Will A Ufologist Die On June 24, 2022?

by Loren Coleman, posted June 23, 2022, 2:37 pm EDT.

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In response to one of my past postings on ufologists dying on June 24ths, Robert Sheaffer, a skeptical author of Bad Ufos (2016), wrote to me, firmly tongue in cheek, at 1:28 pm, June 22, 2014:

"June 24th is coming up soon, so I'm going to be hiding under the bed."

The topic of the deaths of ufologists is oft-discussed in the field of ufology. 

In 1971, UFO author Otto Binder claimed that at least 137 UFO investigators had died under mysterious circumstances during the 1960s. Binder's 1971 Saga article, "Liquidation of the UFO Investigators," summarized his findings.

Tied to the specific date of St. John's Day, Otto Binder (1911-1975), as well as John Keel (1930-2009), noticed a number of “seemingly coincidental deaths in the UFO field on 24 June.” 

I have written about this special day in my first book The Unidentified (Warner Books, 1975, with Jerome Clark), in Curious Encounters (1985), and in Mothman and Other Curious Encounters (Faber and Faber, 2002). June 24th, every year since 1947, gets special attention from anniversary death watchers.

The past is prologue to the future.

Here is a quick overview of the notable ufo-related deaths on June 24:

June 24 (or 23?), 1964, Frank Scully, 72, author of one of the first crashed-saucer books, Behind the Flying Saucers (1950), dies.

June 24, 1967, two British UFO contactees, Arthur Bryant, a contactee, and Richard Church, an author and chairman of CIGIUFO, die. 

June 23, 1967, Frank Edwards, 55, popular UFO author and radio personality in the 1950s, dies a few hours before Arthur Bryant. James Moseley stunned the delegates assembled for the 1967 Congress of Scientific Ufologists at New York City’s Hotel Commodore on June 24th, with the news of the sudden death of Frank Edwards.

June 24, 1969, Willy Ley, 62, a rocket scientist and Fortean author, dies. Willy Ley was one of the first respected modern scientist to attempt to answer the question of what is a flying saucer. In 1952, he was one of the first, if not the first person, to say that 85% of UFO sightings are misidentified craft, leaving the other 15% open to notions of "interplanetary travel," that he began writing about in 1926.

June 24, 1973, Bud Westmore, 55, dies of a heart attack. 

Bud was a renowned Hollywood make-up artist of the famed Westmore family, and has been credited with doing make-up for 592 films, including It Came From Outer Space (1953), This Island Earth (1955), Tarantula (1955), The Deadly Mantis (1957), Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), Revenge of the Creature (1955), The Creature Walks Among Us (1956), and scores of mainstream films, like Spartacus (1960).

The Westmore family has dominated make-up departments in Hollywood since Bud's father George created the business in 1917. They have kept visible in recent years due to McKenzie Westmore, who since 2011, has served as the host of the Syfy original series Face Off, a reality competition featuring makeup artists. Bud was the uncle to Michael Westmore, famed for his Star Trek work and the father of McKenzie.

June 24, 1978, Robert Charroux, 69, the best-known pen-name of Robert Joseph Grugeau dies. Charroux was a French author known for his ancient astronaut theories and writings on other Fortean subjects, in such books as Masters Of The World: Groundbreaking New Revelations About The Ancient Astronauts (1979).

June 24, 1987, Jackie Gleason, 71, the actor, who was an early advocate of flying saucer research, dies. Gleason's known interest in UFOs allegedly prompted President Richard Nixon to share some information with him and to disclose some UFO data publicly.

June 24, 1997, Brian Keith (see here), who starred in Meteor (1979; with Sean Connery and Natalie Wood), dies by suicide. 

June 24, 2006, Lyle Stuart, 83, the renegade publisher who published anomalist writer Frank Edwards’ Fortean book, in 1959, Stranger than Science, a paperbook full of information on ufology and other unexplained accounts, dies.

June 24, 2013, James Martin, 79, a former rocket scientist, computer scientist, and author of After the Internet: Alien Intelligence (2000), is found floating dead in the waters off Agar's Island. Dr. Martin bought Agar’s Island in 1977 and made his home in Bermuda. The multi-millionaire kept a relatively low profile in Bermuda.

