Not to get all nostalgic, but that first season of The X-Files takes me back, I tell you what. From the not-quite-right recitations of UFO lore to the subtle jabs at the culture, we’re going to look at a few classic early episodes and examine not only what the show said, but what the saucer world […]
Apr 28, 2018•44 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Welcome to Series 5: The 90s Strike Back! In this episode, we’ll examine the work of Bill Cooper, perhaps the key figure in the blending of UFO and political conspiracy culture in the 1990s. Hang on, this”ll be wild. It’s longer than usual, but I think you’ll find it’s pretty action-packed. Despite the length, we […]
Apr 23, 2018•1 hr 2 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Art Bell, pioneer paranormal radio host, died at his home in Pahrump, Nevada, April 13, 2018. These are just a few thoughts about the man and his work, and some suggestions of what you should listen to as some of his most entertaining work. Coast to Coast AM’s obituary of Art Bell Whitley Strieber on […]
Apr 14, 2018•7 min
We’re finishing off Series 4 by increasing the pace of releases from every two weeks to every ten days or so. We think this will be sustainable, so hang on! Weekly would be ideal but, alas, our production team have day jobs… This time we look at notions of the hollow earth and their connections […]
Apr 10, 2018•39 min•Season 4Ep. 6
I’m in Chicago, briefly, for stuff, so I thought I’d bring you a very brief Chicago-related saucer story from 2006. Website: saucerlife.com Twitter: @saucerlife Instagram: saucerlife Facebook
Apr 07, 2018•5 min
In this Encounter, we’re looking at a few examples of what was out there on the earlier, pre-www Internet. From jokey posts clearly not meant to be taken seriously, to intriguing supposed revelations of “the truth,” Usenet, and specialty networks like the Paranet BBS, many of use who are now fairly elderly, started our Saucer […]
Apr 01, 2018•28 min•Season 4Ep. 5
In this installment, we’re looking at the theory that Marilyn Monroe was murdered to prevent her from revealing the truth about the government flying saucer cover-up! We’ve got a book, a questionable CIA document, some unquestionable State Department documents, and some very, very strained logic. Hang on! UFOs and the Murder of Marilyn Monroe by […]
Mar 18, 2018•24 min•Season 4Ep. 4
This is what happened next. Did the world end? Even a little? Follow the trail of Dorothy Martin, Charles Laughead, and the prophecy’s impact on the flying saucer community in this week’s installment of The Saucer Life. The picture above is of a very elderly Dorothy Martin, also known as Sister Thedra. Website: saucerlife.com Twitter: @saucerlife […]
Mar 05, 2018•33 min•Season 4Ep. 3
In this episode, we begin the story of Dorothy Martin and her prophecies of cataclysms that would strike the world. She received these via channeled messages from the planet Clarion (Aura Rhanes was not involved!). It’s a sprawling story, so hang on! Website: saucerlife.com Twitter: @saucerlife Instagram: saucerlife Facebook
Feb 19, 2018•33 min•Season 4Ep. 2
We’re starting our fourth batch of episodes and, to get you the best quality (ha!) possible, we’re going to be bi-weekly for the foreseeable future. This time around, we’re examining stories in which the saucer life touches real life, mundane life in some way. First up, Donald Keyhoe’s appearance on Armstrong’s Circle Theater. Is it […]
Feb 04, 2018•24 min•Season 4Ep. 1
While we’re taking a week off trying to get ahead on production of series 4, here’s something to tide you over. This is George Adamski speaking at the 1955 flying saucer gathering at Giant Rock. George Van Tassel arranged these for many years and nearly everybody who was anybody in the saucer scene appeared here […]
Jan 26, 2018•38 min
This week, we look at George Hunt Williamson, one of the classic 1950s Contactees whose work stretched into a number of different facets of the Saucer world, and beyond. There’s more to Williamson’s story, but we’ll be seeing that in a few weeks in Encounter 402: The End of the World. We return on February […]
Jan 21, 2018•25 min•Season 3Ep. 6
In early 1953, the CIA convened a panel of scientists to investigate whether or not flying saucers were a threat. We’re going to look at what happened next. The most complete version of the report is here if you want to check it out. I got everything else from the CIA’s electronic reading room, which […]
Jan 14, 2018•24 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Normal service has resumed here at Saucer Life Central, and today we’re looking at one of the most effective takedowns of George Adamski’s initial contactee claims (see Encounter 105 for some background on this, if you feel like you want it), the reaction from Adamski and, finally, we’ll take a quick look at Adamski’s continuing […]
Jan 07, 2018•24 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Happy New Year! This is the story of the time sometime-guest voice Nelson Sanat and I investigated a crop circle and the havoc it caused. (This is a substantially new telling of the tale, so if you’ve read The Chaos Conundrum, know that it’s a different thing!) The crop circle in question was, actually, investigated […]
Dec 31, 2017•11 min
