>>> Continued from previous message Having now seen much of the autopsy video, we have not detected anything remotely like this. So this potentially profound statement of Mantle's concerning Dr. Bronk has proven unverifiable to date. Mr. Mantle will need some big shoes for those clown feet, and, it could be wagered, an even bigger mouth to put them in! As the clowns continued to make wild and humorous statements,discussions in the ufological community grew to a frenzied pitch. Before the opening act had even been introduced, opinions were formed, battle lines drawn, and sides taken. When the midway opened, the sideshow barkers began to stir up the excitement. The Opening Act The circus' opening act was May 5, 1995-the advance showing of the film, held in the lecture room at the Museum of London.One hundred or so media representatives, ufologists, and others involved in the film industry lined up under the Big Top for the show. After all the hoopla and glitz, it was quite amazing to discover that the result was mixed reviews. Instead of general applause and whistles, a wave of confusion swept over the circus goers. One reason for the confusion was the many questions raised about objects seen in the film, such as the phone cord, pen, and clock. In fact, according to A T & T,coiled phone cords made of rubber were available in 1947, but plastic ones were not. Unfortunately, it is impossible to de- termine the cord's composition. Ball point pens seen in the video were questioned as well, but sources have indicated that they were available by 1947. Another point of interest is the General Electric wall clock visible during the medical procedure; this too has been verified as cor- rect for the era. Later, in an August 19 showing of the video to the BUFORA conference, held in Sheffield, England, the footage again received mixed reviews. Representatives of Creature Effects, an English special effects company, which apparently had had a private viewing earlier in August, were pre- sent for the August 19 presentation as well. Fueling the skeptical fire, they commented that they had detected what appeared to be a seam on the body, hinting that the film was likely a fabrication. Decriers of the film seized upon symbols seen on pieces of so-called wreckage, pointing out that the words "video TV" were clearly visible. Having seen the symbols now for ourselves, we have to admit that though the words are a stretch, imagination can make the words actually appear through this alleged alien "writing." Film supporters, on the other hand, have proclaimed that without a doubt the video showed human beings performing the grisly job of an actual autopsy on the body of a bonafide alien. Despite the ambiguities and realistic aspects of the footage, the show- ing did nothing to quell the debates that rage on still about the film's validity. Never before in the study of ufology has there been such an intense focus on an individual point. As a result, phone calls totaling thousands of dollars have criss-crossed the phone wires between re- searchers and investigators. Reams of paper have been used to print the hundreds of articles and files on this fascinating subject. And millions upon millions of electronic mail bytes have been generated for debates, accusations, and conjecture. UFO skeptic James Oberg, well-known to most of our readers, called the intensity of the world-wide computer conversations "the makings of a significant cultural event," during an interview in Dallas with KDFW Television on September 4, 1995. "No film stands alone," he said. "You have to have... HOW it was obtained, HOW it was stored, WHO'S promoting it. Those are all part of the same unit of evidence. My conclusions are that what we're seeing does not force us to accept the existence of alien life, of extraterrestrial life, that there are prosaic and earth- bound explanations." The circus had certainly gotten underway. So we, your humble reporters, decided to move down to the front row. We needed a good view now, as the performers were WELL into their routines. But as we soon found out, the show was only just beginning. Searching the Funhouse If this case were not already interesting enough, a description of the 1947 event surfaced, allegedly in the words of the cameraman himself. In it, the supposed cameraman referred to the beings as "freaks." (He must have known that the circus would need a freak show.) He told of arriving on the crash scene -- seeing dead and dying aliens all around -- and of watching the soldiers use their rifle butts to "persuade" the creatures to release "boxes" they were clutching. In typical fashion,however, the statement also presented irregularities. For example, several expressions alleged to have been made by this Amer- ican serviceman have a decidedly British twist. The cameraman referred to his tenure in "the forces" (an English colloquialism), whereas an American would have said "the service" or "the army." To explain this and other disparities, all of which have been discussed at great length by researchers and Internet debaters, the reason was offered by Santilli that perhaps his British secretary had taken liberties in transcribing the American cameraman's original statement.This rationalization borders on ludicrous, from our point of view, since the single most important element in the entire affair IS the cameraman.Liberties, embellishments, and distortions of anything that he supposedly has said is beyond the realm of credibility. The search for the alleged cameraman naturally has been one of the most interesting sideshows at the circus. His identification and testimony are the only things that can give this bizarre story credibility. In hot pursuit of this information, independent investigators have combed through hundreds of employment and military records looking for names of men who might fit the scenario. The cameraman himself had allegedly stated that he had operated a camera during atomic test detonation sessions in New Mexico. This clue, as well as information gleaned from military records for other service camera operators who may have been present at atomic tests, has yielded a plethora of names. Naturally, there have been several false alarms concerning possible candidates for this role. Of the many possibilities investigated,a few have seemed more promising. One of the first names to surface was that of Jack Barnett. In a state- ment later described as "a slip," Santilli revealed the name Barrett, as well. Rumors that the camera man had died during this feverish search began to surface, and we, along with other researchers, began to invest- igate this. Oddly enough, we discovered that Jack D. Barrett, a military motion picture technician who had served in the U.S. Army Air Force from February 11, 1943 to December 28, 1945, had passed away in Los Angeles, California on August 3, 1995. We have a copy of his death certificate in hand. This man seemed to fit Santilli's original guarded identification, to have had the proper credentials, but would not have been in military service during the time of the alleged filming event. Could he have been a civilian employee by that time? Cameraman Berlyn Brixner was also considered, as he was definitely known as the camera operator at the Trinity atomic test blast during that period, as documented in the 1987 book "At Work in the Fields of the Bomb,"by Robert Del Tredici. Mr. Brixner has been located in Los Alamos, New Mexico, and indicates no knowledge of any alien autopsy event. So far, none of the names examined seems to be correct. And Ring Master Santilli continues to maintain that the cameraman is very much alive. He has stated that the cameraman told him that he was in the Army Air Force and "special forces" from 1942 to 1952. We have heard rumors that other well-known UFO researchers claim to be on the trail of another gentleman who might be the elusive cameraman. Perhaps the man in the circus sideshow booth should change his game from guessing weights to guessing the cameraman's name! >>> Continued to next message --- þ OLX 2.1 TD þ UFONet - UK's ONLY Dedicated UFO Network - 0181-769-1740 þ wcGATE 4.1 ÷ UFONet þ Stairway BBS, Streatham, London þ 0181 769 1740 --- WILDMAIL!/WC v4.12 * Origin: BBSNet Echomail Network. FTS<>QWK gate at Ooh! (405:100/1.0)