June 24, 2013, Alan Myers, 58, the most prominent drummer (1976-1987) of the band Devo, dies of stomach cancer in Los Angeles. Devo played punk, art rock, post-punk and new wave music, and performed stage shows that mingled kitsch science fiction themes, deadpan surrealist humor, and mordantly satirical social commentary. Devo recorded at their own self-named "UFO Studios." More.

June 24, 2015, Mario Biaggi, 97, dies. The former Bronx congressman was involved in the "UFO disclosure" movement, and was once pictured on the cover of Ideal's UFO Magazine, December 1978, Number 4. Within the periodical, there appears the article, "Interview: Mario Biaggi 'There Is A UFO Cover-Up By The Government.'" On the cover, an image of Biaggi is shown with President Jimmy Carter. More.

June 24, 2018, Roswell, X-Files, and The Shining television guest star Stanley Anderson dies. 

June 24, 2018, the Voice of New York radio during the Great Northeast Blackout (caused by UFOs?), Dan Ingram dies. See further information on Anderson, Ingram, and others who died in 2018, here.

June 24, 2019, news reporter Sean Dunleavy, dies. The journalist was a witness to and a participant in the famed Linda Cortile UFO abduction case of November 30, 1989, Manhattan, New York. Read more.

June 24, 2020, Wan Gengyu (Chinese: 万庚育) died at 98. She was born January 29, 1922, in Gansu. She was a Chinese painter, librarian & dunhuangologist [i.e. prominent scholar student of the Mogao Grottoes or Caves (also known as the Thousand Buddha Caves) built in the 4th-14th century. Caves appear to clearly show UFOs over the Buddhas, and Giants.]

Who will die on June 24, 2022, with links to ufology?

June 24: A "Hot" Date in 2015?

What is that firestorm coming?

Looking at the event-filled and politically-heated days leading up to the summer of 2015, I must predict that it appears something "hot" is going to happen on June 24th. Maybe even beginning on its eve, June 23rd?

Not sure if it is a fire, a ufologist's death, an assassination, another church shooting, a form of mass violence or what, but something is in the air.

This will mark yet another anniversary of the beginning of the era of "flying saucers" - 68 years, to be sure. But more than UFOs have happened on past June 24ths.

June 24th is St. John’s Day. 

The modern era of "flying saucers" did begin with Kenneth Arnold's 1947 sighting on this date. Unidentified flying objects seen flying at supersonic speeds between his plane and Mt. Rainier, Washington. Arnold reported that nine discs flew off towards Mt. Adams, in the distance.

Some previous events on this day include:

Knights Templars displayed “Mysterious Head” at Poitiers (1308). Founding of the Order of the Garter (1348). A sudden outbreak of St. John's Dance (1374) caused people in the streets of Aachen, Germany, to experience hallucinations, and jump and twitch uncontrollably until they collapsed from exhaustion. John Cabot discovered North America (1497). Lucrezia Borgia (1439) died. Samuel de Champlain discovered (1603) the mouth of the Saint John River, in New Brunswick, Canada. Galileo released (1633). “Woman of the Wilderness” utopian community arrived in America (1694). “Woman of the Wilderness” angelic visions (1701). Grand Lodge of Freemasons inaugurated (1717) in London. Napoleon's Grande Armée crossed (1812) the Neman River beginning the invasion of Russia. Ambrose Bierce born (1842). Red rain, Italy (1877). Ice fall, Ft. Lyon, Colorado (1877). Fall of jelly-like mass, Eton (1911). Fred Hoyle born (1915).

Pieces of a meteor, estimated to have weighed 450 metric tons when it hit the Earth's atmosphere and exploded, landed (1938) near Chicora, Pennsylvania.

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June 24ths have often had a "fiery" theme.

Arthur Brown ("Fire," 1942 or 1944, both are reported) is born. Jeff Beck (Yardbirds, 1944), Charlie Whitney (Family, 1944), and Chris Wood (Traffic, 1944), all born. Colin Blunstone (The Zombies, 1945) born. Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac, 1947) born.

