: James W. Moseley, "The Paul Bennewitz Case Revisited," Saucer Smear, vol. 47, June 15, 2000, http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/v47/ss000615.htm (printout of June 7, 2013), pp. 1 to 3.
[^21]: Alejandro Rojas, "Open letter to the U.S. Air Force regarding allegations of UFO disinformation," Open Minds, May 6, 2014 (letter sent July 11, 2013; AFOSI FOIA case 2013-03291-F), https://openminds.tv/open-letter-u-s-air-force-allegations-ufo-disinformation/ ; Rojas, "Ex-Air Force Law Enforcement Agent Says He Hoaxed Major UFO Mythologies," HuffPost, May 13, 2014, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/exair-force-law-enforceme_b_5312650
[^20]: Linda Moulton Howe, *An Alien Harvest*, 2nd ed. (2014), pp. 159 to 162 and Appendix 4 (Doty letter of March 5, 1988 to Larry W. Bryant, pp. 261 to 263), https://archive.org/details/howe-l.-m.-an-alien-harvest-2nd-ed-2014 (OCR text read)
[^21]: Richard C. Doty, letter of March 3, 1989 to an unnamed correspondent (reply to a letter of January 9, 1989; address Grants, New Mexico), http://textfiles.com/ufo/doty.ufo. Quotations are as in the file, which has "Weisbaden" and "seen" for "saw."
[^22]: William L. Moore, "UFOs and the U.S. Government, Part I," address to the MUFON International UFO Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989, video recorded by Ron Regehr (Internet Archive item bill-moore-1989-mufon), read in the caption transcript of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUfimKiS-po; captions mis-render names ("Dodie") and are corrected here.
[^23]: Robert Collins and Richard Doty, *Exempt from Disclosure: The Black World of UFOs* (copyright notice 2010), Section 2, Chapter 4, "Richard Doty: AFOSI Counter-Intelligence and Raven Addendum, the Wilderness of Mirrors," and reference 4 to the introduction, https://archive.org/details/exempt-from-disclosure (OCR text read).
[^24]: Mark Pilkington, *Mirage Men* (2010), chapter "Aviary" (Doty), https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf
[^25]: James W. Moseley, "The Paul Bennewitz Case Revisited," Saucer Smear, vol. 47, June 15, 2000, http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/v47/ss000615.htm (printout of June 7, 2013), pp. 1 to 3.
[^26]: Alejandro Rojas, "Open letter to the U.S. Air Force regarding allegations of UFO disinformation," Open Minds, May 6, 2014 (letter sent July 11, 2013; AFOSI FOIA case 2013-03291-F), https://openminds.tv/open-letter-u-s-air-force-allegations-ufo-disinformation/ ; Rojas, "Ex-Air Force Law Enforcement Agent Says He Hoaxed Major UFO Mythologies," HuffPost, May 13, 2014, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/exair-force-law-enforceme_b_5312650

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10 - PEOPLE/(A-G)/Robert Bigelow.md
View file

@ -7,18 +7,88 @@ tags:
summary: "Bigelow has had a lifelong obsession with UAP and paranormal occurrences, and he has used his personal fortune to fund research into these mysteries."
born: 1944-05-12
location: "Las Vegas, Nevada"
aliases:
- Robert T. Bigelow
- Robert Thomas Bigelow
- Bob Bigelow
relations:
- type: funded
with: "[[Never Back Down Inc.]]"
role: "contribution of 20,000,500 dollars reported March 30, 2023"
start: 2023-03-30
fn: 8
- type: funded
with: "[[Make America Great Again Inc.]]"
role: "contributions of 14,175,400 dollars in 2024 and 250,000 dollars in January 2025"
start: 2024-02-09
fn: 8
- type: funded
with: "[[Friends for Harry Reid]]"
role: "10,800 dollars in 1998, 2003 and 2010"
start: 1998-08-07
fn: 7
- type: funded
with: "[[Searchlight Leadership Fund]]"
role: "5,000 dollars (June 13, 2003) and 5,000 dollars from Bigelow Development Aerospace LLC (June 30, 2004)"
start: 2003-06-13
fn: 7
- type: director_of
with: "[[Robert Thomas Bigelow Educational Foundation]]"
role: "president and director, and treasurer and director, per Form 990-PF for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2024"
start: 2024-01
fn: 9
- type: director_of
with: "[[Robert Thomas Bigelow Medical Foundation]]"
role: "president and director, and treasurer and director, per Form 990-PF for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2024"
start: 2024-01
fn: 9
updated: 2026-10-02
---
[[Robert Bigelow]] is a billionaire hotelier, developer, and aerospace magnate known for his long-standing interest in [[Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]] (UAP) and paranormal research. His company, [[Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies]] (BAASS), was the primary contractor for the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AAWSAP), the precursor to the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AATIP).[^1]
[[Robert Bigelow]] is a billionaire hotelier, developer, and aerospace magnate known for his long-standing interest in [[Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]] (UAP) and paranormal research. His company, [[Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies]] (BAASS), was the primary contractor for the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AAWSAP), the precursor to the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP).[^1]
### Interest in UAP and Paranormal Research
Bigelow has had a lifelong obsession with UAP and paranormal occurrences, and he has used his personal fortune to fund research into these mysteries. In the 1990s, he founded the [[National Institute for Discovery Science]] (NIDS) to study UAP and the paranormal. He also purchased [[Skinwalker Ranch]] in Utah, a property known for its long history of strange and often terrifying phenomena, so that his scientists could study the anomalous activity there.[^1]
Bigelow has had a lifelong obsession with UAP and paranormal occurrences, and he has used his personal fortune to fund research into these mysteries. In the 1990s, he founded the [[National Institute for Discovery Science]] (NIDS) to study UAP and the paranormal. He also purchased [[Skinwalker Ranch]] in [[Utah]], a property known for its long history of strange and often terrifying phenomena, so that his scientists could study the anomalous activity there.[^1]
### Role in AATIP
Through his friendship with Senator [[Harry Reid]], Bigelow became a central figure in the establishment of AAWSAP. His company, BAASS, was awarded the $22 million contract to conduct research for the program. BAASS was responsible for investigating UAP incidents, including the [[Colares Incidents]] in Brazil, and for compiling a massive database of UAP encounters. The company also continued the investigation of [[Skinwalker Ranch]] under the auspices of the AATIP program.[^1]
Through his friendship with Senator [[Harry Reid]], Bigelow became a central figure in the establishment of AAWSAP. His company, BAASS, was awarded the contract to conduct research for the program, with a total award amount of 21,948,810 dollars on one released copy of the order form and 10,000,000 dollars on another.[^2] BAASS was responsible for investigating UAP incidents, including the [[Colares Incidents]] in [[Brazil]], and for compiling a massive database of UAP encounters. The company also continued the investigation of Skinwalker Ranch under the auspices of the AATIP program.[^1]
Bigelow's involvement was crucial to the operation of AATIP, and [[Luis Elizondo]] wrote that he spent his own money to front some of the program's costs. However, his role as a private contractor also drew scrutiny from within the [[Pentagon]] and was used by detractors to create a false impression that the program had gone rogue.[^1]
### Federal awards to Bigelow companies
[[USASpending.gov|USAspending.gov]], which holds federal contract data from fiscal 2008 onward, lists these awards to [[Bigelow Aerospace]] entities (companies, not Robert Bigelow personally), all from [[NASA]]: contract NNH13CH31C to Bigelow Aerospace LLC, "to provide and operate the [[Bigelow Expandable Activity Module]] (BEAM) on-board the [[International Space Station]]," phase 2 of the BEAM demonstration project, awarded after full and open competition, period December 20, 2012 to July 1, 2018, 17,839,858 dollars obligated;[^3] contract NNH15CN82C to Bigelow Aerospace LLC for [[NextSTEP]] conceptual studies leveraging the B330 habitat, resulting from broad agency announcement NNH15ZCQ001K, period July 31, 2015 to June 30, 2020, with 12,244,738.15 dollars obligated against a potential value of 16,044,796.15 dollars and 4,875,578 dollars in outlays;[^4] and three delivery orders to [[Bigelow Space One]] LLC for BEAM support: 80JSC021F0007 (October 19, 2020 to December 15, 2021, not competed, 5,006,667 dollars obligated, 5,000,000 dollars outlaid), 80JSC019F0011 (150,000 dollars) and 80JSC018F0024 (40,000 dollars).[^5] The obligations listed total 35,281,263.15 dollars. USAspending returns no award record for contract HHM402-08-C-0072 or for Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies; the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] documents for that contract state the paying office as the [[NSA]] Finance and Accounting Office.
### Lobbying registrations
Senate [[Lobbying Disclosure Act]] filings (searchable at lda.gov) show Bigelow Aerospace LLC as a client of [[Carliner Strategies]] LLC from the second quarter of 2014 (lobbyist [[Paul Carliner]], who disclosed a prior position as subcommittee staff director on the [[Senate Appropriations Committee]]) and of [[Brimley Group]] Inc. from the fourth quarter of 2014 (lobbyists [[Jessica Nickel]] and [[Thomas Culligan]], who disclosed prior positions with Representatives [[Rob Portman|Robert Portman]], [[Thomas Petri]] and [[Frank Wolf]]). The disclosed issues were funding for NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems account and the FAA [[Office of Commercial Space Transportation]]. Carliner reported 10,000 dollars (second quarter 2014), 30,000 (third), 70,000 (fourth) and 30,000 per quarter through 2015, a total of 230,000 dollars; Brimley reported 20,000 dollars (fourth quarter 2014) and 30,000 per quarter through 2015, a total of 140,000 dollars. From the second quarter of 2016 Bigelow Aerospace LLC registered as its own lobbying firm (lobbyists [[Christopher Hearsey]], listed as director of legislative affairs, and [[Ryan Noble]]) and reported expenses of 77,000 dollars (second quarter 2016), 110,000 (third and fourth quarters 2016), 110,000 (first through third quarters 2017) and 10,000 (fourth quarter 2017), a total of 637,000 dollars, on "commercialization of in-space expandable habitats" and "concerns arising from the authorization and supervision of commercial space activities," with the House, Senate, [[Office of Management and Budget]], [[Federal Aviation Administration]] and [[State Department]] listed as contacts. The searches found no filing by Bigelow entities that mentions unidentified anomalous phenomena.[^6]
### Federal campaign contributions
[[OpenFEC]] schedule A records list the following contributions by Robert T. Bigelow and Bigelow companies (receipts dated 1979 to 2025).
To committees of Harry Reid: [[Friends for Harry Reid]], two entries of 1,000 dollars on August 7, 1998, two of 2,000 dollars on June 12, 2003 and two of 2,400 dollars on June 8, 2010 (10,800 dollars in all); and the [[Searchlight Leadership Fund]] (Reid's leadership PAC, per its [[Federal Election Commission|FEC]] registration), 5,000 dollars on June 13, 2003 and 5,000 dollars on June 30, 2004 from Bigelow Development Aerospace LLC (the same date carries a 5,000 dollar memo attribution to Bigelow personally).[^7] The same Bigelow Development Aerospace LLC gave 5,000 dollars to [[Friends of the Big Sky]] on April 2, 2004. The [[Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee]] received 28,500 dollars from Bigelow on September 28, 2007 and 28,500 dollars on June 30, 2008 (employer "Bigelow Investment Company"). Reid's July 2008 supplemental appropriation language and the September 22, 2008 award to BAASS fall between and after those two dates.
To Republican and other federal committees before 2022: [[Friends for Bryan]] (1,000 dollars, March 23, 1988); [[Committee to Elect Demar Dahl]] (1,000, October 28, 1992); [[Berkley for Congress]] and related Berkley committees (1,000 in 1997, 2,000 in 1999, 4,800 in 2010, 2,000 for Berkley for Senate in 2011); [[Rehberg for Congress]] (two entries of 2,000 dollars on June 23, 2003 from Robert T. Bigelow, and two of 2,000 dollars on March 31, 2004 recorded under "Mrs. Robert T. Bigelow," occupation "hotel/real estate developer"); [[Ensign for Senate]] (2,100, September 11, 2006); Committee to Re-elect Congressman [[Dana Rohrabacher]] (2,000 in 2004, 2,300 in 2008, 500 in 2010) and Rohrabacher for Congress (5,400 on November 21, 2017); [[Chambliss for Senate]] (2,300, 2008); the [[National Republican Congressional Committee]] (15,000 dollars, April 7, 2010); the [[Nevada Republican State Central Committee]] (10,000, October 8, 2010); [[Heller Victory Committee]] (30,800 dollars, December 31, 2011, with the same amount attributed to the [[National Republican Senatorial Committee]]); [[Heller for Senate]] (2,700 in 2018 as joint-fundraising attribution) and [[Heller Senate Victory Committee]] (14,600, March 1, 2018); and [[Team Hardy Nevada Tough Victory Fund]] (240,000 dollars, October 24, 2018).[^8]
In 2022: [[Take Back the Senate]] (255,000 dollars, August 17), [[American Resolve PAC]] (200,000 dollars, August 26), the [[Noem Victory Fund]] (25,000 dollars, June 13), [[Maggie's List]] (5,000 dollars on December 27, 2021 and 5,000 on January 4, 2022), [[Kat for Congress]] (5,742 dollars), [[Becker for Congress]] (5,800) and [[Committee to Elect Sam Peters]] (5,800, with a 2,900 dollar memo reversal), and a 2,900 dollar memo entry to [[Michelle Steel for Congress]]. [[Morning in America PAC]] received 5,000,000 dollars from Bigelow on August 11, 2022, recorded as three entries (2,000,000, 2,000,000 and 1,000,000), all listing the employer as Bigelow Aerospace and reported on a 2023 filing.[^8]
In 2023 and after: [[Never Back Down Inc.]] (FEC committee C00834077, a super PAC), 20,000,500 dollars, reported March 30, 2023; [[Make America Great Again Inc.]], 5,000,000 dollars (February 9, 2024), 4,175,400 dollars (March 28, 2024) and 5,000,000 dollars (June 26, 2024), then 250,000 dollars on January 23, 2025; and [[Trump 47 Committee]], Inc. (a joint fundraising committee), 824,600 dollars on March 29, 2024, with memo entries of the same date allocating amounts to the [[Republican National Committee]] and 40 state and territorial party committees (10,000 dollars each, 400,000 dollars in all, dated March 29, June 27 and June 28, 2024).[^8]
### Foundations
The [[Robert Thomas Bigelow Educational Foundation]] Inc and the [[Robert Thomas Bigelow Medical Foundation]] Inc were recognized as 501(c)(3) private foundations in March 2024 at 4640 S Eastern Ave, [[Las Vegas]], Nevada. Their Forms 990-PF for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2024 list Robert Thomas Bigelow as president and director and as treasurer and director, [[Donna Stauch]] as secretary and director, and [[Colm Kelleher]] and [[Jody Erickson]] as directors, with no compensation reported on the Educational Foundation return (and 7,231 dollars for Jody Erikson on the Medical Foundation return); each foundation reports 62,000 dollars in contributions, all from Robert Thomas Bigelow, and the preparer is [[McCarthy Kaster Guerrero]] CPAs Ltd.[^9] For the fiscal year ended January 31, 2025, the Educational Foundation's Form 990-PF reports contributions of 643,050 dollars (639,700 dollars from Robert Thomas Bigelow), total expenses of 658,557 dollars, officer and director compensation of 254,134 dollars (Stauch 95,769, Kelleher 93,365, Erickson 65,000), and 151,195 dollars in grants to six recipients described as "challenge grant award winners for the 'Survival of Human Consciousness After Death' contest." The Medical Foundation's return for the same year reports contributions of 94,100 dollars, all from Bigelow, and total expenses of 131,828 dollars.[^10] National Institute for Discovery Science does not appear in the [[ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer]] database.
### Footnotes
[^1]: Elizondo, Luis. *Imminent*. William Morrow, 2024.
[^2]: Defense Intelligence Agency, Standard Form 1449, order HHM402-08-C-0072, signed September 22, 2008 (FOIA-00269-2018, block 26); and the copy attached to modification P00001, effective September 2, 2009. https://documents2.theblackvault.com/documents/dia/AAWSAP/FOIA-00269-2018-.pdf and https://documents2.theblackvault.com/documents/dia/AAWSAP/Contract_FY10.pdf
[^3]: USAspending.gov, award CONT_AWD_NNH13CH31C_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-, Bigelow Aerospace LLC, NASA. https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_NNH13CH31C_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-
[^4]: USAspending.gov, award CONT_AWD_NNH15CN82C_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-. https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_NNH15CN82C_8000_-NONE-_-NONE-
[^5]: USAspending.gov awards CONT_AWD_80JSC021F0007_8000_80JSC018D0001_8000, CONT_AWD_80JSC019F0011_8000_80JSC018D0001_8000 and CONT_AWD_80JSC018F0024_8000_80JSC018D0001_8000 (Bigelow Space One LLC). https://api.usaspending.gov/api/v2/awards/CONT_AWD_80JSC021F0007_8000_80JSC018D0001_8000/
[^6]: Senate Office of Public Records, Lobbying Disclosure Act database, filings with client or registrant name "Bigelow Aerospace," 2014 through 2017 (23 filings in all, including three registration reports), retrieved October 2, 2026. https://lda.gov/api/v1/filings/?client_name=Bigelow+Aerospace
[^7]: Federal Election Commission, OpenFEC API, schedule A receipts, committees C00204370 (Friends for Harry Reid, Senate) and C00327395 (Searchlight Leadership Fund, sponsor candidate Harry Reid), sub_ids 3061920110006449337, 3061920110006449338, 1070820110008097328, 1070820110008097329, 2072820101127880321, 2072820101127880567, 4070920041040043086, 4072020041040387575, 4072020041040387576. https://api.open.fec.gov/v1/schedules/schedule_a/
[^8]: Federal Election Commission, OpenFEC API, schedule A, contributor name search "Bigelow, Robert" with contributor_state NV, retrieved October 2, 2026; full row list with sub_ids in _LEDGER_M1.md. https://api.open.fec.gov/v1/schedules/schedule_a/
[^9]: Internal Revenue Service, Tax Exempt Organization Search e-file data, Forms 990-PF for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2024, object IDs 202403379349100410 (Educational Foundation, EIN 93-3962948) and 202413379349100411 (Medical Foundation, EIN 93-3974535), in https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/990/xml/2024/2024_TEOS_XML_12A.zip ; ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer API, EIN 933962948 and 933974535. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/api/v2/organizations/933962948.json
[^10]: Internal Revenue Service, Tax Exempt Organization Search e-file data, Forms 990-PF for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2025, object IDs 202522589349100222 (Educational Foundation) and 202512589349100631 (Medical Foundation), in https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/990/xml/2025/2025_TEOS_XML_09A.zip

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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- AirForce
- MJ12
- Aviary
- Author
alias:
- Robert M. Collins
- Robert Collins
- Bob Collins
- Condor
- Captain Robert Collins
summary: "Air Force physics analyst at Wright-Patterson from 1985 who wrote in Exempt from Disclosure that he was the source code-named Condor on UFO Cover-Up Live; Robert Hastings reported in 1989 that Collins denied involvement."
location: "Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[U.S. Air Force]]"
start: 1985
role: "analyst in theoretical and applied physics, Foreign Technology Division, Wright-Patterson AFB, from the summer of 1985; stationed at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory, Kirtland AFB, in 1988"
fn: 1
- type: member_of
with: "[[The Aviary]]"
start: 1986
role: "code name Condor, as alleged by Collins in Exempt from Disclosure; Robert Hastings reported on March 1, 1989 that Collins denied involvement in the MJ-12 affair"
fn: 1
- type: participant_in
with: "[[UFO Cover-Up Live]]"
start: 1988-10-14
role: "shadowed interviewee code-named Condor, as alleged by Collins; identified to Robert Hastings in December 1988 by a member of the production team, per Hastings"
fn: 3
created: 2026-10-03
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Robert M. Collins wrote that he came to the UFO subject in the summer of 1985 as an analyst in theoretical and applied physics at the [[Foreign Technology Division]] (FTD) of [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]], [[Ohio]], now the [[National Air and Space Intelligence Center]], and that in the group around [[William L. Moore]] he was given the bird name Condor.[^1] [[Robert Hastings]] reported on March 1, 1989 that a member of the production team of [[UFO Cover-Up Live]] had identified the second source on the program, Condor, as Collins, then recently a captain in the [[U.S. Air Force]] at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]], and that "both Doty and Collins deny any involvement in the [[Majestic-12|MJ-12]] affair."[^3] The copyright page of *[[Exempt from Disclosure]]: The Black World of UFOs* ([[Peregrine Communications]], 2010) names Collins as author, with [[Richard Doty]] and [[Timothy S. Cooper]] as "contributors and writers."[^1]
### Service, as described by Collins
Collins wrote that his FTD assignment began in the summer of 1985 and that he had "18 years" in the subject by the time of writing, against Doty's "20 + years."[^1] He described himself as an FTD analyst in the areas of theoretical and applied physics, and in the account of his meetings in 1988 as "stationed at Kirtland AFB, [[Air Force Weapons Laboratory|Air Force Weapons Lab]]."[^1] Hastings, who wrote that he knew "very little" about Collins, reported that at his departure from the Air Force, in late 1988, Collins was a captain assigned to a plasma physics group at [[Sandia National Laboratories]] on Kirtland.[^3] [[Mark Pilkington]] called Collins "a former Air Force physicist."[^4] Collins wrote that he once had a "[[Detachment 22|DET 22]]" escort on a mission in [[Germany]] and [[France]]; that detachment, he wrote, accompanies personnel in technical intelligence capacities on risky travel.[^1]
### The group around Moore
Collins wrote that FTD led him to ask about stories of bodies stored at Wright-Patterson, and so to retired Lieutenant Colonel [[Ernie Kellerstrauss|Ernie Kellerstrass]], whose last assignment had been FTD and who in 1985 worked for [[Systems Research Laboratories]] in [[Dayton, Ohio|Dayton]]. According to Collins, Kellerstrass named [[Anthony J. Cacioppo]], then chief FTD scientist, and [[Dale Graff]], reassigned from FTD to the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]], as informed, and described a meeting at a ski lodge north of [[Albuquerque]] in 1968 about a wave of sightings.[^1] In the spring of 1986, on a temporary duty trip to consult the technical staff of [[TRW]] in [[Los Angeles]], Collins met Moore in his motel room for about an hour; Moore mentioned a "Mr. X" who had contacted him in 1980.[^1] Collins wrote that from 1986 onward Moore, [[Jaime Shandera]], Kellerstrass, Doty, [[Hal Puthoff]] (from 1987), [[Kit Green]] (from 1989) and he held a series of meetings, referring to MJ-12 as "the Committee," while the introduction to the same book dates the group's coming together to 1985.[^1]
In the fall of 1987, he wrote, Kellerstrass hosted Moore, Shandera, Puthoff, Colonel [[John B. Alexander]], "Scott Jones (assistant for Senator Pell)" ([[C.B. Scott Jones]], aide to [[Claiborne Pell]]) and Collins at dinner at his house in [[Beavercreek, Ohio]].[^1] The bird names, by his account, were Doty "the surrogate 'Falcon' when the real Falcon (DIA's, Dale Graff?) couldn't be found," Kellerstrass "Hawk," Puthoff "Partridge," Jones "Hummingbird," Green "Blue Jay," Alexander "Chickadee," and himself "Condor."[^1] He also wrote of "Heron ([[Jerry Miller]])."[^1] In the references he wrote that "in June/July 2012 the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] Falcon was disclosed as none other than" [[Harry Rositzke]], who died on November 4, 2002 in [[Warrenton, Virginia]]; that "very few people were in a position to know who the real Falcon was," the two he knew of being Moore and Doty; that Moore "provided a name to his friend [[Greg Bishop]] in 2005"; that [[Brian Parks]], who had known Moore closely from the early 1980s until he left UFO research around 1994, "gave Brian the very same name as Bishop had"; and, in another reference, that "according to Bill Moore and known by Rick Doty it's Harry August Rositzke, born in [[New York]], 1910." He added a redacted 1961 [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] memorandum on Rositzke supplied by Parks and Parks's statement of "07-20-012." The name is Collins's report of what Moore said to others; Moore did not publish it.[^1] Moore had said in 1989 that he and Jaime Shandera invented the name Falcon in 1984 and that hints in 1987 that Doty was Falcon were a diversion.[^7] Pilkington asked whether Colonel [[Barry Hennessey]], who ran the AFOSI special projects unit at the [[Pentagon]] during the MJ-12 release and the Bennewitz affair and later directed Air Force counterintelligence and special program security, was Falcon, and wrote that Hennessey and Moore had both denied it.[^4]
### Howe and Lear, November 1987
Hastings wrote that [[Linda Moulton Howe]] told him that in November 1987 Collins was "frantically" trying to meet her in Albuquerque; that at the meeting, also attended by [[John Lear]], Collins showed them MJ-12 documents "primarily relating to a live alien allegedly held captive by the U.S. Government"; and that Collins said he had worked "behind the scenes" with Moore for years.[^3] Howe's own book does not name Collins.[^5]
### The program, 1988
Collins wrote that in August 1988 he, Moore, Shandera, Doty and Kellerstrass met at a state park near Dayton under arrangements Kellerstrass drew up, with the executive producer [[Michael Seligman]] present; that Seligman wanted to see picture identification and engaged a congressional investigator, and that the men "all checked out."[^1] In September 1988, in Albuquerque, Moore and Shandera filmed him as Condor.[^1] He wrote that after the broadcast of October 14 two high-level contacts approached Moore and Shandera, and that in April 1989 he attended a "mini-summit" at an Albuquerque motel with Puthoff, Green, Doty, Moore and Shandera on "the aftershocks" and "disclosure strategies" proposed by Green.[^1] Howe quoted Condor on the program as saying that an agreement had been signed with the extraterrestrials under which "we won't disclose your (ET) existence if you do not interfere in our (Earth human) society," and that the base was at [[Area 51]], "Dreamland."[^5] Moore said on July 1, 1989 that he was "convinced that at least some of that information falls under the category of disinformation" and "equally convinced that some of it is true."[^7] [[Barry Greenwood]] wrote in *[[Just Cause]]* in September 1989 that "a fair portion of the last hour [was] wasted in presenting what Moore admits to be false data."[^6]
### Later publications
Pilkington wrote that Collins and Doty "would reunite in 2005 as the authors of *Exempt from Disclosure*," cited the book as published by Peregrine Communications in 2006, and described Collins as one of the people who might be reached by telephone during the 2005 [[Serpo]] episode alongside Doty.[^4] Collins signed the book's introduction "Author: http://www.ufoconspiracy.com/."[^1] The archive.org copy carries a copyright notice of 2010 and refers to events of June and July 2012, so the passages on Rositzke come from a later revision than the editions Pilkington cited.[^1] Among the "Bird Code" samples the book prints, dated "87/88," one reads that "the Eagle mated with the Blue Jay," that "the new breed and rarest bird is called the Condor," and that "the Condor must open the apartment."[^1]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Robert Collins and Richard Doty, *Exempt from Disclosure: The Black World of UFOs*, introduction, Section 1 (Chapter 1, "FTD Is Not a Florist," with the sections "Go west as they say," "Summits without the Cocktails, the fall of 1987," "And We Became Birds: The Aviary," "August 1988: Cloak & Dagger," "September 1988," "April 1989") and Section 2, Chapter 4 with references; Internet Archive copy, https://archive.org/details/exempt-from-disclosure (copyright notice 2010, Peregrine Communications; text cites material of June and July 2012; ISBN printed as 09766426-2-/ and 978-0976642626). Collins's account is the sole source for the passages so cited. The book was read in OCR text.
[^3]: Robert Hastings, "The MJ-12 Affair: Facts, Questions, Comments," March 1, 1989, Wayback Machine capture of October 28, 2016, https://web.archive.org/web/20161028084620/http://www.sacred-texts.com/ufo/hastings.htm. The production-team member who named Collins is not identified in the text. Howe's account of November 1987 reaches the page through Hastings only.
[^4]: Mark Pilkington, *Mirage Men* (Constable, 2010), chapters on Doty and on Serpo and chapter notes, https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf
[^5]: Howe, *An Alien Harvest*, 2nd ed., pp. 195 to 196 (statements of "Falcon" and "Condor" in the broadcast of October 14, 1988); the book's index lists "Condor" at p. 196 and has no entry for Collins.
[^6]: "E B E's," part 17, UFO BBS file UFO1036, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1036.ufo, quoting Barry Greenwood, *Just Cause*, September 1989.
[^7]: William L. Moore, address to the MUFON International UFO Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989, from the caption transcript of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUfimKiS-po (video of the Ron Regehr recording, Internet Archive item bill-moore-1989-mufon); names corrected from mis-rendered captions.

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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- Lockheed
- AirForce
- ATP
- 1980s
alias:
- Ron Blackburn
- Ronald Blackburn
- Dr. Ron Blackburn
- Colonel Ron Blackburn
summary: "Retired Air Force lieutenant colonel at Lockheed in Burbank whom John B. Alexander named as co-founder of the 1985 Advanced Theoretical Physics group, and who appears in contemporaneous notes of its meetings."
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Lockheed Aircraft Company]]"
start: 1984
role: "Skunk Works, Burbank, according to John B. Alexander"
fn: 1
- type: member_of
with: "[[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]]"
start: 1985-05-21
role: "listed under Lockheed in Jack Houck's note of May 21, 1985 and in Oke Shannon's attendee list"
fn: 2
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-02
---
Ron Blackburn is a retired [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] lieutenant colonel who, according to [[John B. Alexander]], was working at the [[Lockheed Aircraft Company]] [[Skunk Works]] in [[Burbank, California]] in 1984, when the two met after Alexander took over the Army's [[New Thrust]] project. Alexander wrote in 2011 that UFOs were "among areas of common interest between Blackburn and me." The [[Loose Threads Report|Loose Threads]] authors, summarizing Alexander's book, write that the two met in a secure facility at Lockheed to compare notes and create an invitation list for the [[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]].[^1]
### In the 1985 Notes
[[Jack Houck]]'s handwritten page of May 21, 1985, headed "Advanced Physics," places the name "Ron Blackburn" and a second name that may be read "[[Don Keuble]]" with the word "Lockheed" beside the circled objective "Does the evidence support an R+D project?" A page of [[Oke Shannon]]'s notes headed "Attendees," from a meeting the Loose Threads authors date to August 7, 1985, lists under the heading "Others," and the label Lockheed, Ron Blackburn, [[Milt Janzen]] and Don Keuble.[^2]
### In Vallee's Journals
[[Jacques Vallee]] recorded in February 1990, in a passage quoted by the Loose Threads authors, "Over lunch today the enigmatic Colonel Ron Blackburn decided to come clean with me in anticipation of our trip to [[New Mexico]]. . . He'd co-founded what I jokingly nicknamed the 'Secret Onion' group and co-organized a national panel on UFOs. In the first case, his co-founder was John Alexander; in the second case, it was none other than [[Kit Green]], who never told me about this."[^3] The Loose Threads authors write that Blackburn "indicated to Jacques Vallee that he was directly involved in the [[TRESTLE]]'s construction during his time with [[Air Force Weapons Laboratory|AFWL]]" (the Air Force Weapons Laboratory at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]]), quoting Vallee as recording him saying, "Those are the electromagnetic pulse testing facilities I built for the Air Force. Thousands of volts flow between those towers."[^3] They also write that a May 1990 entry in Vallee's journal says Blackburn had developed "magnetic UFO detectors" at Kirtland, and that a 1990 entry has Vallee taken by [[Ed Dames]], Blackburn and other Army personnel to a high mesa in New Mexico to watch for UFOs at a location said to have been determined by the remote viewing initiative [[Stargate Project|GRILL FLAME]].[^3] In August 1990 Vallee recorded Kit Green as saying that [[Howard Blum]]'s account of a secret group "simply alluded to John Alexander's and Ron Blackburn's proposed project," and that "it went nowhere."[^3]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Alexander, John B. *UFOs: Myths, Conspiracies, and Realities,* 2011, as quoted in Elizondo, Daniel, and The Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," Anomaly Archives, 2022, p. 20, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf. The book was not opened.
[^2]: Houck and Shannon notes as reproduced in the Loose Threads Report, pp. 15 and 188 (page images read directly; originals not seen).
[^3]: Vallee, Jacques. Journal entries of February, May and August 1990, as quoted in the Loose Threads Report, pp. 21 and 66-67 and the sections on EMP testing and on Ed Dames, which gives volume numbers only for the May and "1990" mesa entries (*Forbidden Science: Volume Four*); the February and August 1990 entries fall in the period of that volume. The books were not opened. No Blackburn publication or Air Force Weapons Laboratory record was found. Sole source for the passages so cited.

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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- Parapsychology
- NavalIntelligence
- SenateStaff
- HumanPotentialFoundation
- RockefellerInitiative
alias:
- C. B. Scott Jones
- C.B. Scott Jones
- CB Scott Jones
- Scott Jones
- Cecil B. Jones
- Cecil B. Scott Jones
- Cecil Beam Jones Jr.
- Dr. Scott Jones
summary: "Navy fighter pilot and intelligence officer who served as Senator Claiborne Pell's special assistant for psychic and UFO matters from 1985 to 1991, then ran the Human Potential Foundation, financed by Laurance Rockefeller."
born: 1928-02-19
died: 2023-01-16
location: "Falls Church, Virginia"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[United States Navy]]"
start: 1946
end: 1976
role: "fighter pilot, then naval intelligence officer, including assistant naval attache in New Delhi and Kathmandu"
fn: 3
- type: employed_by
with: "[[CACI]]"
role: "managed intelligence contact with the Defense Intelligence Agency for two years after leaving the University of Wyoming in 1978"
fn: 2
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Kaman Tempo]]"
role: "research scientist; editor of the 1983 seminar proceedings on parapsychological applications"
fn: 3
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Claiborne Pell]]"
start: 1985-01
end: 1991-03
role: "special assistant, Senate office"
fn: 2
- type: founded
with: "[[Center for Applied Anomalous Phenomena]]"
start: 1985
fn: 2
- type: founded
with: "[[Human Potential Foundation]]"
start: 1989
role: "with Pell; president"
fn: 2
- type: head_of
with: "[[American Society for Psychical Research]]"
role: "trustee from 1985 and president, per the 1992 white paper"
fn: 3
- type: member_of
with: "[[Mutual UFO Network]]"
start: 1989
role: "special consultant in international relations, per the 1992 white paper"
fn: 3
- type: founded
with: "[[Peace and Emergency Action Coalition for Earth]]"
start: 1998
fn: 2
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-02
---
Cecil B. "Scott" Jones (February 19, 1928, at [[Emporia, Kansas]], to January 16, 2023) was a Navy fighter pilot and intelligence officer who worked from 1985 to 1991 on the staff of Senator [[Claiborne Pell]] of [[Rhode Island]], then as president of the [[Human Potential Foundation]].[^1] His birth year is also recorded as 1924, in the register of his papers at the [[University of Colorado Boulder]].[^2]
### Navy and Intelligence Career
Jones joined the [[United States Navy]] about 1946, was commissioned in 1950 after the [[Aviation Midshipman Program]], flew two combat tours in [[VF-191]] in the [[Korean War]] in the [[F9F-2 Panther]] from the [[USS Princeton]], and served about fifteen years in naval intelligence, including with [[Carrier Division 14]] and as assistant naval attache in [[New Delhi]] and [[Kathmandu]] in the 1960s. He held an A.B. in government from [[George Washington University]] (1961), an M.A. from the [[University of Maryland]] (1963) and a Ph.D. in international studies from [[American University]] (1975), with a dissertation on how the Indian [[Lok Sabha]] handles defense matters, and taught at [[Casper College]] and the [[University of Wyoming]].[^3] By another account he spent twenty years in naval intelligence, then taught at Army colleges from 1970 to 1972, at the [[University of Kansas]] for the Navy in 1973 to 1975 and as a professor at the University of Wyoming from 1975 to 1978, then two years at the contractor [[CACI]] managing intelligence contact with the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]], "during which spent 10% of his time on applied anomalous phenomena," then work for [[Kaman Tempo]] on reporting on oceanic nuclear tests for the [[Defense Nuclear Agency]]; he met Pell during this period and organized two symposia on applied anomalous phenomena and on consciousness and survival.[^2] [[Grant Cameron]] gives a contractual consultancy to the Defense Nuclear Agency from 1981 to 1985.[^4] His papers include correspondence with [[Laurance Rockefeller]], [[Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein]], [[Rima Laibow]], [[Uri Geller]] and [[Dick Cheney]], and drafts of letters to Presidents [[George W. Bush]], [[Bill Clinton]] and [[Barack Obama]].[^2]
In the 1992 white paper's account, Kaman Tempo organized a seminar on parapsychological applications in 1983 for federal employees, with Jones as editor of the proceedings, and Jones's MUFON biographical sketch says he worked on government-sponsored projects for the Defense Nuclear Agency, the DIA and the [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command]].[^3]
### Pell's Office, 1985 to 1991
Jones served as Special Assistant to Pell from January 1985 until March 1991 "with the purpose of investigating consciousness research being conducted in other countries, primarily the [[Soviet Union|USSR]]."[^2] The [[Washington Times]] reported in 1989 that Pell "has a full-time staff member, C.B. Scott Jones, whose exclusive job is to monitor reports of psychic activities."[^5] The [[United Press International]], summarizing the [[Providence Journal|Providence Sunday Journal]] of July 17, 1988, reported that Jones "retains a top secret security clearance and earns nearly $50,000 a year on the public payroll," and that Jones said the senator wanted scientists to have a fair chance at funding for the research.[^6] The two reports give the figures differently. The UPI summary says "nearly $50,000 a year"; the version of [[C. Eugene Emery Jr.]]'s Providence Journal story printed in *The [[San Francisco Examiner]]* of August 13, 1988 states the amount as $48,853 a year, describes Jones as "Pell's point man" in the effort to make the government more receptive to paranormal research, and says that in his spare time he was a UFO enthusiast who ran a psychic-research center out of his home. Both give the clearance as top secret (the Examiner prints "top-secret security clearance").[^7] The *[[Winston-Salem Journal]]* of July 18, 1988, also summarizing the Providence Journal, described Jones as a former naval intelligence officer and one of Pell's "government-paid researchers" who researched telepathy, unconventional healing and near-death experiences.[^8] Jones used a Senate office and stationery; [[U.S. News and World Report]] of December 5, 1988 mentioned Pell and Jones, and in 1991 a personal letter from Jones to "Dear Dick" Dick Cheney was published in [[Harper's Magazine]] (January 1991, p. 25).[^3] The [[University of Rhode Island]]'s register of the [[Pell Senatorial Papers]] lists three files titled "Human Potential Foundation: Scott Jones File" (1987; 1987 to 1994; 1988 to 1991) in the subject file series.[^9]
### The White Paper of 1992
"Will the Real Scott Jones Please Stand Up?," dated February 20, 1992 and credited to [[Robert J. Durant]], appears in the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] reading room as CIA-RDP96-00792R000400300004-7; a note at its end states that [[George P. Hansen]] co-authored it without his name appearing.[^3] It opens by describing Jones as "the Renaissance Man of the Paranormal." Its claims, attributed to Durant, include that Jones chaired a panel and acted as liaison to "the Prince of Liechtenstein who was the major benefactor of the conference," at the [[TREAT II]] abduction conference at [[Virginia Tech]] in January 1990 organized by Rima Laibow; that [[MUFON]] appointed him Special Consultant in International Relations in 1989; that in 1991 he told the Chinese officials he visited about UFOs, in a story he later told at the Omega conference, that his questions were taken for pretense, and that metal given to him there proved to be debris from an electrical transmission tower; that he delivered "Government UFO Connections" at the 1991 MUFON symposium and there said he "honestly did not know of any activity of the [[U.S. government]]" on UFOs; and that he spoke approvingly of [[William L. Moore]] and met Moore and [[Richard Doty]] while on Pell's payroll.[^3]
The paper also relates a story that [[Lee Graham]], an [[Aerojet]] technician, told [[Don Ecker]] and Durant: after an [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] agent and an unidentified man visited Graham in 1987 and discussed the [[Majestic-12|MJ-12]] papers, Jones telephoned Graham, said they had "a mutual acquaintance," and sent on Senate letterhead the Air Force biography of Major General [[Michael Kerby]], the Air Force legislative liaison director, whom Graham recognized as the visitor. In the paper's account Jones explained that Kerby had called on Pell, noticed Jones, and told him of the visit because "Kerby knew of my interest in these matters"; Jones declined to elaborate. Durant also wrote that an unnamed informant learned that [[Jaime Shandera]] and Moore were in contact with Jones, and listed rumors, which the paper attributes to unnamed "Scott watchers," that Jones had asked parapsychologists about recruiting psychics for military intelligence, had been involved for years in classified research on electronic mind control, and had approached media representatives in 1986 about a UFO program offering secret government information. The paper also describes dolphin telepathy experiments by Jones with Colonel [[John B. Alexander]] and [[Theodore Rockwell]]. The paper states of Jones's organizations that the Human Potential Foundation was established in 1989, was housed in the [[Vienna, Virginia]], offices of the law firm [[Sandground Barondess and West]] with [[Mark Sandground]] and Pell on its board, and was "reportedly funded by Laurance Rockefeller."[^3]
### Human Potential Foundation, 1989 to 1998
Jones left Pell's staff in March 1991 and ran the Foundation until its dissolution in 1998.[^2] The Foundation's primary donor in its first two and a half years was Laurance Rockefeller, "whose support was conditional with a program designed to get the [[United States]] government to acknowledge the existence of alien life."[^2] Jones wrote as its president to [[John Gibbons]] at the [[Office of Science and Technology Policy]] from 1993 to 1995, to Representative [[Steven Schiff]], and in August 1995 to the congressional leadership; the letters are described under the [[Rockefeller Initiative]].[^10] [[Dinah Eng]]'s wire story of May 1995 on the Foundation's conference "[[When Cosmic Cultures Meet]]" (May 27 to 29, Washington) identified Jones as the Foundation's president and as a former naval intelligence officer who served on Pell's staff; it reported that the program would examine contact with extraterrestrials rather than debate whether intelligent life exists elsewhere, and quoted Jones as saying he had "no doubt that intelligent life exists elsewhere" and that there was "an extraordinary amount of fear associated with this phenomena."[^11] In a letter of February 17, 1994 he wrote to Gibbons: "My mention of mind-control technology at the February 4 meeting was quite deliberate. Please be careful about this. There are reasons to believe that some government group has interwoven research about this technology with alleged UFO phenomena."[^12] In his letter of August 11, 1994, after describing a conference of the [[Institute of Noetic Sciences]] in [[Chicago]] and Pell's seat on its board, he advised Gibbons to speak with [[James Woolsey]]; the passage that follows (the scan is torn) reports that Woolsey had a document search under way in his agency that had found nothing of significance, and quotes the statement: "If I had the responsibility to run a super safe black program on this subject, I would take it completely out of the government's [...] and run it from the private sector, probably somewhere within [the] aerospace community, or perhaps [[General Motors]]."[^13] A handwritten note signed "JHG" and dated 3/29/94 on the same letter reads: "Scott Jones used to be associated with Senator Pell. He was formerly a Navy pilot. The Human Potential Foundation is funded in part, I believe, by L.R."[^12]
Jones presented a talk on exopolitics in [[Hawaii]] in June 2006.[^14] He founded the [[Peace and Emergency Action Coalition for Earth]] in 1998, which received its [[Internal Revenue Service]] ruling in October 1998.[^2][^15]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Archives for the Unexplained, "Jones, C. B. Scott" (reproducing the obituary in the *Kerrville Daily Times*: born February 19, 1928, Emporia, Kansas, to Cecil Beam Jones Sr.; died January 16, 2023), https://anomalyarchives.org/collections/file/jones-c-b-scott/.
[^2]: University of Colorado Boulder Libraries, Rare and Distinctive Collections, "C. B. 'Scott' Jones papers," COU:4004, biographical note, scope note, and Series 1 and 4 descriptions, https://archives.colorado.edu/repositories/2/resources/346, read in the Wayback Machine capture of June 2024 (the live site blocks automated downloads).
[^3]: Robert J. Durant, "Will the Real Scott Jones Please Stand Up?" (February 20, 1992), CIA-RDP96-00792R000400300004-7, https://cia.gov/readingroom/node/1697635; text read at http://www.tricksterbook.com/ArticlesOnline/ScottJonesWhitePaper.pdf. Hostile to Jones; sole source for the passages so cited (the Graham and Kerby episode rests on Graham's and Jones's statements as relayed by Durant; the "rumors" are unattributed).
[^4]: Grant Cameron, "Extraterrestrial Politics in the Clinton White House (1993-2001) and the Rockefeller Initiative," note iii, Wayback Machine capture of May 28, 2014, http://web.archive.org/web/20140528091234/http://www.x-ppac.org/OSTP.html.
[^5]: Tom Kelly, "In search of modern Merlins: Psychics gain wider credibility," *Washington Times*, June 26, 1989 (date per archive metadata), CIA-RDP96-00787R000200080027-5, https://archive.org/details/cia-readingroom-document-cia-rdp96-00787r000200080027-5.
[^6]: United Press International, "Pell keen on psychic research," July 17, 1988, https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/07/17/Pell-keen-on-psychic-research/3613585115200/.
[^7]: C. Eugene Emery Jr., "Sen. Pell flirts with phenomena on the fringe, UFOs, psychics," *The San Francisco Examiner* (from the Providence Journal), August 13, 1988, p. B-12 (newspapers.com p. 22), https://www.newspapers.com/image/461248717/.
[^8]: "Pell Probing Psychic Phenomena," *Winston-Salem Journal*, July 18, 1988, p. 2, https://www.newspapers.com/image/939997164/.
[^9]: University of Rhode Island Library Special Collections, "Register to the Senatorial Papers of Claiborne Pell: Subject File," Mss. Gr. 71.4, box 42, folders 464 to 466, https://webarchives.apps.uri.edu/Pell%20XML%20Files/pell/Mss.%20Gr.%2071.4b.html.
[^10]: Letters of Jones to Gibbons, February 17, 1994, May 26, 1994, June 13, 1994, August 11, 1994, December 2 and 13, 1994, March 31, 1995 and August 23, 1995, and Jones to Schiff, August 17, 1995, at http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller_Initiative_Documents.htm.
[^11]: Dinah Eng, "The day that cosmic cultures meet," *Pensacola News Journal*, May 17, 1995, p. 7, https://www.newspapers.com/image/267898730/; the same text appeared as "Conferees seek plan for dealing with 'Them'," *The News-Star* (Monroe, La.), May 19, 1995, p. 13, https://www.newspapers.com/image/1245983088/.
[^12]: Jones to Gibbons, February 17, 1994, with Gibbons's note signed JHG and dated 3/29/94, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-17-94.htm.
[^13]: Jones to Gibbons, August 11, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-11-94.htm. The speaker of the "super safe black program" sentence is not named on the surviving scan; the context (the letter's next sentence begins "Apparently Woolsey believes") indicates Woolsey as the person quoted by Jones.
[^14]: Archives for the Unexplained, "Jones, C. B. Scott," as in note 1 (list of further resources, including a Hawaii presentation of June 2006).
[^15]: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, Peace and Emergency Action Coalition for Earth (EIN 74-2888837), https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/api/v2/organizations/742888837.json.