‘Twas the Week Before Christmas, and all through the house some guy was recording a podcast episode. So: my Christmas gift to you all; here’s some flying saucer poetry for you. More accurately, here’s some poetry which appeared in flying saucer magazines. “Ode to a Spaceman” and “Reflection” originally appeared in Encounter 204. Poetry featured […]
Dec 24, 2017•8 min
Just a very quick take on the recent news from the New York Times about Pentagon study of UFOs, the connections to private money, and the long history of acknowledged and un-acknowledged interest in and study of the saucers. Note: this is a little unpolished, but I wanted to be timely! Some of the best […]
Dec 20, 2017•22 min
In this Encounter, we’re looking at an incredibly popular book from the late 1960s, Coral and Jim Lorenzen’s Flying Saucer Occupants. The stories told in this slim volume range from the weird and obscure to some that were groundshaking in their saucer significance, including the Antonio Vilas Boas case and the Betty and Barney Hill […]
Dec 17, 2017•22 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In this Encounter, we’ll take a look at the the entity known as Ashtar and the cast of extraterrestrial characters that he commands. From his emergence through the writings and teachings of George van Tassel, the development of the Ashtar “brand” to the concept’s evolution during the following decades, this is a fun jaunt through […]
Dec 11, 2017•38 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Welcome to series 3, in which we’ll focus on the broad themes of mind, body, and spirit. It’s “mind” this week with Meade Layne, Mark Probert, channeled messages about the Etherians, and a story of some early, somewhat different interpretations of the coming of the saucers. Guest starring the spirits of Lao Tzu and Thomas […]
Dec 04, 2017•33 min•Season 3Ep. 1
It’s the Series 2 finale! We’re digging deeper into an entity we saw briefly in Encounter 204:the Detroit Flying Saucer Club. We’ll see one example of “government interest in flying saucers” and why it really was never about the saucers, in some cases. We also look at a useful illustration about the way one story can connect […]
Nov 27, 2017•28 min•Season 2Ep. 6
A quickie that got left on the cutting room floor from Encounter 203 and Encounter 204. It’s a Contactee story in reverse from the pages of Nexus and you’ll probably recognize at least one of the characters. And yes, Melvin Morbid sounds like Johnny from The Room. It was totally unconscious. Have a good Thanksgiving if you’re in […]
Nov 22, 2017•10 min
This week it’s some Flying Saucer pre-history with the Mystery Airship Wave of 1897. There was a bit of this in the talk released here as Bonus Encounter 1, but we’ve got even more aerial weirdness this week. Thanks again to CUFOS for their vast archive of historical UFO goodness. You can find out more about […]
Nov 20, 2017•34 min•Season 2Ep. 5
This week, we conclude our epic look at 1954 through four flying saucer zines and newsletters (The APRO Bulletin, Saucerian, Nexus, and Vimana). As last week, much thanks to the online archive of the Center for UFO Studies, for having such a wealth of great information. Website: saucerlife.com Twitter: @saucerlife Instagram: saucerlife Follow me on […]
Nov 13, 2017•43 min•Season 2Ep. 4
This week we start our look at 1954 through the pages of four flying saucer newsletters and magazines. While this wasn’t the biggest year for sightings in the US, there was no lack of news or controversy. The Al Bender mystery (see Encounter 102), the growing popularity of contactees (see Encounters 105 and 106), and […]
Nov 06, 2017•37 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Romance and flying saucers certainly aren’t an unheard-of pairing (check out Encounter 106 if you doubt me) but few interplanetary romances were as intense or interesting as that of South Africa’s Elizabeth Klarer in the 1950s (although she didn’t write her book Beyond the Light Barrier until much later. This week, we’ll be looking at Klarer’s story […]
Oct 30, 2017•34 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Welcome to Series 2! In this encounter we travel to the heady days of the 1980s and look at a number of documents, events, and people who would have a lasting effect on the direction of saucer culture. Meet O.H. Krill and his pals John Lear, and Bill Cooper, and learn just why it was […]
Oct 23, 2017•24 min•Season 2Ep. 1
One week ahead of schedule–don’t get used to it! This week we meet Truman Bethurum, who was the second contactee and who met a stunning space sister, Captain Aura Rhanes. His story is interesting not only because it features a woman in an authoritative position, but because he sort of seems to have written it to make […]
Oct 09, 2017•20 min•Season 1Ep. 6
This time around, we’re looking at the contactees–those who thought they had physical or psychic contact with human-appearing space aliens. Their messages were often more earthly than cosmic and they’re a lot of fun. Learn all about George Adamski and tune in next time when we’ll cover some more classic contacteeism. Thanks this time go […]
Oct 03, 2017•26 min•Season 1Ep. 5
This is the talk I gave on September 30 at the 50th Anniversary Festival commemorating the Shag Harbour UFO Incident in Shag Harbour, Nova Scotia. A few notes. First, the ending is a bit rushed and lacking detail near the end. For reasons beyond my control, what was supposed to be a 75 minute talk […]
Oct 02, 2017•1 hr 2 min