Filmstock fire killed seventeen people, Brussels (1947). Movie theaters evaluated during huge fire, Perth Amboy, New Jersey (1947). United Airlines plane struck by lightning over Cleveland. Ohio (1947). Invasion of grasshoppers battled with flame-throwers, Guatemala/El Salvador (1947). Woman attacked and killed by bees or wasps, Seattle (1947).

More births of future musicians. Patrick Moraz (Yes, 1948), John Illsley (Dire Straits, 1949), Astro (UB40, 1957), Dennis Danell (Social Distortion, 1961), Curt Smith (Tears for Fears, 1961), and Richard Z. Kruspe (Rammstein, 1967) were all born on June 24ths.

Bizarre aerial sightings near Daggett, California (1950) and on Iwo Jima (1953). The Angora Fire (2007) started near South Lake Tahoe, California, destroying over 200 structures in its first 48 hours.

On June 24, 1908, Grover Cleveland, the 22nd & 24th US President (1885-89, 93-97), died at the age of 71. On June 30, 1908, the Tunguska event, a large aerial explosion of unknown origins, near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River, Russia, occurred. The UFO wave of 1909 in New Zealand followed sightings in the Southland in June 1908.

The topic of the death of ufologists is a modern but old one in the field.

In 1971, UFO author Otto Binder claimed that at least 137 UFO investigators had died under mysterious circumstances during the 1960s. Binder's 1971 Saga article, "Liquidation of the UFO Investigators," summarized his findings.

Additionally, tied to a specific date, Otto Binder (1911-1975), as well as John Keel (1930-2009), noticed a number of “seemingly coincidental deaths in the UFO field on 24 June.” 

These included the following:

June 24, 1964, Frank Scully, author of one of the first crashed-saucer books;

June 24, 1967, both British UFO contactees Arthur Bryant and Richard Church; and

June 24, 1969, Willy Ley, the rocket scientist and Fortean author.

Furthermore, on June 23, 1967, Frank Edwards, popular UFO author and radio personality in the 1950s, died a few hours before Bryant. James Moseley stunned the delegates assembled for the 1967 Congress of Scientific Ufologists at New York City’s Hotel Commodore on June 24th, with the news of the sudden death of Frank Edwards.

I have continued to track June 24th UFO-related deaths since Binder's time.

One person's June 24th death I found seems to have been underreported. That individual is Robert Charroux, the best-known pen-name of Robert Joseph Grugeau (born April 7, 1909). He died June 24, 1978. Charroux was a French author known for his ancient astronaut theories and writings on other Fortean subjects.

Charroux's books include: Treasures Of The World (1967); The Mysterious Unknown(1972); Forgotten Worlds: Scientific Secrets of The Ancients and Their Warning For Our Time (1973); The Mysterious Past (1974); Legacy Of The Gods (1974); The Mysteries Of The Andes (1977); Masters Of The World: Groundbreaking New Revelations About The Ancient Astronauts (1979); and One Hundred Thousand Years Of Man’s Unknown History (1981).

Still others have died on June 24th since then.

An early advocate of flying saucer research, Jackie Gleason, died June 24, 1987.

June 24, 2006 saw the death of renegade publisher Lyle Stuart, who published anomalist writer Frank Edwards’ Fortean book, in 1959, Stranger than Science, a paperbook full of information on ufology and other unexplained accounts.

On June 24, 2013, former rocket scientist, computer scientist, and author of After the Internet: Alien Intelligence (2000), James Martin, 79, was found floating dead in the waters off Agar's Island. Dr. Martin bought Agar’s Island in 1977 and made his home in Bermuda. The multi-millionaire kept a relatively low profile in Bermuda.

Alan Myers was a member of Devo, seen here on their Freedom of Choice album cover.

On June 24, 2013, the most prominent drummer (1976-1987) of the band Devo, Alan Myers, died of stomach cancer in Los Angeles. Devo played punk, art rock, post-punk and new wave music, and performed stage shows that mingled kitsch science fiction themes, deadpan surrealist humor, and mordantly satirical social commentary. Devo recorded at their own UFO Studios.

Alan Myers

Mystery deaths are thus often associated with St. John's Day.