10
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/David Morehouse.md
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@ -15,28 +15,28 @@ tags:
- CRV
- 1980s
- 1990s
summary: "David Morehouse was a U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel and Ranger officer who joined the Fort Meade remote viewing unit after surviving a head wound in Jordan in 1987, was trained in CRV, faced a court-martial for personal conduct, and after retirement published Psychic Warrior (1996), a memoir that was commercially successful but disputed by other unit members for accuracy."
summary: "David Morehouse was a U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel who joined the Fort Meade remote viewing unit after a 1987 head wound in Jordan, faced a court-martial, and published Psychic Warrior (1996)."
born: 1954-01-01
location: "Virginia"
---
David Morehouse was a [[U.S. Army]] Lieutenant Colonel and Ranger-qualified airborne officer who joined the classified remote viewing unit at [[Fort Meade]], Maryland, in the later phase of the program during the late 1980s. Unlike most of the unit's earlier members, who were intelligence specialists or photo-interpreters, Morehouse was a combat arms officer whose path to the program began with an unusual incident: in 1987, while participating in a combined training exercise in Jordan, he was struck in the helmet by a stray round fired by Jordanian soldiers. He survived without serious physical injury but subsequently reported vivid visions and altered states that led him to seek assignment to the remote viewing unit.[^1]
David Morehouse was a [[U.S. Army]] Lieutenant Colonel and Ranger-qualified airborne officer who joined the classified remote viewing unit at [[Fort Meade]], [[Maryland]], in the later phase of the program during the late 1980s. Unlike most of the unit's earlier members, who were intelligence specialists or photo-interpreters, Morehouse was a combat arms officer whose path to the program began with an unusual incident: in 1987, while participating in a combined training exercise in [[Jordan]], he was struck in the helmet by a stray round fired by Jordanian soldiers. He survived without serious physical injury but subsequently reported vivid visions and altered states that led him to seek assignment to the remote viewing unit.[^1]
### Remote Viewing Training and Service
Morehouse underwent [[Coordinate Remote Viewing]] (CRV) training and served in the unit during the [[Stargate Project|Sun Streak]] and STAR GATE phases. He was one of the viewers working with a more formal administrative structure than the unit's early years, when the program was operating under [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] sponsorship through the Cognitive Sciences Laboratory direction of [[Edwin May]].
Morehouse underwent [[Coordinate Remote Viewing]] (CRV) training and served in the unit during the [[Stargate Project|Sun Streak]] and STAR GATE phases. He was one of the viewers working with a more formal administrative structure than the unit's early years, when the program was operating under [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] sponsorship through the [[Cognitive Sciences Laboratory]] direction of [[Edwin May]].
His service in the unit was complicated by personal conduct issues. Fellow viewer [[Lyn Buchanan]] and others in the unit noticed Morehouse operating a construction business on the side while on active duty and observed what they characterized as erratic behavior. A formal military investigation led to a court-martial proceeding. The case attracted some attention because of its connection to the remote viewing program; [[Angela Dellafiora]] served as a witness in the proceeding. Morehouse received a discharge that was later characterized as a general discharge under honorable conditions after plea arrangements.[^1]
### Psychic Warrior and Public Career
In 1996, Morehouse published *Psychic Warrior: Inside the CIA's Stargate Program, the True Story of a Soldier's Espionage and Awakening* (St. Martin's Press), which became the first commercially successful account by a former Fort Meade program participant. The book combined Morehouse's account of his remote viewing training and operational sessions with a spiritual awakening narrative centered on his Jordan head wound experience and its aftereffects.
In 1996, Morehouse published *[[Psychic Warrior]]: Inside the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]'s Stargate Program, the True Story of a Soldier's Espionage and Awakening* ([[St. Martin's Press]]), which became the first commercially successful account by a former Fort Meade program participant. The book combined Morehouse's account of his remote viewing training and operational sessions with a spiritual awakening narrative centered on his Jordan head wound experience and its aftereffects.
The reception among former unit colleagues was largely negative. [[Joe McMoneagle]], who had participated in the program from its earliest days, was particularly critical, arguing that Morehouse had embellished both his experiences and his role in the program and that the book's sensationalized framing undermined the program's legitimate history. The book was also criticized for exaggerating the CIA connection - the unit was primarily an Army program under DIA sponsorship, not a CIA operation.
Despite these criticisms, *Psychic Warrior* introduced the Fort Meade program to a large popular audience and helped establish the commercial remote viewing training market that emerged after STAR GATE's 1995 declassification. Morehouse subsequently built a civilian career offering remote viewing training seminars.[^1]
An undated memorandum in the CIA's Star Gate files, headed "Will the Real Scott Jones Please Stand Up?," records: "[[Ed Dames|Edward A. Dames]] serves as President of [[Psi Tech]], and David A. Morehouse is Vice President. They are based in [[Jessup, Maryland]], but there are rumors that they are planning to move to [[New Mexico]]." No other legible mention of him appears in the released collection.[^900]
An undated memorandum in the CIA's Star Gate files, headed "Will the Real [[C.B. Scott Jones|Scott Jones]] Please Stand Up?," records: "[[Ed Dames|Edward A. Dames]] serves as President of [[Psi Tech]], and David A. Morehouse is Vice President. They are based in [[Jessup, Maryland]], but there are rumors that they are planning to move to [[New Mexico]]." No other legible mention of him appears in the released collection.[^900]
### Footnotes

106
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/James E. McDonald.md Normal file
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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- AtmosphericPhysics
- UniversityOfArizona
- Congress
- SST
- RobertsonPanel
alias:
- James E. McDonald
- James Edward McDonald
- James McDonald
- Dr. James E. McDonald
- Dr. McDonald
- Jim McDonald
summary: "University of Arizona atmospheric physicist who from 1966 pressed for scientific study of UFOs, testified to a House committee on July 29, 1968, and died on June 13, 1971."
location: "Tucson, Arizona"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[University of Arizona]]"
start: 1954
end: 1971-06-13
role: "associate director, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, 1954 to 1957; professor of meteorology and senior physicist from 1958"
fn: 1
- type: member_of
with: "[[National Academy of Sciences]]"
start: 1965
role: "member, Panel on Weather and Climate Modification (start year as printed in the 1968 hearing biography)"
fn: 1
- type: participant_in
with: "[[House Committee on Science and Astronautics]]"
start: 1968-07-29
role: "Symposium on Unidentified Flying Objects, chaired by Rep. J. Edward Roush"
fn: 1
- type: participant_in
with: "[[House Appropriations Committee]]"
start: 1971-03-02
role: "witness on the supersonic transport before the Subcommittee on Transportation and Related Agencies, at the request of Rep. Sidney R. Yates"
fn: 6
- type: funded
with: "[[James E. McDonald]]"
reverse: true
start: 1966-05
role: "atmospheric research monitored by Jim Hughes of ONR, who said ONR would pay for his May 1966 Wright-Patterson trip"
fn: 3
- type: investigated
with: "[[Robertson Panel]]"
start: 1966-06-06
role: "read the 1953 panel report at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base; the CIA decided to reclassify it by July 1966"
fn: 3
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-03
---
James Edward McDonald (May 7, 1920 to June 13, 1971) was a professor of meteorology and senior physicist at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the [[University of Arizona]] in [[Tucson]].[^1][^2] After about two years of study he told the [[House Committee on Science and Astronautics]] on July 29, 1968 that he had interviewed "several hundred witnesses" and regarded the UFO problem as "a matter of extraordinary scientific importance."[^1] In 1966 he read the 1953 [[Robertson Panel]] report at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] and afterward charged publicly that the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] had influenced Air Force policy.[^3]
### Career before the UFO work
His biography, entered in the 1968 hearing record, lists a B.A. in chemistry from the [[University of Omaha]] (1942), a meteorology degree from the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (1945) and a Ph.D. in physics from [[Iowa State University]] (1951); service in the [[U.S. Navy]] from 1942 to 1945 in "naval intelligence and aerology"; a research position on the cloud physics project at the [[University of Chicago]] (1953 to 1954); and appointments at Arizona from 1954. It lists membership on the [[National Academy of Sciences]] Panel on Weather and Climate Modification from 1965, the ESSA-Navy Project Stormfury Advisory Panel from 1966 and a [[National Science Foundation]] weather modification panel from 1967, and records that he married Betsy Hunt in 1945 and had six children.[^1] His obituary in the Bulletin of the [[American Meteorological Society]] by [[Louis J. Battan]] describes his 1954 paper on raindrop shapes, his 1958 article "The physics of cloud modification," and his work on the Academy panel, whose 1966 report expressed optimism about cloud seeding after his review of commercial operators' data.[^2]
### 1966 and the Robertson Panel report
[[Paul E. McCarthy]], whose 1975 [[University of Hawaii]] dissertation used McDonald's correspondence, wrote that McDonald's atmospheric research was monitored by [[Jim Hughes (Office of Naval Research)|Jim Hughes]] of the [[Office of Naval Research]]. On April 30, 1966 McDonald wrote to Hughes about UFOs; later in May Hughes told him that [[Jim Kearney]] at Pasadena Naval Research did work on laser detection of clouds that might account for some high-speed radar tracks, suggested that he go to [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] to examine the [[Project Blue Book]] files, and said that because the work was for ONR it would pay the trip expenses. McCarthy asked whether it was coincidence that Hughes suggested the trip "at the exact time McDonald wanted to make it," and wrote that this was "the beginning of what would become a controversy within a controversy" over McDonald's use of ONR atmospheric research funds for what appears to be UFO research. On May 26 McDonald thanked Hughes for the trip, and McCarthy wrote that in the same letter McDonald said he wished a briefing, when in Washington, on "the rumored Navy studies of UFOs" and asked whether ONR might fund his travel for UFO research.[^3]
McCarthy wrote that McDonald made his first visit to Wright-Patterson on June 6, 1966; that there he viewed the Robertson Panel report, which Major [[Hector Quintanilla]] had given routine declassification after twelve years; that on June 30 Colonel [[Louis DeGoes]] told him a photocopy needed authorization; and that on his third visit, July 20 to 22, DeGoes told him the CIA had decided to reclassify it. McCarthy wrote that neither DeGoes nor Dr. [[Cacciopo]], chief scientist at the [[Foreign Technology Division]], showed interest in the CIA involvement, that McDonald began to discuss the report in his lectures in October 1966, and that "for McDonald this was probably the beginning of his concern for a cover-up."[^3] McCarthy also wrote that the [[Los Angeles Times]] story on his Tucson talks said he believed in "persons from outer space," that the [[Associated Press]] story said he believed in current CIA involvement, and that McDonald told [[Richard Hall]] of [[NICAP]] to leave the arrangements for the Washington talk to Hall, who should "tone down the CIA angle."[^3]
### The Condon Committee
McCarthy wrote that McDonald's letter of January 31, 1968 to [[Robert Low]] of the [[Condon Committee]] at the [[University of Colorado]] set out his criticisms of the project, including Condon's press statements, the lack of investigation of cases in which McDonald believed the Air Force had inhibited inquiry, and a $50,000 radar study contract with the [[Stanford Research Institute]]; that on February 8 [[Edward Condon]] dismissed [[David Saunders]] and [[Norman Levine]] from the project; and that McDonald sent copies of the Low memo and National Academy correspondence to Hughes at ONR, asking that they be held in confidence and sent to his home address, "in light of the day when he would apply to the ONR for funding to do UFO work."[^4]
### The July 29, 1968 symposium
The Symposium on Unidentified Flying Objects before the House Committee on Science and Astronautics, Ninetieth Congress, second session, was held on July 29, 1968 as hearing No. 7. McDonald followed [[J. Allen Hynek]] on the program. He told the committee that he had visited Wright-Patterson and seen the files, contacted the [[National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena]] and the [[Aerial Phenomena Research Organization]], and found NICAP had "on the order of 10,000 or 12,000 cases," and he said the problem had been "swept under the rug." His prepared statement lists eight hypotheses (hoaxes; hallucination and rumor; misinterpreted natural phenomena; semi-secret technology; poorly understood physical phenomena; poorly understood psychological phenomena; extraterrestrial devices of a surveillance nature; and spaceships bringing messengers) and states that his present opinion, "based on two years of careful study, is that UFOs are probably extraterrestrial devices engaged in something that might very tentatively be termed 'surveillance.'" It cites a 1960 remark by Vice Admiral [[Roscoe Hillenkoetter]], former CIA director, that "it is imperative that we learn where the UFOs come from and what their purpose is," and recounts numbered cases beginning with [[Boise, Idaho]], July 4, 1947 and [[Montgomery, Alabama]], July 24, 1948. He said that before 1966 he had interviewed about 150 to 200 witnesses and since then about 200 to 250 more, including about 80 in [[Australia]].[^1] [[Physics Today]]'s obituary of September 1971 said he accused the Air Force, which had commissioned the Condon study, of being "blissfully unaware" of the seriousness of the situation and later challenged the [[Condon Report]].[^5]
### The SST testimony
McDonald studied the effect of supersonic transport exhaust on the stratospheric ozone layer. Battan wrote that McDonald "spent hundreds of hours" on the printed material, concluded SST emissions could reduce ozone, increase ultraviolet radiation and increase skin cancer, and "did his utmost to convince other scientists, laymen and politicians that the SST represented a danger to society."[^2]
Physics Today wrote that he testified at a private [[United States Department of Transportation|Department of Transportation]] hearing in 1970 and "again this year at a House Appropriations Committee hearing," and that "although some members of the House Committee doubted his report, a [[National Cancer Institute]] specialist later concurred with McDonald, saying that McDonald's estimate of the impact of supersonic planes on skin cancer was, if anything, too modest."[^5]
The printed hearing, Civil Supersonic Aircraft Development (SST), House Appropriations Subcommittee on Department of Transportation and Related Agencies (chaired by Rep. [[John J. McFall]]), records that McDonald was the first witness of the afternoon session of Tuesday, March 2, 1971. He told the subcommittee that he spoke "as an individual scientist" and not for the Academy or its panel, and that he had begun looking at SST effects when the panel's chairman asked him to update his 1966 work on ice crystals and after the panel's August briefings from the SCEP ([[Study of Critical Environmental Problems]]) summer study at MIT. His prepared statement estimated that SST operations at the fleet levels projected for 1980 to 1985 could cause "something of the order of 5-10,000 additional skin cancer cases per year in just the [[United States]] alone," through water vapor in the exhaust reducing stratospheric ozone; he gave "a round-number estimate near 10,000 new cases per year," against about 120,000 annual cases then, and said that the 4 percent ozone reduction figure from a [[Boeing]] researcher would imply about 30,000. Rep. [[Sidney R. Yates]] stated that McDonald testified at his request, that the statement was prepared with the help of Yates's office, that he had checked McDonald's credentials with National Academy scientists and "without exception they all said he was a very fine scientist," and that he had at first shrunk from the skin cancer theory because "most people would think that this is one of those mad scientists." McFall replied "we are very appreciative for your very fine testimony."[^6] In questioning later in the session Rep. [[Silvio O. Conte]] said he had been told McDonald was "an expert on unidentified flying objects, or flying saucers," asked whether McDonald had testified to Congress that New York power failures of the mid-sixties were caused by them, and said "if you come up with a theory, and assuming I oppose the SST and I use you as an expert, it would be thrown against me on the floor of the House." McDonald answered that he had been asked by Rep. [[William Fitts Ryan|Ryan]] whether there was enough correlation between UFO sightings and power failures to raise a major investigation and had answered "essentially negative but enough of a correlation to be a little bit disturbing"; that after three weeks in the [[Maxwell Air Force Base]] archives in Montgomery, Alabama, the contents were "simply astonishing"; and that "the problem of unidentified flying objects is, in my opinion, indeed a very significant and serious scientific problem, the nature of which is very different from what the public and the Congress have been given to believe." Rep. [[George Mahon]] asked whether his UFO views had opened a credibility gap in the scientific community, and McDonald said he thought not. Rep. [[William E. Minshall]] said that Defense Department witnesses before the [[House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee]] had "absolutely discounted any possibility, of actual incursion into airspace by people from the outer planets," and McDonald referred to the 1966 hearing before the House Armed Services Committee chaired by [[L. Mendel Rivers]]. The words "little green men" attributed to Conte by other writers do not appear in the printed text.[^6] The [[Joint Economic Committee]] later reported that the [[United States Senate|Senate]] voted on March 24, 1971 to discontinue federal funding for construction of the SST.[^7]
### Death
McDonald died on June 13, 1971, at the age of 51, according to the American Meteorological Society and Physics Today.[^2][^5] Battan wrote that his UFO investigation "brought him into conflict with certain scientists and engineers," that "he found few allies in this scientific quest," and that he "was a man of integrity and great courage."[^2] Neither obituary states a cause of death. The [[Pima County, Arizona|Pima County]] record was not available for this draft.
The Tucson Daily Citizen of Monday, June 14, 1971 reported under the headline "UA Physicist Found Dead In Desert" that McDonald, 51, was found dead on Sunday, June 13, in a desert area north of [[Tucson]], and that the death was "apparently a suicide, according to sheriff's deputies." According to the paper, an autopsy had been performed and no report was immediately available. It quoted Sheriff Waldon V. Burr as saying a note and a .38 revolver were found beside the body and that there was a bullet wound in the head. The paper reported that Frank Flores, of 127 E. Lee Street, said he and his children were hiking about noon on Sunday when they found the body at Canyon del Oro near Ina Road and Interstate 10, and that McDonald reportedly took a cab from a downtown motel to the area. It gave his address as 3461 E. 3rd Street, and stated that he was blinded when he shot himself in the head on April 9, according to police reports, and had begun going to his office for several hours a day only the previous week. University of Arizona president [[Richard A. Harvill]] was quoted as calling him an "exceptionally able teacher" and "well-known throughout the United States as a brilliant scholar," and Louis J. Battan, associate director of the Institute, credited him with contributions to cloud physics and weather modification research. The article also summarized his Condon Report opposition and his SST campaign, and described him as a member of the National Academy of Sciences, a statement the 1968 hearing biography does not support.[^8]
### Papers
[[Michael Swords]] wrote in 1999 that the James McDonald papers at the [[University of Arizona Libraries Special Collections|University of Arizona Special Collections]], then designated MS 328, filled 26 linear feet of case and correspondence files, notes, books and audiotapes, and advised notifying the archivist [[Roger Myers]] in advance.[^9] The library's current collection list gives the designation MS 412.[^10]
### Footnotes
[^1]: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Science and Astronautics, Symposium on Unidentified Flying Objects, hearings, 90th Cong., 2d sess., July 29, 1968, No. 7, biography (p. 18) and statement of Dr. James E. McDonald (pp. 18 to 20 and prepared statement from p. 32), https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-90hhrg97818/pdf/CHRG-90hhrg97818.pdf (read 2026-10-03; the hearing OCR prints the Academy panel start year as 1905, read as 1965).
[^2]: Louis J. Battan, obituary of James Edward McDonald, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (1971), p. 735, https://files.ncas.org/mccarthy/obit.html
[^3]: Paul E. McCarthy, "Politicking and Paradigm Shifting: James E. McDonald and the UFO Case Study," Ph.D. dissertation, University of Hawaii, December 1975, chapter 2, pp. 36 to 42 and the October 1966 sections, https://files.ncas.org/mccarthy/chap02.html (reread 2026-10-03).
[^4]: Paul E. McCarthy, "Politicking and Paradigm Shifting," chapter 3, "The Low Memorandum: Confrontation," pp. 141 to 144, https://files.ncas.org/mccarthy/chap03.html
[^5]: "James E. McDonald," Physics Today, vol. 24, no. 9 (September 1971), p. 71, https://aip.brightspotcdn.com/PTO.v24.i9.71_2.online.pdf (the notice's statement that he was a member of the National Academy of Sciences is not supported by the 1968 hearing biography, which lists membership on an Academy panel).
[^6]: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Department of Transportation and Related Agencies, Civil Supersonic Aircraft Development (SST), hearings, 92d Cong., 1st sess., March 1 to 4, 1971, testimony of Dr. James E. McDonald, Tuesday, March 2, 1971, pp. 299 to 337, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-92hhrg57453O/pdf/CHRG-92hhrg57453O.pdf (text extracted 2026-10-03; page numbers per the printed running heads).
[^7]: U.S. Congress, Joint Economic Committee, Federal Transportation Policy: The SST Again (1973), https://jec.senate.gov/reports/92nd%20Congress/Federal%20Transportation%20Policy%20-%20The%20SST%20Again%20(594).pdf
[^8]: "UA Physicist Found Dead In Desert," Tucson Daily Citizen (Tucson), June 14, 1971, p. 1, https://www.newspapers.com/image/23335490/ (no byline; Arizona Republic copies of June 15 to 16, 1971 listed in search results were not read).
[^9]: Michael Swords, "James McDonald Collection," Sign Historical Group, 1999, https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://www.project1947.com/shg/articles/jemcollection.html
[^10]: University of Arizona Libraries Special Collections, collections list, "James E. McDonald papers, MS 412," https://lib.arizona.edu/special-collections/collections/all/a-z/M?page=3 (as returned by a search summary; listing page not opened directly).

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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- Psychiatry
- Harvard
- UFO
- Abduction
- Pulitzer
- Rockefeller
alias:
- John E. Mack
- John Mack
- John Edward Mack
- Dr. John Mack
- Dr. John E. Mack
summary: "Harvard psychiatrist and Pulitzer Prize biographer of T. E. Lawrence who from 1990 studied abduction reports, founded PEER in 1993, and was reviewed by a Harvard committee in 1994 and 1995."
died: 2004-09-27
location: "Cambridge, Massachusetts"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Harvard Medical School]]"
start: 1972
role: "professor of psychiatry; founding chairman of the psychiatry department at Cambridge Hospital"
fn: 1
- type: founded
with: "[[Center for Psychology and Social Change]]"
start: 1982
role: "with Robert J. Lifton, as the Center for the Study of Human Continuity and later the Center for Psychological Studies in the Nuclear Age"
fn: 2
- type: founded
with: "[[Program for Extraordinary Experience Research]]"
start: 1993
fn: 4
- type: subject_of
with: "[[Harvard Medical School]]"
start: 1994
end: 1995-08
role: "faculty committee review chaired by Arnold Relman"
fn: 10
- type: participant_in
with: "[[Rockefeller Initiative]]"
start: 1993-09
role: "invited to the JY Ranch roundtable"
fn: 5
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-02
---
John E. Mack was born in [[New York City]], took an undergraduate degree at [[Oberlin College]] in 1951 and a medical degree at [[Harvard Medical School]] in 1955, served in the [[United States Air Force]] from 1959 to 1961, became chief of psychiatry at [[Cambridge Hospital]] in 1969 and professor at [[Harvard University|Harvard]] in 1972, and won the 1977 [[Pulitzer Prize]] for the biography *[[A Prince of Our Disorder]]: The Life of [[T. E. Lawrence]]*. He was killed by a car in [[London]] on September 27, 2004.[^1]
### The Center
The [[John E. Mack Institute]]'s history states that the organization began in 1982 in [[Cambridge, Massachusetts|Cambridge]], founded by Mack and [[Robert J. Lifton]] as an affiliate of Harvard Medical School studying "the psychological, historical and political complexities that maintain and perpetuate nuclear weapons"; it became an independent nonprofit in 1986 as the [[Center for Psychological Studies in the Nuclear Age]], took consultative status with the [[United Nations]] Economic and Social Council in 1988, and in 1992 became the [[Center for Psychology and Social Change]].[^2] Its newsletters of 1993 to 1995 carry the line "An affiliate of Harvard Medical School at The Cambridge Hospital."[^3]
### Abduction Research and Rockefeller
In 1993 the Center formed the [[Program for Extraordinary Experience Research]]; its newsletter of September 1993 states that the project was "Funded by a grant from the Human Potential Foundation," and the Institute states that it was formed "with funding from Laurence Rockefeller."[^2][^4] [[Laurance Rockefeller]] invited Mack to the roundtable he hosted at the [[JY Ranch]] in September 1993, and the photograph published by [[Paradigm Research Group]] names Mack beside Rockefeller.[^5] Mack's book *[[Abduction: Human Encounters with Aliens]]* was published in 1994; the Rockefeller correspondence of April 26, 1994 mentions it.[^6] *PEER Perspectives* of Winter 1998/99 reports a panel of scientists "funded by the Laurance S. Rockefeller Fund."[^7] [[Ben MacIntyre]] of the London *[[The Times|Times]]* wrote in May 1995, while Harvard's review was under way, that "His Center for Psychology and Social Change is supported by an annual grant of $250,000 from Laurance S. Rockefeller," and quoted Mack's lawyer Roderick McLeish in the same article.[^8] The [[Valley News]] of May 20, 1995 stated that Mack's work "has received generous subsidies from Laurance Rockefeller, patriarch of [[Woodstock, Vermont|Woodstock]], who reportedly donates a quarter million dollars a year" to the Center, and that a spokesman for Rockefeller "said his policy is not to comment publicly on Mack's projects."[^9] Neither article names a source for the figure.
### Harvard Review
Dean [[Daniel C. Tosteson]] convened a "Special Faculty Committee" in the summer of 1994 under the chairmanship of [[Arnold Relman]]. In the [[Baltimore Sun]]'s account of August 4, 1995, Tosteson had told Mack the previous Friday that the review had ended; Harvard counsel [[Anne Taylor]], a member of the committee, said that Mack remained a full member of the faculty "with no adverse action taken," and Relman said the committee never considered revoking his tenure. The same report states that the committee's preliminary report, drafted earlier in 1995, "chastised Dr. Mack for 'affirming the delusions' of his many patients" and found him "in violation of the standards of conduct expected of a member of the faculty of Harvard University," and that Mack's lawyer, [[Eric MacLeish]], contested the findings.[^10] [[Alan Dershowitz]] criticized the inquiry in the [[The Harvard Crimson|Harvard Crimson]] on June 30, 1995; Relman replied there on September 13, 1995 that the committee's work was confidential, that Mack's right to research abduction was never challenged, and that the committee was critical because Mack "wasn't doing any scientific research on the problem."[^11] Whether Rockefeller or the [[Human Potential Foundation]] intervened with Harvard is not documented in any record opened.
### Footnotes
[^1]: "Professor of psychiatry at HMS Mack dies at 74," *Harvard Gazette*, September 30, 2004, https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2004/09/professor-of-psychiatry-at-hms-mack-dies-at-74.
[^2]: John E. Mack Institute, "History," https://johnemackinstitute.org/history/.
[^3]: *CenterPiece*, February 1994, June 1994 and 1995 mastheads, https://johnemackinstitute.org/CenterPiece_1994_0600.pdf and https://johnemackinstitute.org/CenterPiece_1995_0600.pdf.
[^4]: Center for Psychology and Social Change, *CenterPiece*, September 1993, p. 2, https://johnemackinstitute.org/CenterPiece_1993_0900.pdf; John E. Mack Institute, "History," as above.
[^5]: Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, August 4, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-93.htm; Paradigm Research Group photograph caption, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/9-14-93_Meeting.htm.
[^6]: Rockefeller to Gibbons, April 26, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/2-26-94%20LR%20Letter%20to%20JG/Letter.jpg; *CenterPiece*, February 1994, https://johnemackinstitute.org/CenterPiece_1994_0200.pdf.
[^7]: *PEER Perspectives* no. 2 (Winter 1998/99), p. 1, https://johnemackinstitute.org/PEER_Perspectives_2.pdf.
[^8]: Ben MacIntyre, "Harvard professor's stories of close encounters, other-world sex, embarrass university," *The San Francisco Examiner* (London *Times* credit), May 5, 1995, p. 16, https://www.newspapers.com/image/461595501/.
[^9]: "Harvard's Mack: The Subject Is Aliens," *Valley News* (West Lebanon, N.H.), May 20, 1995, p. 23, https://www.newspapers.com/image/833962083/. Byline not read.
[^10]: "'Kooky' or not, Harvard won't censure its 'UFO professor'," Baltimore Sun, August 4, 1995, https://www.baltimoresun.com/1995/08/04/kooky-or-not-harvard-wont-censure-its-ufo-professor/.
[^11]: Arnold S. Relman, "The Motivation for the Mack Inquiry," Harvard Crimson, September 13, 1995, https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1995/9/13/the-motivation-for-the-mack-inquiry/.