The day is named after John the Baptist, in celebration of his birth date. The feast day of his birth (June 24) became celebrated more solemnly than that marking his martyrdom by beheading (August 29). This is unusual but then "strange" and June 24th go hand and hand.

Other facts about the day's events respect the wonder of the 24th of June.

Bonfires and burning of witches are associated with the day.

Throughout Europe, and via the United Kingdom, St. John's Day's symbolism spread to the USA. In the UK, and especially, Scotland, bonfires are a key. Should we be surprised to find it so in North America too?

St. John’s Day (”Jaanipäev”) is a major traditional holiday in Estonia, celebrated by singing around bonfires, in Estonian communities in the United States and Canada as well as in Estonia itself. The glow-worm, because it usually starts appearing around St. John’s Day, is called Jaaniuss – "St. John’s Worm" – in Estonian.

In France, the Fête de la Saint-Jean (Feast of St John), traditionally celebrated with bonfires (le feu de la Saint-Jean) that are reminiscent of Midsummer's pagan rituals, is a catholic festivity in celebration of Saint John the Baptist. It takes place on June 24, on Midsummer day (St. John's day). In certain French towns, a tall bonfire is built by the inhabitants in order to be lit on St. John's Day. In medieval times, this festival was celebrated with cat-burning rituals.

Of course, there will be no cat burnings during most American or other worldwide celebrations. But a bonfire might be in order. Fire in the sky is a major underlying theme of this day.

St. John's Eve and St. John's Day are powerful, in the minds of humans.

The iPhone 4 was first placed for sale on June 24, 2010.

Some people even create their own special events to be specifically associated with the day...

Monroeville is located near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Happy Birthday to Arthur Brown on June 24.

Now for a few cryptid events...

Photo archive: Strange Ark

Two Inuits killed a huge, yellow-furred bear at Rendezvous Lake, Barren Ground, Canada, on June 24, 1864. The bear was similar to Arctodus simus, which died out in the Pleistocene. Naturalist Robert MacFarlane acquired the bear’s skin and skull, and shipped the remains to the Smithsonian Institution, where they were placed in storage and soon forgotten. Eventually, Dr. Clinton Hart Merriam uncovered the remains, and in 1918, he described the specimen as a new species and genus, calling it the “patriarchal bear,” with the scientific name Vetularctos inopinatus. Today, it is often recognized as a new species, Ursus inopinatus. Later thoughts have called into question the uniqueness of this species. (For more, see Matt Bille's contribution.)

On other June 24th, locals have had Bigfoot sightings, in Logan and Union counties, Ohio (1980). A Chupacabras was encountered outside a disco, at Maria Elena, Argentina (2000). Moose hunters saw a Bigfoot, near Fort Simpson, NWT, Canada (2002). A mysterious fire erupted in Mothman country, in a Gallipolis, Ohio resident’s car on a bridge from Ohio to Point Pleasant, West Virginia (2003). Massive unusual aerial phenomena (winged weirdies?) were viewed at Xalapa, Mexico (2005). “Aren’t You Chupacabra to See Me?” aired for the first time on Cartoon Network (2005). Nestle used Bigfoot-costumed marchers to launch Kit Kat Limited Edition – Cappuccino at the Giant Mahkota Parade, Malacca, and Jusco Tebrau City, Johor (2005).

What will happen in 2015?

Please see also

Are You Still Alive? UFO Deaths, Revisited

Ufologist Stanton Friedman Suffers Heart Attack

Ufologist Dale Rettig Dies

Tom Benson, 3rd UFO Researcher To Die In A Week

Fortean Biographer Colin Bennett Has Died

Rocky Wood, Expert on Kaikoura UFOs & Stephen King, Dies

Chariots of the Gods Screenwriter John Fasano, Dies

Ten Predictions: Ten Hits

Zamora Dies

Ufologist Stanton Friedman Suffers Heart Attack

Breaking news from KGRA Radio tells of a healthwatch for a well-known individual in UFO circles.