2
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/John Kramar.md
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@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ John Winston Kramar was born in [[Chicago]] and moved with his parents to Edgewo
### Grill Flame
Kramar and Colonel Albert De Prospero of AMSAA were named as discussants, with [[Dale Graff]] of the Foreign Technology Division, in the "Sensory Technology Assessment" of November 14, 1978.[^2] AMSAA's interim note of July 1979 on its [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] phase I efforts listed "Mr. John Kramar" among its participants, with [[Evan Harris Walker]] and [[Lewis Walt]].[^3]
Kramar and Colonel Albert De Prospero of AMSAA were named as discussants, with [[Dale Graff]] of the [[Foreign Technology Division]], in the "Sensory Technology Assessment" of November 14, 1978.[^2] AMSAA's interim note of July 1979 on its [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] phase I efforts listed "Mr. John Kramar" among its participants, with [[Evan Harris Walker]] and [[Lewis Walt]].[^3]
As AMSAA's Grill Flame project officer, Kramar wrote for the record on February 13, 1980, that the report of the [[Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee]], "transmitted to AMSAA January 1980, was found to be somewhat ambiguous and confusing," and took "exception" to its recommendation to "Terminate all AMSAA GRILL FLAME efforts": "This recommendation, as best as can be determined, is based only on a partial understanding of AMSAA's initial effort, which was terminated before the SEC came into being. There is an apparent mistake by the SEC in considering the AMSAA challenge/validation efforts to be an integral part of the [[Stanford Research Institute|SRI]] contract." He copied [[Manfred Gale]] and DARCOM.[^4]

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10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Linda Moulton Howe.md Normal file
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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- Documentary
- CattleMutilation
- AFOSI
- Disinformation
- KirtlandAFB
alias:
- Linda Moulton Howe
- Linda Howe
- Linda M. Howe
- Linda Moulton
- Ms. Howe
summary: "Denver television producer of A Strange Harvest (1980) who, under a March 1983 HBO development contract, said AFOSI agent Richard Doty showed her a 'Briefing Paper for the President' at Kirtland on April 9, 1983."
location: "Denver, Colorado"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[KMGH-TV]]"
start: 1979
role: "Director of Special Projects; producer of A Strange Harvest (first broadcast May 25, 1980)"
fn: 1
- type: contractor_to
with: "[[Home Box Office]]"
start: 1983-03
end: 1983-09
role: "development contract for a documentary titled UFOs: The E.T. Factor; by her account HBO declined production funds without government confirmation"
fn: 2
- type: subject_of
with: "[[Richard Doty]]"
start: 1983-04-09
role: "named by Doty on Coast to Coast AM in 2005 as the target of one of four UFO disinformation operations he described, which he said he carried out on official orders; Moore said in 1989 that Doty was involved in a team aimed at severing her ties to HBO; Doty denied in 1988 that any operation involved her"
fn: 6
created: 2026-10-03
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Linda Moulton Howe is a television documentary producer who, as Director of Special Projects at [[KMGH-TV]], the [[CBS]] affiliate in [[Denver]], began in September 1979 to research animal mutilations and produced *[[A Strange Harvest]]*, first broadcast on May 25, 1980.[^1] In March 1983 she signed a development contract with [[Home Box Office]] (HBO) and on April 9, 1983 [[Richard Doty]] of the [[Air Force Office of Special Investigations]] (AFOSI) showed her at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]] a document she described as a "Briefing Paper for the President of the [[United States]]."[^2] The account is Howe's own, published in *[[An Alien Harvest]]* (first edition 1989); Doty denied it in 1988, and others have attributed to it a role in a counterintelligence operation.
### A Strange Harvest and the HBO contract
Howe wrote that the research began on September 1, 1979 as an environmental story and became an accumulation of testimony that "implicated the presence of extraterrestrial mutilators," and that after the program she received hundreds of calls and letters.[^1] During the fall of 1982, she wrote, an HBO executive who had screened the documentary asked for a proposal that "went beyond the mutilation investigation and focused primarily on evidence for extraterrestrial interactions." On March 20, 1983, in [[New York]], she had dinner with the attorney [[Peter Gersten]] of [[Citizens Against UFO Secrecy]] (CAUS), who told her he had an Air Force contact, Richard Doty, who might discuss a 1977 landing at [[Ellsworth Air Force Base]]; Gersten had met Doty in [[Albuquerque]] on January 10, 1983. The next afternoon [[Jean Abounader]], director of HBO's documentary unit and previously with CBS, with an assistant, accepted a proposal titled *UFOS: The E.T. Factor* and asked her to sign a development contract to deliver a shooting script.[^2] Gersten then called Doty, who in a telephone call was "cordial" and agreed to meet on April 9.[^2] On March 26, 1983 Howe and [[Larry Fawcett]] visited [[Robert Emenegger]] in [[Los Angeles]] about the 1964 [[Holloman Air Force Base|Holloman]] landing; two weeks later, she wrote, Emenegger told her that his [[Department of Defense]] sources had told him not to take part.[^2]
### April 9, 1983
Howe wrote that Doty did not meet her at the Albuquerque airport; she telephoned [[Jerry Miller]], chief of reality weapons testing at Kirtland, whom she had spoken to earlier about [[Paul Bennewitz]], and Miller drove her to his house and called Doty, who arrived in a small white car. She asked Miller on the way whether he was the "Miller" of the "AQUARIUS Cable" that referred to [[Majestic-12|MJ-12]], and he did not answer. At the Kirtland gate Doty waved to the guard and drove through; he took her to what he called his boss's office in a small white and gray building, told her that *A Strange Harvest* "came too close to something we don't want the public to know about," and said he knew she had telephoned the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] while making it. Asked about Ellsworth, he said there had been a UFO intrusion at a missile site and that the inner-zone alert had sounded beneath the 150-ton concrete block over the silo.[^2]
Doty took a brown manila envelope from a drawer and said "My superiors have asked me to show this to you. You can read these and you can ask me questions, but you can't take any notes." He moved her from a chair backed against the windows to a chair in the middle of the room, saying "Eyes can see through windows." Howe wrote that the title was "Briefing Paper for the President of the United States of America" on "unidentified aerial craft (UACs)," that she remembered no president's name or date, and that it listed crashes in the Southwest including two at [[Roswell Incident|Roswell]], in 1947 and 1949, [[Aztec UFO Incident|Aztec]], [[Magdalena, New Mexico|Magdalena]], [[Kingman, Arizona|Kingman]] and one in northern [[Mexico]], with recovered bodies and craft sent to [[Los Alamos National Laboratory]] and [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base|Wright-Patterson]]. It described "extraterrestrial biological entities" or "EBEs," a live one called Ebe held at [[Los Alamos]] "until June 18, 1952, when it died of unknown causes," and paragraphs on Projects Sigma, Snowbird and Aquarius and on extraterrestrial manipulation of human DNA at intervals of 25,000, 15,000, 5,000 and 2,500 years.[^2]
Howe asked why she was shown it rather than the *[[New York Times]]*, the *[[Washington Post]]* or *[[60 Minutes]]*. Doty answered that those institutions were "problem makers" to his superiors and that "any independent writer, producer or other individual media person is much easier to manipulate, control or discredit than a major organization with a staff of lawyers." He told her that she would be given several thousand feet of film of crashed discs, bodies, Ebe, and a Holloman landing on April 25, 1964, and that he would call using the code name "Falcon," followed by calls from others, including a "Tom." At a Mexican restaurant that night she asked whether it was dangerous for him to speak; he said "I have been told to tell you. We want you to do the film."[^2] She wrote that MJ stood for "MAJORITY" according to Doty.[^2]
### The HBO outcome
Howe wrote that at a meeting in New York on May 18, 1983 Abounader and her superior [[Bridgett Potter]] would not authorize production funds without the film and without confirmation by "the President, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of State and [[Joint Chiefs of Staff]]," while urging her to continue; that Doty said his superiors "did not work for HBO and had their own timetable," that release was delayed for "political reasons," and that an interview with the retired colonel who had lived with Ebe had been approved but was repeatedly set and canceled; that Doty asked for photographs of her crew for security clearances; that in June Doty said he was officially out of the project; and that a man in Washington telephoned her office three times in March 1984 to say there would be further delays until after the November 1984 election. The HBO contract, she wrote, was active through September 1983 and expired without any film being released.[^2]
### Disputes over the meeting
On October 17, 1987 Howe wrote a letter at the request of Fawcett, publisher of *[[Just Cause]]*, to put the meeting on record, and her account was published in the December 1987 issue.[^2][^3] Doty wrote on March 5, 1988 to [[Larry W. Bryant]], who had sought Doty's records under the [[Freedom of Information Act]], that he met Howe in April 1983 at AFOSI District 17 after she telephoned him in early 1983 to ask about the 1980 Kirtland incident; that the meeting lasted about an hour and "was monitored by two of my supervisors"; that her questions "were centered around MJ-12, extraterrestrial beings, [[Project Aquarius]]," on which he said he had no knowledge; that "I can say, without a doubt, I never showed her any such document"; that she herself mentioned "a so-called 'Project Aquarius' briefing paper for [[Jimmy Carter|President Carter]]"; that the government investigated him over the alleged briefing paper and "I was totally cleared"; that he had further telephone calls or short meetings with her over eighteen months, none after August 1984; that he made only a "Memo for Record" of the April 1983 meeting, destroyed after a year; and that "I know of no Government operation past or present that involved Ms. Howe or her research about UFOs."[^2] The same letter states "I know of no secret Government investigation of UFOs. I have never heard of MJ-12 or any secret Government agency that investigates UFOs"; [[Philip J. Klass]] reported the sentence as part of Doty's letter of March 3, 1988 to [[Barry Greenwood]], published in the June 1988 *Just Cause*.[^2][^3] Howe made a sworn statement and produced her correspondence with Doty and HBO; Doty did not swear a statement, according to [[Robert Hastings]], who reported on March 1, 1989 that Howe told him Doty identified himself as Falcon and said Moore had given him that name.[^3][^4] In her book Howe wrote only that he said he would call using that code name.[^2]
Moore said in his speech of July 1, 1989 that in early 1983 "I became aware that Rick was involved with a team of several others, including one fellow from Denver that I knew of and at least one who was working out of [[Washington, D.C.]]," in "an elaborate disinformation game against a prominent cattle mutilation researcher who at the time had close connections with a major television film company interested in doing a UFO documentary"; that "the government seemed hell bent on severing the ties that existed between the researcher and the film company"; that elements of the intelligence community feared the Bennewitz story about interception of electromagnetic emissions from the Kirtland-Sandia area "would end up as part of the script of a feature film"; that the researcher was shown purportedly sensitive documents at a meeting with Doty and others at the AFOSI office at Kirtland, including material on an alleged crash retrieval at Aztec, [[New Mexico]]; and that "the information which changed hands on that day was directly descended from the discussion" Doty and Moore had had a few months earlier, adding "there was no UFO crash at Aztec."[^7] The spoken text does not name Howe; the [[UFO BBS]] text of 1991, quoting a printed Moore text, gives the same passages with "[Howe]" and "[HBO]" in brackets and says Doty added the Aztec crash after learning of Moore's investigation of it.[^5] On [[Coast to Coast AM]] on February 27, 2005 Doty named operations against Bennewitz and Howe among four he described, and said of the one against Howe: "Linda was invited to Kirtland Air Force Base, and I was the primary agent, there were two other agents involved," "we showed her a document and tried to bring her in and hook her on a hook," and, asked whether it was on official orders, "Oh yes, for sure, absolutely"; he also said the television special "was never aired" and that the operation "somewhat backfired on us."[^6] [[Robert M. Collins]] was reported by Hastings to have sought Howe out in November 1987; Howe's book does not mention him.[^4][^2]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Linda Moulton Howe, *An Alien Harvest*, 2nd ed. (2014), author's biography, photograph caption (p. xvi) and Author's Preface (pp. xvi to xviii), https://archive.org/details/howe-l.-m.-an-alien-harvest-2nd-ed-2014
[^2]: Howe, *An Alien Harvest*, Chapter 7, "Government Knowledge," pp. 137 to 162 and Appendix 4, same URL. First-person account; sole source for the passages so cited except where another note is given.
[^3]: Philip J. Klass, *Skeptics UFO Newsletter* no. 44, March 1997, p. 3 (Howe's account "published in the December 1987 issue of Just Cause"; Doty's letter of March 3, 1988 published in the June 1988 issue), https://cdn.centerforinquiry.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/docs/SUN/SUN44.pdf
[^4]: Robert Hastings, "The MJ-12 Affair: Facts, Questions, Comments," March 1, 1989, Wayback Machine capture of October 28, 2016, https://web.archive.org/web/20161028084620/http://www.sacred-texts.com/ufo/hastings.htm. Howe's statements reach the page through Hastings's telephone conversation with her.
[^5]: William L. Moore, 1989b, as quoted in "E B E's," part 11, UFO BBS file UFO1030, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1030.ufo (author not identified in the copy consulted).
[^6]: "Greg Bishop and Richard Doty, Coast to Coast AM with host Art Bell," transcript of the broadcast of February 27, 2005, http://www.openminds.tv/wp-content/uploads/S5-Greg-Bishop-and-Richard-Doty-Coast-to-Coast-AM-with-host-Art-Bell-Interview-Transcript.pdf, (transcript read; Doty's statements on Howe at the passages beginning "Linda was going to air" and "Paul Bennewitz, Linda Howe, and two other groups of people that we had an operation against").
[^7]: William L. Moore, address to the MUFON International UFO Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989, from the caption transcript of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUfimKiS-po (video of the Ron Regehr recording, Internet Archive item bill-moore-1989-mufon); names corrected from mis-rendered captions.

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10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Morris K. Jessup.md Normal file
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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- Astronomer
- ONR
- PhiladelphiaExperiment
- VaroEdition
alias:
- Morris K. Jessup
- Morris Ketchum Jessup
- M. K. Jessup
- Dr. M. K. Jessup
- Dr. Jessup
- Jessup
summary: "Author of The Case for the UFO (1955), whose annotated paperback reached the Office of Naval Research and was retyped by Varo; he died in Dade County, Florida, on April 20, 1959."
location: "Miami, Florida"
relations:
- type: subject_of
with: "[[Office of Naval Research]]"
start: 1955
role: "annotated copy of his paperback received at ONR and passed to Special Projects officers (Varo Edition introduction dates the postmark 1955, Barker dates it April 1956)"
fn: 3
- type: subject_of
with: "[[Varo Manufacturing Company]]"
role: "Varo retyped the annotated paperback; Barker wrote that Jessup was called in by Varo, shown the book and given several copies"
fn: 2
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Morris Ketchum Jessup (born March 2, 1900) wrote four books on unidentified flying objects, the first of which, [[The Case for the UFO]], was published in 1955.[^1][^2] A copy of the paperback reprint carrying handwritten annotations in three inks reached the [[Office of Naval Research]] (ONR), and the [[Varo Manufacturing Company]] of [[Garland, Texas]] retyped it with the annotations in red type for a small number of copies, now called the Varo Edition or Annotated Edition.[^3] [[Gray Barker]] wrote that on the evening of April 20, 1959, Jessup died in his station wagon in a [[Dade County, Florida]] park from automobile exhaust piped in by hose, and described the death as a suicide; he added that after the death ufologists began delving into it and into its connection with the book.[^2]
### Education and early work
The jacket of The Case for the UFO describes Jessup as a former instructor in astronomy and mathematics at the [[University of Michigan]] and [[Drake University]] who completed a doctoral thesis in astrophysics at Michigan. Barker wrote in 1973 that the jacket does not say whether the degree was awarded, that Jessup never used the title "Doctor" on his covers or in correspondence, and that "very likely Jessup was never actually awarded the degree."[^2] The jacket credits him with discovering several thousand physical double stars catalogued in the Memoirs of the [[Royal Astronomical Society]], a [[United States Department of Agriculture]] assignment to study sources of crude rubber in the headwaters of the [[Amazon River]], Maya archaeological work for the [[Carnegie Institution of Washington]], and exploration of Inca ruins in [[Peru]], where he concluded the stonework had been "erected by the levitating power of space ships in antediluvian times." A final jacket paragraph describes a group of craters on the [[Mexico|Mexican]] plateau he believed to have been made by objects from space. According to [[James W. Moseley]], former publisher of [[Saucer News]], Jessup sought university, foundation and private sponsorship for the crater study and did not obtain it.[^2]
### The Case for the UFO
The first edition appeared from [[Citadel Press]] in 1955.[^1] Barker wrote that the book "came and went with relatively few sales" and that its publisher sold the remainder to second-hand bookstores at one dollar each; he also wrote that it was a paperback edition "published in 1955 by Bantam Books" that "enmeshed Jessup in one of the most bizarre mysteries in UFO history," and that permission to reproduce the text was obtained "both from the author and the publisher, Citadel Press."[^2] Barker counted four Jessup books on the subject in all.[^2] The Varo transcription reproduces the text of the paperback that carried the annotations.[^3]
### The Allende letters
Jessup received the first of two letters from a man who signed himself [[Carlos Allende|Carlos Miguel Allende]] on Friday, January 13, 1956, in [[Miami]]. It was postmarked [[Gainesville, Texas]], in an envelope of the [[Turner Hotel (Gainesville, Texas)|Turner Hotel]], Gainesville. It is addressed from "R. D. #1 Box 223, New Kensington, Penn." and signed "Carl M. Allen." The letter says that "the result was complete invisibility of a ship, Destroyer type, and all of its crew While at Sea. (Oct. 1943)," that half the officers and crew were afterward "Mad as Hatters," that two men "Froze" and "caught fire" while carrying small-boat compasses and "BURNED FOR 18 DAYS," and that another walked through his quarters wall in sight of his wife and child and was never seen again. It tells Jessup to check [[Philadelphia]] newspapers of 1944 to 1946 for a paragraph on sailors raiding a bar near the [[Philadelphia Navy Yard]], and to check the crew of a [[Matson Navigation Company]] Liberty ship out of [[Norfolk, Virginia]], transcribed as the S.S. "Andrew Furnseth," naming a chief mate "Mowsely" and a crewman Richard "Splicey" Price of [[Roanoke, Virginia]], who "Were Witnesses." A postscript gives a number, "Z416175." A second part, "Days Later," advises him to "contact Rear Admiral Ransom Bennett for verification of info herein. Navy Chief of research. He may offer you a job, ultimately."[^4]
The introduction to the Varo Edition states that a second Allende letter was postmarked [[Du Bois, Pennsylvania]], on May 25, 1956, and that Jessup said he "had felt from the first that this man was the one who mailed the book to the Navy."[^3] The unsigned introduction reasons from handwriting, spelling and phrasing that the writer of the letters was the annotator it calls Mr. A.[^3] Barker wrote that his own interest began after he heard of Jessup's death and that his findings became the 1963 book The Strange Case of Dr. M. K. Jessup, published by [[Saucerian Books]] and reprinted in 1965 and 1967.[^2]
### The annotated copy and the Navy
The introduction to the Varo Edition gives the following sequence. The annotated paperback, addressed to "Admiral N. [[Frederick R. Furth|Furth]], Chief, Office of Naval Research, Washington 25, D.C.," arrived in a manila envelope postmarked [[Seminole, Texas]], 1955, bearing the words "Happy Easter." In July or August of that year it appeared in the incoming correspondence of Major [[Darrell L. Ritter]], USMC, of the Aeronautical Project Office at ONR. When Captain [[Sidney Sherby]] "reported aboard at ONR" he obtained the book from Ritter, and Sherby and Commander [[George W. Hoover]], Special Projects Officer at ONR, "indicated direct interest in some of the material therein." The introduction opens with the sentence "Because of the importance which we attach to the possibility of discovering clues to the nature of gravity, no possible item, however disreputable from the point of view of classical science, should be overlooked." The Varo Manufacturing Company, Garland, Texas, "offered to re-publish the book together with all notations in a very limited edition as a prelude to consideration of further pursuit of this unconventional material," and its president's secretary, Miss Michael Ann Dunn, retyped it, preserving the three ink colors by type and footnotes.[^3]
Barker's preface to the 1973 facsimile gives a different sequence. He wrote that Varo's involvement "began a few months after February 1956," that "in April of that year" Admiral N. Furth, Chief of the Office of Naval Research, received the envelope, and that the history "from a confidential source" next surfaces in July or August of the same year, when the paperback was passed to Major Darrel L. Ritter, USMC, Aeronautical Project Officer of ONR; he wrote that Captain Sherby then joined ONR and, with Hoover, "indicated interest in the book," and that Sherby and Hoover "were deeply involved in satellite development." The January 1956 issue of [[Naval Research Reviews]], ONR's house publication, reports that Rear Admiral [[Rawson Bennett II]] relieved Rear Admiral Frederick R. Furth as Chief of Naval Research on December 31, 1955; that Furth, "piped ashore" after two years as Chief, requested retirement from the Navy after thirty years' service; that his duties had included the "Vanguard" satellite project; and that he was to join the [[ITT Corporation|International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation]] as a civilian.[^5] Barker added that Furth's reactions were unknown. He offered two theories, that senior officers had arranged the printing through a contractor to avoid publicity, or that Sherby and Hoover personally asked Varo as a favor; he wrote that the second was "the writer's best guess," and that Jessup was "called in by Varo and shown the book" and "given several copies." He stated that Varo said its personnel records failed to show Dunn's employment. Barker did not give the number of copies printed; he described the printing as "a very small run" and the volume as spiral bound, more than 200 pages, with each page run twice through an office duplicator, black ink for the text and red for the annotations.[^2]
The annotations are in three hands, identified in the introduction as Mr. A, Mr. B and "Jemi," and are said there to refer to two kinds of space people, "L-M's" and "S-M's," the first described as peaceful and the second as not, as well as undersea cities and a "stasis neutral." The introduction proposes that the writers were Gypsies and that two of them may have been twins.[^3] Barker wrote that a copy had been given to the late [[Bryant H. Reeves]], an author published by [[Ray Palmer]]; that [[Riley H. Crabb]], director of [[Borderland Sciences Research Foundation]], told him he saw it while visiting Reeves in [[Virginia Beach, Virginia]], that Crabb said he and Reeves felt "under surveillance," and that a loaned copy Crabb posted to himself in [[California]] was lost in the mail.[^2]
### Death
Barker's 1973 preface opens with the statement that "on the evening of April 20, 1959, an astronomer committed suicide in Dade County Park, Florida," that he inhaled automobile exhaust which he had run by hose from the tail pipe into his station wagon, and that he died "unheralded and almost unrecognized in his discipline."[^2] The coroner's file was not available for this draft. The [[Miami Herald]] of April 22, 1959 reported under the headline "Author A Suicide, Police Say" that Metro detectives said on Tuesday, April 21, that Morris K. Jessup, 59, an astronomer and author of several books on flying space objects, had committed suicide by asphyxiating himself; that his body was found on Monday, April 20, in his parked car at [[Matheson Hammock Park|Matheson Hammock]]; and that investigators said a hose ran from the car's exhaust pipe to the inside of the automobile. The item states that he was survived by his wife, Ruby, that he lived at 1531 Saragossa Avenue in [[Coral Gables, Florida|Coral Gables]], having moved there six months earlier, and that he was a onetime instructor at the University of Michigan and Drake University and the author of The Case for the UFO, a 1955 publication, with another book on outer space flight before his publishers at his death. It gives no time of death and does not mention Varo or Allende. The Herald calls the vehicle a car and gives Monday as the day of discovery; Barker calls it a station wagon and gives the evening of April 20 as the time of death.[^6] Barker added that a "tradition of bad luck or strange circumstances" attached to owners of the Varo Edition: a house destroyed by fire, the heart attack of Captain [[Edward J. Ruppelt]], former head of [[Project Blue Book]], "allegedly shortly after he read a borrowed copy," and the early death of the author [[Robert Loftin]]. He wrote that "except for the deaths, this is purely hearsay."[^2] Barker also wrote that "at least two national magazine articles explored Jessup's death and his connection with the book," and that [[Brad Steiger]] published reduced reproductions of three pages in [[Saga]] magazine for November 1967, in the article "Fantastic Key to the Flying Saucer Mystery," from a microfilm copy owned by [[Stephen Yankee]].[^2]
Barker acquired an original copy in 1971 from a friend of Jessup to whom Jessup had given one, decided in July 1972 to publish, and issued a facsimile through [[Saucerian Press]] in 1973, stating the run would be no more than 500 copies.[^2] The transcription at the [[Internet Archive]] was prepared by the [[Quantum Future Group]] of Castelnau-Barbarens, [[France]], in 2003.[^2]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Morris K. Jessup, The Case for the UFO (New York: Citadel Press, 1955), catalog record, Internet Archive item caseforufo0000mkje (metadata: publisher Citadel, date 1955), https://archive.org/details/caseforufo0000mkje (lending copy, not read).
[^2]: Gray Barker, preface dated July 1973, in the same volume, pp. 2 to 6. Barker identified a "confidential source" for the ONR routing and did not name it.
[^3]: Unsigned "Introduction" to the Annotated Edition, in the same volume, pp. 7 to 9; Barker's preface states that the original gives no information on its authorship. Sole source for the passages so cited as to the routing of the book through ONR and the identity of the officers named.
[^4]: "Appendix: The first letter received by Mr. Jessup from Carlos Allende," and "Days Later," in M. K. Jessup, The Case for the UFO, Varo Edition, transcribed by the Quantum Future Group, Castelnau-Barbarens, 2003, from the Saucerian Press facsimile of 1973, pp. 15 to 18, https://archive.org/details/THECASEFORTHEUFOVaroEditionM.K.Jessup (djvu text, reread 2026-10-03).
[^5]: Naval Research Reviews, vol. 9, no. 1 (January 1956), cover caption and "New Chief of Naval Research" and "Admiral Furth Goes Ashore," pp. 22 to 23, Office of Naval Research, https://www.onr.navy.mil/media/document/naval-research-reviews-vol-9-no-1-january-1956 (reopened 2026-10-03).
[^6]: "Author A Suicide, Police Say," Miami Herald (Miami), April 22, 1959, p. 9, https://www.newspapers.com/image/619508003/

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---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- Roswell
- MJ12
- AFOSI
- Disinformation
- Counterintelligence
- Author
alias:
- William L. Moore
- William Moore
- Bill Moore
- Moore
summary: "Co-author of The Roswell Incident (1980) who told the July 1, 1989 MUFON symposium that from 1980 to 1984 he supplied AFOSI, through Richard Doty, information on Paul Bennewitz, APRO and others."
location: "Los Angeles, California"
relations:
- type: reported_to
with: "[[Air Force Office of Special Investigations]]"
start: 1980-09
end: 1984
role: "by his own account of July 1, 1989, supplied information through AFOSI agent Richard Doty on Paul Bennewitz, APRO and others, as 'a freelancer'; denied ever being on the payroll of any agency; said he had no such involvement after 1984"
fn: 2
- type: member_of
with: "[[Aerial Phenomena Research Organization]]"
start: 1979
role: "board member; said in 1989 that the Lorenzens invited him to the board after he moved to Arizona in 1979, and in the 1990 report that he was in charge of Special Investigations"
fn: 2
- type: partner_of
with: "[[Jaime Shandera]]"
start: 1982-06
role: "co-investigator of the MJ-12 documents; Moore said in 1989 that he brought Shandera into the project in June 1982; co-author of The MJ-12 Documents: An Analytical Report (1990)"
fn: 2
- type: participant_in
with: "[[UFO Cover-Up Live]]"
start: 1988-10-14
role: "consultant; said in 1989 that he arranged for the sources code-named Falcon and Condor to appear"
fn: 2
created: 2026-10-03
updated: 2026-10-03
---
William L. Moore is the co-author, with [[Charles Berlitz]], of *[[Philadelphia Experiment|The Philadelphia Experiment]]: Project Invisibility* (1979) and *[[Roswell Incident|The Roswell Incident]]* (1980), both published by [[Grosset & Dunlap]].[^1] With [[Jaime Shandera]] he released the [[Majestic-12]] papers to the press in 1987. On July 1, 1989 he told the [[Mutual UFO Network]] symposium in [[Las Vegas]] that from September 1980 he had been in contact with a source he called Falcon and with [[Air Force Office of Special Investigations]] (AFOSI) agent [[Richard Doty]], that through Doty he had supplied information about [[Paul Bennewitz]], the [[Aerial Phenomena Research Organization]] (APRO) and other researchers until 1984, and that the Aquarius teletype and the Weitzel letter were products of AFOSI counterintelligence work.[^2][^3]
### Books and Arizona
Moore said in 1989 that he had been a high school teacher for fourteen years in [[Minnesota]] and, concurrently for ten years, a part-time labor relations expert with the [[Minnesota Education Association]]; that in 1979, after publishing *The Philadelphia Experiment* with Berlitz, he resigned his teaching position and moved with his family to [[Arizona]] to write full time; and that he came away from a divorce in 1983 with virtually nothing and went through bankruptcy soon afterward.[^2] A text circulated on the [[UFO BBS]] in 1991, an encyclopedia-style account whose author is not identified in the copy consulted, places the teaching post in a small Minnesota town.[^4] From about August 1979 to mid-1987 Moore kept post office box 189 in [[Dewey, Arizona]], as a correspondence address, and moved to [[California]] in early 1983.[^6] A promotional biography prepared for the 1988 television program [[UFO Cover-Up Live]] describes him as the author of two international bestsellers, with investigations that had taken him 200,000 miles to 38 states, [[Canada]] and [[Mexico]], and living in [[Los Angeles]].[^7] Moore said in 1989 that the APRO directors [[Coral Lorenzen]] and [[James Lorenzen]] of [[Tucson]] invited him to the APRO board after his move, and wrote in 1990 that in 1980 he was the board member in charge of Special Investigations.[^2][^5] He told the audience in 1989 that he lived in a rented house, drove a 1977 car and a 1979 motorcycle, had dropped his health insurance, and that "as for my being on the government's payroll, I can only say that I wish I was."[^2]
### Falcon, 1980
Moore told the July 1, 1989 symposium that in early September 1980 he was approached by "a well-placed individual within the intelligence community" who claimed to be directly connected to a high-level government project on UFOs, who said he spoke for a small group uncomfortable with the continuing cover-up, and who told him that a liaison man would arrange later meetings; the liaison was Doty, "a man who has since become quite controversial in his own right and who many people have mistakenly assumed is the Falcon himself." Moore said, "I knew I was being recruited, but at that point I had no idea for what."[^2]
Moore also said that the name Falcon was invented by himself and Shandera in 1984 "strictly as a way of facilitating our talking to each other about this person, particularly on the telephone"; that Doty was referred to between them as "the Sparrow"; that neither man was aware of the labels, nor anyone else to Moore's knowledge, before about mid-1985; and that in mid-1987, after the MJ-12 papers were released, "at Falcon's suggestion and with the concurrence of Richard Doty" they began "dropping subtle hints that Falcon might in fact be Doty," which Moore called "an excellent diversion, particularly with respect to the effect it had following the UFO coverup live show." He described Doty as "much better at following orders and implementing the schemes of others than he is at coming up with ideas of his own," said "Rick is not the man you're after," and said that no one outside his project knew who the person in the control position was.[^2] [[Mark Pilkington]] wrote that Moore named his contact Falcon after [[Robert Lindsey]]'s book *[[The Falcon and the Snowman]]*.[^8] Doty said in March 1989 that he was not the Falcon mentioned on the television program and that government investigative agencies had exonerated him.[^9]
A narrative that does not appear in the caption transcript of the speech is given by the UFO BBS text, which describes an account Moore gave in 1987, and by Pilkington, writing from a videotape of the 1989 speech and from [[Greg Bishop]]'s *[[Project Beta]]* (2005). In early September 1980, after a radio appearance for *The Roswell Incident*, a caller said "We think you're the only one we've heard that seems to know what he's talking about." The BBS text adds that the first such call reached Moore at an [[Omaha]] radio station from a man who said he was a colonel at [[Offutt Air Force Base]], and that the second, on September 8, 1980 after a radio show in [[Albuquerque]], came from a man who said he was at [[Kirtland Air Force Base]]; the caller said he would wear a red tie at a local restaurant.[^8][^4] Pilkington wrote that Falcon offered Moore evidence of a government cover-up in exchange for information, handed him a document referring to "[[Project Silver Sky]]" that Moore found, after checking the witness names, to be fabricated, and at a second meeting on September 30, accompanied by Doty, told Moore that he worked for the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] and spoke for a group within the intelligence community that wished to tell the public the truth about UFOs.[^8] Moore and Shandera wrote in 1990 that "Falcon" designated Doty as middle man in October 1980.[^5] Moore also said in the speech that the anonymous Weitzel letter sent to APRO in July 1980 was written by Doty, that "essentially, it was bait" meant to recruit someone inside APRO who could report on Bennewitz's activities and communications, that it was passed to him for action as an APRO board member, and that "it was not long thereafter that I came to know Richard Doty and began to provide him with information about Bennewitz and his case."[^2]
### The Bennewitz period
The AFOSI interview of Bennewitz on October 26, 1980, the November 17, 1980 teletype and the delivery of its retyped version to Bennewitz in June 1981 are set out on the pages for Paul Bennewitz, Richard Doty and [[Project Aquarius]]. Moore said in 1989 that he first met Bennewitz in early 1981 and was in fairly regular contact with him through mid-1985; that his own role "was largely that of a freelancer providing information on Paul's then current thinking and activities"; that he "had nothing whatsoever to do with the counter intelligence and the disinformation, although I either knew or was aware of a number of people directly involved with that end of things," Doty among them; and that "I was providing regular reports on its effectiveness to some of the very people who were doing it to Paul."[^2] He described watching Bennewitz grow more paranoid and physically worn, eating no lunch while smoking 28 cigarettes in 45 minutes on one visit, and said he had discussed Bennewitz's decoding program with [[J. Allen Hynek]], who had independently examined it.[^2] Pilkington wrote that internal Kirtland documents on August and September 1980 sightings reached Moore on February 1, 1982 from a man who gave a password, and that Moore, visiting Bennewitz, saw a yellow ball of light about twelve centimetres across in the laboratory; Pilkington wrote that Doty told Bishop that he and two [[National Security Agency]] men saw a similar orange light at the house.[^8] Moore said on the radio program *[[UFOs Tonite]]!* on June 11, 1994 that J. Allen Hynek "was part of this operation" and "under contract to the Air Force," and wrote to [[James W. Moseley]] on August 10, 2000 that Hynek's role had been to provide Bennewitz with "a carefully crafted means" of decoding the signals he received, a claim that [[Curt Collins]] reproduced.[^10] Pilkington wrote that when Moore last visited Bennewitz, in 1987, Bennewitz was barely sleeping or eating.[^8]
Doty said in 2005 that Moore "had several sources within the U.S. Government," that he himself never met Moore with anyone but "official personnel," that on one occasion he met Moore with an [[NSA]] investigator, and that "during the Bennewitz affair, I met Moore with FBI agents."[^11] Doty wrote in 2000 that Moore "was a coded source for OSI," "was paid for his information" and "was used to provide disinformation to Ufologists," and that he was "not involved in any conspiracy with Moore to create any documents"; in the same issue of *[[Saucer Smear]]* Moore wrote that he could "confirm Rick Doty's comments about Bennewitz and those strange 'energy balls'" and that he had seen one.[^12] Pilkington wrote that Moore has always denied receiving payment and that he had seen no evidence to the contrary.[^8] Pilkington also reported Moore's account that cards mailed to him from the [[Soviet Union]] by what he took to be American assets contained encoded information, which Moore read by telephone to an untraceable government number and then forwarded to a post office box in [[Washington, D.C.]]; Moore said he never learned what he passed.[^8]
### Meetings with Gersten and the Pratt manuscript
On January 10 and 11, 1983 Moore attended the first of two meetings in [[New Mexico]] between Doty and the attorney [[Peter Gersten]] of [[Citizens Against UFO Secrecy]] (CAUS), with the [[San Francisco]] television producer [[Ron Lakis]]; the second meeting, at which Doty spoke of Project Aquarius, Ellsworth and extraterrestrial contact, was attended by Gersten alone.[^4][^13] Moore consulted for the San Francisco station [[KPIX-TV]] in 1982 and gave its program producer a copy of the November 1980 teletype, according to [[Philip J. Klass]].[^14]
Pilkington wrote that in late 1981 and early 1982 Moore and the [[National Enquirer]] writer [[Bob Pratt]] planned a book on the material Doty was supplying, with Doty credited as "Ronald L. Davis," and that Pratt's recorded telephone calls show Moore at first insisting it be non-fiction before agreeing to a novel, first titled *Majik 12* and then *The Aquarius Project*. Pilkington cites [[Barry Greenwood]] and [[Brad Sparks]], "The Secret Pratt Tapes and the Origins of MJ-12" (MUFON Symposium Proceedings, 2007), for this; that paper was not obtained for this page.[^8][^15] Collins wrote in 2005 that the book *[[Exempt from Disclosure]]* "has the same title as the book Bill Moore and Jaime Shandera intended to publish."[^16]
### The Graham badge, 1986 and 1987
[[Robert Hastings]] wrote on March 1, 1989 that in March 1986 [[Lee Graham]], a holder of a "Q" clearance, gave him copies of the "[[Project Snowbird]]" paper and the "Project Aquarius" teletype, saying only that the source worked for the government. In a call in early June 1987, shortly before the [[Burbank, California]] press conference, Graham told Hastings the source had been Moore, who had shown him a government identification card bearing Moore's photograph and an alias, said to be identical to the badges of two agents of the [[Defense Investigative Service]] who had interviewed Graham about the documents, and had said he was "flagged" in intelligence computers; Graham said he had been introduced to Moore's "superior," known only as "Richard." Hastings wrote that he later heard Moore had "vehemently denied" being a government operative and claimed he had been playing a joke on Graham, the card being, according to Moore, a laminated MUFON card; Moore said in 1989 that the story "stems from nothing more than a practical joke." Hastings reproduced Graham's letters to the DIS of May 8 and October 19, 1986 asking why Moore had not been questioned.[^17]
### July 1, 1989
Moore declined to submit the paper, titled "UFOs and the U.S. Government, Part I," for the symposium proceedings, said he would take no questions from the audience, and instead built seventeen questions and answers into the text.[^4][^2] Pilkington wrote that about a thousand people attended at the [[Aladdin]] hotel while a rival conference met nearby and that the address ran about two hours.[^8] Moore opened by saying he had "wanted to come here tonight and kick ass," and said later: "I have known precisely what I was doing all along. It's just that very few other people knew what I was doing"; Pilkington, reading the videotape, gives the sentence as "I have known exactly what I was doing all along, it was just that nobody else knew what I was doing."[^2][^8]
In the question section Moore said that he had had no involvement in providing information to any government agency about UFOs or the people involved since 1984; that the only conscious involvement he had had with a disinformation operation was the one connected with Bennewitz; and that he had never been on the payroll of any agency of the government. He said Lee Graham was among the "several other individuals" on whom he supplied information, beginning in 1983, that counterintelligence interest in Graham concerned his inquiries into the then classified stealth aircraft program, and that the identification card story "stems from nothing more than a practical joke which has simply gotten out of hand," adding "I do not hold a government ID card." He said that the videotaped interviews with the source code-named Falcon, some made in the presence of news media members, had not been confiscated and remained in his possession; that the [[Ellsworth Air Force Base]] humanoid case of 1977 "was a special counterintelligence training exercise in the creation and dissemination of this information," in which Doty, stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base at the time, was involved but not as the creator of documents; and that the AFOSI documents on a 1980 landing near a nuclear storage facility at Kirtland were, to the best of his knowledge, authentic.[^2]
Moore said that after the broadcast of UFO Cover-Up Live "the FBI showed up and began asking questions about it," arranged a private showing in the office of the producer [[Michael Seligman]], and interviewed ufologists on both coasts including Shandera, while avoiding him; and that a [[Freedom of Information Act]] response of July 1988 admitted that the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] held nearly sixty pages of material on him, all classified for reasons of national security. Of the program he said: "I'm convinced that at least some of that information falls under the category of disinformation. I'm equally convinced that some of it is true," and that the sources knew they would be identified on the show as confidential government informants.[^2]
Moore's closing positions, as spoken, were that a highly advanced extraterrestrial civilization is visiting Earth and "actively manipulating our awareness of their presence"; that elements of at least two government intelligence agencies know this and run classified projects; that counterintelligence personnel have conducted "an on-again off-again campaign of deception and disinformation about the UFO phenomenon for more than 40 years," including phony documents and informants, for five possible reasons, among them use of the phenomenon by "trilateralists" seeking world unity against an unknown threat from space; that a group designated MJ-12 operates at the [[White House]] [[National Security Council]] level; that there was a Project Aquarius, "possibly two of them," one in 1971 to 1973 and one in 1976 to 1985, with contract and report numbers obtained; that the Cutler-Twining memorandum was, in his view, "reasonable certainty" authentic and had been planted among the papers of Record Group 341 for them to find; that there was "no compelling reason to believe" the [[Dwight D. Eisenhower|Eisenhower]] briefing document was other than authentic, though its authenticity was not proved; and that "our group is euphemistically called the aviary and each individual uses a code name of a bird." He closed that there is "an extraterrestrial presence here on planet Earth" and that a small number of government people know it. Pilkington called the closing section Moore's "Estimate of the Situation."[^2][^8] The UFO BBS text, citing a printed Moore text of 1989 that was not obtained, adds that Moore named as subjects of intelligence interest between 1980 and 1984 [[Len Stringfield]], [[Pete Mazzola]], Gersten, [[Larry Fawcett]], James and Coral Lorenzen, and [[Larry W. Bryant]], and said four other prominent ufologists had been doing "the same thing," two of them still active.[^4]
Citizens Against UFO Secrecy devoted most of its September 1989 *[[Just Cause]]* to the speech. Barry Greenwood wrote that Moore "reported the effects of the false information regularly to some of the very same people who were 'doing it' to Paul," and, of the television program, that "here we have a fair portion of the last hour wasted in presenting what Moore admits to be false data."[^4]
### After 1989
Moore told a syndicated reporter in August 1990 that AFOSI had approached him and given him what he called "disinformation," and that "certain agencies stir the UFO pot, for some reason."[^18] Collins wrote that Moore left ufology around 1994, according to [[Brian Parks]], and that Moore gave Bishop in 2005 a name for the "real Falcon" that Collins, citing Bishop and Parks, gave as [[Harry Rositzke]], a former [[Central Intelligence Agency]] officer who died in [[Warrenton, Virginia]], on November 4, 2002; the name is Collins's report of what Moore said to others, and Moore did not publish it.[^19] Pilkington wrote that Bishop remembered Moore "lying prone on his back in a state of near panic as he told Greg that the aliens were here on Earth." Moore declined to be interviewed by Pilkington for *[[Mirage Men]]* (2010).[^8]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Open Library catalogue records, *The Roswell Incident* (Grosset & Dunlap, 1980; Berkley, 1988) and *The Philadelphia Experiment* (Grosset & Dunlap, 1979), https://openlibrary.org/works/OL3384724W
[^2]: William L. Moore, "UFOs and the U.S. Government, Part I," address to the MUFON International UFO Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989, video recorded by Ron Regehr (Internet Archive item bill-moore-1989-mufon, https://archive.org/details/bill-moore-1989-mufon) and read here from the automatic caption transcript of a YouTube upload titled "Full, infamous 1989 disinformation confession speech by Bill Moore," https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUfimKiS-po. The captions mis-render names ("Dodie," "Chandere," "Benowitz," "Muon"), which are corrected here; quotations follow the caption wording and could differ in small details from the printed version in the MUFON UFO Journal of November and December 1989, which was not obtained. The text of the speech is the sole source for the passages so cited.
[^3]: William L. Moore and Jaime H. Shandera, *The MJ-12 Documents: An Analytical Report* (Fund for UFO Research, 1990), pp. 7 to 9, quoting Moore in FOCUS, June 30, 1989, p. 13, and September 30, 1989, p. 8, http://www.openminds.tv/wp-content/uploads/The-MJ-12-Documents-An-Analytical-Report-Excerpts.pdf (scanned excerpt, read as page images).
[^4]: "E B E's," UFO BBS files UFO1023 to UFO1036, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1024.ufo (part 5), .../1027.ufo (part 8), .../1030.ufo (part 11), .../1036.ufo (part 17). The files were distributed through ParaNet in January 1991 and carry no author line; the text cites Moore 1989a and 1989b, Greenwood 1989 and Howe 1989. Sole source for the Offutt call, the Minnesota teaching post and the speech logistics.
[^5]: Moore and Shandera, *MJ-12 Documents*, "The Weitzel Letter (July, 1980)," pp. 6 to 7, quoting Moore's paper of July 1, 1989, same excerpt as note 3.
[^6]: Moore and Shandera, *MJ-12 Documents*, "The Cutler-Twining Memo (Jul. 1985)," pp. 61 to 62, same excerpt.
[^7]: "Background on Moore/Shandera/Friedman," UFO BBS file UFO1876, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1876.ufo (promotional material for *UFO Cover-Up? Live!*).
[^8]: Mark Pilkington, *Mirage Men: A Journey into Disinformation, Paranoia and UFOs* (Constable, 2010), chapters "Aviary" and "The ET Factor" and chapter notes (Moore's speech taken "from the MUFON video, and from Greg Bishop's *Project Beta* (Paraview, 2005)"; Moore "declined to speak to John and myself"), read in a PDF copy at https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf. Pilkington's account is the sole source for the passages so cited.
[^9]: Richard C. Doty, letter of March 3, 1989 to an unnamed correspondent, http://textfiles.com/ufo/doty.ufo
[^10]: Curt Collins, "Bill Moore on Hynek and Vallee," Blue Blurry Lines, https://www.blueblurrylines.com/2019/12/bill-moore-on-hynek-and-vallee.html, quoting Moore on *UFOs Tonite!* (Don Ecker), June 11, 1994, and in *Saucer Smear*, August 10, 2000. The blog was read, the radio program and the issue were not.
[^11]: Richard C. Doty, statement of February 21, 2005, quoted in Robert Collins and Richard Doty, *Exempt from Disclosure: The Black World of UFOs*, reference 4 to the introduction, https://archive.org/details/exempt-from-disclosure
[^12]: James W. Moseley, ed., *Saucer Smear*, vol. 47, July 15, 2000, letter of Richard Doty, https://web.archive.org/web/2008id_/http://www.martiansgohome.com/smear/v47/ss000715.htm (Wayback Machine capture; the live domain no longer serves the issue)
[^13]: Linda Moulton Howe, *An Alien Harvest*, 2nd ed. (2014), pp. 137 to 139 (Gersten's report of January 10 and 11, 1983), https://archive.org/details/howe-l.-m.-an-alien-harvest-2nd-ed-2014
[^14]: Philip J. Klass, *Skeptics UFO Newsletter* no. 44, March 1997, p. 2, https://cdn.centerforinquiry.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/docs/SUN/SUN44.pdf
[^15]: Barry Greenwood and Brad Sparks, "The Secret Pratt Tapes and the Origins of MJ-12," MUFON Symposium Proceedings 2007, as cited in Pilkington, *Mirage Men*, chapter notes. Not obtained.
[^16]: Collins and Doty, *Exempt from Disclosure*, introduction, https://archive.org/details/exempt-from-disclosure
[^17]: Robert Hastings, "The MJ-12 Affair: Facts, Questions, Comments," March 1, 1989, "Moore Questions," Wayback Machine capture of October 28, 2016, https://web.archive.org/web/20161028084620/http://www.sacred-texts.com/ufo/hastings.htm. Graham's account reaches the page through Hastings only; Graham's letters were not obtained.
[^18]: Kate MacGregor, "Government's Battle with New Mexico UFO Witnesses," *Lincoln County News* (Carrizozo, New Mexico), August 30, 1990 (Sunmount Syndicate), reposted as UFO BBS file UFO1943, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1943.ufo
[^19]: Collins and Doty, *Exempt from Disclosure*, Section 2, Chapter 4 addendum and reference 4a (Rositzke named "according to Bill Moore and known by Rick Doty"; Parks statement of July 20, 2012), https://archive.org/details/exempt-from-disclosure. The archive copy is dated 2010 in its metadata but cites 2012 material.

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---
created: 2026-05-17
updated: 2026-09-21
updated: 2026-10-03
title: Albert Stubblebine
aliases:
- Albert Stubblebine
@ -21,13 +21,13 @@ died: 2017-02-06
location: "New York, New York"
---
Major General Albert Newton Stubblebine III (February 6, 1930 - February 6, 2017) was a U.S. Army general who served as commanding general of the [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command|INSCOM]] from 1981 to 1984, during which he was the most senior American military officer publicly associated with belief in psychic phenomena and their military applications. His command authority provided the institutional protection that allowed the [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] and Center Lane remote viewing programs to survive bureaucratic resistance and continue operating through the early 1980s. He died on his 87th birthday.
Major General Albert Newton Stubblebine III (February 6, 1930 - February 6, 2017) was a [[U.S. Army]] general who served as commanding general of the [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command|INSCOM]] from 1981 to 1984, during which he was the most senior American military officer publicly associated with belief in psychic phenomena and their military applications. His command authority provided the institutional protection that allowed the [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] and Center Lane remote viewing programs to survive bureaucratic resistance and continue operating through the early 1980s. He died on his 87th birthday.
### Military Career
Stubblebine graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1952 and pursued a career in Army intelligence and signals work. He advanced through assignments in Army intelligence analysis, signals intelligence, and special operations-adjacent programs, eventually reaching the senior Army intelligence command positions.
Stubblebine graduated from the [[United States]] Military Academy at West Point in 1952 and pursued a career in Army intelligence and signals work. He advanced through assignments in Army intelligence analysis, signals intelligence, and special operations-adjacent programs, eventually reaching the senior Army intelligence command positions.
He was appointed commanding general of INSCOM in 1981. INSCOM was the Army's primary intelligence collection and counterintelligence organization, responsible for signals intelligence, human intelligence collection, and operational security programs across the Army. The STARGATE remote viewing program, which had been operating at Fort Meade since 1977 under code names Gondola Wish and Grill Flame, fell within INSCOM's organizational umbrella.
He was appointed commanding general of INSCOM in 1981. INSCOM was the Army's primary intelligence collection and counterintelligence organization, responsible for signals intelligence, human intelligence collection, and operational security programs across the Army. The STARGATE remote viewing program, which had been operating at [[Fort Meade]] since 1977 under code names Gondola Wish and Grill Flame, fell within INSCOM's organizational umbrella.
### Psychic Research Advocacy
@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ Stubblebine was a genuine believer in the potential of unconventional human capa
Reports from officers who served under him described Stubblebine attempting to walk through the wall of his Pentagon office, based on his conviction that this was theoretically achievable through the right mental training. These reports, which circulated within the Army intelligence community and later became part of the broader cultural record of the STARGATE era documented in Jon Ronson's *The Men Who Stare at Goats* (2004), illustrated both the sincerity of his beliefs and the distance between those beliefs and mainstream military culture.
He pushed for expanded use of psychics throughout Army intelligence and organized training programs intended to develop soldiers' latent psychic capabilities. These included consciousness training exercises at [[Fort Bragg]] for special operations personnel. The cultural environment these programs created - sometimes called the "[[First Earth Battalion]]" culture after Lieutenant Colonel Jim Channon's influential 1979 concept paper proposing a psychic warrior force - was an institutional artifact of Stubblebine's INSCOM command.
He pushed for expanded use of psychics throughout Army intelligence and organized training programs intended to develop soldiers' latent psychic capabilities. These included consciousness training exercises at [[Fort Bragg]] for special operations personnel. The cultural environment these programs created - sometimes called the "[[First Earth Battalion]]" culture after Lieutenant Colonel [[Jim Channon]]'s influential 1979 concept paper proposing a psychic warrior force - was an institutional artifact of Stubblebine's INSCOM command.
### Support for STARGATE
@ -43,18 +43,20 @@ Stubblebine's most consequential contribution to the government remote viewing p
His advocacy also had limits: the program's credibility within mainstream Army intelligence was not enhanced by its association with a commander known for attempting to walk through walls. Officers who might otherwise have engaged with the remote viewing program's results distanced themselves from it to avoid association with what they considered an embarrassingly unconventional command climate.
Stubblebine was relieved of the INSCOM command in 1984 and retired from the Army. After his departure, the program continued but lost some of its most senior Army champion. The DIA subsequently took over primary program management.
The sources differ on how and when his INSCOM command ended. [[Jim Schnabel]] wrote in [[The Independent]] of August 27, 1995 that Stubblebine "retired from the Army in 1984," and that "the fatal blow to his career came in 1983," when an INSCOM staff officer visited the [[Monroe Institute]]; Schnabel attributed that account to unnamed former colleagues and to [[Ed Dames]].[^1] A [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] addendum to a memorandum for the record dated December 10, 1985 lists "Stubblebine, Albert MG (Ret.)" as commanding general of INSCOM from May 1981 to June 1984.[^2] The [[Gasconade County Republican]] of [[Owensville, Missouri]] reported on May 16, 1984, in a local item on a retirement ceremony whose honoree appears to be a person named Huff, that "Major Gen. Albert N. Stubblebine III, Commanding General, U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command, Arlington Hall Station, Va." presided and spoke; the ceremony date is not given in the portion read.[^3] The project manager's records place the decision of his successor, [[Harry Soyster]], to discontinue Center Lane on July 13, 1984 (see below).[^4] The departure has also been described as a relief from command in 1984 followed by retirement from the Army; no source for that wording is identified. After his departure, the program continued but lost some of its most senior Army champion. The DIA subsequently took over primary program management.
### The Record
Stubblebine received his first Grill Flame briefing as incoming commander of INSCOM on June 30, 1981, from the outgoing project manager, Lieutenant Colonel [[Murray Watt]], and his successor, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Jachim. After the Senate intelligence committee's budget subcommittee cut the Army's psychoenergetic operations from the National Foreign Intelligence Program at the end of fiscal 1982, he "decided to continue INSCOM's project and provide funding with Security and Investigative Activities (S&IA) monies" under the provisional special access program [[Center Lane]]. The project manager's records of his meetings show him on November 30, 1983, confirming "his decision to hold a 'bonding' ceremony" for the RAPT training, to be led by Lieutenant Colonel [[John B. Alexander|John Alexander]], and on January 6, 1984, saying of Alexander's unauthorized debriefing of [[Russell Targ]] that "he had not instructed LTC Alexander to debrief Targ because Alexander was not a trained intelligence officer."[^1]
Stubblebine received his first Grill Flame briefing as incoming commander of INSCOM on June 30, 1981, from the outgoing project manager, Lieutenant Colonel [[Murray Watt]], and his successor, Lieutenant Colonel [[Robert Jachim]]. After the Senate intelligence committee's budget subcommittee cut the Army's psychoenergetic operations from the National Foreign Intelligence Program at the end of fiscal 1982, he "decided to continue INSCOM's project and provide funding with Security and Investigative Activities (S&IA) monies" under the provisional special access program [[Center Lane]]. The project manager's records of his meetings show him on November 30, 1983, confirming "his decision to hold a 'bonding' ceremony" for the RAPT training, to be led by Lieutenant Colonel [[John B. Alexander|John Alexander]], and on January 6, 1984, saying of Alexander's unauthorized debriefing of [[Russell Targ]] that "he had not instructed LTC Alexander to debrief Targ because Alexander was not a trained intelligence officer."[^5]
At the briefing of June 30, 1981, attended by Brigadier General Flynn, Colonel Weinstein, Colonel White, and the two project managers, "MG Stubblebine instructed us to ensure that there were no legal problems concerning our joint contractual effort with DIA, especially to be watchful of mixing OM&A and R&D monies," and, reviewing the customer evaluations, "expressed the thought that the evaluations were a clear indication that we were on to something and that work in this area had to continue."[^2]
At the briefing of June 30, 1981, attended by Brigadier General Flynn, Colonel Weinstein, Colonel White, and the two project managers, "MG Stubblebine instructed us to ensure that there were no legal problems concerning our joint contractual effort with DIA, especially to be watchful of mixing OM&A and R&D monies," and, reviewing the customer evaluations, "expressed the thought that the evaluations were a clear indication that we were on to something and that work in this area had to continue."[^6]
On September 27, 1982, four days before the cut, he heard the full Grill Flame briefing at building 2561, "well over an hour" of it on the project book and two unevaluated cases; "he was unaware of the problems we had had in getting information from Europe, concerning [[James Dozier|Dozier]]." Coming from a visit to Lieutenant General [[Lincoln D. Faurer|Faurer]] of the [[National Security Agency|NSA]], he dismissed one option for housing the unit as soon as it was clear it had no spaces or money of its own, and "before I could finish, MG Stubblebine selected SSD, 902D as the organization to which the project would go. As I tried to continue with other options, MG Stubblebine then indicated I must not have heard him for he had already made his decision." His guidance included "Get out of the briefing mode!" The assistant chief of staff for intelligence wrote to him in April 1983 that "I applaud your efforts to establish a Special Access Program," and that INSCOM should present itself as engaged in "a similar, cooperative effort of its own initiative" rather than the former joint program. In 1983 he briefed the Army Science Board, the under secretary [[James Ambrose]], and the Secretary of the Army, [[John Marsh]], himself. On August 26, 1983, after Buzby, Atwater, and McMoneagle briefed him on the project and the [[Monroe Institute]], "the CG started to relate some of his experiences and personal thoughts in the field of parapsychology," and "directed me to expand the program with quality people, develop a screening program to identify qualified people for the project; and employ advance techniques for intelligence collection." His chief of staff asked whether the project was receiving information from Lieutenant Colonel John B. Alexander and was told that Alexander's involvement "was entirely overt and that we neither had nor wanted any contact with him." On January 6, 1984, he asked to be kept informed of the "Los Alamos Project," "as it was his initiative," and agreed not to fund a new Monroe Institute proposal. On March 13, 1984, the director of the Army staff cancelled RAPT, the Hemi-Sync screening course, and on July 13 his successor, [[Harry Soyster]], decided to discontinue Center Lane.[^3]
On September 27, 1982, four days before the cut, he heard the full Grill Flame briefing at building 2561, "well over an hour" of it on the project book and two unevaluated cases; "he was unaware of the problems we had had in getting information from Europe, concerning [[James Dozier|Dozier]]." Coming from a visit to Lieutenant General [[Lincoln D. Faurer|Faurer]] of the [[National Security Agency|NSA]], he dismissed one option for housing the unit as soon as it was clear it had no spaces or money of its own, and "before I could finish, MG Stubblebine selected SSD, 902D as the organization to which the project would go. As I tried to continue with other options, MG Stubblebine then indicated I must not have heard him for he had already made his decision." His guidance included "Get out of the briefing mode!" The assistant chief of staff for intelligence wrote to him in April 1983 that "I applaud your efforts to establish a Special Access Program," and that INSCOM should present itself as engaged in "a similar, cooperative effort of its own initiative" rather than the former joint program. In 1983 he briefed the Army Science Board, the under secretary [[James Ambrose]], and the Secretary of the Army, [[John Marsh]], himself. On August 26, 1983, after Buzby, Atwater, and McMoneagle briefed him on the project and the Monroe Institute, "the CG started to relate some of his experiences and personal thoughts in the field of parapsychology," and "directed me to expand the program with quality people, develop a screening program to identify qualified people for the project; and employ advance techniques for intelligence collection." His chief of staff asked whether the project was receiving information from Lieutenant Colonel John B. Alexander and was told that Alexander's involvement "was entirely overt and that we neither had nor wanted any contact with him." On January 6, 1984, he asked to be kept informed of the "[[Los Alamos]] Project," "as it was his initiative," and agreed not to fund a new Monroe Institute proposal. On March 13, 1984, the director of the Army staff cancelled RAPT, the Hemi-Sync screening course, and on July 13 his successor, Harry Soyster, decided to discontinue Center Lane.[^4]
### Post-Military Career
Jim Schnabel wrote in The Independent of August 27, 1995 that Stubblebine "retired from the Army in 1984 to become an executive at BDM Corporation, a Washington-area defence and intelligence contractor," and that he "left BDM a few years ago."[^1] A Defense Intelligence Agency addendum to a memorandum for the record dated December 10, 1985 lists "Stubblebine, Albert MG (Ret.)" as commanding general of [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command|INSCOM]] from May 1981 to June 1984 and "presently employed by BDM Corp. in the Wash., D.C. area."[^2] His biography on the website of [[Canadian Subsidiary Technology Inc.]], on whose board he sat, states that "upon retirement, he served as the Vice President for Intelligence at BDM and ran his own consulting firm."[^7] [[John B. Alexander]] wrote in 2011 that Stubblebine went to work for BDM "as the Vice President for Intelligence Operations" and that Alexander's 1985 meetings, later called the [[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]], were to be held in the company's secure facilities. A [[Department of Energy]] visit request of May 8, 1985 names the BDM McLean facility for an "Advance Theoretical Physics Conference" of May 20 to 25, 1985, and [[Oke Shannon|James Shannon]]'s attendee list gives "Bert Stubblebine" under BDM. [[George P. Hansen]] wrote in *The Trickster and the Paranormal* that [[Karl Pflock]] worked for BDM International between 1989 and 1992 and that Stubblebine, chairman of [[Psi Tech]], "also worked for the company" during that time.[^8] The company's chairman from 1990 was [[Frank Carlucci]], and its owner from 1990 to 1997 was the [[Carlyle Group]]; see [[BDM Corporation]].
After retirement, Stubblebine became involved in alternative health movements and supplement businesses. He married psychiatrist Rima Laibow, and the two became prominent voices in alternative medicine and health freedom advocacy, including campaigns against mandatory vaccination and opposition to pharmaceutical industry regulation. This later career was distant in character from his military intelligence background but reflected a consistent pattern of skepticism toward mainstream institutional authority.
He was prominently featured in Jon Ronson's *The Men Who Stare at Goats* (2004) and the 2009 film adaptation, which used him and the Grill Flame culture as the central subjects of its examination of psychic warfare research within the U.S. military.
@ -63,6 +65,11 @@ Stubblebine died February 6, 2017 - his 87th birthday - at his home in [[New Mex
### Footnotes
[^1]: Buzby, Brian, memoranda for the record, "Initial Grill Flame Briefing to MG Stubblebine as CG, INSCOM, 30 June 1981" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220001-0), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. US Army Intelligence and Security Command, "Briefing - Project Center Lane," c. 1984, CIA-RDP96-00789R002100180002-8. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^2]: Memorandum for the record, "Initial Grill Flame Briefing to MG Stubblebine as CG, INSCOM, 30 June 1981," July 1, 1981, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220001-0. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^3]: Jachim, Robert J., memorandum "Briefing for MG A.N. Stubblebine III," October 8, 1982, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220022-7; Buzby, Brian, memoranda "CENTER LANE Briefing for CG, USAINSCOM," August 29, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220011-9), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983," December 6, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984," January 17, 1984 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2); letter of the ACSI to Stubblebine, "CENTER LANE," April 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220002-9). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. US Army Intelligence and Security Command, "List of Events from September 1977 to January 1986," CIA-RDP96-00788R001100020001-8; the scan's table columns are reflowed by OCR and some dates are uncertain. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^1]: Schnabel, Jim. "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Psi," The Independent (London), Sunday Review, August 27, 1995, pp. 10-13, FBIS transcription CIA-RDP96-00791R000200090001-7, https://archive.org/details/cia-readingroom-document-cia-rdp96-00791r000200090001-7.
[^2]: "Addendum to MFR, dtd 10 Dec 85," CIA-RDP96-00788R001700030001-1, https://archive.org/details/cia-readingroom-document-cia-rdp96-00788r001700030001-1.
[^3]: "[Headline not captured]," Gasconade County Republican (Owensville, Mo.), May 16, 1984, p. 3, https://www.newspapers.com/image/1124021519/ (local item on a retirement ceremony; ceremony date not captured).
[^4]: Jachim, Robert J., memorandum "Briefing for MG A.N. Stubblebine III," October 8, 1982, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220022-7; Buzby, Brian, memoranda "CENTER LANE Briefing for CG, USAINSCOM," August 29, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220011-9), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983," December 6, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984," January 17, 1984 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2); letter of the ACSI to Stubblebine, "CENTER LANE," April 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220002-9). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. US Army Intelligence and Security Command, "List of Events from September 1977 to January 1986," CIA-RDP96-00788R001100020001-8; the scan's table columns are reflowed by OCR and some dates are uncertain. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^5]: Buzby, Brian, memoranda for the record, "Initial Grill Flame Briefing to MG Stubblebine as CG, INSCOM, 30 June 1981" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220001-0), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984" (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. US Army Intelligence and Security Command, "Briefing - Project Center Lane," c. 1984, CIA-RDP96-00789R002100180002-8. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^6]: Memorandum for the record, "Initial Grill Flame Briefing to MG Stubblebine as CG, INSCOM, 30 June 1981," July 1, 1981, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220001-0. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^7]: Canadian Subsidiary Technology Inc., board of directors page, Wayback capture of February 6, 2005, https://web.archive.org/web/20050206131007id_/http://canadiansub.com/Board.html. Promotional biography; sole source for the quoted title.
[^8]: Elizondo and the Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," Anomaly Archives, 2022, pp. 61-62, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf, quoting Hansen; the book was not opened. Sole source for the passage so cited.

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10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Andrija Puharich.md
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@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
---
---
created: 2026-05-15
updated: 2026-09-21
updated: 2026-10-02
title: Andrija Puharich
aliases:
- Andrija Puharich
@ -24,23 +24,23 @@ born: 1918-02-19
died: 1995-01-03
location: "Chicago, Illinois"
---
Henry Karel "Andrija" Puharich (1918-1995) was a prominent American physician, research scientist, and parapsychologist who became a central figure in the U.S. government's investigations into [[Extrasensory Perception|ESP]] and [[Psychokinesis|PK]] during the [[Cold War]]. His lifelong quest to understand the nature of consciousness and anomalous mental phenomena led him to explore the intersection of science, mysticism, and the supernatural[^1].
Henry Karel "Andrija" Puharich (1918-1995) was a prominent American physician, research scientist, and parapsychologist who became a central figure in the [[U.S. government]]'s investigations into [[Extrasensory Perception|ESP]] and [[Psychokinesis|PK]] during the [[Cold War]]. His lifelong quest to understand the nature of consciousness and anomalous mental phenomena led him to explore the intersection of science, mysticism, and the supernatural[^1].
Born in Chicago on February 19, 1918, to poor Yugoslavian immigrants, Puharich had an early experience that shaped his future. As a milk delivery boy, he claimed to have calmed a vicious dog by sending "feelings of calmness and peace," leading him to believe in [[Telepathy|mind-to-mind telepathy]] and inspiring him to pursue medicine to understand the biological basis of such phenomena[^1]. He excelled academically, attending [[Northwestern University]] for philosophy and premedical studies before entering medical school. During his studies, he deeply contemplated the nature of the mind and consciousness, stating, "Understanding the nature of man’s consciousness... is my lifelong quest"[^1].
Born in [[Chicago]] on February 19, 1918, to poor [[Yugoslavia|Yugoslavian]] immigrants, Puharich had an early experience that shaped his future. As a milk delivery boy, he claimed to have calmed a vicious dog by sending "feelings of calmness and peace," leading him to believe in [[Telepathy|mind-to-mind telepathy]] and inspiring him to pursue medicine to understand the biological basis of such phenomena[^1]. He excelled academically, attending [[Northwestern University]] for philosophy and premedical studies before entering medical school. During his studies, he deeply contemplated the nature of the mind and consciousness, stating, "Understanding the nature of man’s consciousness... is my lifelong quest"[^1].
After completing his medical degree in 1947, Puharich worked with leading physicians, including his mentor, Dr. Andrew C. Ivy. During his residency at the Permanente Research Foundation, he formulated the Puharich Theory, which posited an unknown energy force linking the brain and nervous system to cells, with instructions flowing between them as "dynamics." He believed this energy radiated on the [[Electromagnetic Spectrum|electromagnetic spectrum]] but was beyond current measurement technology. His theory gained traction when [[Lloyd H. Beck]] and [[Walter S. Miles]] of [[Yale University]] reported that the olfactory nerve of a bee radiated energy in the infrared spectrum[^1].
After completing his medical degree in 1947, Puharich worked with leading physicians, including his mentor, Dr. [[Andrew C. Ivy]]. During his residency at the [[Permanente Research Foundation]], he formulated the Puharich Theory, which posited an unknown energy force linking the brain and nervous system to cells, with instructions flowing between them as "dynamics." He believed this energy radiated on the [[Electromagnetic Spectrum|electromagnetic spectrum]] but was beyond current measurement technology. His theory gained traction when [[Lloyd H. Beck]] and [[Walter S. Miles]] of [[Yale University]] reported that the olfactory nerve of a bee radiated energy in the infrared spectrum[^1].
Inspired by microbiologist [[Paul De Kruif]], who warned him to "Beware the Establishment!"[^1], Puharich began lecturing on his ideas, merging philosophy, mysticism, and science. This attracted wealthy benefactors, notably [[Joyce Borden Balokovic]] and [[Zlatko Balokovic]], and later [[Alice Astor Bouverie]] and [[Marcella Miller du Pont]]. With their financial backing, Puharich established the [[Round Table Foundation]] in Glen Cove, Maine, in 1949. The foundation, named in homage to King Arthur, aimed to conduct experiments on ESP and related phenomena[^1].
Inspired by microbiologist [[Paul De Kruif]], who warned him to "Beware the Establishment!"[^1], Puharich began lecturing on his ideas, merging philosophy, mysticism, and science. This attracted wealthy benefactors, notably [[Joyce Borden Balokovic]] and [[Zlatko Balokovic]], and later [[Alice Astor Bouverie]] and [[Marcella Miller du Pont]]. With their financial backing, Puharich established the [[Round Table Foundation]] in [[Glen Cove, Maine]], in 1949. The foundation, named in homage to King Arthur, aimed to conduct experiments on ESP and related phenomena[^1].
The Warrenton Estate, Puharich's home and laboratory, became the center of his research. Here, he conducted experiments on audio waves and human hearing, collaborating with ear surgeon [[Samuel Rosen]], whose accidental discovery of the "Rosen stapes" operation brought prestige and grants to the foundation[^1]. Puharich's mystical beliefs deepened through his mentorship with [[John Hays Hammond Jr.]], a wealthy inventor and ESP advocate. Hammond, influenced by [[Nikola Tesla]], believed scientific inspiration could come from an unknown energy force in dreams. Together, they built a [[Faraday Cage]] to test ESP on [[Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) Waves|ELF waves]]. Their "Project I" involved psychics like [[Eileen Garrett]], whose ESP abilities reportedly increased inside the cage[^1].
The [[Warrenton Estate]], Puharich's home and laboratory, became the center of his research. Here, he conducted experiments on audio waves and human hearing, collaborating with ear surgeon [[Samuel Rosen]], whose accidental discovery of the "Rosen stapes" operation brought prestige and grants to the foundation[^1]. Puharich's mystical beliefs deepened through his mentorship with [[John Hays Hammond Jr.]], a wealthy inventor and ESP advocate. Hammond, influenced by [[Nikola Tesla]], believed scientific inspiration could come from an unknown energy force in dreams. Together, they built a [[Faraday Cage]] to test ESP on [[Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) Waves|ELF waves]]. Their "Project I" involved psychics like [[Eileen Garrett]], whose ESP abilities reportedly increased inside the cage[^1].
Puharich also investigated audio aberrations, collaborating with [[Warren S. McCulloch]], a cybernetics founder and [[Central Intelligence Agency]] asset. They discovered that a machinist hearing voices was actually picking up radio signals due to carborundum dust on his dental fillings, a finding that garnered attention from *[[The New York Times]]* and the [[U.S. Navy]][^1].
Puharich's work caught the attention of the [[Pentagon]]. In 1952, Lieutenant Colonel [[John B. Stanley]] of the [[U.S. Army]]'s Office of the Chief of Psychological Warfare, who also served as an Army liaison to the CIA, met with Puharich. This led to Puharich delivering classified briefings and being recalled to military service in March 1953, where he worked at the [[U.S. Army Chemical Center]] in Edgewood, Maryland[^1]. His task was to find a drug that could enhance ESP, mirroring the Central Intelligence Agency's quest for a truth serum[^1].
Puharich's work caught the attention of the [[Pentagon]]. In 1952, Lieutenant Colonel [[John B. Stanley]] of the [[U.S. Army]]'s [[Office of the Chief of Psychological Warfare]], who also served as an Army liaison to the CIA, met with Puharich. This led to Puharich delivering classified briefings and being recalled to military service in March 1953, where he worked at the [[U.S. Army Chemical Center]] in [[Edgewood Arsenal|Edgewood, Maryland]][^1]. His task was to find a drug that could enhance ESP, mirroring the Central Intelligence Agency's quest for a truth serum[^1].
During this period, Puharich became obsessed with the hallucinogenic mushroom *teonanáctl* (God's flesh), after Alice Astor Bouverie informed him of [[Harry Stump]]'s channeling of an "Egyptian persona" that spoke of such a drug. Puharich learned of [[R. Gordon Wasson]]'s expeditions to Mexico in search of the mushroom and briefed his Army superiors on it[^1]. However, the CIA, through [[James Moore]], bypassed Puharich and approached Wasson directly, leading to Puharich being sidelined from the [[Project MKUltra|MKULTRA Subproject 58]][^1].
During this period, Puharich became obsessed with the hallucinogenic mushroom *teonanáctl* (God's flesh), after Alice Astor Bouverie informed him of [[Harry Stump]]'s channeling of an "Egyptian persona" that spoke of such a drug. Puharich learned of [[R. Gordon Wasson]]'s expeditions to [[Mexico]] in search of the mushroom and briefed his Army superiors on it[^1]. However, the CIA, through [[James Moore]], bypassed Puharich and approached Wasson directly, leading to Puharich being sidelined from the [[Project MKUltra|MKULTRA Subproject 58]][^1].
Puharich's personal life suffered during his Army service. His wife, Jinny, battled severe depression and underwent insulin shock therapy. After their divorce, Jinny died by suicide in 1959[^1]. Puharich later married Bep Hermans.
Puharich's personal life suffered during his Army service. His wife, Jinny, battled severe depression and underwent insulin shock therapy. After their divorce, Jinny died by suicide in 1959[^1]. Puharich later married [[Bep Hermans]].
Upon his return to civilian life in 1955, Puharich continued his research at the Round Table Foundation. He experimented with *teonanáctl* on himself and others, including Harry Stump, with [[Aldous Huxley]] as a witness. While the experiments did not yield the divinatory powers Puharich hoped for in Stump, they highlighted the ethical complexities of his research[^1].
@ -48,17 +48,27 @@ After the death of Alice Astor Bouverie, a key financial supporter, and growing
Puharich continued to work on secret government contracts, including for [[NASA]] and the [[Air Force Systems Command]], exploring concepts like "skin reading" - the idea that the skin could function as an organ of sensory communication beyond touch. He demonstrated this with deaf individuals, convincing [[Paul S. Henshaw]] of the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] of its legitimacy[^1].
His interests also extended to psychic healing, leading him to Brazil to study [[Arigo]], a healer who reportedly performed surgeries with a pocketknife. Puharich documented Arigo's work, hoping to secure military interest in "psychic healing on the battlefield," though without success[^1].
His interests also extended to psychic healing, leading him to [[Brazil]] to study [[Arigo]], a healer who reportedly performed surgeries with a pocketknife. Puharich documented Arigo's work, hoping to secure military interest in "psychic healing on the battlefield," though without success[^1].
In 1970, Puharich met [[Itzhak Bentov]], who introduced him to [[Uri Geller]], an Israeli with extraordinary psychokinetic and telepathic abilities. Puharich became obsessed with Geller, believing he could secure a government research contract if he could test him under laboratory conditions. His efforts led to Geller being tested by the Central Intelligence Agency at [[Stanford Research Institute]] (SRI), though the CIA viewed Puharich as a "potential liability"[^1]. Puharich acted as Geller's official manager, often involving the press, which complicated the CIA's desire for secrecy[^1].
In 1970, Puharich met [[Itzhak Bentov]], who introduced him to [[Uri Geller]], an [[Israel|Israeli]] with extraordinary psychokinetic and telepathic abilities. Puharich became obsessed with Geller, believing he could secure a government research contract if he could test him under laboratory conditions. His efforts led to Geller being tested by the Central Intelligence Agency at [[Stanford Research Institute]] (SRI), though the CIA viewed Puharich as a "potential liability"[^1]. Puharich acted as Geller's official manager, often involving the press, which complicated the CIA's desire for secrecy[^1].
Throughout his life, Puharich maintained a theory that extraterrestrials were trying to send messages to humans through psychic people, and that ELF waves were responsible for the sicknesses of the age[^1].
Andrija Puharich died tragically in 1995, alone and impoverished, under threat of eviction from the estate of his last benefactor, [[R. J. Reynolds]]. He was 76 and suffering from dementia, kidney failure, and gangrene[^1].
The CIA's own history of its interest in parapsychology, written in 1977, began with Puharich: "in 1952 the Department of Defense was lectured on the possible usefulness of extrasensory perception in psychological warfare," citing his paper "On the Possible Usefulness of Extrasensory Perception in Psychological Warfare" to a Pentagon conference of that year, which "induced one of the earliest U.S. Government parapsychology investigations" when the chief of the [[Technical Services Division]] commissioned a review from Stephen Abrams of the parapsychology laboratory at [[Oxford University|Oxford]]. In January 1973 an officer of the Office of Research and Development, reviewing the SRI film of Uri Geller, wrote that "Geller's connections with Dr. A. Puharich, with whom many unsavory reports have been linked, also is disturbing."[^2]
The CIA's own history of its interest in parapsychology, written in 1977, began with Puharich: "in 1952 the [[Department of Defense]] was lectured on the possible usefulness of extrasensory perception in psychological warfare," citing his paper "On the Possible Usefulness of Extrasensory Perception in Psychological Warfare" to a Pentagon conference of that year, which "induced one of the earliest U.S. Government parapsychology investigations" when the chief of the [[Technical Services Division]] commissioned a review from [[Stephen Abrams]] of the parapsychology laboratory at [[Oxford University|Oxford]]. In January 1973 an officer of the [[Office of Research and Development (CIA)|Office of Research and Development]], reviewing the SRI film of Uri Geller, wrote that "Geller's connections with Dr. A. Puharich, with whom many unsavory reports have been linked, also is disturbing."[^2]
### Round Table Foundation in CIA Records
A questionnaire submitted in 1952 by the Select Committee of the [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] created by House Resolution 561, Eighty-second Congress, Second Session, to investigate tax-exempt foundations and comparable organizations (the [[Cox Committee]]) is held in CIA records as a 78-page copy approved for release on December 5, 2001. The foundation address list in the questionnaire includes "Round Table Foundation," Glen Cove, Maine, between the [[Religious Education Foundation]] and the [[Rubicon Foundation]].[^3]
### Round Table Foundation in the Maine Press, 1949
The [[Portland Press Herald]] (Sunday Telegram section) of January 9, 1949 carried a staff-written story by [[Jim Moore]], datelined [[Camden, Maine|Camden]], headed "Secrets Of Life." It reported that Dr. Henry K. Puharich, a Chicago physician then about thirty, with his wife Virginia (born Jackson) and their daughter Svetlana, aged eighteen months, had settled at Camden, near Zlatko Balokovic and his wife, and had set up the "Round Table Foundation Laboratory of experimental electrobiology" in a converted barn on the [[Bald Mountain]] retreat. The story gave his schooling as a bachelor's degree in philosophy and a medical degree from Northwestern University, followed by a rotating internship at [[Permanente Hospital]] in [[Oakland, California]], and described Mrs. Puharich as a former [[Office of War Information]] editor and Northwestern laboratory assistant. It stated his theory, which it said he had presented in 1946 to a zoology seminar at the [[University of California]] and to the [[Society of Junior Fellows]] at [[Harvard University|Harvard]], that nerve units radiate and receive energy waves, with the "plasma membrane" acting as a piezo-electric crystal that behaves as a radio receiver and transmitter. The story added that the theory might explain the microphonics of the ear and might account for mental telepathy by electronic equipment "which may not yet be developed," and that his crystal work was done with Dr. [[Raymond C. Tibbetts]] of Camden.[^4]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Jacobsen, Annie. *Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis*. Little, Brown and Company, 2017.
[^2]: Kress, Kenneth A. "Parapsychology in Intelligence: A Personal Review and Conclusions," *Studies in Intelligence,* vol. 21, no. 4, winter 1977, declassified. Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Research and Development, memorandum ORD-413-73, "Briefing by Stanford Research Institute," January 24, 1973, CIA-RDP96-00787R000400070029-2. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^3]: "Questionnaire submitted by the Select Committee of the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, created by House Resolution 561, Eighty-second Congress, Second Session, to investigate tax-exempt foundations and comparable organizations," CIA-RDP91-00682R000300080029-3, CIA Reading Room, https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp91-00682r000300080029-3. The document page carries OCR text only; the PDF has no text layer, and the foundation name is read from that OCR.
[^4]: Jim Moore, "Secrets Of Life," *Portland Press Herald* (Portland, Me.), January 9, 1949, p. 61, https://www.newspapers.com/image/848421406/.