American physicist and UFO investigator/author Stanton Friedman suffered a heart attack this weekend [it took place Friday, June 27, 2014] in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, where he lives.
According to his co-author Kathy Marden, he's in stable condition and is going to be moved to a larger facility on Monday [June 30, 2014], for possible surgery.
We can safely say, Stan won't be attending next weekend's annual Roswell, New Mexico, event.
He's also scheduled to travel to the Philadelphia for the annual MUFON symposium in three short weeks, as he, George Knapp and Lee Speigel are scheduled to be on a panel together.
Lee will be on the first hour of George Knapp's show tonight at:
(1am Eastern) and is expected to comment further on Stanton.
From all of here at the KGRA ask everyone to please keep our good friend in your prayers at this time. Source. 

Stanton T. Friedman is a dual citizen of the USA and Canada and lives in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, just across the Maine border from the USA. (UFO film & television writer, producer, director, and author Paul Kimball of Nova Scotia is Stan's nephew.)

Kathleen Marden reports around 10 am Monday, June 30th, that Stan was talking from the hospital and experiencing a batteries of cardiac tests. Stan turns 80 years old on his next birthday, July 29th.

I last met Stan in 2013, at a special VIP dinner for speakers at the Experiencers event in Portland, Maine. He was fit, healthy, and joy, as always. This is terrible news, and I wish Stan a full, quick recovery.

A word about the terms "UFO" versus "flying saucer": Friedman has consistently favored the use of the term "flying saucer" in his work, saying "Flying saucers are, by definition, unidentified flying objects, but very few unidentified flying objects are flying saucers. I am interested in the latter, not the former."

Friedman formerly called himself "The Flying Saucer Physicist," because of his degrees in nuclear physics and his work on nuclear projects, according to ufo encyclopedia authors Ronald Story and Jerome Clark.

Stanton Friedman drawing by Nick Shev.

Because Stan is a prolific speaker at UFO-related conferences, his biography is well-known to most in the field.

Nuclear Physicist-Author-Lecturer Stanton T. Friedman received his BSc. and MSc. Degrees in physics from the University of Chicago in 1955 and 1956. He was employed for 14 years as a nuclear physicist by such companies as GE, GM, Westinghouse, TRW Systems, Aerojet General Nucleonics, and McDonnell-Douglas working in such highly advanced, classified, eventually cancelled programs as nuclear aircraft, fission and fusion rockets, and various compact nuclear power-plants for space and terrestrial applications.

He became interested in UFOs in 1958, and since 1967 has lectured about them at more than 600 colleges and 100 professional groups in 50 U.S. states, 9 Canadian provinces and 16 other countries in addition to various nuclear consulting efforts. He has published more than 90 UFO papers and has appeared on hundreds of radio and TV programs including on Larry King in 1997, 2007 and twice in 2008, and many documentaries. He is the original civilian investigator of the Roswell Incident and co-authored Crash at Corona: The Definitive Study of the Roswell Incident. TOP SECRET/MAJIC his controversial book about the Majestic 12 group, established in 1947 to deal with alien technology, was published in 1996 and went through 6 printings. An expanded new edition was published in 2005.

Stan was presented with a Lifetime UFO Achievement Award in Leeds, England, in 2002, by UFO Magazine of the UK. He is co-author with Kathleen Marden (Betty Hill’s Niece) of a book in 2007: Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience. The City of Fredericton, New Brunswick, declared August 27, 2007, Stanton Friedman Day. His book Flying Saucers and Science was published in June 2008 and is in its 4th printing. His newest book Science Was Wrong with Kathleen Marden, was published in June 2010. On July 2, 2010, he was inducted into the Roswell UFO Hall of Fame.

He has provided written testimony to Congressional Hearings, appeared twice at the UN, and been a pioneer in many aspects of ufology including Roswell, Majestic 12, The Betty Hill- Marjorie Fish star map work, analysis of the Delphos, Kansas, physical trace case, crashed saucers, flying saucer technology, and challenges to the S.E.T.I. (Silly Effort To Investigate) cultists. 

Stan has spoken at more MUFON Symposia than any other individual.

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June 24: Ufologists' Deaths

Robert J. Durant, UFO Researcher and Actor, Dies

UFO Deaths, Revisited

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