74
10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Ben Rich.md Normal file
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@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- Engineer
- Lockheed
- SkunkWorks
- Stealth
- Area51
- UFO
- Aerospace
alias:
- Ben Rich
- Ben R. Rich
- Benjamin Robert Rich
- Benjamin R. Rich
- Ben Reich
summary: "Lockheed engineer who headed the Skunk Works from 1975 to 1990, developed the F-117, and closed lectures with a line about taking E.T. home that listeners later reported as an admission."
location: "Burbank, California"
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Lockheed Aircraft Company]]"
start: 1950
end: 1990-12-31
role: "thermodynamicist and designer from 1950; vice president and general manager of Advanced Development Projects"
fn: 1
- type: head_of
with: "[[Lockheed Skunk Works]]"
start: 1975-01-17
end: 1990-12-31
role: "second head of the unit, after Kelly Johnson"
fn: 2
- type: member_of
with: "[[National Academy of Engineering]]"
role: "member; winner of the 1989 Collier Trophy and of the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service"
fn: 4
created: 2026-10-03
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Benjamin Robert Rich was born Ben Reich in [[Manila]] on June 18, 1925, came to the [[United States]] in May 1941 with his family and changed his surname to Rich when he was naturalized in 1947.[^1] He took a B.S. in mechanical engineering at the [[University of California, Berkeley]] in 1949 and an M.S. at the [[University of California, Los Angeles]] in 1950, and joined [[Lockheed Aircraft Company]] in 1950 as a design specialist in thermodynamics, aerodynamics and propulsion, working on the [[F-94]], [[F-90]], [[C-130]] and [[F-104]]. He moved to Lockheed's Advanced Development Projects, the [[Lockheed Skunk Works]], in 1955; the aeronautical historian [[Peter W. Merlin|Peter Merlin]] wrote in 2013 that he joined "in 1954 as a thermodynamicist on the XF-104 project."[^1][^4] In his memoir Rich wrote that [[Kelly Johnson]] had phoned Lockheed's heat transfer specialist [[Bernie Messinger]] "asking him to borrow a competent thermodynamicist for an undisclosed Skunk Works project," and that "Bernie tapped me."[^2]
### Career at the Skunk Works
As a senior design specialist Rich worked on the [[U-2 Spy Plane]], helped design from 1956 to 1958 the [[CL-400]], a liquid hydrogen reconnaissance aircraft for the Air Force's [[Project Suntan]], and worked on the engine inlets of the [[SR-71]].[^1] He wrote that on January 17, 1975 he parked "for the first time in the boss's slot" in front of the unmarked Skunk Works building at the [[Burbank]] airport, that the formal name was "Lockheed's Advanced Development Projects," and that he was fifty years old.[^2] A [[The Wall Street Journal|Wall Street Journal]] article of October 13, 1980, preserved in the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]'s reading room, describes the unit as then "headed by longtime Johnson associate Ben R. Rich" and quotes former employees on its habit of building aircraft in Burbank and moving them "by night" to "some testing strip in the [[Nevada]] desert."[^5] Rich's own account of the first [[Have Blue]] flight at the Nevada range on December 1, 1977 describes it as taking place "at this very same highly secret sand pile" where the U-2 first flew, a site "we built for the CIA" which Johnson had named "[[Area 51|Paradise Ranch]]"; he wrote that the Air Force chief of staff then classified Have Blue "Top Secret, Special Access Required," a category the memoir compares to the [[Manhattan Project]].[^2] He wrote that the stealth story began in July 1975 with a [[Pentagon]] briefing on [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] air defenses, after which his mathematician [[Denys Overholser]] found, in a [[Moscow]] paper of nine years earlier by the radar scientist [[Pyotr Ufimtsev]], chief scientist at the [[Moscow Institute of Radio Engineering]], titled "Method of Edge Waves in the Physical Theory of Diffraction," a method of calculating radar cross sections; he wrote that the paper "had only recently been translated by the Air Force [[Foreign Technology Division]] from the original Russian language," and that Ufimtsev "had provided us with an 'industrial-strength' theory." He recounts that aerodynamicists including [[Dick Cantrell]] "seriously thought that maybe we would do better trying to build an actual flying saucer," whose shape "was the ultimate in low observability," and adds: "The problem was finding ways to make a saucer fly ... But how? The Martians wouldn't tell us."[^2] He wrote that the Air Force's [[F-117 Nighthawk]] squadron, which "finally moved into [[Tonopah Test Range|Tonopah]] in 1984" (an airstrip on the [[Nellis Air Force Range]] about 140 miles from [[Las Vegas]], "originally used by the [[Sandia National Laboratories]] for nuclear warhead testing"), flew [[A-7]] attack fighters as its cover and that "The word was purposely leaked that our A-7 fighters were carrying supersecret atomic antiradar devices that would render the airplane invisible to enemy defenses"; he described the devices as old napalm canisters painted black with a radiation tag reading "Reactor Cooling Fill Port," and wrote that [[Air Police]] closed a base in [[South Korea]] and had runway crews face away when the aircraft taxied.[^2]
Rich retired on December 31, 1990; Kelly Johnson died on December 22, 1990. He published Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years at Lockheed with [[Leo Janos]] in 1994, thanking among others the retired colonel [[Barry Hennessey]] and "[[Donald Welzenbach|Don Welzenbach]] of the CIA," and died of cancer on January 5, 1995.[^1][^2] The [[National Academy of Engineering]]'s memorial tributes carry a chapter on him.[^3]
### Anecdotes in the memoir
The memoir records other encounters with the subject. Rich wrote that for the Blackbird flights "We had to clear [[Federal Aviation Administration|FAA]] controllers along the flight paths, otherwise they'd think they were seeing flying saucers at Mach 3 plus on their radar screens," and told of a U-2 pilot from [[Taiwan]], among pilots he said he briefed on the aircraft's propulsion system at Burbank in the summer of 1959, who flamed out on a training flight from the Nevada base and glided into a [[Cortez, Colorado]] airport at dusk, where the airport manager "almost fainted" at the sight of an aircraft "long and sleek with enormous wings" and "an alien in a space suit" shouting "Quick. Get gun. Guard plane. Very, very secret."[^2]
### The E.T. line
Merlin documented that Rich used a closing line, which Merlin calls a joke, in his lectures from the spring of 1983, after the release of the film [[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]. At a [[Defense Week]] symposium in [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] on September 20, 1983 Rich said: "The Skunk Works has been assigned the task of getting E.T. back home." Merlin dates earlier uses to a presentation at [[Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute]] in April 1983, and later ones to the [[United States Naval Academy]] on September 6, 1984, the [[Beverly Hills, California|Beverly Hills]] chapter of the [[Daughters of the American Revolution]] on May 23, 1990 ("last week we received a contract to take E.T. back home"), and a 1993 speech at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] ("The Air Force has just given us a contract to take E.T. back home"), each time with a slide of a flying saucer. Merlin cites the personal papers of Rich at the [[Huntington Library]] for the speeches.[^4]
[[Jan Harzan]], later executive director of the [[Mutual UFO Network]], told a radio network in January 2012 and [[Alejandro Rojas]] of [[Open Minds]] in July 2013 that he attended a March 1993 alumni lecture by Rich at [[UCLA]] with [[Tom Keller]], whose account of the lecture appeared in the May 2010 issue of the [[MUFON UFO Journal]]. Harzan said Rich showed about two dozen slides, ended with one of a disk-shaped craft, and concluded: "We now have the technology to take E.T. home." Harzan said that after the lecture Rich told one engineer, "We now know how to travel to the stars. We found an error in the equations and it won't take a lifetime to do it," and, when Harzan pressed him on interstellar propulsion, asked "how does ESP work?" and answered Harzan's reply with "That's how it works." Merlin wrote in 2013 that the sentence Keller and Harzan heard was the standard tag line "carefully honed over the span of a decade," that two circulating quotations ("We already have the means to travel among the stars ..." and "we have to find out where Einstein went wrong") have no source, and that Rich told [[Popular Science]] in 1994: "There are some new programs, and there are certain things, some of them 20 or 30 years old, that are still breakthroughs and appropriate to keep quiet about [because] other people don't have them yet." Merlin also quotes a letter of July 1986 from Rich to the [[Testor Corporation]] model designer [[John Andrews]], who had asked what he thought of manmade or extraterrestrial UFOs: "I'm a believer in both categories. I feel everything is possible. ... In both categories, there are a lot of kooks and charlatans, be cautious."[^4]
The Kelly Johnson file among Rich's papers at the Huntington Library includes the document "Sighting of a flying saucer by certain Lockheed Aircraft Corporation personnel on 16 December 1953," the report forwarded to the [[Air Technical Intelligence Center]] in 1954 (see Lockheed Skunk Works).[^1]
### Accounts placing the F-117 and the Skunk Works in crash-retrieval stories
Notes attributed to the physicist [[Eric Davis]] include a letter dated April 25, 2002 from a "[[Will Miller]]" of [[Belleair Bluffs, Florida]], offering Davis and [[Hal Puthoff]] help with "UFO crash retrievals," and listing as the first item "Particulars on a 'special team' involved (as a secondary mission) with recovering crashed 'craft' including, but not limited to, the previously classified F-117 Stealth Fighter."[^6] The [[Department of Defense]]'s [[All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office]] wrote in 2024 that one interviewee claimed that circa 1999 a former senior military officer told him that he had touched the surface of an extraterrestrial spacecraft, that about 150 individuals worked on the program, and that it was kept "outside of government" so the technology could remain proprietary; in a separate passage the report states that an interviewee's claim that a named former officer described physically touching an extraterrestrial spacecraft was "denied on the record by the named former officer who recounted a story of when he touched an F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter."[^7] The Wall Street Journal reported on June 21, 2025 that Davis "was part of a small group of defense experts who had claimed to know about a top-secret program at Lockheed's Skunk Works to hoard extraterrestrial technology."[^8]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Huntington Library, "Ben R. Rich papers, 1940-1995," Online Archive of California, biographical note, series descriptions and acquisition note (gift of Michael and Karen Rich, July 15, 2008), https://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c86d5rqx/admin/
[^2]: Ben R. Rich and Leo Janos, Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years at Lockheed (Boston: Little, Brown, 1994), acknowledgments and chapters on Have Blue, the Skunk Works name, Paradise Ranch, the U-2 and Blackbird, from the Internet Archive text of a scanned copy, https://archive.org/details/skunk-works-apersonal-memoir-of-my-years-at-lockheed-ben-rrich (line references 44 to 52, 129, 180 to 200, 800 to 810, 1040 to 1056, 1440 to 1456, 2428 to 2456, 2912 to 2950, 4725 to 4745, 5825 and 7757).
[^3]: "Ben Rich," in National Academy of Engineering, Memorial Tributes, Volume 8 (Washington: National Academies Press, 1996), https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/5427/chapter/39 (chapter listed; page text not rendered in the copy opened). The 1989 Collier Trophy and Department of Defense Medal are as stated by Merlin (note 4).
[^4]: Peter W. Merlin, "Taking E.T. Home: Birth of a Modern Myth," SUNlite 5, no. 6 (November-December 2013), pp. 16 to 19, https://web.archive.org/web/20150321193509/home.comcast.net/~tprinty/UFO/SUNlite5_6.pdf (Merlin thanks the Huntington Library for access to the Rich papers). The Harzan and Keller statements are as reported by Merlin from the interviews of 2012 and 2013, which were not opened.
[^5]: Roy J. Harris Jr., "The Skunk Works: Hush-Hush Projects Often Emerge There," The Wall Street Journal, October 13, 1980, CIA-RDP90-00806R000100660006-2, https://archive.org/details/cia-readingroom-document-cia-rdp90-00806r000100660006-2
[^6]: "EWD NOTES 10/16/02," paper-clipped letter of Will Miller to Eric Davis, April 25, 2002, pp. 3 to 4, https://documents2.theblackvault.com/casefiles/wilsonleak.pdf (provenance and authorship of the notes unverified).
[^7]: Department of Defense, All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, Report on the Historical Record of U.S. Government Involvement with Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, Volume I, February 2024, pp. 8, 29 and 32, https://media.defense.gov/2024/Mar/08/2003409233/-1/-1/0/DOPSR-CLEARED-508-COMPLIANT-HRRV1-08-MAR-2024-FINAL.PDF (the report does not name either officer, does not say whether the two passages concern the same person, and does not connect either passage to Rich or to any company).
[^8]: Joel Schectman and Aruna Viswanatha, "Was It Scrap Metal or an Alien Spacecraft? The Army Asked an Elite Defense Lab to Investigate," The Wall Street Journal, June 21, 2025, copy at https://gwern.net/doc/www/www.wsj.com/9c50364a40ee3cbeb3463a6068c4884ff0f637cc.html

55
10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Claiborne Pell.md
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@ -13,25 +13,64 @@ summary: "Claiborne Pell (1918-2009) was a powerful Democratic Senator from Rhod
born: 1918-11-22
died: 2009-01-01
location: "New York City, USA"
updated: 2026-09-22
relations:
- type: director_of
with: "[[Institute of Noetic Sciences]]"
role: "board member as of August 1994, per Jones"
fn: 13
- type: director_of
with: "[[International Association for Near-Death Studies]]"
role: "advisory board, 1988"
fn: 7
- type: head_of
with: "[[Senate Foreign Relations Committee]]"
role: "chairman as of July 1988 per UPI; term dates not verified"
fn: 7
updated: 2026-10-02
---
Claiborne Pell (1918-2009) was a powerful Democratic Senator from Rhode Island and a ranking member of the [[Senate Foreign Relations Committee]]. A former [[Foreign Service]] officer who had worked behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied Hungary, Pell was a firm supporter and proponent of [[Extrasensory Perception|extrasensory perception]] and the [[Remote Viewing]] program[^1].
Claiborne Pell (1918-2009) was a powerful [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] Senator from [[Rhode Island]] and a ranking member of the [[Senate Foreign Relations Committee]]. A former [[Foreign Service]] officer who had worked behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied [[Hungary]], Pell was a firm supporter and proponent of [[Extrasensory Perception|extrasensory perception]] and the [[Remote Viewing]] program[^1].
Pell actively lobbied for the program's survival, reaching out personally to [[Dale Graff]] to offer his support. His interest stemmed from a belief in the potential operational value of psychic abilities for military intelligence[^1].
In 1987, Pell asked [[Uri Geller]] to come to Washington for a classified meeting on Capitol Hill. The meeting, which took place in the Capitol building's Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility, involved Geller demonstrating his abilities, including [[Telepathy|telepathy]] and spoon bending, to senators and other officials[^1].
In 1987, Pell asked [[Uri Geller]] to come to [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] for a classified meeting on [[Capitol Hill]]. The meeting, which took place in the [[U.S. Capitol|Capitol]] building's Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility, involved Geller demonstrating his abilities, including [[Telepathy|telepathy]] and spoon bending, to senators and other officials[^1].
Pell also played a role in the 1987 Geneva disarmament talks. He was present at a reception where Geller was instructed to try and influence [[Yuli M. Vorontsov]], Russia's first deputy foreign minister and lead Soviet arms negotiator, to sign the [[Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty|INF treaty]]. Seven days later, [[Ronald Reagan]] announced that the Soviet Union had offered to move ahead with an agreement to cut longer-range INF missiles[^1].
Pell also played a role in the 1987 [[Geneva]] disarmament talks. He was present at a reception where Geller was instructed to try and influence [[Yuli M. Vorontsov]], [[Russia]]'s first deputy foreign minister and lead Soviet arms negotiator, to sign the [[Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty|INF treaty]]. Seven days later, [[Ronald Reagan]] announced that the [[Soviet Union]] had offered to move ahead with an agreement to cut longer-range INF missiles[^1].
### Education and Public Service
Pell was born in [[New York City]] on November 22, 1918, graduated from [[Princeton University]] in 1940 and took a master's degree at [[Columbia University]] in 1946. He served in the [[United States Coast Guard|Coast Guard]] from 1941, spent seven years as a Foreign Service officer, was elected to the Senate from Rhode Island in 1960, served from 1961 to 1996, and died on January 1, 2009.[^2]
### The Briefing of September 29, 1982
From five to six that afternoon, in his office at the Capitol, Pell received "a GRILL FLAME information briefing" arranged by [[Jack Vorona]] of the [[Defense Intelligence Agency|DIA]] and given with Major Gerald Fox of the Army staff and representatives of [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command|INSCOM]], whose project manager, Lieutenant Colonel [[Robert Jachim]], wrote the record, with two of his aides present; "although Senator Pell had invited 8 members of the [[Senate Select Committee on Intelligence]] to attend the briefing none were present." The Army's part covered the history of its involvement, "how remote viewing is used for intelligence collection," and four projects whose names are redacted. "The briefing was well received. Senator Pell had had previous briefings concerning parapsychology from Dr. Vorona. He was also acquainted with the work of Dr. [[Robert Jahn]], Dean, College of Engineering, [[Princeton University]]. Senator Pell stated that while he could not assist in FY83, he offered to try to help in the future." Two days later the Army's operations lost their funding in the National Foreign Intelligence Program. In November 1983 INSCOM's chief of staff "asked for a status report on the Senator Pell project," and the [[Center Lane]] manager answered "that we were developing an operational plan to support the project, but as yet we had not collected any information."[^2]
From five to six that afternoon, in his office at the Capitol, Pell received "a GRILL FLAME information briefing" arranged by [[Jack Vorona]] of the [[Defense Intelligence Agency|DIA]] and given with Major [[Gerald Fox]] of the Army staff and representatives of [[United States Army Intelligence and Security Command|INSCOM]], whose project manager, Lieutenant Colonel [[Robert Jachim]], wrote the record, with two of his aides present; "although Senator Pell had invited 8 members of the [[Senate Select Committee on Intelligence]] to attend the briefing none were present." The Army's part covered the history of its involvement, "how remote viewing is used for intelligence collection," and four projects whose names are redacted. "The briefing was well received. Senator Pell had had previous briefings concerning parapsychology from Dr. Vorona. He was also acquainted with the work of Dr. [[Robert Jahn]], Dean, College of Engineering, Princeton University. Senator Pell stated that while he could not assist in FY83, he offered to try to help in the future." Two days later the Army's operations lost their funding in the [[National Foreign Intelligence Program]]. In November 1983 INSCOM's chief of staff "asked for a status report on the Senator Pell project," and the [[Center Lane]] manager answered "that we were developing an operational plan to support the project, but as yet we had not collected any information."[^3]
The chief of staff who asked Buzby for the status report on November 30, 1983, was Colonel Partridge; no later record in Buzby's memoranda names the project again. An undated DIA letter to Pell, S-22,600/DTI-S, refers to "your recent visit to DIA," at which "you raised the issue of the accuracy and reliability of certain journalistic claims regarding the possible existence of Russian psychoenergetic devices," and encloses "Psychoenergetics Devices: A Review and Assessment," with "a list of possible options and recommendations for your consideration" should "the journalist decide to go public with his allegations."[^901]
The chief of staff who asked Buzby for the status report on November 30, 1983, was Colonel Partridge; no later record in Buzby's memoranda names the project again. An undated DIA letter to Pell, S-22,600/DTI-S, refers to "your recent visit to DIA," at which "you raised the issue of the accuracy and reliability of certain journalistic claims regarding the possible existence of Russian psychoenergetic devices," and encloses "Psychoenergetics Devices: A Review and Assessment," with "a list of possible options and recommendations for your consideration" should "the journalist decide to go public with his allegations."[^4]
### Scott Jones and the Human Potential Foundation
From January 1985 to March 1991 Pell employed [[C. B. Scott Jones]], a retired [[United States Navy|Navy]] intelligence officer, as special assistant, "with the purpose of investigating consciousness research being conducted in other countries, primarily the USSR," according to the finding aid to Jones's papers.[^5] The [[Washington Times]] reported in 1989 that Pell, "perhaps Capitol Hill's most unabashed believer, has urged the [[National Science Foundation]], the [[Department of Defense|Defense Department]] and other government agencies to increase psychic research funding" and had a full-time staff member whose exclusive job was monitoring reports of psychic activities.[^6] [[United Press International]], summarizing the [[Providence Journal|Providence Sunday Journal]] of July 17, 1988, reported that Pell attended a national symposium on abduction in 1987, that Jones kept a top secret clearance and earned nearly 50,000 dollars a year, that Pell sat on the advisory board of the [[International Association for Near-Death Studies]] and had helped organize a Washington symposium on near-death experiences two years earlier, and that the psychologist [[Ray Hyman]] of the [[University of Oregon]], who had evaluated military applications of psychic research for the Army, said Pell had "been arguing very forcefully" for a "Manhattan Project-style effort" to catch up with the Russians, which Pell called "vastly exaggerated," saying he favored "a modest increase in financial support" for "intelligent, skeptical" research; the report adds that in 1987 Pell invited Geller to Washington for a demonstration before about 30 congressional and [[Pentagon]] aides.[^7] The version of Emery's Providence Journal story printed in *The [[San Francisco Examiner]]* of August 13, 1988 called Pell "Capitol Hill's best-known student of psychic phenomena, near-death experiences and other areas on the fringes of science," stated that he had had a full-time assistant for three years who promotes "developing human potential," and gave Jones's pay as $48,853 a year with a top-secret clearance (the UPI summary above says "nearly 50,000 dollars" and "top secret"). In that article Pell is reported to have invited Geller in April 1987 with at least one other member of Congress in the audience, and Pell described Hyman's account as "correct but vastly exaggerated."[^8] The *[[Winston-Salem Journal]]* of July 18, 1988, summarizing the same story, reported that Pell, then 69, told the Providence Journal he would "probably spend more time with this" if he were not in the Senate.[^9] The Pell papers at the [[University of Rhode Island]] list three files, "Human Potential Foundation: Scott Jones File" (1987; 1987 to 1994; 1988 to 1991), in the subject file series, box 42, folders 464 to 466.[^10]
Pell created the [[Human Potential Foundation]] in 1989, according to the Jones papers finding aid, and a white paper of February 20, 1992 by [[Robert J. Durant]] states that Pell and the lawyer [[Mark Sandground]] sat on its board and that it was "reportedly funded by [[Laurance Rockefeller]]."[^5][^11] The same paper states that Pell's office was visited by Major General [[Michael Kerby]] of the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] legislative liaison office, who told Jones of a 1987 visit to [[Lee Graham]]; Jones is quoted as saying "Kerby knew of my interest in these matters."[^11] (Sole source for the passages so cited; the paper is hostile to Jones.)
### Rockefeller, Gibbons and the Clinton White House
Rockefeller's letter of May 7, 1993 to [[Billy Graham]] listed [[Maurice Strong]], possibly [[Javier Perez de Cuellar]], former President [[Jimmy Carter]] and several senators, among them Pell and [[Ted Stevens]], as possible co-signers of a letter to President [[Bill Clinton]] on UFO information; Graham declined on May 20, 1993.[^12] Jones's letter to [[John Gibbons|John H. Gibbons]] of August 11, 1994 notes that Pell sat on the board of the [[Institute of Noetic Sciences]], whose founder [[Edgar Mitchell]] would meet Gibbons.[^13] Gibbons wrote in a handwritten note to Rockefeller in August 1994, "Incidentally, I told C. Pell about this situation yesterday," referring to the Air Force Roswell report; a second note, to "Clay," indexed September 19, 1994 and dated 8/19/94, thanks him for lunch and encloses the report's summary text and Gibbons's Zuckerman lecture.[^14] In the memorandum for the President of August 4, 1995 Gibbons wrote that Rockefeller's interests "are related to those of Senator Pell" and that "Senator Pell and others have supported the funding of research in social science to focus more on these phenomena."[^15]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Jacobsen, Annie. *Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis*. Little, Brown and Company, 2017.
[^2]: Jachim, Robert J., memorandum "Information Briefing for Senator Clairborne Pell," October 6, 1982, CIA-RDP96-00788R001100320001-5; Buzby, Brian, information paper "GRILL FLAME Briefing Presented to Senator Pell," February 6, 1985, CIA-RDP96-00788R001100320004-2. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Jachim, Robert J., memorandum "Briefing for MG A.N. Stubblebine III," October 8, 1982, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220022-7; Buzby, Brian, memoranda "CENTER LANE Briefing for CG, USAINSCOM," August 29, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220011-9), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983," December 6, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984," January 17, 1984 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2); letter of the ACSI to Stubblebine, "CENTER LANE," April 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220002-9). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^901]: Buzby, Brian, "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983," memorandum for record, December 6, 1983, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0; Defense Intelligence Agency, S-22,600/DTI-S, letter to Senator Claiborne Pell, undated, with enclosure "Psychoenergetics Devices: A Review and Assessment," CIA-RDP96-00789R002600010004-9. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^2]: University of Rhode Island Library, "Register to the Senatorial Papers of Claiborne Pell: Subject File," Mss. Gr. 71.4, biographical note, https://webarchives.apps.uri.edu/Pell%20XML%20Files/pell/Mss.%20Gr.%2071.4b.html.
[^3]: Jachim, Robert J., memorandum "Information Briefing for Senator Clairborne Pell," October 6, 1982, CIA-RDP96-00788R001100320001-5; Buzby, Brian, information paper "GRILL FLAME Briefing Presented to Senator Pell," February 6, 1985, CIA-RDP96-00788R001100320004-2. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Jachim, Robert J., memorandum "Briefing for MG A.N. Stubblebine III," October 8, 1982, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220022-7; Buzby, Brian, memoranda "CENTER LANE Briefing for CG, USAINSCOM," August 29, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220011-9), "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983," December 6, 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0), and "Meeting with MG Stubblebine on 6 January 1984," January 17, 1984 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220009-2); letter of the ACSI to Stubblebine, "CENTER LANE," April 1983 (CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220002-9). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^4]: Buzby, Brian, "Meeting With MG Stubblebine on 30 November 1983," memorandum for record, December 6, 1983, CIA-RDP96-00788R001700220010-0; Defense Intelligence Agency, S-22,600/DTI-S, letter to Senator Claiborne Pell, undated, with enclosure "Psychoenergetics Devices: A Review and Assessment," CIA-RDP96-00789R002600010004-9. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^5]: University of Colorado Boulder Libraries, "C. B. 'Scott' Jones papers," COU:4004, https://archives.colorado.edu/repositories/2/resources/346.
[^6]: Tom Kelly, "In search of modern Merlins: Psychics gain wider credibility," Washington Times, June 26, 1989 (date per archive metadata), CIA-RDP96-00787R000200080027-5, https://archive.org/details/cia-readingroom-document-cia-rdp96-00787r000200080027-5.
[^7]: United Press International, "Pell keen on psychic research," July 17, 1988, https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/07/17/Pell-keen-on-psychic-research/3613585115200/.
[^8]: C. Eugene Emery Jr., "Sen. Pell flirts with phenomena on the fringe, UFOs, psychics," *The San Francisco Examiner* (from the Providence Journal), August 13, 1988, p. B-12 (newspapers.com p. 22), https://www.newspapers.com/image/461248717/.
[^9]: "Pell Probing Psychic Phenomena," *Winston-Salem Journal*, July 18, 1988, p. 2, https://www.newspapers.com/image/939997164/.
[^10]: University of Rhode Island Library, "Register to the Senatorial Papers of Claiborne Pell: Subject File," Mss. Gr. 71.4, box 42, folders 464 to 466, https://webarchives.apps.uri.edu/Pell%20XML%20Files/pell/Mss.%20Gr.%2071.4b.html.
[^11]: Robert J. Durant, "Will the Real Scott Jones Please Stand Up?" (February 20, 1992), CIA-RDP96-00792R000400300004-7, https://cia.gov/readingroom/node/1697635.
[^12]: Rockefeller to Billy Graham, May 7, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-23-95.htm.
[^13]: C. B. Scott Jones to John H. Gibbons, August 11, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-11-94.htm.
[^14]: Gibbons, handwritten notes, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-17-94.htm and RID-9-19-94.htm.
[^15]: Gibbons, memorandum for the President, August 4, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-95.htm.

59
10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Hal Puthoff.md
View file

@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
---
created: 2026-05-17
updated: 2026-09-22
updated: 2026-10-02
title: Hal Puthoff
aliases:
- Hal Puthoff
@ -23,15 +23,25 @@ category: "Key Figures"
summary: "Physicist who founded the CIA-funded remote-viewing program at Stanford Research Institute in 1972 with Russell Targ, ran it until 1985, and later worked on the Pentagon's AATIP."
born: 1936-06-20
location: "Chicago, Illinois"
relations:
- type: member_of
with: "[[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]]"
start: 1985-05
role: "named on Oke Shannon's attendee list; presented on remote viewing at the first meeting, according to the Loose Threads authors"
fn: 6
- type: member_of
with: "[[The Aviary]]"
role: "membership as alleged: listed as Owl in a roster published by Richard J. Boylan"
fn: 10
---
Harold E. "Hal" Puthoff (born June 20, 1936) is a physicist and engineer who co-founded the [[Stanford Research Institute]] remote viewing research program with [[Russell Targ]] in 1972 under [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] contract and served as its principal investigator through 1985. The program, which operated under the code names SCANATE, Gondola Wish, and [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] before consolidating as STAR GATE under [[Defense Intelligence Agency|DIA]] oversight, represented the primary U.S. government institutional effort to investigate anomalous cognition for intelligence applications over two decades. Puthoff subsequently contributed technical research to the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program|AATIP]] Pentagon program and became a founding member of To the Stars Academy of Arts and Science.
Harold E. "Hal" Puthoff (born June 20, 1936) is a physicist and engineer who co-founded the [[Stanford Research Institute]] remote viewing research program with [[Russell Targ]] in 1972 under [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] contract and served as its principal investigator through 1985. The program, which operated under the code names SCANATE, Gondola Wish, and [[Stargate Project|Grill Flame]] before consolidating as STAR GATE under [[Defense Intelligence Agency|DIA]] oversight, represented the primary [[U.S. government]] institutional effort to investigate anomalous cognition for intelligence applications over two decades. Puthoff subsequently contributed technical research to the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program|AATIP]] [[Pentagon]] program and became a founding member of [[To The Stars Academy of Arts & Science|To the Stars Academy of Arts and Science]].
### Early Career
Puthoff was born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Dade County, Florida. He attended the University of Florida and completed a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Stanford University in the 1960s. Before joining Stanford Research Institute, he worked briefly for the [[National Security Agency]] in a signals intelligence-related research capacity in the late 1960s, an experience that gave him direct familiarity with government intelligence requirements and classification systems.
Puthoff was born in [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]], and raised in [[Dade County, Florida]]. He attended the [[University of Florida]] and completed a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from [[Stanford University]] in the 1960s. Before joining Stanford Research Institute, he worked briefly for the [[National Security Agency]] in a signals intelligence-related research capacity in the late 1960s, an experience that gave him direct familiarity with government intelligence requirements and classification systems.
He published a standard textbook in his field, *Fundamentals of Quantum Electronics* (1969, co-authored with R. L. Pantell), and held patents in tunable infrared laser technology. He joined SRI in 1969 as a researcher in laser physics and related applied science areas.
He published a standard textbook in his field, *Fundamentals of Quantum Electronics* (1969, co-authored with [[R. L. Pantell]]), and held patents in tunable infrared laser technology. He joined SRI in 1969 as a researcher in laser physics and related applied science areas.
### Scientology Background
@ -39,21 +49,21 @@ Puthoff was a practicing member of the [[Church of Scientology]] for several yea
### Initial Contact with CIA and SRI Experiments (1972)
Puthoff's shift from laser physics toward parapsychology research grew from his interest in quantum mechanics and questions about the physical basis of consciousness and observation. In 1972, he was contacted by Ingo Swann, an artist and self-described psychic who proposed a formal laboratory test at SRI. Puthoff arranged for Swann to attempt to disturb the output of a heavily shielded proton precession magnetometer at Stanford University's Varian Hall, designed to detect quarks. The magnetometer output showed anomalous fluctuations that Puthoff could not account for through conventional means.
Puthoff's shift from laser physics toward parapsychology research grew from his interest in quantum mechanics and questions about the physical basis of consciousness and observation. In 1972, he was contacted by Ingo Swann, an artist and self-described psychic who proposed a formal laboratory test at SRI. Puthoff arranged for Swann to attempt to disturb the output of a heavily shielded proton precession magnetometer at Stanford University's [[Varian Hall]], designed to detect quarks. The magnetometer output showed anomalous fluctuations that Puthoff could not account for through conventional means.
On June 27, 1972, Puthoff wrote formally to [[Kit Green]] at the CIA's Life Sciences Division, proposing government-funded research at SRI to investigate whether anomalous cognition could be reproduced under controlled conditions. This letter, subsequently declassified and available in the CIA FOIA Reading Room (document CIA-RDP96-00791R000200030006-8), established the institutional relationship between SRI and the CIA that funded the program for more than a decade. The CIA designated the initial program SCANATE (Scan by Coordinate) and provided initial funding; formal experiments began under CIA contract by October 1972.
On June 27, 1972, Puthoff wrote formally to [[Kit Green]] at the CIA's Life Sciences Division, proposing government-funded research at SRI to investigate whether anomalous cognition could be reproduced under controlled conditions. This letter, subsequently declassified and available in the CIA [[Freedom of Information Act|FOIA]] Reading Room (document CIA-RDP96-00791R000200030006-8), established the institutional relationship between SRI and the CIA that funded the program for more than a decade. The CIA designated the initial program SCANATE ([[SCANATE|Scan by Coordinate]]) and provided initial funding; formal experiments began under CIA contract by October 1972.
Puthoff hired Targ as a research colleague, and together they developed the remote viewing experimental protocol: a subject remained at SRI while a second experimenter traveled to a randomly selected target site; the subject attempted to describe the target through verbal description and drawings; independent judges blindly matched transcripts to target sites.
### The 1996 Account
After the CIA declassified 270 pages of SRI reports in July 1995, Puthoff published his own account. In early 1972, doing laser research at SRI, he had written a proposal that Ingo Swann saw at [[Cleve Backster]]'s laboratory and wrote to him, and Puthoff invited him for a week in June 1972. He arranged access to "a well-shielded magnetometer used in a quark-detection experiment in the Physics Department at Stanford University," in a vault beneath the floor "shielded by mu-metal shielding, an aluminum container, copper shielding and a superconducting shield"; Swann "appeared to perturb the operation of the magnetometer" and then "went on to 'remote view' the interior of the apparatus, rendering by drawing a reasonable facsimile of its rather complex (and heretofore unpublished) construction." Within weeks "a pair of visitors showed up at SRI with the above report in hand. Their credentials showed them to be from the CIA. They knew of my previous background as a Naval Intelligence Officer and then civilian employee at the National Security Agency," and spoke of "increasing concern in the intelligence community about the level of effort in Soviet parapsychology being funded by the Soviet security services." An eight-month "Biofield Measurements Program" of 49,909 dollars followed, and Russell Targ joined; the second year, January 1974 to February 1975, was funded at 149,555 dollars. The first coordinate target, "the West Virginia Site," produced from one subject "a detailed map of the building and grounds layout" and from the other "information about the interior including codewords, data subsequently verified by sponsor sources"; Pat Price then "went on to scan the other side of the globe for a Communist Bloc equivalent and found one located in the Urals," also "verified by personnel in the sponsor organization as being substantially correct." The [[Semipalatinsk]] experiment of July 1974, "carried out in three phases," was "under direct control of the COTR," and "several details concerning the salient technology of the Semipalatinsk site appeared to dovetail with data from other sources, and a number of specific large structural elements were correctly described." The CIA "dropped out as a major player in the mid-seventies due to pressure on the Agency (unrelated to the RV Program) from the Church-Pike Congressional Committee," and Major General [[Edmund Thompson]], the Army's assistant chief of staff for intelligence from 1977 to 1981, said: "I had one or more briefings by SRI and was impressed. The decision I made was to set up a small, in-house, low-cost effort in remote viewing." One application, Puthoff noted, "yielded not only a published, statistically significant result, but also a return of $26,000 in 30 days in the silver futures market." The article does not mention [[Scientology]].[^1]
After the CIA declassified 270 pages of SRI reports in July 1995, Puthoff published his own account. In early 1972, doing laser research at SRI, he had written a proposal that Ingo Swann saw at [[Cleve Backster]]'s laboratory and wrote to him, and Puthoff invited him for a week in June 1972. He arranged access to "a well-shielded magnetometer used in a quark-detection experiment in the Physics Department at Stanford University," in a vault beneath the floor "shielded by mu-metal shielding, an aluminum container, copper shielding and a superconducting shield"; Swann "appeared to perturb the operation of the magnetometer" and then "went on to 'remote view' the interior of the apparatus, rendering by drawing a reasonable facsimile of its rather complex (and heretofore unpublished) construction." Within weeks "a pair of visitors showed up at SRI with the above report in hand. Their credentials showed them to be from the CIA. They knew of my previous background as a [[Office of Naval Intelligence|Naval Intelligence]] Officer and then civilian employee at the National Security Agency," and spoke of "increasing concern in the intelligence community about the level of effort in Soviet parapsychology being funded by the Soviet security services." An eight-month "Biofield Measurements Program" of 49,909 dollars followed, and Russell Targ joined; the second year, January 1974 to February 1975, was funded at 149,555 dollars. The first coordinate target, "the West Virginia Site," produced from one subject "a detailed map of the building and grounds layout" and from the other "information about the interior including codewords, data subsequently verified by sponsor sources"; Pat Price then "went on to scan the other side of the globe for a Communist Bloc equivalent and found one located in the Urals," also "verified by personnel in the sponsor organization as being substantially correct." The [[Semipalatinsk]] experiment of July 1974, "carried out in three phases," was "under direct control of the COTR," and "several details concerning the salient technology of the Semipalatinsk site appeared to dovetail with data from other sources, and a number of specific large structural elements were correctly described." The CIA "dropped out as a major player in the mid-seventies due to pressure on the Agency (unrelated to the RV Program) from the [[Church Committee|Church-Pike Congressional Committee]]," and Major General [[Edmund Thompson]], the Army's assistant chief of staff for intelligence from 1977 to 1981, said: "I had one or more briefings by SRI and was impressed. The decision I made was to set up a small, in-house, low-cost effort in remote viewing." One application, Puthoff noted, "yielded not only a published, statistically significant result, but also a return of $26,000 in 30 days in the silver futures market." The article does not mention [[Scientology]].[^1]
### Protocol Development and Pat Price
Swann's suggestion to use geographic coordinates rather than outbound experimenters as the targeting mechanism - initially resisted by Puthoff and Targ as theoretically implausible - proved to generate consistent results and became the basis of Coordinate Remote Viewing (CRV), the structured methodology used throughout the government program.
Swann's suggestion to use geographic coordinates rather than outbound experimenters as the targeting mechanism - initially resisted by Puthoff and Targ as theoretically implausible - proved to generate consistent results and became the basis of [[Coordinate Remote Viewing]] (CRV), the structured methodology used throughout the government program.
Pat Price, a retired Burbank police commissioner introduced to the program in 1973, produced what Puthoff considered the most operationally significant results of the SRI period. Price's remote viewing of the Soviet URDF-3 facility near Semipalatinsk - describing a large gantry crane, spherical metal objects estimated at 60 feet in diameter under construction, and a novel welding technique - was subsequently evaluated against classified satellite photography and assessed as substantially accurate. Price and Swann's subsequent remote viewing of the NSA signals intelligence facility at Sugar Grove, [[West Virginia]], triggered an NSA security investigation into whether remote viewing, if genuine, represented a vulnerability for classified installations.
Pat Price, a retired [[Burbank, California|Burbank]] police commissioner introduced to the program in 1973, produced what Puthoff considered the most operationally significant results of the SRI period. Price's remote viewing of the Soviet URDF-3 facility near Semipalatinsk - describing a large gantry crane, spherical metal objects estimated at 60 feet in diameter under construction, and a novel welding technique - was subsequently evaluated against classified satellite photography and assessed as substantially accurate. Price and Swann's subsequent remote viewing of the NSA signals intelligence facility at Sugar Grove, [[West Virginia]], triggered an NSA security investigation into whether remote viewing, if genuine, represented a vulnerability for classified installations.
Price died of a reported heart attack in [[Las Vegas]] in July 1975, under circumstances Puthoff considered potentially suspicious. His suitcase of remote viewing notes and CIA materials disappeared before Puthoff arrived in Las Vegas. No evidence of foul play was established.
@ -61,32 +71,45 @@ On September 26, 1977, Puthoff sent Dave Johnson, whose office the memorandum do
### Published Research
Puthoff and Targ published the SRI program's experimental results in two major peer-reviewed venues: "Information Transmission Under Conditions of Sensory Shielding" in *Nature* (October 1974, volume 251, pages 602-607), and "A Perceptual Channel for Information Transfer over Kilometer Distances: Historical Perspective and Recent Research" in *Proceedings of the IEEE* (March 1976, volume 64, number 3, pages 329-354). Both papers presented statistical significance claims for anomalous information transfer under controlled conditions and triggered extensive methodological debate in both journals' correspondence sections.
Puthoff and Targ published the SRI program's experimental results in two major peer-reviewed venues: "Information Transmission Under Conditions of Sensory Shielding" in *[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]* (October 1974, volume 251, pages 602-607), and "A Perceptual Channel for Information Transfer over Kilometer Distances: Historical Perspective and Recent Research" in *[[Proceedings of the IEEE]]* (March 1976, volume 64, number 3, pages 329-354). Both papers presented statistical significance claims for anomalous information transfer under controlled conditions and triggered extensive methodological debate in both journals' correspondence sections.
The *Nature* paper represented an unusual case of a mainstream scientific journal publishing parapsychology research; the editorial board attached a statement acknowledging the reviewers' uncertainty about publication. The IEEE paper presented data across multiple subjects and sessions, including [[Hella Hammid]], a German-American photographer included specifically to test whether anomalous results were limited to self-identified psychics.
The Army's [[Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee]] of 1979 reviewed a paper of Puthoff's, "Potential Criticisms and Responses," setting out nine criticisms of the SRI work with his answers (experiment selection, data selection, cueing, "educated guess," target limitations, target generality, "read-in" matches, handling of judging materials, and post hoc photography), and found most "at least partially valid": SRI "ran 7000+ experiments with Swann" of which "only a fraction appear in the literature"; of the term "double-blind," "the word clearly does not apply in either the traditional, or in a meaningful, sense to the SRI protocol"; and "was the San Andres airfield photograph taken after the judging? Why do aspect angles of photographs always coincide with the direction from which the Subject 'views' the target?" Against the authors' claim to have "in five years of self- and other criticism... not found a way to fault either the experimental protocols or the conclusions derived therefrom," the annex answered: "I do not agree, and I believe that careful evaluation amply documents numerous such faults."[^900]
The Army's [[Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee]] of 1979 reviewed a paper of Puthoff's, "Potential Criticisms and Responses," setting out nine criticisms of the SRI work with his answers (experiment selection, data selection, cueing, "educated guess," target limitations, target generality, "read-in" matches, handling of judging materials, and post hoc photography), and found most "at least partially valid": SRI "ran 7000+ experiments with Swann" of which "only a fraction appear in the literature"; of the term "double-blind," "the word clearly does not apply in either the traditional, or in a meaningful, sense to the SRI protocol"; and "was the San Andres airfield photograph taken after the judging? Why do aspect angles of photographs always coincide with the direction from which the Subject 'views' the target?" Against the authors' claim to have "in five years of self- and other criticism... not found a way to fault either the experimental protocols or the conclusions derived therefrom," the annex answered: "I do not agree, and I believe that careful evaluation amply documents numerous such faults."[^3]
The 1979 evaluation by Harry and Arlene Snyder of Systemetrics, held by the CIA, reproduced his protocol "as described in a written communication from H. Puthoff to a sponsor in late 1977," noted that in the alphabet-letter experiments "Puthoff did the judging," quoted his letter of March 28, 1978, to Karnes and Susman of Denver ("We have found remote viewing to be extremely sensitive to the feedback parameters"), and of his and Targ's claim to have found no fault in five years, "we do not agree." To [[David Marks]] he wrote on July 10, 1978, that "neither the single judge (Hastings) nor the panel of five judges were given the order; they were kept blind," in May 1979 that the transcripts could not be released "since premature disclosure would prevent further blind analysis work," and on August 25, 1980, that "the published list of the targets was in the order of target usage, and that, furthermore, when the target list was provided to the judge, it was inadvertently (through an error) given in the same order."[^901]
The 1979 evaluation by [[Harry Snyder|Harry]] and [[Arlene Snyder|Arlene]] Snyder of [[Systemetrics]], held by the CIA, reproduced his protocol "as described in a written communication from H. Puthoff to a sponsor in late 1977," noted that in the alphabet-letter experiments "Puthoff did the judging," quoted his letter of March 28, 1978, to Karnes and Susman of [[Denver]] ("We have found remote viewing to be extremely sensitive to the feedback parameters"), and of his and Targ's claim to have found no fault in five years, "we do not agree." To [[David Marks]] he wrote on July 10, 1978, that "neither the single judge ([[Arthur Hastings|Hastings]]) nor the panel of five judges were given the order; they were kept blind," in May 1979 that the transcripts could not be released "since premature disclosure would prevent further blind analysis work," and on August 25, 1980, that "the published list of the targets was in the order of target usage, and that, furthermore, when the target list was provided to the judge, it was inadvertently (through an error) given in the same order."[^4]
His "Standard Remote-Viewing Protocol (Local Targets)" with Targ, of November 1978, held by the CIA, prescribed a target list prepared "by an experimenter who will not interact with the subject after that," selection by "a Texas Instruments SR-51 hand calculator, which has a random-number function," fifteen-minute viewings, "no hypnosis, strobe lights, or sensory-deprivation procedures," feedback at the site "for each experiment to ensure success," and judging by direct matching or rank ordering. On August 3, 1979, he wrote to [[Manfred Gale]] that the Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee had "all but skipped Part 2 on scientific questions" at its SRI visit and that "it is incumbent on the committee members to obtain a more thorough grounding in the technical details," enclosing a revised procedure with Targ and May; on March 19, 1980, he, Targ and May wrote to [[Walter LaBerge]] that "based on a recommendation of the Gale Committee, ODDR&E will not provide support for R&D efforts in the Grill Flame area," that "we were not mandated to undertake formal proof-of-principle research," and that their results had been described by clients "as being of vital importance to the national interests."[^902]
His "Standard Remote-Viewing Protocol (Local Targets)" with Targ, of November 1978, held by the CIA, prescribed a target list prepared "by an experimenter who will not interact with the subject after that," selection by "a [[Texas Instruments]] SR-51 hand calculator, which has a random-number function," fifteen-minute viewings, "no hypnosis, strobe lights, or sensory-deprivation procedures," feedback at the site "for each experiment to ensure success," and judging by direct matching or rank ordering. On August 3, 1979, he wrote to [[Manfred Gale]] that the Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee had "all but skipped Part 2 on scientific questions" at its SRI visit and that "it is incumbent on the committee members to obtain a more thorough grounding in the technical details," enclosing a revised procedure with Targ and May; on March 19, 1980, he, Targ and May wrote to [[Walter LaBerge]] that "based on a recommendation of the Gale Committee, [[Office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering|ODDR&E]] will not provide support for R&D efforts in the Grill Flame area," that "we were not mandated to undertake formal proof-of-principle research," and that their results had been described by clients "as being of vital importance to the national interests."[^5]
### Transition and Departure from SRI
When the Army established its own remote viewing unit at [[Fort Meade]] in 1977 under the code names Gondola Wish and later Grill Flame, it contracted SRI for protocol guidance and training under Puthoff's supervision. Puthoff continued as SRI's principal investigator through this period, overseeing both the research program at SRI and consulting on the operational program at Fort Meade. In 1985, Puthoff departed SRI; the research contract subsequently moved to [[Science Applications International Corporation|SAIC]] under [[Edwin May]].
After leaving SRI, Puthoff founded EarthTech International in Austin, Texas, a private research company focused on advanced physics including zero-point energy and vacuum fluctuation effects. His theoretical work at EarthTech centered on the physical frameworks he believed might explain anomalous cognition and other unconventional phenomena within accepted physical theory, particularly through quantum vacuum interactions.
After leaving SRI, Puthoff founded [[EarthTech International|EarthTech]] International in [[Austin, Texas]], a private research company focused on advanced physics including zero-point energy and vacuum fluctuation effects. His theoretical work at EarthTech centered on the physical frameworks he believed might explain anomalous cognition and other unconventional phenomena within accepted physical theory, particularly through quantum vacuum interactions.
### UFO-Related Contacts, 1985 to 1996
A page of handwritten notes by [[Oke Shannon]] of [[Los Alamos]], headed "Attendees" and placed by the authors of the [[Loose Threads Report]] at a meeting of August 7, 1985 labeled "ATP Ten," lists "Hal Puthoff" among participants in the [[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]] convened by [[John B. Alexander]] in the BDM facility at [[McLean, Virginia]]; those authors write that Shannon's notes of the first meeting show Puthoff giving a presentation on remote viewing.[^6] [[Jacques Vallee]] recorded a 1989 telephone conversation in which Puthoff said that Alexander had briefed "the head of [[NORAD|Norad]], the head of the [[United States Space Command|Space Command]], the top guy at [[Strategic Defense Initiative|SDI]]" and that "a lot of people had been briefed and had agreed to cooperate"; Vallee's account has Puthoff conceding that the plan "may have been killed by someone deciding that the timing was wrong, or they were the wrong people, or the approach was bad."[^7] At the 2018 conference of the [[Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies]], asked about Alexander's conclusion that no program could be found, he answered that "somebody else [was] doing it" and that "if materials are being held in [[Special Access Programs]], a casual conversation even with high-level people, who know your interest, and they're interested too, won't necessarily reveal facts."[^6]
[[Mark Pilkington]] wrote in *[[Mirage Men]]* that at a Denny's restaurant "back in 1986" Kit Green, Puthoff and Vallee "distilled what they knew about the subject into what has become known as the 'core story.'"[^8] Shannon said in a 2022 interview that in 1999 Vice Admiral [[Thomas R. Wilson]] telephoned him to ask whether [[Eric Davis]] could be trusted and "may have even mentioned Hal Puthoff and one or two other people."[^6]
On October 17, 1996 [[Laurance Rockefeller]] wrote to [[John Gibbons|John H. Gibbons]] that an international conference on extraterrestrial intelligence and UFOs would be useful, and enclosed with a [[Carl Sagan]] letter a draft invitation to a small meeting on its feasibility. The attached list of suggested invitees, headed "Supplemental Suggestions" after a list from [[Julia Marton-Lefevre]] of the [[International Council of Scientific Unions]], includes Harold Puthoff, "Director, Institute for Advanced Studies," Austin, Texas, with [[Rodney Nichols]] ([[New York Academy of Sciences]]), [[Peter Sturrock]] (Stanford), [[William Golden]], [[Charles M. Vest]] ([[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]]), [[Daniel S. Goldin]] ([[NASA]]), [[Frank D. Drake]], [[Gordon Cooper]] and [[Harold Aspden]]. The letter describes the proposed meeting as "informal and off the record," of "6-10 people," in [[New York City|New York]] in the first quarter of 1997.[^9] [[Richard J. Boylan]] listed Puthoff as Owl in a roster of the [[The Aviary|Aviary]].[^10]
### AATIP and Later Work
Puthoff contributed as a scientific consultant to the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), the Pentagon program that investigated Unidentified Aerial Phenomena from approximately 2007 to 2012 under [[Luis D. Elizondo III|Luis Elizondo]]. His contribution included commissioning and reviewing Defense Intelligence Reference Documents (DIRDs) - theoretical analyses of advanced aerospace concepts including warp drives, traversable wormholes, negative energy, and exotic propulsion systems. His EarthTech research in zero-point energy physics made him the natural contractor for the theoretical physics studies that formed part of AATIP's research portfolio.
Puthoff became a founding member and scientific advisor to To the Stars Academy of Arts and Science (TTSA), the public benefit corporation established by Tom DeLonge in 2017, which published three declassified Navy videos of UAP encounters and became a public vehicle for intelligence community-adjacent UAP disclosure.
Puthoff became a founding member and scientific advisor to To the Stars Academy of Arts and Science (TTSA), the public benefit corporation established by [[Tom DeLonge]] in 2017, which published three declassified [[United States Navy|Navy]] videos of UAP encounters and became a public vehicle for intelligence community-adjacent UAP disclosure.
### Footnotes
[^1]: Puthoff, H. E. "CIA-Initiated Remote Viewing Program at Stanford Research Institute," *Journal of Scientific Exploration,* vol. 10, no. 1, 1996, pp. 63-76. Read in a mirror copy; the journal's own site refused the fetch.
[^2]: Puthoff, H. E., memorandum to Dave Johnson, "Proxmire Response Re Psychoenergetics," September 26, 1977, CIA-RDP96-00787R000200020042-4. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^900]: *Report by the Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee,* December 1979, Manfred Gale, chairman, CIA-RDP96-00788R001300120001-5. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^901]: Snyder, Harry L., and Arlene G. Snyder. *Summary and Critical Evaluation of Research in Remote Viewing,* Report RV-79-1, final technical report, contract 77F104420, Systemetrics, Inc., Blacksburg, Virginia, June 1, 1979, parts 1 and 2, CIA-RDP96-00791R000100440001-9 and CIA-RDP96-00787R000100260003-2. The sponsor of the contract is not named in the report. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Marks, David F. "Remote Viewing Revisited." *Skeptical Inquirer,* vol. 6, no. 4, Summer 1982, pp. 18-29. https://cdn.centerforinquiry.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/1982/07/22165420/p20.pdf
[^902]: Puthoff, Harold E., and Russell Targ. "Standard Remote-Viewing Protocol (Local Targets)." SRI International, November 1978, CIA-RDP96-00787R000500400001-4 (copy at CIA-RDP96-00788R001300050001-3). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Puthoff, H. E., to Manfred Gale, "SRI/Gale Committee Meeting of 24-25 July," August 3, 1979, with the enclosure "Standard Remote Viewing (RV) Procedures: Local Sites," by H. E. Puthoff, R. Targ and E. C. May, August 1979, CIA-RDP96-00787R000100060001-6 (memorandum alone at CIA-RDP96-00788R002000240028-5). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Puthoff, H. E., R. Targ and E. C. May, Radio Physics Laboratory, SRI International, to Walter B. LaBerge, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, March 19, 1980, SRI 0-4132, CIA-RDP96-00788R001200230031-1. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^3]: *Report by the Grill Flame Scientific Evaluation Committee,* December 1979, Manfred Gale, chairman, CIA-RDP96-00788R001300120001-5. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^4]: Snyder, Harry L., and Arlene G. Snyder. *Summary and Critical Evaluation of Research in Remote Viewing,* Report RV-79-1, final technical report, contract 77F104420, Systemetrics, Inc., Blacksburg, Virginia, June 1, 1979, parts 1 and 2, CIA-RDP96-00791R000100440001-9 and CIA-RDP96-00787R000100260003-2. The sponsor of the contract is not named in the report. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Marks, David F. "Remote Viewing Revisited." *Skeptical Inquirer,* vol. 6, no. 4, Summer 1982, pp. 18-29. https://cdn.centerforinquiry.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/1982/07/22165420/p20.pdf
[^5]: Puthoff, Harold E., and Russell Targ. "Standard Remote-Viewing Protocol (Local Targets)." SRI International, November 1978, CIA-RDP96-00787R000500400001-4 (copy at CIA-RDP96-00788R001300050001-3). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Puthoff, H. E., to Manfred Gale, "SRI/Gale Committee Meeting of 24-25 July," August 3, 1979, with the enclosure "Standard Remote Viewing (RV) Procedures: Local Sites," by H. E. Puthoff, R. Targ and E. C. May, August 1979, CIA-RDP96-00787R000100060001-6 (memorandum alone at CIA-RDP96-00788R002000240028-5). Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection. Puthoff, H. E., R. Targ and E. C. May, Radio Physics Laboratory, SRI International, to Walter B. LaBerge, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, March 19, 1980, SRI 0-4132, CIA-RDP96-00788R001200230031-1. Read in the archive.org mirror of the CIA FOIA Reading Room STARGATE collection.
[^6]: Elizondo, Daniel, and The Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," Anomaly Archives, 2022, pp. 15, 25, 28-29, 57-58, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf. The Shannon page image was read directly; podcast and conference statements are quoted there at second hand. Sole source for the passages so cited.
[^7]: Vallee, Jacques. Journal, 1989 telephone conversation with Puthoff, as quoted in the Loose Threads Report, pp. 26-27 (volume not named there; the year falls in *Forbidden Science: Volume Three*). The book was not opened.
[^8]: Pilkington, Mark. *Mirage Men.* 2010, chapter "The Man in the White Coat" (the Denny's statement is Pilkington's narration), https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf. Sole source for the passage.
[^9]: Rockefeller, Laurance S., letter of October 17, 1996 with "Suggested Invitees for the Meeting of Scientists," Clinton Presidential Library, Office of Science and Technology Policy FOIA 01-22, item 72, https://avalonlibrary.net/Grant_Cameron/Clinton_Presidential_Library_collection/OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022/ (file "1996 10 17_Laurance Rockefeller to John Gibbons"). The OSTP routing slip addresses the letter to Gibbons; the invitation text and invitee list are enclosures.
[^10]: Boylan, Richard J. "UFO/ET-Disclosure Policy Splits Covert Network," *Perceptions,* http://web.archive.org/web/20130831033026/http://www.think-aboutit.com/ufo/aviary.htm. Sole source.

42
10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Harry Reid.md
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@ -9,20 +9,54 @@ summary: "Senator Reid's interest in the UAP topic was sparked by his position a
born: 1939-12-02
died: 2021-12-28
location: "Searchlight, Nevada, USA"
aliases:
- Harry Mason Reid
- Senator Reid
relations:
- type: represented
with: "[[Robert Bigelow]]"
role: "Nevada constituent; Bigelow and Bigelow companies contributed 10,800 dollars to Friends for Harry Reid and 10,000 dollars to the Searchlight Leadership Fund, 1998 to 2010"
start: 1998
fn: 6
updated: 2026-10-02
---
[[Harry Reid]] was a United States Senator from Nevada who served as the Senate Majority Leader. He was a pivotal figure in the establishment and funding of the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AATIP) and a staunch supporter of the [[Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]] (UAP) disclosure movement until his death in 2021.[^1]
[[Harry Reid]] was a [[United States]] Senator from [[Nevada]] who served as the Senate Majority Leader. He was a pivotal figure in the establishment and funding of the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AATIP) and a staunch supporter of the [[Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]] (UAP) disclosure movement until his death in 2021.[^1]
### Interest in UAP
Senator Reid's interest in the UAP topic was sparked by his position as the senator for Nevada, the home of the highly classified [[Area 51]] military installation. This, combined with his friendship with aerospace magnate and paranormal researcher [[Robert Bigelow]], led him to take the issue seriously. He was known on Capitol Hill as a "bulldog in a pit of vipers," and his determination was crucial in overcoming the stigma and bureaucratic inertia surrounding the UAP issue.[^1]
Senator Reid's interest in the UAP topic was sparked by his position as the senator for Nevada, the home of the highly classified [[Area 51]] military installation. This, combined with his friendship with aerospace magnate and paranormal researcher [[Robert Bigelow]], led him to take the issue seriously. He was known on [[Capitol Hill]] as a "bulldog in a pit of vipers," and his determination was crucial in overcoming the stigma and bureaucratic inertia surrounding the UAP issue.[^1]
### Funding for AATIP
In 2007, Senator Reid, along with Senators [[Ted Stevens]] of Alaska and [[Daniel Inouye]] of Hawaii, secured $22 million in funding for the [[Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program]] (AAWSAP), the precursor to [[AATIP]]. These three men controlled congressional spending for "black budget" Pentagon programs, and their bipartisan support was essential for the program's creation. Reid continued to be a champion for the program, later securing an additional $10 million in funding for AATIP, though the funds were ultimately diverted to another program.[^1]
Elizondo wrote that in 2007 Senator Reid, along with Senators [[Ted Stevens]] of [[Alaska]] and [[Daniel Inouye]] of [[Hawaii]], secured $22 million in funding for the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AAWSAP), the precursor to AATIP. These three men controlled congressional spending for "black budget" [[Pentagon]] programs, and their bipartisan support was essential for the program's creation. Reid continued to be a champion for the program, later securing an additional $10 million in funding for AATIP, though the funds were ultimately diverted to another program.[^1]
### Support for Disclosure
Even after leaving the Senate, Reid remained a powerful advocate for UAP disclosure. He publicly confirmed his role in funding AATIP and vouched for the credibility of [[Luis Elizondo]] after his resignation from the Pentagon. He provided crucial support for the 2017 New York Times article that broke the story of AATIP, and he continued to brief members of Congress and the media on the importance of the UAP issue. His steadfast support was a key factor in the passage of the historic UAP legislation in the 2021 and 2022 National Defense Authorization Acts (NDAAs).[^1]
Even after leaving the Senate, Reid remained a powerful advocate for UAP disclosure. He publicly confirmed his role in funding AATIP and vouched for the credibility of [[Luis Elizondo]] after his resignation from the Pentagon. He provided crucial support for the 2017 [[New York Times]] article that broke the story of AATIP, and he continued to brief members of [[U.S. Congress|Congress]] and the media on the importance of the UAP issue. His steadfast support was a key factor in the passage of the historic UAP legislation in the 2021 and 2022 [[National Defense Authorization Act|National Defense Authorization Acts]] (NDAAs).[^1]
### Letter to the Deputy Secretary of Defense, June 24, 2009
On Senate Majority Leader letterhead dated June 24, 2009, Reid wrote to Deputy Secretary of Defense [[William Lynn]]: "Beginning this past September, the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] has mandated that the [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] assess far-term foreign advanced aerospace threats to the United States," with a scope "from the present out to forty years and beyond." The letter calls the effort the "Advanced Aerospace Threat and Identification Program (AAITP)," states that "much progress has been made with the identification of several highly sensitive, unconventional aerospace-related findings," and asks for assistance "establishing a Restricted Special-Access-Program (SAP) with a Bigoted Access List for specific portions of the AATIP." It lists as protectable "the methodology used to identify, acquire, study, and engineer the advanced technologies," "protection of industry partnerships and participation," and "application and engineering," describing "associated exotic technologies" in "quantum mechanics, nuclear science, electromagnetic theory, gravitics, and thermodynamics." The contact named for questions is [[Robert T. Herbert|Bob Herbert]] of Reid's staff.[^2]
Attachment 1 to the letter gives the proposed nickname "Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP)," program length "FY09 to FY13 (Preliminary)," program funding "FY09 O&M, FY10-FY13 TBD," and SAP category "Intelligence, DoD Acquisition." The "FY 10 Preliminary Bigoted List of Government Personnel" names Lynn, Reid, Daniel Inouye and Robert T. Herbert of the U.S. Senate, followed by redacted entries including Navy, [[United States Marine Corps|Marine Corps]] and [[Under Secretary of Defense]] for Intelligence personnel; a separate "FY 10 Preliminary Bigoted List of Contractor Personnel funded under the AATIP" has three entries, the first reading "Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies LLC (BAASS)" and the other two "BAASS (CTR)."[^2]
### Appropriation language in DIA papers
Talking points in the packet prepared for the Deputy Secretary of Defense's November 17, 2009 meeting with Reid state that "Senators Reid and Inouye co-sponsored a $10M earmark in the July 2008 supplemental" and that "a $12M earmark has been allocated to support the program in FY2010." Neither entry names Stevens.[^3]
### Responses
DIA's talking points for a Reid visit to the DIA Director (May 4, 2009) state that Reid "has a deep interest in the potential threat posed by unconventional aerospace technologies" and that "the continued support and guidance of Senator Reid and Senator Inouye is crucial."[^4] DIA records that a review it completed in November 2009 found "insufficient grounds existed to classify the program, invoke an ACCM, or establish a restricted SAP"; that in November 2009 Lynn and the memorandum's author (name redacted) met Reid, and "we determined the reports were of limited value to DIA" while suggesting the project "could be transitioned to another agency or component better suited to oversee the project."[^5] The talking points in the packet prepared for the Deputy Secretary's November 17, 2009 meeting with Reid record that DIA "learned of counter-intelligence concerns with [[Bigelow Aerospace]]" in August 2008; see the page for [[Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies]].[^3]
### Contributions from Robert Bigelow and Bigelow companies
[[OpenFEC]] itemized receipts show contributions of 2,000 dollars (two entries of 1,000 dollars, August 7, 1998), 4,000 dollars (two entries of 2,000 dollars, June 12, 2003) and 4,800 dollars (two entries of 2,400 dollars, June 8, 2010) from Robert Bigelow of [[Las Vegas]] to [[Friends for Harry Reid]], the Senate campaign committee. The [[Searchlight Leadership Fund]], registered to Reid as sponsor, received 5,000 dollars from Bigelow on June 13, 2003 and 5,000 dollars from [[Bigelow Development Aerospace]] LLC on June 30, 2004. The [[Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee]] received 28,500 dollars from Bigelow on September 28, 2007 and 28,500 dollars on June 30, 2008.[^6]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Elizondo, Luis. *Imminent*. William Morrow, 2024.
[^2]: Senator Harry Reid to Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III, June 24, 2009, with Attachment 1, released by DIA to The Black Vault. https://documents2.theblackvault.com/documents/dia/AAWSAP/20090624_Reid_to_DEPSECDEF_ref_AAITP_in_SAP.pdf
[^3]: Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence, final packet for the Deputy Secretary of Defense's November 17, 2009 meeting with Senator Reid. https://documents2.theblackvault.com/documents/dia/AAWSAP/09117-Final_Packet_Presented_to_DepSecDef.pdf
[^4]: Defense Intelligence Agency, Talking Paper, "Senator Reid Visit to Director, DIA," May 4, 2009. https://documents2.theblackvault.com/documents/dia/AAWSAP/DR_Reid_Mtg_May09.pdf
[^5]: Defense Intelligence Agency, Info Memo U-10-2552CE to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, 2010. https://documents2.theblackvault.com/documents/dia/AAWSAP/U-10-2552CE-IM-ATL.pdf
[^6]: Federal Election Commission, OpenFEC API, schedule A; Searchlight Leadership Fund is committee C00327395 (sponsor candidate S6NV00028, Harry Reid) and Friends for Harry Reid committee C00204370. https://api.open.fec.gov/v1/schedules/schedule_a/

67
10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Jaime Shandera.md Normal file
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@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
---
category: "UFO & Anomalous Phenomena"
tags:
- Person
- UFO
- MJ12
- Television
- NationalArchives
- Disinformation
alias:
- Jaime Shandera
- Jaime H. Shandera
- Jamie Shandera
- Shandera
summary: "Los Angeles television producer who received the roll of 35mm film bearing the Eisenhower briefing document on December 11, 1984 and found the Cutler-Twining memorandum at the National Archives on July 18, 1985."
location: "North Hollywood, California"
relations:
- type: partner_of
with: "[[William L. Moore]]"
start: 1982-06
role: "co-investigator of the MJ-12 documents; Moore said in 1989 that he brought Shandera into the project in June 1982; co-author of The MJ-12 Documents: An Analytical Report (1990)"
fn: 12
- type: participant_in
with: "[[UFO Cover-Up Live]]"
start: 1988-10-14
role: "consultant and interviewer of the sources Falcon and Condor"
fn: 8
created: 2026-10-03
updated: 2026-10-03
---
Jaime H. Shandera is a television producer and director of [[Los Angeles]] who, with [[William L. Moore]], received and published the [[Majestic-12]] documents. A biography prepared for the 1988 program [[UFO Cover-Up Live]] describes him as a producer, director and researcher of twenty years with a background in news and documentaries, producer and director at [[Time-Life|Time-Life Broadcast]] in [[San Diego]] and [[RKO General]] in Los Angeles, and head of [[Sonex International Corp.]] with corporate clients worldwide, whose research into government secrecy "began five years ago with William Moore."[^1] A [[UFO BBS]] text states that Moore and Shandera became partners in 1982.[^2] Moore said on July 1, 1989 that in June 1982 he "approached my friend Jaime Shandera and brought him into the project," that Shandera knew Moore was in contact with people in the intelligence community and that some of what came through was disinformation, and that Shandera saw the work as burrowing into a beehive "at the express invitation of the queen bee herself, who clandestinely oversaw and encouraged the process from a distance."[^12] Moore added that the name Falcon was invented by himself and Shandera in 1984 as a private way of referring to a source on the telephone, and that after the broadcast of UFO Cover-Up Live the FBI interviewed several ufologists "including Jaime Shandera," while avoiding Moore.[^12] Moore and Shandera wrote in 1990 that Shandera is "a television producer-director with strong background in television news."[^3]
### The film, December 1984
Moore and Shandera wrote that on December 11, 1984 a taped brown envelope with no return address and an [[Albuquerque]] postmark of December 8 arrived at Shandera's [[North Hollywood]] residence, containing nested envelopes, the innermost bearing a [[Marriott]] logo, and a black plastic canister holding undeveloped 35mm Tri-X film. The film yielded eight good negatives of what appeared to be a 1952 briefing document for President-elect [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]], then two blank frames and the same eight frames again. Moore and Shandera arranged for professional prints at a photographic laboratory owned by an associate and wrote that both were present in the darkroom. They wrote that with the assistance of the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] and the [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office|Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department]] they identified questioned-document examiners, that four were approached, and that none would allow his name to be used.[^4]
### The Cutler-Twining memorandum, July 1985
Moore and Shandera wrote that a postcard postmarked in [[New Zealand]], bearing the printed address "[[Ethiopian Tourism Commission]], Box 189, [[Addis Ababa]]," reached Moore's Dewey, [[Arizona]] box 189 in or before March 1985 with the typewritten message "When doors won't open, search for windows. Add some zest to your trip to [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]]; Try Reece's pieces. For a stylish look, shop Suit Land," and that a second similar card, postmarked [[Christchurch]], followed months later. [[Stanton Friedman]], who was in Washington, understood "Reece's pieces" to mean [[Ed Reese]] of the Modern Military Branch of the [[National Archives and Records Administration]] and "Suit Land" to mean the archives annex at [[Suitland, Maryland]]. According to Moore and Shandera, Reese told Friedman that the [[U.S. Air Force]] had arranged to declassify a large block of Intelligence Directorate files from 1946 to 1955, sending declassification officers from the [[Pentagon]], and that old [[Air Technical Intelligence Center]] records on Projects Sign and Grudge were included. Moore and Shandera left on Monday, July 15, 1985; on Thursday, July 18, after searching nearly 100 boxes, Shandera found the memorandum in box 189 of Record Group 341, immediately adjacent to file folder 4-1846.[^5]
The National Archives gives the location as Record Group 341, entry 267, folder T4-1846, and records that the memorandum lacks the top secret register number its series requires, that no other document in the folder mentions "NSC/MJ-12," that the "Top Secret Restricted Information" marking did not come into use until the [[Richard Nixon|Nixon]] administration, that a conservation specialist found the paper to be a ribbon copy on "diction onionskin" without letterhead or watermark, while documents Cutler created on the [[National Security Council]] staff have an eagle watermark on the bond paper and his onionskin carbon copies have either an eagle watermark or none, that no record exists of a National Security Council meeting on July 16, 1954, and that Cutler's travel report shows him on a trip to [[Europe]] and [[North Africa]] from July 3 to 15, 1954.[^6] The Archives stated that certification of a copy establishes only that it is a faithful copy of archival material.[^6]
### The program and the Fund for UFO Research
At the program of October 14, 1988, Howe wrote that a flow chart of authority shown after the Falcon statement was "created by William Moore and Jaime Shandera."[^7] [[Robert M. Collins]] wrote that in September 1988 Moore and Shandera shot interviews in Albuquerque with "the surrogate Falcon ([[Richard Doty|Rick Doty]])," with Collins as Condor, and with Doty unmasked as "Special OSI Agent Rick Doty," the last of which was cut for time; the writer [[Barry Taff]] wrote that just before the broadcast Moore, Shandera and [[Robert Emenegger]] began playing practical jokes on the producer on the set.[^8][^11] Moore and Shandera wrote that on March 12, 1983 they attended a board meeting of the [[Fund for UFO Research]] as guests, where the [[Project Aquarius|Aquarius teletype]] was discussed; the 1990 *MJ-12 Documents* report was offered through the Fund for $12.50, with Friedman's separate 59-page report prepared under a $16,000 Fund grant.[^3][^9]
### Bird Code and the 1995 trip
Collins wrote that from 1987 to 1988 Moore, Shandera, [[Ernie Kellerstrass]], Doty and Collins received a "Bird Code" of seventeen or more pages, purporting to give directions to an apartment in Washington near the [[National Mall|Mall]] where a female extraterrestrial ambassador was kept; that Shandera and Moore "actually made the trips to DC"; that Shandera worked on the code again in the early 1990s with postcards from New Zealand and other places; and that in the summer of 1995 Shandera met in front of a building near the Mall a man Collins called "Mr. X" ("[[Walter Ferguson]], [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]?", with Collins adding that "Jaime wasn't too clear on that"), who escorted him inside past a checkered floor to a door that Shandera described as a vault of "volumes" on extraterrestrials. Collins distinguished the "Raven" that he wrote Doty applied to [[Richard Helms]] from "Jaime Shandera's 'Raven,'" which he called "still an unknown," and wrote that "to this day many of us still stay in contact (except for Bill & Jaime)." A passage in the book over Shandera's name states that "Jaime Shandera has now had the existence of ETs proven to him beyond question."[^8] Moore had said in 1989 that [[Jerome Clark]] reported in *[[Fate]]* that Moore and Shandera made a trip to Washington in anticipation of meeting a live alien and were stood up, and answered that "considering what you now know of our project and its goals, we had a story. No matter what happened, we made the trip because we simply couldn't lose," adding "there's more to that experience than you know about."[^12]
Pilkington wrote that [[Greg Bishop]] recalled Shandera, "Moore's colleague in the MJ-12 and Aviary investigations, transformed suddenly from cynical disbeliever to terrified convert," and that when pressed Shandera would only say "they showed me something."[^10] Collins wrote that Shandera's last known residence was San Diego with his wife and that he had recently moved back to Los Angeles.[^8]
### Footnotes
[^1]: "Background on Moore/Shandera/Friedman," UFO BBS file UFO1876, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1876.ufo (promotional text for *UFO Cover-Up? Live!*).
[^2]: "E B E's," part 5, UFO BBS file UFO1024, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1024.ufo (author not identified in the copy consulted).
[^3]: William L. Moore and Jaime H. Shandera, *The MJ-12 Documents: An Analytical Report* (Fund for UFO Research, 1990), "Introduction," p. 3; "The Aquarius Teletype," p. 9, http://www.openminds.tv/wp-content/uploads/The-MJ-12-Documents-An-Analytical-Report-Excerpts.pdf (scanned excerpt, read as page images).
[^4]: Moore and Shandera, *MJ-12 Documents*, "The MJ-12 Documents (Dec. 1984)," p. 29, same excerpt.
[^5]: Moore and Shandera, *MJ-12 Documents*, "The Cutler-Twining Memo (Jul. 1985)," pp. 61 to 62, same excerpt.
[^6]: National Archives and Records Administration, "Majestic 12 or 'MJ-12' Reference Report," in "Project BLUE BOOK - Unidentified Flying Objects," https://www.archives.gov/research/military/air-force/ufos
[^7]: Linda Moulton Howe, *An Alien Harvest*, 2nd ed. (2014), p. 194 (statement of "Falcon" in the broadcast of October 14, 1988), https://archive.org/details/howe-l.-m.-an-alien-harvest-2nd-ed-2014
[^8]: Robert Collins and Richard Doty, *Exempt from Disclosure: The Black World of UFOs*, introduction and Section 2, Chapter 4 with references 4 to 6 (the archive.org copy is dated 2010 in its metadata but cites material of July 2012), https://archive.org/details/exempt-from-disclosure
[^9]: Moore and Shandera, *MJ-12 Documents*, "Introduction," p. 3 (price and Fund address) and "The Aquarius Teletype," p. 9 (meeting of March 12, 1983).
[^10]: Mark Pilkington, *Mirage Men* (Constable, 2010), chapter "How to Believe Weird Things," https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf. Bishop's recollection reaches the page through Pilkington only.
[^11]: Barry E. Taff, "UFO Cover-Up? Live!: The Untold Story," part 3, UFO BBS file UFO137, http://textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/0000/137.ufo (reprinted in UFO Magazine and ParaNet).
[^12]: William L. Moore, address to the MUFON International UFO Symposium, Las Vegas, July 1, 1989, from the caption transcript of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUfimKiS-po (video of the Ron Regehr recording, Internet Archive item bill-moore-1989-mufon); names corrected from mis-rendered captions.

148
10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Laurance Rockefeller.md
View file

@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ relations:
reverse: true
start: 1993-03-29
role: "Washington attorney and long-time associate"
fn: 19
fn: 23
- type: head_of
with: "[[Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission]]"
start: 1958
@ -134,94 +134,114 @@ relations:
start: 1993
role: "funder, according to the John E. Mack Institute"
fn: 15
- type: funded
with: "[[Center for Psychology and Social Change]]"
start: 1995-05
role: "reported annual grant of $250,000, per the London Times and the Valley News (May 1995); no source named"
fn: 16
- type: funded
with: "[[Human Potential Foundation]]"
role: "partial funder, in the belief of John H. Gibbons"
fn: 16
fn: 18
- type: funded
with: "[[Society for Scientific Exploration]]"
start: 1997
role: "funds for the Pocantico UFO workshop, through the LSR Fund"
fn: 44
fn: 55
- type: funded
with: "[[UFO Research Coalition]]"
start: 1995
role: "financed the December 1995 Briefing Document"
fn: 48
created: 2026-10-01
updated: 2026-10-01
updated: 2026-10-02
---
Laurance S. Rockefeller (May 26, 1910, in [[New York City]], to July 11, 2004, at his home on [[Fifth Avenue]]) was the fourth of the six children of [[John D. Rockefeller Jr.]] and [[Abby Aldrich Rockefeller]]. He attended the Lincoln School of [[Teachers College, Columbia University|Teachers College]], [[Columbia University]], entered [[Princeton University]] in 1928, took a degree in philosophy in 1932 and studied for two years at [[Harvard Law School]]. He married [[Mary French Rockefeller|Mary French]] on August 15, 1934, at [[Woodstock, Vermont]], began work in the family office at [[Rockefeller Center]] in 1935, and served from 1942 to 1945 in the [[United States Navy]]'s [[Bureau of Aeronautics]], rising to lieutenant commander.[^1] His brothers were [[John D. Rockefeller III]], [[Nelson Rockefeller]], [[Winthrop Rockefeller]] and [[David Rockefeller]].[^2]
Laurance S. Rockefeller (May 26, 1910, in [[New York City]], to July 11, 2004, at his home on [[Fifth Avenue]]) was the fourth of the six children of [[John D. Rockefeller Jr.]] and [[Abby Aldrich Rockefeller]]. He attended the [[Lincoln School]] of [[Teachers College, Columbia University|Teachers College]], [[Columbia University]], entered [[Princeton University]] in 1928, took a degree in philosophy in 1932 and studied for two years at [[Harvard Law School]]. He married [[Mary French Rockefeller|Mary French]] on August 15, 1934, at [[Woodstock, Vermont]], began work in the family office at [[Rockefeller Center]] in 1935, and served from 1942 to 1945 in the [[United States Navy]]'s [[Bureau of Aeronautics]], rising to lieutenant commander.[^1] His brothers were [[John D. Rockefeller III]], [[Nelson Rockefeller]], [[Winthrop Rockefeller]] and [[David Rockefeller]].[^2]
### Eastern Air Lines
The historian W. David Lewis wrote that in 1938 [[Eddie Rickenbacker]], seeking financing to take over [[Eastern Air Lines]], "secured enough backing ... from a syndicate including Laurance S. Rockefeller, who became the chief stockholder in a new corporate entity known as Eastern Air Lines," and that Rickenbacker became chief executive in April 1938.[^3] In Lewis's account Eastern's directors moved Rickenbacker up to chairman in 1953 and named [[Malcolm A. MacIntyre]] president and chief executive, and Rickenbacker interfered with MacIntyre's management. Lewis wrote that Rockefeller "decided that the only way out of its problems was a merger with one of the country's two largest carriers, American Airlines." The industry, led by [[Delta Air Lines]], opposed the merger, and it became clear that [[Robert F. Kennedy]], as attorney general, would veto it on antitrust grounds even if the [[Civil Aeronautics Board]] did not; the plan was scuttled.[^3] Rockefeller had hoped the merger would let him replace Rickenbacker and MacIntyre with the chief executive of American, [[C. R. Smith]]. When it failed he appointed a search committee, which chose [[Floyd D. Hall]] of [[Trans World Airlines]]; MacIntyre was fired, and Rickenbacker was summoned to a meeting and asked to retire. Rickenbacker took the news badly and agreed only after a second meeting, which Rockefeller attended, and he left his office at Rockefeller Center and did not return.[^3]
The historian [[W. David Lewis]] wrote that in 1938 [[Eddie Rickenbacker]], seeking financing to take over [[Eastern Air Lines]], "secured enough backing ... from a syndicate including Laurance S. Rockefeller, who became the chief stockholder in a new corporate entity known as Eastern Air Lines," and that Rickenbacker became chief executive in April 1938.[^3] In Lewis's account Eastern's directors moved Rickenbacker up to chairman in 1953 and named [[Malcolm A. MacIntyre]] president and chief executive, and Rickenbacker interfered with MacIntyre's management. Lewis wrote that Rockefeller "decided that the only way out of its problems was a merger with one of the country's two largest carriers, [[American Airlines]]." The industry, led by [[Delta Air Lines]], opposed the merger, and it became clear that [[Robert F. Kennedy]], as attorney general, would veto it on antitrust grounds even if the [[Civil Aeronautics Board]] did not; the plan was scuttled.[^3] Rockefeller had hoped the merger would let him replace Rickenbacker and MacIntyre with the chief executive of American, [[C. R. Smith]]. When it failed he appointed a search committee, which chose [[Floyd D. Hall]] of [[Trans World Airlines]]; MacIntyre was fired, and Rickenbacker was summoned to a meeting and asked to retire. Rickenbacker took the news badly and agreed only after a second meeting, which Rockefeller attended, and he left his office at Rockefeller Center and did not return.[^3]
The Civil Aeronautics Board regulated routes and mail pay throughout this period. In a transcontinental route case decided in 1961 the Board gave Delta and [[National Airlines]] access to [[San Diego]], [[Los Angeles]] and [[San Francisco]] and denied Eastern's application; Rickenbacker had attacked President [[John F. Kennedy]] in a speech while the case was pending.[^3]
### Venture Investments
[[Peter O. Crisp]] joined Rockefeller's staff in 1960 and sat on the board of [[Apple Computer]] for sixteen years; in an oral history recorded on October 21, 2008 he described the origin of the family's venture investing. After the war, Crisp said, Rockefeller hired "these three guys" to look for small technology companies: [[Randy Marston]], "who had worked for the Chase Bank for many years"; [[Harper Woodward]], "General Arnold's assistant in [[World War II]] in the Pentagon for procurement matters"; and [[Teddy Walkowicz]], "a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force" and "an MIT guy"; he named a fourth man, [[Jay Richardson Dilworth]], as "kind of the senior advisor to the [[Rockefeller family]]." Crisp said he screened proposals "for Marston, Woodward and Walkowicz," the "big shots" who then joined the boards.[^4] Among the investments Crisp listed since 1946 were [[New York Airways]], Eastern Air Lines, the [[Glenn L. Martin Company]], [[Reaction Motors]] (later bought by [[Thiokol]]), the [[Marquardt Aircraft Company]] (ramjet engines for missiles), Island Packers ("a tuna factory in the Pacific"), [[Flight Refueling]], the [[Piasecki Helicopter Company]] (merged with [[Vertol]] and later acquired by [[Boeing]]) and [[Aircraft Radio Corporation|Aircraft Radio]] (bought by [[Cessna]]); he also named [[Itek]] and [[Scantlin Electronics]], maker of the Quotron.[^4] Crisp said the staff passed on [[Haloid Company|Haloid]], which became [[Xerox]], after a former staff member's memorandum found no future in its copier technology, on which Marston wrote "I concur."[^4] From August 1969 Rockefeller's investments were channeled through [[Venrock]], which Crisp said was formed in 1969 and given its name because "we didn't want to be confused with philanthropy."[^1][^4]
[[Peter O. Crisp]] joined Rockefeller's staff in 1960 and sat on the board of [[Apple Computer]] for sixteen years; in an oral history recorded on October 21, 2008 he described the origin of the family's venture investing. After the war, Crisp said, Rockefeller hired "these three guys" to look for small technology companies: [[Randy Marston]], "who had worked for the [[Chase Manhattan Bank|Chase Bank]] for many years"; [[Harper Woodward]], "General Arnold's assistant in [[World War II]] in the [[Pentagon]] for procurement matters"; and [[Teddy Walkowicz]], "a lieutenant colonel in the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]]" and "an [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] guy"; he named a fourth man, [[Jay Richardson Dilworth]], as "kind of the senior advisor to the [[Rockefeller family]]." Crisp said he screened proposals "for Marston, Woodward and Walkowicz," the "big shots" who then joined the boards.[^4] Among the investments Crisp listed since 1946 were [[New York Airways]], Eastern Air Lines, the [[Glenn L. Martin Company]], [[Reaction Motors]] (later bought by [[Thiokol]]), the [[Marquardt Aircraft Company]] (ramjet engines for missiles), [[Island Packers]] ("a tuna factory in the Pacific"), [[Flight Refueling]], the [[Piasecki Helicopter Company]] (merged with [[Vertol]] and later acquired by [[Boeing]]) and [[Aircraft Radio Corporation|Aircraft Radio]] (bought by [[Cessna]]); he also named [[Itek]] and [[Scantlin Electronics]], maker of the Quotron.[^4] Crisp said the staff passed on [[Haloid Company|Haloid]], which became [[Xerox]], after a former staff member's memorandum found no future in its copier technology, on which Marston wrote "I concur."[^4] From August 1969 Rockefeller's investments were channeled through [[Venrock]], which Crisp said was formed in 1969 and given its name because "we didn't want to be confused with philanthropy."[^1][^4]
The record on Itek carries three dates. The [[Boston Globe]] obituary of [[Richard Leghorn|Dick Leghorn]] states that he cofounded Itek in 1957, and quotes him that the company was known as "the mystery company. It was very hush-hush."[^5] The [[Central Intelligence Agency]]'s history of the [[CORONA]] satellite program, by [[Kenneth E. Greer]], published in a classified supplement to [[Studies in Intelligence]] in spring 1973, states that in late March and April 1958 "interest shifted to a competitive design submitted by Itek Corporation, a spin-off of Boston University," that the project proposal completed on April 9, 1958 was rewritten twice, "retaining the Itek configuration," and that the final proposal was forwarded on April 16, 1958 to the President's staff secretary and approved, "although not in writing"; Itek "was made responsible for the design and development of the camera subsystem, Fairchild producing the camera under subcontract to Itek."[^6] Crisp, who joined the staff in 1960, dated Leghorn's approach to Rockefeller to "around 1960": Leghorn said Eastman Kodak's cameras were heavy and inefficient, and Rockefeller told him to show he could leave [[Eastman Kodak]] without being sued, and put up 60,000 dollars in 1960 together with [[William A. Burden and Company]] and "the Walker Brothers, Elisha and Bayard Walker, who had an investment company called the Long Island Company." Crisp said Itek was later bought by [[Litton Industries]] and that the product "which made them famous" was "the camera which was in the U-2 plane that was flown by Francis Gary Powers."[^4]
The record on Itek carries three dates. The [[Boston Globe]] obituary of [[Richard Leghorn|Dick Leghorn]] states that he cofounded Itek in 1957, and quotes him that the company was known as "the mystery company. It was very hush-hush."[^5] The [[Central Intelligence Agency]]'s history of the [[CORONA]] satellite program, by [[Kenneth E. Greer]], published in a classified supplement to [[Studies in Intelligence]] in spring 1973, states that in late March and April 1958 "interest shifted to a competitive design submitted by Itek Corporation, a spin-off of Boston University," that the project proposal completed on April 9, 1958 was rewritten twice, "retaining the Itek configuration," and that the final proposal was forwarded on April 16, 1958 to the President's staff secretary and approved, "although not in writing"; Itek "was made responsible for the design and development of the camera subsystem, Fairchild producing the camera under subcontract to Itek."[^6] Crisp, who joined the staff in 1960, dated Leghorn's approach to Rockefeller to "around 1960": Leghorn said Eastman Kodak's cameras were heavy and inefficient, and Rockefeller told him to show he could leave [[Eastman Kodak]] without being sued, and put up 60,000 dollars in 1960 together with [[William A. Burden and Company]] and "the [[Walker Brothers]], Elisha and Bayard Walker, who had an investment company called the [[Long Island Company]]." Crisp said Itek was later bought by [[Litton Industries]] and that the product "which made them famous" was "the camera which was in the U-2 plane that was flown by [[Francis Gary Powers]]."[^4]
On Apple, Crisp said that [[Mike Markkula]], who had advised the founders, called Venrock when Markkula's 110,000-dollar loan guarantee ran out, and [[Steve Jobs]] and [[Steve Wozniak]] came to New York. Venrock bought 10 percent of the company for 300,000 dollars, valuing it at 3 million dollars, and put in 200,000 dollars more about eight months later; at the initial public offering the 500,000 dollars was worth 110 million dollars. When Apple prepared to go public the company wanted the managing partner on the board, and Crisp took the seat of his partner [[Hank Smith]], who "made a lot of money in Intel and in Apple."[^4]
On Apple, Crisp said that [[Mike Markkula]], who had advised the founders, called Venrock when Markkula's 110,000-dollar loan guarantee ran out, and [[Steve Jobs]] and [[Steve Wozniak]] came to New York. Venrock bought 10 percent of the company for 300,000 dollars, valuing it at 3 million dollars, and put in 200,000 dollars more about eight months later; at the initial public offering the 500,000 dollars was worth 110 million dollars. When Apple prepared to go public the company wanted the managing partner on the board, and Crisp took the seat of his partner [[Hank Smith]], who "made a lot of money in [[Intel]] and in Apple."[^4]
### Special Studies Project
The [[Rockefeller Brothers Fund]]'s [[Special Studies Project]] began in 1956 under its president, Nelson Rockefeller, who chaired it for two years; when Nelson became governor of New York in 1958 Laurance became chairman.[^7] The published planning committee lists "Laurance S. Rockefeller, (Chairman since May 26, 1958)" and "Nelson A. Rockefeller, (Chairman, resigned May 26, 1958)," with [[Dana S. Creel]], [[Nancy Hanks]], [[Emmet John Hughes]], [[Francis A. Jamieson]], [[Henry A. Kissinger]], [[John E. Lockwood]] and [[Oscar M. Ruebhausen]].[^8]
Panel II, "International Security: The Military Aspect," first published on January 6, 1958, had been meeting since November 1956 and was the first panel to report.[^8] Its members, as listed in the 1961 volume, were [[Frank Altschul]], General [[Frederick L. Anderson]], [[Karl R. Bendetsen]], [[Detlev W. Bronk]], [[Gordon E. Dean]], [[James B. Fisk]], [[Bradley Gaylord]], [[Roswell L. Gilpatric]], [[Townsend W. Hoopes]] of J. H. Whitney and Company, [[Ellis A. Johnson]] of the Operations Research Office, Colonel [[George A. Lincoln]], [[Henry R. Luce]], General [[James McCormack Jr.]] (chairman until October 1957), [[Frank C. Nash]], "Laurance S. Rockefeller, president, Rockefeller Brothers, Inc.," [[Arthur Smithies]], [[Edward Teller]], "T. F. Walkowicz, aeronautical engineer," [[Carroll L. Wilson]], and [[John F. Floberg]] until his appointment to the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] in June 1957.[^8] The panel reports were published as *Prospect for America* by [[Doubleday]] in 1961 and sold over 400,000 copies, and participants later served in the Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford administrations.[^7]
Panel II, "International Security: The Military Aspect," first published on January 6, 1958, had been meeting since November 1956 and was the first panel to report.[^8] Its members, as listed in the 1961 volume, were [[Frank Altschul]], General [[Frederick L. Anderson]], [[Karl R. Bendetsen]], [[Detlev W. Bronk]], [[Gordon E. Dean]], [[James B. Fisk]], [[Bradley Gaylord]], [[Roswell L. Gilpatric]], [[Townsend W. Hoopes]] of [[J. H. Whitney and Company]], [[Ellis A. Johnson]] of the [[Operations Research Office]], Colonel [[George A. Lincoln]], [[Henry R. Luce]], General [[James McCormack Jr.]] (chairman until October 1957), [[Frank C. Nash]], "Laurance S. Rockefeller, president, [[Rockefeller Brothers, Inc.]]," [[Arthur Smithies]], [[Edward Teller]], "T. F. Walkowicz, aeronautical engineer," [[Carroll L. Wilson]], and [[John F. Floberg]] until his appointment to the [[Atomic Energy Commission]] in June 1957.[^8] The panel reports were published as *[[Prospect for America]]* by [[Doubleday]] in 1961 and sold over 400,000 copies, and participants later served in the Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford administrations.[^7]
The Central Intelligence Agency's files hold correspondence on two of the releases. [[Allen Dulles]], [[Director of Central Intelligence]], wrote to Rockefeller on September 16, 1960: "I have found this study, like the other reports in your special studies project, most interesting." The study was *The Power of the Democratic Idea*, and a copy of it in the agency's files carries a notice that it was sent "in advance of the RELEASE DATE, Wednesday, September 7, 1960" and was to be treated as confidential until then.[^9] On February 20, 1961 Rockefeller wrote to Dulles on Rockefeller Brothers Fund stationery that lists him as president, enclosing an advance copy of *Prospect for America*, which was to be published on March 17; his letter states that the Trustees of the Fund organized the project "in the belief that there was real merit in a group of citizens making an effort to look at America as it is." Dulles replied on March 1, 1961 that the book would be "a welcome and valuable addition to my private library."[^10]
The Central Intelligence Agency's files hold correspondence on two of the releases. [[Allen Dulles]], [[Director of Central Intelligence]], wrote to Rockefeller on September 16, 1960: "I have found this study, like the other reports in your special studies project, most interesting." The study was *[[The Power of the Democratic Idea]]*, and a copy of it in the agency's files carries a notice that it was sent "in advance of the RELEASE DATE, Wednesday, September 7, 1960" and was to be treated as confidential until then.[^9] On February 20, 1961 Rockefeller wrote to Dulles on Rockefeller Brothers Fund stationery that lists him as president, enclosing an advance copy of *Prospect for America*, which was to be published on March 17; his letter states that the Trustees of the Fund organized the project "in the belief that there was real merit in a group of citizens making an effort to look at America as it is." Dulles replied on March 1, 1961 that the book would be "a welcome and valuable addition to my private library."[^10]
### Conservation Commissions, Jackson Hole and the Virgin Islands
In 1958 President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] appointed Rockefeller chairman of the [[Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission]].[^1] He later served as a special emissary for President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] on the creation of [[Redwood National Park]] and chaired President [[Richard Nixon]]'s Citizens' Advisory Committee on Environmental Quality. He was president, then chairman, of the Fund from 1958 to 1980, chairman of [[Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center|Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center]] from 1960 to 1982, a trustee of the [[Alfred P. Sloan Foundation]] from 1960 to 1982, and a trustee of the [[New York Zoological Society]] from 1935 to 1986. In 1958 he established the [[American Conservation Association]], Inc., a philanthropy to function as a conservation service agency, assisting other agencies and initiating projects of its own.[^1] The commission's members were Senators [[Clinton P. Anderson]], [[Henry C. Dworshak]], [[Henry M. Jackson]] and [[Jack Miller]]; Representatives [[John P. Saylor]], [[Gracie Pfost]], [[Ralph J. Rivers]] and [[John H. Kyl]]; and presidential commissioners [[Samuel T. Dana]], [[Marian S. Dryfoos]], [[Bernard L. Orell]], [[Joseph W. Penfold]], [[M. Frederick Smith]] and [[Chester S. Wilson]]. The report was presented to President Kennedy and Congress on the Wednesday before the Interior Department's release of February 1, 1962, and Secretary of the Interior [[Stewart Udall]] gave priority to the creation of a Bureau of Outdoor Recreation.[^11]
In 1958 President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] appointed Rockefeller chairman of the [[Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission]].[^1] He later served as a special emissary for President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] on the creation of [[Redwood National Park]] and chaired President [[Richard Nixon]]'s Citizens' Advisory Committee on Environmental Quality. He was president, then chairman, of the Fund from 1958 to 1980, chairman of [[Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center|Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center]] from 1960 to 1982, a trustee of the [[Alfred P. Sloan Foundation]] from 1960 to 1982, and a trustee of the [[New York Zoological Society]] from 1935 to 1986. In 1958 he established the [[American Conservation Association]], Inc., a philanthropy to function as a conservation service agency, assisting other agencies and initiating projects of its own.[^1] The commission's members were Senators [[Clinton P. Anderson]], [[Henry C. Dworshak]], [[Henry M. Jackson]] and [[Jack Miller]]; Representatives [[John P. Saylor]], [[Gracie Pfost]], [[Ralph J. Rivers]] and [[John H. Kyl]]; and presidential commissioners [[Samuel T. Dana]], [[Marian S. Dryfoos]], [[Bernard L. Orell]], [[Joseph W. Penfold]], [[M. Frederick Smith]] and [[Chester S. Wilson]]. The report was presented to President Kennedy and Congress on the Wednesday before the [[United States Department of the Interior|Interior Department]]'s release of February 1, 1962, and Secretary of the Interior [[Stewart Udall]] gave priority to the creation of a [[Bureau of Outdoor Recreation]].[^11]
As president of [[Jackson Hole Preserve]], Inc., Rockefeller made the 1949 gift of [[Jackson Hole]] land to the federal government on his father's behalf.[^1] [[Virgin Islands National Park]] "was created through a donation of more than 5,000 acres of land in 1956 ... from Laurance Rockefeller"; in the mid-1950s he established the [[Caneel Bay]] Resort on [[Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands|St. John]], which operated until [[Hurricane Irma]] and [[Hurricane Maria]] closed it in 2017; and in 1983 Jackson Hole Preserve, Inc., "an organization established by Laurance Rockefeller," donated the roughly 150 acres of the resort to the Park Service, subject to a retained use estate allowing its operator to use the property as a resort until September 30, 2023.[^12] The corporation, with an [[Internal Revenue Service]] ruling date of 1942, still files returns from Woodstock, Vermont, and reported assets of 5,327,031 dollars for 2023.[^13]
### Consciousness Research
The [[Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Lab|Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research]] laboratory, established in 1979 by [[Robert Jahn]], announced its closure on February 10, 2007, stating that its research "was funded by gifts from Princeton alumni [[James S. McDonnell]], patriarch of the McDonnell Douglas Aerospace empire, Laurance Rockefeller, [[Donald C. Webster]], and by numerous other philanthropic benefactors."[^14] According to the [[John E. Mack Institute]], in 1993 the [[Center for Psychology and Social Change]] formed the [[Program for Extraordinary Experience Research]] "with funding from Laurence Rockefeller" to study reported "alien encounters"; the program's own page states that as of 2002 it was no longer an active research project.[^15]
The [[Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Lab|Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research]] laboratory, established in 1979 by [[Robert Jahn]], announced its closure on February 10, 2007, stating that its research "was funded by gifts from Princeton alumni [[James S. McDonnell]], patriarch of the [[McDonnell Douglas]] Aerospace empire, Laurance Rockefeller, [[Donald C. Webster]], and by numerous other philanthropic benefactors."[^14] According to the [[John E. Mack Institute]], in 1993 the [[Center for Psychology and Social Change]] formed the [[Program for Extraordinary Experience Research]] "with funding from Laurence Rockefeller" to study reported "alien encounters"; the program's own page states that as of 2002 it was no longer an active research project.[^15] Two newspaper reports of May 1995 state a figure for his support of Mack's Center itself. [[Ben MacIntyre]] of the London *[[The Times|Times]]* wrote, in a story on [[Harvard University|Harvard]]'s review of Mack, that the Center "is supported by an annual grant of $250,000 from Laurance S. Rockefeller." The [[Valley News]] of May 20, 1995 wrote that Mack's work had "received generous subsidies" from Rockefeller, "patriarch of Woodstock, who reportedly donates a quarter million dollars a year" to the Center, and that a spokesman for Rockefeller said his policy was not to comment publicly on Mack's projects. Neither article names a source for the figure.[^16][^17]
[[C. B. Scott Jones]] wrote to the presidential science adviser, [[John H. Gibbons]], on the letterhead of the [[Human Potential Foundation]] of [[Falls Church, Virginia]].[^16] A handwritten note of February 24, 1994 on one of those letters, initialed by Gibbons, concerns Jones's association with Senator [[Claiborne Pell]] and reads: "Scott Jones used to be associated with Senator Pell. He was formerly a Navy pilot. The Human Potential Foundation is funded in part, I believe, by L.R."[^16] In the same office's memorandum for the President of August 4, 1995, Gibbons wrote that Rockefeller's interests "are related to those of Senator Pell."[^17] The writer [[Grant Cameron]], in a paper on the documents below, wrote that Pell founded the foundation and Jones was its president, that [[Common Cause Magazine]] had reported Rockefeller put more than 700,000 dollars through it from 1991 to 1994, and that [[Richard Farley]], who worked for the foundation for about three years, gave the same figure and "claimed" that Rockefeller's interest was in "alternative religious and psychiatric/psychological paradigms, including so-called 'UFOs' and 'abductions,' having 'Global Mind Change' potentials."[^18]
[[C. B. Scott Jones]] wrote to the presidential science adviser, [[John H. Gibbons]], on the letterhead of the [[Human Potential Foundation]] of [[Falls Church, Virginia]].[^18] A handwritten note of February 24, 1994 on one of those letters, initialed by Gibbons, concerns Jones's association with Senator [[Claiborne Pell]] and reads: "Scott Jones used to be associated with Senator Pell. He was formerly a Navy pilot. The Human Potential Foundation is funded in part, I believe, by L.R."[^18] In the same office's memorandum for the President of August 4, 1995, Gibbons wrote that Rockefeller's interests "are related to those of Senator Pell."[^19] The writer [[Grant Cameron]], in a paper on the documents below, wrote that Pell founded the foundation and Jones was its president, that [[Common Cause Magazine]] had reported Rockefeller put more than 700,000 dollars through it from 1991 to 1994, and that [[Richard Farley]], who worked for the foundation for about three years, gave the same figure and "claimed" that Rockefeller's interest was in "alternative religious and psychiatric/psychological paradigms, including so-called 'UFOs' and 'abductions,' having 'Global Mind Change' potentials."[^20]
The finding aid to the C. B. Scott Jones papers at the [[University of Colorado Boulder]] states that the Human Potential Foundation's primary donor in its first two and a half years was Laurance Rockefeller, "whose support was conditional with a program designed to get the [[United States]] government to acknowledge the existence of alien life," and lists correspondence between Jones and Rockefeller in the collection.[^21] The Center's newsletter *CenterPiece* of September 1993 announced the PEER research on UFO abductions as "Funded by a grant from the Human Potential Foundation."[^22]
### Approach to the Science Adviser, 1993
The [[Office of Science and Technology Policy]], where Gibbons was Assistant to the President for Science and Technology, released 991 pages of correspondence on UFOs and extraterrestrial intelligence to Cameron in January 2001, according to Cameron.[^18] The earliest is a memorandum of March 29, 1993 from [[Henry L. Diamond]] to Gibbons (attention [[Mike Kowalok]]), concerning an approach by Rockefeller to President [[Bill Clinton]] and asking for a meeting with Rockefeller on April 12 or 13. It describes Rockefeller as "a leading U.S. conservationist, businessman, and philanthropist" who, "with other leading citizens, is planning to make an approach to President Clinton" on "the potential availability of government information about unidentified flying objects and extraterrestrial life," and gives the basic message as "a belief in many quarters that the government has long held classified information regarding UFOs which has not been released and that the failure to do so has brought about unnecessary suspicion and distrust." It states that Rockefeller would be accompanied by Jones, "President of the Human Potential Foundation," and by Diamond, "a Washington attorney and long-time associate of Mr. Rockefeller, known to Dr. Gibbons." A handwritten note adds "+ Scott Jones."[^19]
The [[Office of Science and Technology Policy]], where Gibbons was Assistant to the President for Science and Technology, released 991 pages of correspondence on UFOs and extraterrestrial intelligence to Cameron in January 2001, according to Cameron.[^20] The earliest is a memorandum of March 29, 1993 from [[Henry L. Diamond]] to Gibbons (attention [[Mike Kowalok]]), concerning an approach by Rockefeller to President [[Bill Clinton]] and asking for a meeting with Rockefeller on April 12 or 13. It describes Rockefeller as "a leading U.S. conservationist, businessman, and philanthropist" who, "with other leading citizens, is planning to make an approach to President Clinton" on "the potential availability of government information about unidentified flying objects and extraterrestrial life," and gives the basic message as "a belief in many quarters that the government has long held classified information regarding UFOs which has not been released and that the failure to do so has brought about unnecessary suspicion and distrust." It states that Rockefeller would be accompanied by Jones, "President of the Human Potential Foundation," and by Diamond, "a [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] attorney and long-time associate of Mr. Rockefeller, known to Dr. Gibbons." A handwritten note adds "+ Scott Jones."[^23]
On April 21, 1993, on stationery of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Room 5600, Rockefeller thanked Gibbons for seeing him "so early Wednesday morning." He wrote that Gibbons had said that in three months as science adviser he had "not learned that the United States Government has a body of knowledge on UFOs or ETI that is being withheld from the public," and had made it clear that "initially our most fruitful avenue of approach, most likely, will be within the [[Department of Defense]]." Rockefeller would report on the meeting to [[Melvin Laird]] and hoped to follow up with Secretary of Defense [[Les Aspin]]; he planned a letter to President Clinton urging "a reassessment of government policy regarding UFO and ETI information" and a small group, convened with Jones's help, to discuss UFOs "in an informal, non-public way."[^20] On May 26, 1993 Gibbons, signing as Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, thanked Jones for "the materials," noted that the books "came from the Foundation's library," and sent "best wishes and regards to Lawrence."[^21]
On April 21, 1993, on stationery of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Room 5600, Rockefeller thanked Gibbons for seeing him "so early Wednesday morning." He wrote that Gibbons had said that in three months as science adviser he had "not learned that the United States Government has a body of knowledge on UFOs or ETI that is being withheld from the public," and had made it clear that "initially our most fruitful avenue of approach, most likely, will be within the [[Department of Defense]]." Rockefeller would report on the meeting to [[Melvin Laird]] and hoped to follow up with Secretary of Defense [[Les Aspin]]; he planned a letter to President Clinton urging "a reassessment of government policy regarding UFO and ETI information" and a small group, convened with Jones's help, to discuss UFOs "in an informal, non-public way."[^24] On May 26, 1993 Gibbons, signing as Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, thanked Jones for "the materials," noted that the books "came from the Foundation's library," and sent "best wishes and regards to Lawrence."[^25]
On May 7, 1993 he wrote to the evangelist [[Billy Graham]], proposing that Graham co-sign a letter to Clinton asking for a review of the classification of UFO information, and stated that "we are working closely with Mel Laird, former Secretary of Defense, and a great good friend of the present Secretary, Les Aspin," and had met Gibbons. The other co-signers under consideration were [[Maurice Strong]], the former [[United Nations]] secretary general [[Javier Pérez de Cuéllar]], possibly former President [[Jimmy Carter]], and Senators Pell and [[Ted Stevens]]. Graham replied on May 20, 1993 that he thought Rockefeller was "exactly right, that since they are reviewing the whole classification process, many documents will probably become available that have not previously," and declined, writing that he had "made it a policy not to co-sign such letters" and kept his contacts with presidents "on a purely personal, one-on-one, private basis."[^22]
On May 7, 1993 he wrote to the evangelist [[Billy Graham]], proposing that Graham co-sign a letter to Clinton asking for a review of the classification of UFO information, and stated that "we are working closely with Mel Laird, former Secretary of Defense, and a great good friend of the present Secretary, Les Aspin," and had met Gibbons. The other co-signers under consideration were [[Maurice Strong]], the former [[United Nations]] secretary general [[Javier Pérez de Cuéllar]], possibly former President [[Jimmy Carter]], and Senators Pell and [[Ted Stevens]]. Graham replied on May 20, 1993 that he thought Rockefeller was "exactly right, that since they are reviewing the whole classification process, many documents will probably become available that have not previously," and declined, writing that he had "made it a policy not to co-sign such letters" and kept his contacts with presidents "on a purely personal, one-on-one, private basis."[^26]
On August 4, 1993 Rockefeller invited Gibbons or a representative to an informal roundtable he was hosting from September 13 to 15 at the [[JY Ranch]], in the Grand Teton National Park near Jackson, Wyoming. The letter gives the purpose as assessing "the extent of information which may or may not be in the hands of the federal government" and developing "productive ways to encourage the Administration to include information of UFO and ETI phenomena in its current review of previously classified information." The six presenters were [[Steven Greer]], [[Linda Moulton Howe]], [[Bruce Maccabee]], [[R. Leo Sprinkle]], [[Jill Tarter]] of the [[NASA]] Ames Research Center and [[Keith Thompson]]; [[John Mack]], [[Peter Sturrock]], "a representative of the Science Advisor to the President" and "several of my associates" were also invited. The four themes included "strategies for influencing government policy in the direction of openness," "assessment of alleged psychological, economic and other barriers to a government policy of openness on the subject," and "spiritual and other dimensional aspects of UFO and ETI phenomena." The roundtable "will not be publicized but, of course will not be secret" and would be off the record.[^23] The [[Paradigm Research Group]] reproduces a photograph that it captions as the September 14 to 15, 1993 meeting at the JY Ranch and labels, left to right, Diamond, Greer, Maccabee, [[George Lamb]], [[Robert Bigelow]], Howe, Sprinkle, Thompson, Mack, Rockefeller, Jones, Johnie Jones and [[Robert Teets]], with [[Marie Galbraith|Marie "Bootsie" Galbraith]] and Farley behind the camera.[^24] On November 12, 1993 Diamond, on the letterhead of [[Beveridge and Diamond]], wrote to a Gibbons staff member that he had seen Gibbons at the [[Environmental Law Institute]] dinner on October 20 and that Rockefeller wished to see him again between December 10 and 23.[^25]
On August 4, 1993 Rockefeller invited Gibbons or a representative to an informal roundtable he was hosting from September 13 to 15 at the [[JY Ranch]], in the [[Grand Teton National Park]] near [[Jackson, Wyoming]]. The letter gives the purpose as assessing "the extent of information which may or may not be in the hands of the federal government" and developing "productive ways to encourage the Administration to include information of UFO and ETI phenomena in its current review of previously classified information." The six presenters were [[Steven Greer]], [[Linda Moulton Howe]], [[Bruce Maccabee]], [[R. Leo Sprinkle]], [[Jill Tarter]] of the [[NASA]] Ames Research Center and [[Keith Thompson]]; [[John Mack]], [[Peter Sturrock]], "a representative of the Science Advisor to the President" and "several of my associates" were also invited. The four themes included "strategies for influencing government policy in the direction of openness," "assessment of alleged psychological, economic and other barriers to a government policy of openness on the subject," and "spiritual and other dimensional aspects of UFO and ETI phenomena." The roundtable "will not be publicized but, of course will not be secret" and would be off the record.[^27] The [[Paradigm Research Group]] reproduces a photograph that it captions as the September 14 to 15, 1993 meeting at the JY Ranch and labels, left to right, Diamond, Greer, Maccabee, [[George Lamb]], [[Robert Bigelow]], Howe, Sprinkle, Thompson, Mack, Rockefeller, Jones, [[Johnie Jones]] and [[Robert Teets]], with [[Marie Galbraith|Marie "Bootsie" Galbraith]] and Farley behind the camera.[^28] On November 12, 1993 Diamond, on the letterhead of [[Beveridge and Diamond]], wrote to a Gibbons staff member that he had seen Gibbons at the [[Environmental Law Institute]] dinner on October 20 and that Rockefeller wished to see him again between December 10 and 23.[^29]
### Roswell, 1994
After a meeting on February 4, 1994, Rockefeller wrote to Gibbons on February 14 that "your approach of starting by addressing a specific incident is an important and reasonable way to begin the process of declassification," that the July 1947 [[Roswell Incident]] "would be a logical and challenging place to start," and that if the effort succeeded it "will become an important prototype for the release of all UFO related information." He proposed amnesty "on an individual basis" for those with knowledge, and, "in the light of your proposed initiative," said "we shall defer writing to the President."[^26] On May 24, 1994 Secretary of the Air Force [[Sheila Widnall]] sent Gibbons a cover memorandum, "As you and I discussed earlier, we are researching Air Force material on UFOs in general, and Roswell in particular," with an interim report to her of May 20 from the office designated SAF/AAZ. The report stated that "in early Feb 94, upon learning of the projected GAO audit," the Air Force had stood up elements of its Declassification Review Team to begin preliminary research, and that the offices tasked had "reported no records were located to indicate anything unusual happened at Roswell in July 1947." Widnall wrote: "My policy is that we are declassifying everything even remotely related, and anything our people think still needs to be classified will have to be justified to me." A handwritten note on the cover, initialed "JG," reads: "Skip - for your scanning. After you and I have a chance to discuss, I'll be ready to communicate w/ L.R. + his niece."[^27]
After a meeting on February 4, 1994, Rockefeller wrote to Gibbons on February 14 that "your approach of starting by addressing a specific incident is an important and reasonable way to begin the process of declassification," that the July 1947 [[Roswell Incident]] "would be a logical and challenging place to start," and that if the effort succeeded it "will become an important prototype for the release of all UFO related information." He proposed amnesty "on an individual basis" for those with knowledge, and, "in the light of your proposed initiative," said "we shall defer writing to the President."[^30] In a letter of the same date to [[Anne Bartley]], who had arranged his Washington meetings, he wrote that Gibbons's suggestion to treat the 1947 event as a test case "was a very good one."[^31] On May 24, 1994 Secretary of the Air Force [[Sheila Widnall]] sent Gibbons a cover memorandum, "As you and I discussed earlier, we are researching Air Force material on UFOs in general, and Roswell in particular," with an interim report to her of May 20 from the office designated SAF/AAZ. The report stated that "in early Feb 94, upon learning of the projected GAO audit," the Air Force had stood up elements of its Declassification Review Team to begin preliminary research, and that the offices tasked had "reported no records were located to indicate anything unusual happened at Roswell in July 1947." Widnall wrote: "My policy is that we are declassifying everything even remotely related, and anything our people think still needs to be classified will have to be justified to me." A handwritten note on the cover, initialed "JG," reads: "Skip - for your scanning. After you and I have a chance to discuss, I'll be ready to communicate w/ L.R. + his niece."[^32]
Jones wrote to Gibbons on February 17 enclosing a chronology compiled by the [[Fund for UFO Research]] and press clippings on the inquiry by Representative [[Steven Schiff]], and reporting that a [[Pentagon]] spokesman had told a [[Government Accountability Office|General Accounting Office]] investigator "Go shit in your hat." He had spent time after the February 4 meeting with [[Edward J. Reese]] of the Modern Military Branch of the [[National Archives and Records Administration]] on where Roswell documentation might be located. The letter's second page reads: "Whatever Roswell turns out to be, it is only the opening round. ... My mention of mind-control technology at the February 4 meeting was quite deliberate. Please be careful about this. There are reasons to believe that some government group has interwoven research about this technology with alleged UFO phenomena. If that [is] correct, you can expect to run into early resistance when inquiring about UFOs, not because of the UFO subject, but because that has been used to cloak research and applications of mind-control activity."[^16]
Jones wrote to Gibbons on February 17 enclosing a chronology compiled by the [[Fund for UFO Research]] and press clippings on the inquiry by Representative [[Steven Schiff]], and reporting that a Pentagon spokesman had told a [[Government Accountability Office|General Accounting Office]] investigator "Go shit in your hat." He had spent time after the February 4 meeting with [[Edward J. Reese]] of the Modern Military Branch of the [[National Archives and Records Administration]] on where Roswell documentation might be located. The letter's second page reads: "Whatever Roswell turns out to be, it is only the opening round. ... My mention of mind-control technology at the February 4 meeting was quite deliberate. Please be careful about this. There are reasons to believe that some government group has interwoven research about this technology with alleged UFO phenomena. If that [is] correct, you can expect to run into early resistance when inquiring about UFOs, not because of the UFO subject, but because that has been used to cloak research and applications of mind-control activity."[^18]
On June 1, 1994 Rockefeller wrote that "it was Mel Laird who suggested that you should be the logical point of contact and coordination with the federal government," asked whether there were developments in the survey of information among federal agencies on Roswell that Gibbons had suggested, attached a letter from Laird, and mentioned "preliminary talks with those who might be interested in bringing about a United Nations Conference on extraterrestrial intelligence."[^28] Laird's letter, dated May 9, 1994 and replying to one from Rockefeller of April 25, stated that "you are proceeding properly by going through the President's Science Advisor," and that "any review will certainly disappoint some individuals who have built up some rather extreme antidotal and uncollaborated accounts."[^28] On July 27, 1994 [[Anne Bartley]] wrote to Gibbons about "follow-up on our meeting with Laurance S. Rockefeller and his associates," recalling that Gibbons had suggested "an informal inquiry into the availability of information within federal agencies about the 1947 Roswell, [[New Mexico]], event," asking about "prospects for a relaxation of the classification system," and stating that Rockefeller "has begun to wonder whether a U.N. Conference would be useful."[^29]
Rockefeller's letter of April 26, 1994 reports that his group had gone to [[Cornell University]] earlier that month to meet [[Carl Sagan]], who "expressed considerable skepticism" but strongly supported release of government information, and that Representative Schiff had asked for a General Accounting Office inquiry and "the publication of John Mack's book has brought renewed attention to the abduction phenomenon."[^33]
On August 11, 1994 Jones wrote to Gibbons that [[Edgar Mitchell]], founder of the [[Institute of Noetic Sciences]], on whose board Pell sat, would be glad to meet Gibbons "in the area that Laurance, you and I have been discussing," and that Gibbons "may want to talk to [[R. James Woolsey|James Woolsey]] about what you are doing." The next lines, partly cut off in the scan, say that Woolsey "has a document search project under way" and "has not discovered anything of significance," and Jones adds: "If I had the responsibility to run a super safe black program on this subject, I would take it completely out of the government's" bureaucracy "and run it from the private sector, probably somewhere within" the aerospace community "or perhaps General Motors."[^30] On September 5, 1994 Rockefeller thanked Gibbons for a note that he had received a report from the Air Force; after the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] released the results of its Roswell investigation (in July 1994 in the General Accounting Office's account, and publicly available in September in Gibbons's)[^17][^31] he wrote on December 9 thanking Gibbons for "your initiative in stimulating the recent Air Force Review of the Roswell incident," adding that "we are continuing our citizens' reconnaissance of the extraterrestrial intelligence phenomenon."[^32] On February 9, 1995 Jones wrote that "there is some shadowy evidence that the administration is in the process of modifying the government's policy concerning secrecy and denial about UFO phenomena," that "Laurance mentioned that he was also considering a public relations approach" and that "he can afford a rather aggressive and expensive effort implementing that strategy, e.g., full page ads in major newspapers," and that after Rockefeller's last meeting with Gibbons "we are not going to get feedback from our attempts to get the [[White House]] to open the books on this subject."[^33] On April 11, 1995 Rockefeller wrote that he had reviewed the draft executive order revising national classification policy and that "my concern with government information involving extraterrestrial intelligence was stimulated by the widespread public belief that the government was withholding information about UFO incidents."[^34]
On June 1, 1994 Rockefeller wrote that "it was Mel Laird who suggested that you should be the logical point of contact and coordination with the federal government," asked whether there were developments in the survey of information among federal agencies on Roswell that Gibbons had suggested, attached a letter from Laird, and mentioned "preliminary talks with those who might be interested in bringing about a United Nations Conference on extraterrestrial intelligence."[^34] Laird's letter, dated May 9, 1994 and replying to one from Rockefeller of April 25, stated that "you are proceeding properly by going through the President's Science Advisor," and that "any review will certainly disappoint some individuals who have built up some rather extreme antidotal and uncollaborated accounts."[^34] On July 27, 1994 Anne Bartley wrote to Gibbons about "follow-up on our meeting with Laurance S. Rockefeller and his associates," recalling that Gibbons had suggested "an informal inquiry into the availability of information within federal agencies about the 1947 Roswell, [[New Mexico]], event," asking about "prospects for a relaxation of the classification system," and stating that Rockefeller "has begun to wonder whether a U.N. Conference would be useful."[^35]
The General Accounting Office wrote to Gibbons on April 12, 1995, at Schiff's request, that it was determining what records existed on Roswell. Gibbons replied on April 26 to the GAO's director of federal management issues that the Office of Science and Technology Policy had "no direct knowledge of what occurred at Roswell and no records, except for the information I received from the Air Force."[^31] An internal OSTP message of June 9, 1995 reports a call from the GAO about its eight-page report, which would state that the agency had asked OSTP and other agencies whether they held records and that "DOE and OSTP had no records"; a handwritten reply of June 12, signed "Sue B.," reads "Tanya, OK w/ JHG."[^35]
On August 11, 1994 Jones wrote to Gibbons that [[Edgar Mitchell]], founder of the [[Institute of Noetic Sciences]], on whose board Pell sat, would be glad to meet Gibbons "in the area that Laurance, you and I have been discussing," and that Gibbons "may want to talk to [[R. James Woolsey|James Woolsey]] about what you are doing." The next lines, partly cut off in the scan, say that Woolsey "has a document search project under way" and "has not discovered anything of significance," and Jones adds: "If I had the responsibility to run a super safe black program on this subject, I would take it completely out of the government's" bureaucracy "and run it from the private sector, probably somewhere within" the aerospace community "or perhaps [[General Motors]]."[^36] On September 5, 1994 Rockefeller thanked Gibbons for a note that he had received a report from the Air Force; after the Air Force released the results of its Roswell investigation (in July 1994 in the General Accounting Office's account, and publicly available in September in Gibbons's)[^19][^37] he wrote on December 9 thanking Gibbons for "your initiative in stimulating the recent Air Force Review of the Roswell incident," adding that "we are continuing our citizens' reconnaissance of the extraterrestrial intelligence phenomenon."[^38] On February 9, 1995 Jones wrote that "there is some shadowy evidence that the administration is in the process of modifying the government's policy concerning secrecy and denial about UFO phenomena," that "Laurance mentioned that he was also considering a public relations approach" and that "he can afford a rather aggressive and expensive effort implementing that strategy, e.g., full page ads in major newspapers," and that after Rockefeller's last meeting with Gibbons "we are not going to get feedback from our attempts to get the [[White House]] to open the books on this subject."[^39] On April 11, 1995 Rockefeller wrote that he had reviewed the draft executive order revising national classification policy and that "my concern with government information involving extraterrestrial intelligence was stimulated by the widespread public belief that the government was withholding information about UFO incidents."[^40]
On December 2, 1994 Jones sent Gibbons critiques of the Air Force Roswell report and told him that the Foundation's conference would invite President and Mrs. Clinton; on December 13, 1994 he sent Gibbons the manuscript of [[Whitley Strieber]]'s *Breakthrough* with a copy to Rockefeller. The White House declined for Mrs. Clinton on December 15, 1994 ([[Patti Solis]], scheduling director for the First Lady) and for the President on December 21, 1994 ([[William M. Webster IV]], director of scheduling and advance).[^41] The Clinton Library's collection 2008-1575-F holds the invitations and brochures; none are scanned.[^42]
The General Accounting Office wrote to Gibbons on April 12, 1995, at Schiff's request, that it was determining what records existed on Roswell. Gibbons replied on April 26 to the GAO's director of federal management issues that the Office of Science and Technology Policy had "no direct knowledge of what occurred at Roswell and no records, except for the information I received from the Air Force."[^37] An internal OSTP message of June 9, 1995 reports a call from the GAO about its eight-page report, which would state that the agency had asked OSTP and other agencies whether they held records and that "DOE and OSTP had no records"; a handwritten reply of June 12, signed "Sue B.," reads "Tanya, OK w/ JHG."[^43]
### The Draft Letter to the President, 1995 and 1996
On August 4, 1995 Gibbons sent President Clinton a memorandum headed "Inquiry from Laurance Rockefeller." It begins: "You will probably see Mr. Rockefeller on your vacation in the Tetons. He will want to talk with you about his interest in extrasensory perception, paranormal phenomena, and UFO's. His interests are related to those of Senator Pell." Gibbons wrote that "Les Aspin and Mel Laird referred Laurance to me," that Rockefeller had sought "the Administration's help in 'declassifying the information'," that "I persuaded Rockefeller to not bother you with this issue but instead to let me talk with defense officials," that Secretary of the Air Force Widnall had "arranged for a full revisiting by the Air Force of pertinent records, guaranteed 'amnesty' to anyone who felt constrained to talk," and that "the bottom line is that all evidence points to a failed U.S. Air Force balloon experiment, and no evidence of a 'flying saucer' or cover-up conspiracy. (However, the UFO 'community' persists in believing that the Air Force report is flawed.)" A "second rubric" was "human potential" research: "Senator Pell and others have supported the funding of research in social science to focus more on these phenomena." Gibbons closed: "I've made no secret about my conviction that we must not be too diverted from more earthly imperatives."[^17]
On August 4, 1995 Gibbons sent President Clinton a memorandum headed "Inquiry from Laurance Rockefeller." It begins: "You will probably see Mr. Rockefeller on your vacation in the Tetons. He will want to talk with you about his interest in extrasensory perception, paranormal phenomena, and UFO's. His interests are related to those of Senator Pell." Gibbons wrote that "Les Aspin and Mel Laird referred Laurance to me," that Rockefeller had sought "the Administration's help in 'declassifying the information'," that "I persuaded Rockefeller to not bother you with this issue but instead to let me talk with defense officials," that Secretary of the Air Force Widnall had "arranged for a full revisiting by the Air Force of pertinent records, guaranteed 'amnesty' to anyone who felt constrained to talk," and that "the bottom line is that all evidence points to a failed U.S. Air Force balloon experiment, and no evidence of a 'flying saucer' or cover-up conspiracy. (However, the UFO 'community' persists in believing that the Air Force report is flawed.)" A "second rubric" was "human potential" research: "Senator Pell and others have supported the funding of research in social science to focus more on these phenomena." Gibbons closed: "I've made no secret about my conviction that we must not be too diverted from more earthly imperatives."[^19]
The Clintons began a vacation in Jackson Hole on August 15, 1995, with Senator [[Jay Rockefeller]] and his wife, Sharon, as hosts at a Rockefeller family estate.[^36] The [[William J. Clinton Presidential Library]] holds photographs, in a set processed for a [[Freedom of Information Act]] request, of a visit by President Clinton and [[Hillary Clinton|Hillary Rodham Clinton]] to Laurance Rockefeller's JY Ranch on August 21, 1995.[^36] On August 17 Jones, writing on Human Potential Foundation letterhead to Representative Schiff, described a conference, "When Cosmic Cultures Meet," held in Washington over the Memorial Day weekend: "The conference was part of a process to make it politically safe for Congress to get involved in a subject that from all available evidence has been the secret purview of the executive department for nearly fifty years."[^37]
The Clintons began a vacation in Jackson Hole on August 15, 1995, with Senator [[Jay Rockefeller]] and his wife, Sharon, as hosts at a Rockefeller family estate.[^44] The [[William J. Clinton Presidential Library]] holds photographs, in a set processed for a [[Freedom of Information Act]] request, of a visit by President Clinton and [[Hillary Clinton|Hillary Rodham Clinton]] to Laurance Rockefeller's JY Ranch on August 21, 1995.[^44] On August 17 Jones, writing on Human Potential Foundation letterhead to Representative Schiff, described a conference, "When Cosmic Cultures Meet," held in Washington over the Memorial Day weekend: "The conference was part of a process to make it politically safe for Congress to get involved in a subject that from all available evidence has been the secret purview of the executive department for nearly fifty years."[^45]
On August 23, 1995 Rockefeller's office faxed Gibbons five pages plus a cover sheet: a draft letter to President Clinton, headed "Lifting Secrecy on Information About Extraterrestrial Intelligence as Part of the Current Classification Review," and the 1993 exchange with Graham. The draft states that Rockefeller has "been interested in the enhancement of spirituality and holistic healing as well as the development of a new paradigm of consciousness," and asks the President to direct that information on extraterrestrial intelligence and UFOs "be given priority in the current classification review," to appoint a coordinator for government information about those subjects, to bring together information "from all federal agencies involved, such as the Department of Defense, the Air Force, NASA and the CIA" ("Your Science Advisor, Jack Gibbons, might be the right person for this role"), and to make known that anyone with information "will be granted amnesty from relevant oaths or other government constraints."[^22] On November 1, 1995 Diamond, writing from 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Room 5600, sent Gibbons "a draft letter to the President which Laurance has been discussing with Mrs. Clinton and her staff" and a draft report on the "best evidence" about UFOs; a letter of November 8 identified [[Don Berliner]] as its principal author.[^38]
On August 17, 1995 the Human Potential Foundation mailed every member of Congress a packet; letters to the House and Senate leadership stated that "the Human Potential Foundation has been supported by Mr. Laurance S. Rockefeller and others." Jones's letter to Gibbons of August 23, 1995 stated that Rockefeller "was a guest at the President's birthday party a few days ago in Jackson Hole" and enclosed a draft full-page newspaper advertisement.[^46]
On February 5, 1996 Rockefeller told Gibbons that the "Best Evidence Report (the report written by Don Berliner and coordinated by Marie Galbraith which we have referred to as the 'Bootsie report')" was an "unusual combined effort of the three major UFO organizations." He wrote that Gibbons's "willingness to approach the Air Force, the Central Intelligence Agency and NASA on this project is extremely important," and that the group would put forward names for a pilot project on an expanded amnesty program. The draft letter to the President, he wrote, "might receive attention in a second term. You indicated that you will keep the First Lady's Office informed, and we shall as well."[^39] On February 27, 1996 Widnall wrote to Gibbons, after "our recent dinner conversation," enclosing "the full Roswell Report to pass on to Lawrence Rockefeller" and noting that a second volume was in preparation; on February 29 Rockefeller sent Gibbons the "Best Available Evidence" report, writing "I sponsored this report" and, "while I do not necessarily agree with every finding and conclusion," that "the evidence presented indicates that this subject merits serious scientific study," with a new draft of the letter to the President.[^40] On October 17, 1996 he proposed an international conference. "At the suggestion of Maurice Strong," he had contacted [[Julia Marton-Lefevre|Julia Marton Lefevre]], executive director of what the letter calls the International Scientific Union, and he forwarded a letter from [[Carl Sagan]], writing that he was "puzzled by Carl's enthusiastic support of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence by radio telescope while he maintains a high degree of skepticism about other means of inquiry."[^41] In a letter of January 2, 1997 to Gibbons, Maccabee wrote that in April 1993, "at the request of Dr. [[Ronald Pandolfi]] of the CIA," he had faxed Gibbons an information paper on UFOs.[^42] On June 20, 1997 the Secretary of the Air Force sent Gibbons the second volume of *The Roswell Report: Case Closed*, to be released on the following Tuesday.[^43]
On August 23, 1995 Rockefeller's office faxed Gibbons five pages plus a cover sheet: a draft letter to President Clinton, headed "Lifting Secrecy on Information About Extraterrestrial Intelligence as Part of the Current Classification Review," and the 1993 exchange with Graham. The draft states that Rockefeller has "been interested in the enhancement of spirituality and holistic healing as well as the development of a new paradigm of consciousness," and asks the President to direct that information on extraterrestrial intelligence and UFOs "be given priority in the current classification review," to appoint a coordinator for government information about those subjects, to bring together information "from all federal agencies involved, such as the Department of Defense, the Air Force, NASA and the CIA" ("Your Science Advisor, Jack Gibbons, might be the right person for this role"), and to make known that anyone with information "will be granted amnesty from relevant oaths or other government constraints."[^26] On November 1, 1995 Diamond, writing from 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Room 5600, sent Gibbons "a draft letter to the President which Laurance has been discussing with Mrs. Clinton and her staff" and a draft report on the "best evidence" about UFOs; a letter of November 8 identified [[Don Berliner]] as its principal author.[^47]
The *Unidentified Flying Objects Briefing Document: The Best Available Evidence* (December 1995), by Don Berliner with Marie Galbraith and [[Antonio Huneeus]], presented by the [[Center for UFO Studies]], the Fund for UFO Research and the [[Mutual UFO Network]] with copyright held by the [[UFO Research Coalition]], thanks "Laurance S. Rockefeller, for his vision and support, financial and otherwise," and George Lamb "for serving so effectively as liaison for Mr. Rockefeller," and thanks [[Sandra Wright]] for making her [[BSW Foundation]] "available as the umbrella under which all the work could be done."[^48]
On February 5, 1996 Rockefeller told Gibbons that the "Best Evidence Report (the report written by Don Berliner and coordinated by Marie Galbraith which we have referred to as the 'Bootsie report')" was an "unusual combined effort of the three major UFO organizations." He wrote that Gibbons's "willingness to approach the Air Force, the Central Intelligence Agency and NASA on this project is extremely important," and that the group would put forward names for a pilot project on an expanded amnesty program. The draft letter to the President, he wrote, "might receive attention in a second term. You indicated that you will keep the First Lady's Office informed, and we shall as well."[^49] On February 27, 1996 Widnall wrote to Gibbons, after "our recent dinner conversation," enclosing "the full Roswell Report to pass on to Lawrence Rockefeller" and noting that a second volume was in preparation; on February 29 Rockefeller sent Gibbons the "Best Available Evidence" report, writing "I sponsored this report" and, "while I do not necessarily agree with every finding and conclusion," that "the evidence presented indicates that this subject merits serious scientific study," with a new draft of the letter to the President.[^50] In a letter of August 8, 1996 to [[Julia Marton-Lefevre]] of the [[International Council of Scientific Unions]], written on the suggestion of Maurice Strong, he wrote of his interest in "expanding man's spiritual and intellectual potential" and proposed a small international group on extraterrestrial intelligence and UFOs.[^31] On October 17, 1996 he proposed an international conference. "At the suggestion of Maurice Strong," he had contacted Julia Marton Lefevre, executive director of what the letter calls the International Scientific Union, and he forwarded a letter from Carl Sagan, writing that he was "puzzled by Carl's enthusiastic support of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence by radio telescope while he maintains a high degree of skepticism about other means of inquiry."[^51] Sagan replied on November 6, 1996 that "no amount of anecdotal evidence, unsubstantiated by physical evidence, is worth a single substantive bit of physical evidence"; the letters are in the Sagan papers at the [[Library of Congress]] and were reported by [[Robert Sheaffer]].[^52] In a letter of January 2, 1997 to Gibbons, Maccabee wrote that in April 1993, "at the request of Dr. [[Ronald Pandolfi]] of the CIA," he had faxed Gibbons an information paper on UFOs.[^53] On June 20, 1997 the Secretary of the Air Force sent Gibbons the second volume of *The Roswell Report: Case Closed*, to be released on the following Tuesday.[^54]
### Pocantico Workshop, 1997
In December 1996, in Sturrock's words in the introduction to the published proceedings, "Mr. Laurance S. Rockefeller, Chairman of the [[LSR Fund]], invited me to review with him the status of our understanding of the problem posed by UFO reports." Rockefeller, Diamond and Sturrock conceived a workshop; Sturrock submitted a proposal to the LSR Fund in February 1997 with administrative support from the [[Society for Scientific Exploration]], and "the necessary funds were transferred from the Fund to the Society." The workshop met at the [[Pocantico Conference Center]] at Tarrytown, New York, from September 29 to October 4, 1997, and Sturrock thanked Rockefeller "for his interest in and support of this project" and Diamond and [[Charles Tolbert]] for administrative support.[^44]
In December 1996, in Sturrock's words in the introduction to the published proceedings, "Mr. Laurance S. Rockefeller, Chairman of the [[LSR Fund]], invited me to review with him the status of our understanding of the problem posed by UFO reports." Rockefeller, Diamond and Sturrock conceived a workshop; Sturrock submitted a proposal to the LSR Fund in February 1997 with administrative support from the [[Society for Scientific Exploration]], and "the necessary funds were transferred from the Fund to the Society." The workshop met at the [[Pocantico Conference Center]] at [[Tarrytown, New York]], from September 29 to October 4, 1997, and Sturrock thanked Rockefeller "for his interest in and support of this project" and Diamond and [[Charles Tolbert]] for administrative support.[^55] A report of June 1998 by the panel was, in *PEER Perspectives* of Winter 1998/99, described as "funded by the Laurance S. Rockefeller Fund."[^56]
### Rockefeller Funds
The Laurance S. Rockefeller Fund of New York, which received its Internal Revenue Service ruling in June 2006, reported assets of 35,533,812 dollars for 2023. The Fund for UFO Research of Fairfax, Virginia, to which the letters of 1994 and 1996 refer, has been tax-exempt since April 1982.[^13]
The Laurance S. Rockefeller Fund of New York, which received its Internal Revenue Service ruling in June 2006, reported assets of 35,533,812 dollars for 2023. The Fund for UFO Research of [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax, Virginia]], to which the letters of 1994 and 1996 refer, has been tax-exempt since April 1982.[^13]
### Footnotes
@ -240,32 +260,44 @@ The Laurance S. Rockefeller Fund of New York, which received its Internal Revenu
[^13]: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer API, organization records for Jackson Hole Preserve Inc (EIN 13-1813818), Laurance S Rockefeller Fund (EIN 20-4192256) and Fund For UFO Research (EIN 52-1164176), https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/api/v2/organizations/131813818.json, https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/api/v2/organizations/204192256.json and https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/api/v2/organizations/521164176.json.
[^14]: Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research, press release, "Princeton's PEAR Laboratory to Close," February 10, 2007, http://pearlab.icrl.org/press-statement.html.
[^15]: John E. Mack Institute, "History," https://johnemackinstitute.org/history/, and "Program for Extraordinary Experience Research (PEER)," http://johnemackinstitute.org/2003/01/program-for-extraordinary-experience-research-peer/.
[^16]: C. B. Scott Jones, Human Potential Foundation, to John H. Gibbons, February 17, 1994, with Gibbons's handwritten note dated 2/24/94, Office of Science and Technology Policy file, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-17-94.htm.
[^17]: John H. Gibbons, memorandum for the President, "Inquiry from Laurance Rockefeller," August 4, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-95.htm.
[^18]: Grant Cameron, "Extraterrestrial Politics in the Clinton White House (1993-2001) and the Laurance Rockefeller Initiative," introduction and notes iii and xiii, http://www.x-ppac.org/OSTP.html. The index of the scanned documents is at http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller_Initiative_Documents.htm.
[^19]: Henry L. Diamond, memorandum to John H. Gibbons, attention Mike Kowalok, "Request for Meeting with Dr. Gibbons for Laurance S. Rockefeller, April 12 or 13, 1993," March 29, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-3-29-93.htm.
[^20]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, April 21, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-21-93.htm.
[^21]: John H. Gibbons, Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy, to C. B. Scott Jones, May 26, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-5-26-93.htm.
[^22]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to Billy Graham, May 7, 1993, and Graham to Rockefeller, May 20, 1993, attached to Rockefeller's fax to Gibbons of August 23, 1995, with the undated draft letter to President Clinton, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-23-95.htm.
[^23]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, August 4, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-93.htm.
[^24]: Paradigm Research Group, "September 14-15, 1993 Meeting at Rockefeller's JY Ranch in Wyoming," photograph and caption, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/9-14-93_Meeting.htm.
[^25]: Henry L. Diamond, Beveridge and Diamond, P.C., memorandum to Sue Bachtel, November 12, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-11-12-93.htm.
[^26]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, February 14, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-14-94.htm.
[^27]: Sheila E. Widnall, Secretary of the Air Force, memorandum for John H. Gibbons, "UFO Research," May 24, 1994, with Gibbons's handwritten note, and the enclosed memorandum for the Secretary of the Air Force from SAF/AAZ, "Status Report on Search Efforts Regarding 'the Roswell Incident,'" May 20, 1994, p. 1, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-5-24-94.htm (the memorandum of May 24 is listed among the enclosures to Gibbons's letter to the General Accounting Office of April 26, 1995).
[^28]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, June 1, 1994, with the attached letter from Melvin R. Laird to Rockefeller, May 9, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-6-1-94.htm.
[^29]: Anne Bartley, memorandum for Jack Gibbons, "Laurance S. Rockefeller Interest in Extraterrestrial Intelligence," July 27, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-7-27-94.htm.
[^30]: C. B. Scott Jones, Human Potential Foundation, to John H. Gibbons, August 11, 1994, pp. 1-2, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-11-94.htm.
[^31]: U.S. General Accounting Office, General Government Division, to John H. Gibbons, April 12, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-12-95.htm; John H. Gibbons to William Hunt, Director, Federal Management Issues, U.S. General Accounting Office, April 26, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-26-95.htm.
[^32]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, September 5, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-9-5-94.htm, and December 9, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-12-9-94.htm.
[^33]: C. B. Scott Jones to John H. Gibbons, February 9, 1995, pp. 1-2, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-9-95.htm.
[^34]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, April 11, 1995 (the scan is filed under 4-11-94 and the letter is dated April 11, 1995), http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-11-94.htm.
[^35]: Tanya M. Felder, OSTP electronic message to Susanne Bachtel, Barbara A. Ferguson and Holly L. Gwin, "GAO Report on UFOs," June 9, 1995, with handwritten reply of June 12, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-6-9-95.htm.
[^36]: "Clintons to Vacation in Wyoming Mountains," *Spokesman-Review*, August 15, 1995, https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1995/aug/15/clintons-to-vacation-in-wyoming-mountains/; William J. Clinton Presidential Library, "White House Photos - Laurance Rockefeller - Philanthropist," finding aid 2006-0546-F (contact sheet book 312, frame P31195, August 21, 1995), https://www.clintonlibrary.gov/research/archives/finding-aids/white-house-photos-laurance-rockefeller-philanthropist.
[^37]: C. B. Scott Jones, Human Potential Foundation, to Representative Steven Schiff, August 17, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-17-95.htm.
[^38]: Henry L. Diamond to John H. Gibbons, November 1, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-11-1-95.htm, and November 8, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-11-8-95.htm.
[^39]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, February 5, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-5-96.htm.
[^40]: Sheila E. Widnall, Secretary of the Air Force, to John H. Gibbons, February 27, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-27-96.htm; Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, February 29, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-29-96.htm.
[^41]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, October 17, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-10-17-96.htm.
[^42]: Bruce Maccabee to John H. Gibbons, January 2, 1997, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-1-2-97.htm.
[^43]: Secretary of the Air Force to John H. Gibbons, June 20, 1997, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-6-20-97.htm.
[^44]: Peter A. Sturrock et al., "Physical Evidence Related to UFO Reports: The Proceedings of a Workshop Held at the Pocantico Conference Center, Tarrytown, New York, September 29 - October 4, 1997," *Journal of Scientific Exploration* 12, no. 2 (1998), pp. 179-229, introduction as reproduced at http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc535.htm.
[^16]: Ben MacIntyre, "Harvard professor's stories of close encounters, other-world sex, embarrass university," *The San Francisco Examiner* (London *Times* credit), May 5, 1995, p. 16, https://www.newspapers.com/image/461595501/.
[^17]: "Harvard's Mack: The Subject Is Aliens," *Valley News* (West Lebanon, N.H.), May 20, 1995, p. 23, https://www.newspapers.com/image/833962083/. Byline not read.
[^18]: C. B. Scott Jones, Human Potential Foundation, to John H. Gibbons, February 17, 1994, with Gibbons's handwritten note dated 2/24/94, Office of Science and Technology Policy file, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-17-94.htm.
[^19]: John H. Gibbons, memorandum for the President, "Inquiry from Laurance Rockefeller," August 4, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-95.htm.
[^20]: Grant Cameron, "Extraterrestrial Politics in the Clinton White House (1993-2001) and the Laurance Rockefeller Initiative," introduction and notes iii and xiii, http://www.x-ppac.org/OSTP.html. The index of the scanned documents is at http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller_Initiative_Documents.htm.
[^21]: University of Colorado Boulder Libraries, "C. B. 'Scott' Jones papers," COU:4004, https://archives.colorado.edu/repositories/2/resources/346.
[^22]: Center for Psychology and Social Change, *CenterPiece*, September 1993, p. 2, "Center Welcomes PEER Research on UFO Abductions," https://johnemackinstitute.org/CenterPiece_1993_0900.pdf.
[^23]: Henry L. Diamond, memorandum to John H. Gibbons, attention Mike Kowalok, "Request for Meeting with Dr. Gibbons for Laurance S. Rockefeller, April 12 or 13, 1993," March 29, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-3-29-93.htm.
[^24]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, April 21, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-21-93.htm.
[^25]: John H. Gibbons, Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy, to C. B. Scott Jones, May 26, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-5-26-93.htm.
[^26]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to Billy Graham, May 7, 1993, and Graham to Rockefeller, May 20, 1993, attached to Rockefeller's fax to Gibbons of August 23, 1995, with the undated draft letter to President Clinton, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-23-95.htm.
[^27]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, August 4, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-4-93.htm.
[^28]: Paradigm Research Group, "September 14-15, 1993 Meeting at Rockefeller's JY Ranch in Wyoming," photograph and caption, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/9-14-93_Meeting.htm.
[^29]: Henry L. Diamond, Beveridge and Diamond, P.C., memorandum to Sue Bachtel, November 12, 1993, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-11-12-93.htm.
[^30]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, February 14, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-14-94.htm.
[^31]: Rockefeller to Julia Marton-Lefevre, August 8, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-10-17-96.htm; Rockefeller to Anne Bartley, February 14, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-14-94-2.htm.
[^32]: Sheila E. Widnall, Secretary of the Air Force, memorandum for John H. Gibbons, "UFO Research," May 24, 1994, with Gibbons's handwritten note, and the enclosed memorandum for the Secretary of the Air Force from SAF/AAZ, "Status Report on Search Efforts Regarding 'the Roswell Incident,'" May 20, 1994, p. 1, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-5-24-94.htm (the memorandum of May 24 is listed among the enclosures to Gibbons's letter to the General Accounting Office of April 26, 1995).
[^33]: Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, April 26, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/2-26-94%20LR%20Letter%20to%20JG/Letter.jpg (indexed as RID-2-26-94.htm).
[^34]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, June 1, 1994, with the attached letter from Melvin R. Laird to Rockefeller, May 9, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-6-1-94.htm.
[^35]: Anne Bartley, memorandum for Jack Gibbons, "Laurance S. Rockefeller Interest in Extraterrestrial Intelligence," July 27, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-7-27-94.htm.
[^36]: C. B. Scott Jones, Human Potential Foundation, to John H. Gibbons, August 11, 1994, pp. 1-2, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-11-94.htm.
[^37]: U.S. General Accounting Office, General Government Division, to John H. Gibbons, April 12, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-12-95.htm; John H. Gibbons to William Hunt, Director, Federal Management Issues, U.S. General Accounting Office, April 26, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-26-95.htm.
[^38]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, September 5, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-9-5-94.htm, and December 9, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-12-9-94.htm.
[^39]: C. B. Scott Jones to John H. Gibbons, February 9, 1995, pp. 1-2, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-9-95.htm.
[^40]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, April 11, 1995 (the scan is filed under 4-11-94 and the letter is dated April 11, 1995), http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-4-11-94.htm.
[^41]: C. B. Scott Jones to Gibbons, December 2 and 13, 1994; Patti Solis to Jones, December 15, 1994; William M. Webster IV to Jones, December 21, 1994, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-12-2-94.htm, RID-12-13-94.htm, RID-12-15-94.htm, RID-12-21-94.htm.
[^42]: William J. Clinton Presidential Library, "When Cosmic Cultures Meet - Collection Finding Aid," FOIA 2008-1575-F, https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36409.
[^43]: Tanya M. Felder, OSTP electronic message to Susanne Bachtel, Barbara A. Ferguson and Holly L. Gwin, "GAO Report on UFOs," June 9, 1995, with handwritten reply of June 12, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-6-9-95.htm.
[^44]: "Clintons to Vacation in Wyoming Mountains," *Spokesman-Review*, August 15, 1995, https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1995/aug/15/clintons-to-vacation-in-wyoming-mountains/; William J. Clinton Presidential Library, "White House Photos - Laurance Rockefeller - Philanthropist," finding aid 2006-0546-F (contact sheet book 312, frame P31195, August 21, 1995), https://www.clintonlibrary.gov/research/archives/finding-aids/white-house-photos-laurance-rockefeller-philanthropist.
[^45]: C. B. Scott Jones, Human Potential Foundation, to Representative Steven Schiff, August 17, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-17-95.htm.
[^46]: Jones to Gibbons, August 23, 1995, with attached Jones letters to Newt Gingrich (August 17, 1995) and to members of the House (May 16, 1995), http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-8-23-95-2.htm.
[^47]: Henry L. Diamond to John H. Gibbons, November 1, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-11-1-95.htm, and November 8, 1995, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-11-8-95.htm.
[^48]: Don Berliner et al., *Unidentified Flying Objects Briefing Document: The Best Available Evidence* (UFO Research Coalition, December 1995), acknowledgments, https://archive.org/details/rockefeller-briefing-document.
[^49]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, February 5, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-5-96.htm.
[^50]: Sheila E. Widnall, Secretary of the Air Force, to John H. Gibbons, February 27, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-27-96.htm; Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, February 29, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-2-29-96.htm.
[^51]: Laurance S. Rockefeller to John H. Gibbons, October 17, 1996, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-10-17-96.htm.
[^52]: Robert Sheaffer, "Carl Sagan, Laurance Rockefeller, and UFOs," *Skeptical Inquirer* 38, no. 5 (September/October 2014), pp. 19-20, https://skepticalinquirer.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2014/09/p19.pdf.
[^53]: Bruce Maccabee to John H. Gibbons, January 2, 1997, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-1-2-97.htm.
[^54]: Secretary of the Air Force to John H. Gibbons, June 20, 1997, http://www.paradigmresearchgroup.org/Rockefeller%20Documents/RID-6-20-97.htm.
[^55]: Peter A. Sturrock et al., "Physical Evidence Related to UFO Reports: The Proceedings of a Workshop Held at the Pocantico Conference Center, Tarrytown, New York, September 29 - October 4, 1997," *Journal of Scientific Exploration* 12, no. 2 (1998), pp. 179-229, introduction as reproduced at http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc535.htm.
[^56]: *PEER Perspectives* no. 2 (Winter 1998/99), p. 1, https://johnemackinstitute.org/PEER_Perspectives_2.pdf.

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10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Ronald Pandolfi.md Normal file
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---
category: "Intelligence & Government"
tags:
- Person
- CIA
- UFO
- Aviary
- RockefellerInitiative
- Hughes
- 1990s
alias:
- Ronald Pandolfi
- Ron Pandolfi
- Dr. Ronald Pandolfi
- Ron Pandolphy
- Pelican
summary: "Scientist described as working for the CIA, who briefed the Senate Intelligence Committee in 1998 on Hughes and China, appears in a purported 1993 UFO briefing telecon, and was listed as Pelican by Richard Boylan."
relations:
- type: employed_by
with: "[[Central Intelligence Agency]]"
start: 1995
role: "described as a CIA scientist (Farley, 1995; New York Times, 1998) and CIA analyst (Congressional Research Service, 1998); office and title not stated in the sources opened"
fn: 2
- type: investigated
with: "[[Hughes Electronics]]"
start: 1995
role: "reported that the company had passed technical data to China after the January 1995 Long March failure"
fn: 4
created: 2026-10-02
updated: 2026-10-02
---
Ronald Pandolfi is described in the files of the White House [[Office of Science and Technology Policy]] on [[Laurance Rockefeller]]'s UFO initiative, in a [[Congressional Research Service]] chronology and in *The [[New York Times]]* as a scientist or analyst of the [[Central Intelligence Agency]], and he figures in the 1998 congressional inquiry into [[Hughes Electronics]] and [[China]]. The sources opened do not state his CIA office or title; an office-level description (including the [[Office of Scientific and Weapons Research]]) was not found in any opened source and is not asserted here.
### The Science Adviser's Briefing, 1993
A transcript headed "Telecon: Ron Pandolphy and [[C.B. Scott Jones|Scott Jones]]," dated April 15, 1993, purports to record a call between Pandolfi and C. B. Scott Jones of the [[Human Potential Foundation]]. In it Pandolfi says "we had been tasked a couple of days before the proposed visit of Laurance Rockefeller with the [[White House]] Science Advisor, to provide a briefing update to him, and we didn't do that, instead we tasked out friend Dr. [[Bruce Maccabee|Maccabee]] to do it." Jones asks "why didn't you guys do it yourselves?" Pandolfi answers "We didn't have the material here to do it on that short of notice, didn't have any reference material in the file records, and Bruce had already taken a shot on something fairly similar." He describes a briefing book of "one and a half pages of bulletized notes, and then tabs going back to paragraphs on each of the main points, and then further tabs going back to the original source material," which is "unclassified." He says the science adviser, [[John H. Gibbons]], "got it the night before," that "Kit was supposed to meet with Jack yesterday and supposed to give us some guidance today," and "My guess is that he is not going to do anything. He seemed to be fairly adverse to this whole subject." (The typed line in the reproduction is partly garbled; "he" is not identified in that sentence, and the preceding exchange concerns Gibbons.) Asked whether the timing was a coincidence, he says "No, Gibbons tasked us to do this," and that Gibbons, who "didn't have any background" and "never heard of the [[Majestic-12|MJ-12]]," "contacted our representative over there and asked whether we could provide some support." Jones says in the transcript that Gibbons "was not read into it" and "declared to us that he was an agnostic." The transcript does not name the agency Pandolfi speaks for.[^1]
The transcript reached the files through C. Richard Farley Jr., who wrote that he had been associated with the Human Potential Foundation from August 1991 through April 30, 1994 and had been its Director of Project Development. He sent it to Gibbons on April 29, 1995 as an "enclosed purported transcript of a telephone conversation Jones had with Dr. Pandolfi, allegedly discussing his (and CIA's) role in supporting your response to the Rockefeller 'UFO' initiative." Farley wrote that Jones "routinely 'bugged' Pandolfi's calls, according to Jones' former executive assistant," that Jones himself gave him the transcript "for purposes which were not clear to me then, nor presently," and that he had sent it to the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] and CIA "months ago." In the same letter Farley wrote that he had learned of Gibbons's release of Rockefeller correspondence from "Mr. [[Dan T. Smith]], of [[Baltimore]], a self-proclaimed confidant and asset of Dr. Ronald Pandolfi, described to me (by Jones, Smith and others) as a CIA scientist," and that he knew of Pandolfi's role "from my discussions with Dr. Bruce Maccabee and from Pandolfi himself at an August, 1993 meeting (Ron, two of his associates, Dr. Jones and myself)."[^2]
Bruce Maccabee wrote to Gibbons on January 2, 1997 that "in April 1993, at the request of Dr. Ronald Pandolfi of the CIA, I sent (faxed) to you an information paper regarding UFOs entitled 'Briefing on the U.S. Government Approach to the UFO Problem as Determined by Civilian Researchers During the Last Twenty Years,'" and enclosed a copy. In it, he wrote, he had presented evidence that the government held a "rather large number of documents on UFO sightings."[^3]
In a letter of March 29, 1997 Farley told Gibbons that [[Kit Green]] used the term "myth-making" for efforts by "cultists and culture-change agents employed in ongoing efforts by Laurance Rockefeller, with his attorney Henry Diamond and former Pell aide (and intelligence 'rogue') C.R. 'Scott' Jones, to involve President Clinton in their 'UFO disclosures' initiatives."[^2]
### Hughes and China, 1995 to 1998
The Congressional Research Service recorded that in April 1996 "a CIA analyst, Ronald Pandolfi, had reportedly prepared a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on how Hughes may have helped to improve China's missile capabilities," which the CIA "did not approve." In September 1998 he briefed the [[Senate Select Committee on Intelligence]] on what he had found at Hughes in 1995 after the January 1995 explosion of a [[Long March]] rocket; according to a reported internal CIA cable of September 23, 1998, the CIA then told Hughes of the briefing, and the committee asked Attorney General [[Janet Reno]] for a criminal investigation of whether the CIA obstructed its inquiry.[^4] The House Select Committee on U.S. National Security and Military/Commercial Concerns with the People's Republic of China (the [[Cox Committee]]) wrote, without naming him, that "a CIA analyst" had alleged that while visiting Hughes in 1995 he found information that technical data had been passed to China, "and that the CIA had ignored his request for a formal report to CIA Headquarters." The committee wrote that the CIA advised Hughes of the lines of questioning the committee would probably pursue, which the committee considered "ill-advised and an impediment."[^5] The committee wrote that the CIA's official explanation was that it notified Hughes "as a courtesy" and that the CIA denied any intent to interfere with the [[Department of Justice|Justice Department]] or congressional investigations.[^5] *The New York Times* of December 7, 1998 began its report, "When a Central Intelligence Agency scientist visited the Hughes Electronics Corporation in [[Los Angeles]] in 1995 to learn more about China's missile capabilities, he became concerned that the satellite manufacturer might have helped improve Chinese military capabilities," named him as Ronald Pandolfi, and wrote that the agency "killed his study, called a National Intelligence Estimate." It reported that agency officials denied intending to hinder the Senate inquiry and said they helped facilitate his questioning, that an agency spokesman, [[Bill Harlow]], said the agency "would not talk about Mr. Pandolfi's experiences or the 1996 National Intelligence Estimate he wrote, because of the investigations," and that one official said CIA officials "disagreed with some of Mr. Pandolfi's conclusions" and judged the estimate not "rigorous" enough.[^6] In September 2000 Senator [[Richard Shelby]] said the Justice Department had decided not to charge an unnamed CIA official with obstructing a Senate investigation.[^4] The [[Washington Post]], in a story printed in *The [[The Kansas City Star|Kansas City Star]]* of December 5, 1998, reported that officials said on Friday, December 4, the Justice Department had begun a criminal obstruction-of-justice investigation of the CIA after the Senate committee learned that the agency had told Hughes the names of company officials it had supplied to the committee. The story described Pandolfi as a CIA analyst specializing in technology who told committee staff that in 1995 he had concluded Hughes had been too aggressive in marketing high-technology equipment in China; according to unnamed sources, he had interviewed Hughes executives about their work there, Hughes complained angrily to the CIA that he was operating outside customary channels, and the CIA office that regularly deals with Hughes reprimanded him before the committee summoned him in September. The story said the CIA, aware of his views, gave Hughes advance word of his discussion with the committee and offered names of Hughes executives who might explain the disagreement. A Hughes spokesman, [[Richard Dore]], was quoted as saying Hughes "has not been provided information by the CIA regarding the details of federal criminal investigations involving Hughes."[^7]
### Reported Role on UFO Matters
[[Richard J. Boylan]] listed "Ron Pandolfi" as Pelican in a roster of the [[The Aviary|Aviary]] published in *[[Perceptions]],* describing him as "CIA Deputy Director for the Division of Science and Technology and current custodian of UFO files at the 'Weird Desk'" who "may be involved in the White House initiative to promptly release UFO information to the public." Boylan gave no source for the roster; in a separate passage he attributed other Aviary claims to an informant he called "Beltway Throat," whom the host site's editor calls Dan Smith, the same Dan T. Smith of Baltimore whom Farley described in 1995 as a "self-proclaimed confidant and asset of Dr. Ronald Pandolfi" (the identification of the two rests on the name alone).[^8] The Aviary of [[William L. Moore]] and [[Jaime Shandera]], as described in a UFO BBS text file and in [[Mark Pilkington]]'s *[[Mirage Men]],* consisted of bird-named contacts of Moore at [[Air Force Office of Special Investigations|AFOSI]] and elsewhere; neither source names Pandolfi, and Boylan's list attaches the same term to a different and larger roster.[^9] The authors of the [[Loose Threads Report]] wrote that Kit Green left the "weird desk" "before hiring Ron Pandolfi to take over," without a stated source.[^10] A note in [[Jacques Vallee]]'s *[[Forbidden Science: Volume Three]],* as quoted by [[Keith Basterfield]], ends a list of reported participants in the 1985 [[Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group]] with "Ron Pandolfi of CIA also claims to have been involved." Pandolfi does not appear on [[James Oke Shannon]]'s handwritten attendee list.[^11]
[[Bob Oechsler]] wrote in *[[Alien Update]]* that, "After validating my meeting with [[Everett Hineman]], the CIA Deputy Director for Science & Technology, Pandolfi asked Admiral [[Bobby Ray Inman|Inman]] if he had in fact talked to me about UFOs," and that Inman "did not deny that such a conversation took place, but was unwilling to discuss any details."[^12]
The blogger [[Robert Schaeffer]], quoted by [[Jason Colavito]] in 2019, reported that the television producer [[Robert Kiviat]] was engaged by [[Joe Firmage]] to develop a series on Firmage's anti-gravity claims "and also the story of the Aviary UFO history as seen through the eyes of Pandolfi," and quoted Kiviat as saying that "Pandolfi was not willing to state his claims publicly." Colavito wrote that Kiviat sued Firmage, Pandolfi and [[Daniel Marriott]] for $300,000. The complaint was not read, and the defendants' answers were not found.[^13]
### Footnotes
[^1]: "Telecon: Ron Pandolphy and Scott Jones," April 15, 1993, enclosed with Farley's letter of April 29, 1995, Clinton Presidential Library, Office of Science and Technology Policy FOIA 01-22, item 46, https://avalonlibrary.net/Grant_Cameron/Clinton_Presidential_Library_collection/OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022/1995%2004%2029_C.%20Richard%20Farley,%20Jr.%20to%20John%20Gibbons%20-%20OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022%20-%20item%20no%2046.pdf (digitized by Grant Cameron). The transcript is described in the cover letter as "purported"; its authenticity is not otherwise established.
[^2]: Farley, C. Richard, Jr., letters to John H. Gibbons, April 29, 1995 (item 46) and March 29, 1997 (item 75), OSTP FOIA 01-22, same collection, https://avalonlibrary.net/Grant_Cameron/Clinton_Presidential_Library_collection/OSTP%20-%20FOIA%2001%2022/. Sole source for Farley's statements about Smith, Jones and Green.
[^3]: Maccabee, Bruce, letter to John H. Gibbons, January 2, 1997, OSTP FOIA 01-22, item 73b, same collection.
[^4]: Congressional Research Service, "China: Possible Missile Technology Transfers under U.S. Satellite Export Policy: Actions and Chronology," report 98-485 F, entries for April 1996 and September 1998, https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/98-485F.html (Shelby statement of September 2000 at note 77); and CRS report RL30220, https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/19990608_RL30220_8a89fcc3410f43e494c171a03c54353429cabd96.html.
[^5]: U.S. House of Representatives, Select Committee on U.S. National Security and Military/Commercial Concerns with the People's Republic of China, *Report* (Cox Report), 1999, section "Issues" on CIA and Hughes, https://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/congress/1999_r/cox/appbod.htm.
[^6]: Gerth, Jeff. "Old Concerns Over Data Transfer to China Get New Attention," *The New York Times,* December 7, 1998, read in an excerpt (first paragraphs) reproduced at https://anomalyarchives.org/collections/file/pandolfi-ron/; the Times page itself returned an access block and was not opened.
[^7]: "CIA being investigated for information given to Hughes," *The Kansas City Star* (Washington Post wire), December 5, 1998, p. A10, https://www.newspapers.com/image/685529422/. Byline not visible in the view read.
[^8]: Boylan, Richard J. "UFO/ET-Disclosure Policy Splits Covert Network," *Perceptions,* reproduced at http://web.archive.org/web/20130831033026/http://www.think-aboutit.com/ufo/aviary.htm. Sole source for the code name.
[^9]: "E B E's," UFO BBS files UFO1024 and UFO1030, https://mirror.cyberbits.eu/textfiles.com/ufo/UFOBBS/1000/1024.ufo; Pilkington, Mark. *Mirage Men,* 2010, PDF at https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Mark%20Pilkington%20-%20Mirage%20Men%20-%20A%20Journey%20into%20Disinformation,%20Paranoia%20and%20UFOs.pdf. Text searches of those files and of the book for "Pandolfi" returned no matches.
[^10]: Elizondo and The Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," Anomaly Archives, 2022, section on EarthTech, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf. Sole source for the passage.
[^11]: Basterfield, Keith. "Jacques Vallee and the 'Secret Onion,'" December 21, 2016, quoting Vallee, *Forbidden Science: Volume Three,* p. 480 (the quoted note refers to Alexander's February 2011 book), https://anomalyarchives.org/collections/file/atp-aka-secret-onion/. The book was not opened; Google Books and the Internet Archive offer no readable copy. For Shannon's list, Loose Threads Report p. 15.
[^12]: Oechsler, Bob, *Alien Update,* as quoted in Elizondo and The Hermetic Penetrator, "The Loose Threads Report," Anomaly Archives, p. 47, https://anomalyarchives.org/wp-content/uploads/PDF-Loose-Threads.pdf. The book was not opened. Sole source for the passage.
[^13]: Colavito, Jason, quoting Schaeffer, Robert, and Kiviat, Robert, March 23, 2019, https://www.jasoncolavito.com/blog/alien-autopsy-producer-sues-ufo-contactee-former-cia-scientist-and-ex-congressman-over-stalled-ufo-documentary. Sole source for the passages so cited.

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10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Hartleigh Trent.md
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@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ Trent was one of the six most promising members of the team selected to travel t
### The Documents
Trent signed four memoranda for the record from HQ INSCOM (IAFM-OPS-HU-SA) between May 23 and 27, 1980, as "GS-12, Analyst," each headed "Summary of Unconfirmed Source Information" and each recording a remote-viewing session against a redacted subject: one "in compliance with a request for information on a target of interest to USI," a source described as "an expert or professional, an analyst" and believed to work "as an Analyst who's office is in the South side of the Pentagon"; another "someone in middle management in an industrial complex" and "a shirt-sleeved 'orator'"; another a subject "fearful and restricting himself to his hotel like apartment" amid "a great deal of subterfuge." On June 30, 1980, he wrote "Possible Compromise of a Relationship Between Two SRI Scientists (Puthoff & Targ) and the U.S. Government": at "a two day conference on camouflage, concealment and deception" at the Foreign Technology Division at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] on June 25 and 26, "I, Hartleigh Trent, heard a briefer mention a contract the government has with SRI on psychic research"; the briefer, "after indicating by expression and gesture that the encounter was strange and somewhat unbelievable," said that SRI "had a large contract with the U.S. Government on psychic research"; asked afterward "does it really work?," "he asked if I knew that [[Hal Puthoff|Puthoff]] and [[Russell Targ|Targ]] were scientologists. I said I had heard that this was probably true. He then said that if they belong to that group there is a possibility that they are pulling the greatest hoax on the U.S. Government and the American public that has ever been perpetrated." "At no time was the U.S. Army or Grill Flame mentioned."[^2]
Trent signed four memoranda for the record from HQ INSCOM (IAFM-OPS-HU-SA) between May 23 and 27, 1980, as "GS-12, Analyst," each headed "Summary of Unconfirmed Source Information" and each recording a remote-viewing session against a redacted subject: one "in compliance with a request for information on a target of interest to USI," a source described as "an expert or professional, an analyst" and believed to work "as an Analyst who's office is in the South side of the Pentagon"; another "someone in middle management in an industrial complex" and "a shirt-sleeved 'orator'"; another a subject "fearful and restricting himself to his hotel like apartment" amid "a great deal of subterfuge." On June 30, 1980, he wrote "Possible Compromise of a Relationship Between Two SRI Scientists (Puthoff & Targ) and the U.S. Government": at "a two day conference on camouflage, concealment and deception" at the [[Foreign Technology Division]] at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] on June 25 and 26, "I, Hartleigh Trent, heard a briefer mention a contract the government has with SRI on psychic research"; the briefer, "after indicating by expression and gesture that the encounter was strange and somewhat unbelievable," said that SRI "had a large contract with the U.S. Government on psychic research"; asked afterward "does it really work?," "he asked if I knew that [[Hal Puthoff|Puthoff]] and [[Russell Targ|Targ]] were scientologists. I said I had heard that this was probably true. He then said that if they belong to that group there is a possibility that they are pulling the greatest hoax on the U.S. Government and the American public that has ever been perpetrated." "At no time was the U.S. Army or Grill Flame mentioned."[^2]
### Footnotes