June 24, Brian Keith, Hollywoodland, and Charles Fort

While researching the individual stories of those who have died on past June 24ths, I ran across the following series of syncs that gave me a Fortean surprise.

PART ONE

Brian Keith played the role of Mullibok in the 

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Episode 1:15 episode, "Progress," May 9, 1993,

On June 24, 1997 (exactly 50 years after the birth of the Age of Flying Saucers), Brian Keith, American actor (Family Affair, Loneliest Runner, The Parent Trap), died by suicide at 75.

From 1927 to 1929, Keith's stepmother was Peg Entwistle, a well-known Broadway actress who leapt to her death by jumping from the "H" of the famous Hollywood(land) Sign on September 16, 1932, at 24. The Hollywoodland Sign (installed in 1923), and the restored Hollywood Sign, is located on the southern side of Mount Lee in Griffith Park, north of the Mulholland Highway, and to the south of the Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) cemetery.

Entwistle appeared in only one film, Thirteen Women, which was released posthumously. Entwistle had won her first and only credited film role with Radio Pictures (later RKO).  Entwistle played a small supporting role as Hazel Cousins. It premiered on October 14, 1932, a month after her death, at the Roxy Theatre in New York City, and was released in Los Angeles on November 11, 1932, to neither critical nor commercial success. By the time it was re-released in 1935, 14 minutes had been cut from the film's original 73 minute running length. In 2008, Variety magazine cited Thirteen Women as one of the earliest "female ensemble" films.

Thirteen Women also starred Myrna Loy and Irene Dunne in the pre-Hays code, high-budget thriller produced by David O. Selznick and drawn from the novel by Tiffany Thayer. Tiffany Thayer? Whoa.

Born in Freeport, Illinois, Tiffany Thayer (picture above right with Cary Grant) quit school at age 15 and worked as an actor, reporter, and used-book clerk in Chicago, Detroit, and Cleveland. When he was 16, he toured as the teenaged hero in the Civil War drama The Coward. Thayer first contacted American author Charles Fort in 1924. In 1926, Thayer moved to New York City to act, but soon spent more time writing.

In 1931 Thayer co-founded the Fortean Society in New York City to promote Fort's ideas. Primarily based in New York City, the Society was headed by first president Theodore Dreiser, an old friend of Fort who had helped to get his work published. 

Early members of the original Society in NYC included such luminaries as Dorothy Parker, Booth Tarkington, Ben Hecht, Alexander Woollcott, and H. L. Mencken. Other members included Vincent Gaddis, Ivan T. Sanderson, A. Merritt, Frank Lloyd Wright and Buckminster Fuller. 

The first 6 issues of Doubt, the Fortean Society's newsletter, were each edited by a different member, starting with Dreiser. Thayer thereafter took over editorship of subsequent issues. Thayer began to assert extreme control over the society, largely filling the newsletter with articles written by himself. He also excommunicated the entire San Francisco chapter (including Miriam Allen deFord who never considered herself a nonmember, in spite of Thayer's action), reportedly their largest and most active, after disagreements over the society's direction, and forbidding them to use the name Fortean. 

During World War II, Thayer used every issue of Doubt to espouse his politics. In contrast to the spirit of Charles Fort, he dismissed not only flying saucers as nonsense but also the atomic bomb as a hoax by the US government.

Thayer also wrote several novels, including the bestseller Thirteen Women which was filmed in 1932 and released by RKO Radio Pictures. Many of his novels contained elements of science fiction or fantasy, including Dr. Arnoldi about a world where no-one can die.

On June 24, 1997, Brian Keith, who lived in Hawaii for a few years beginning in 1970, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his home in Malibu, California, two months after his daughter Daisy died by suicide.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (USA)

1-800-273-8255

+++

PART TWO

June 24th Deaths

Kenneth Arnold began the "Age of Flying Saucers" on June 24, 1947. The list of strange ufo-aligned deaths starts with that date of note.

Here is a quick overview of the notable ufo-related deaths on or near 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.

New Addition:

How did flying saucers' occupants and creatures become enculturated with 1950s' Americans? Drive-in theater movies employed make-up artist Bud Westmore's reinforcing imagery of ufo aliens and giant monsters as the template for society's view of how these things might appear. The Age of Flying Saucers had dawned. No wonder Westmore died on the date of June 24.

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 above), 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. ???

Trader Joe's: The Silver Lake Incident

Are we seeing a potential move in violence from Waffle House to Trader Joe's?

The Trader Joe's hostage incident occurred in Los Angeles on July 21, 2018, when a suspect, fleeing the police, crashed and ran at 3:30 P.M local time. Fears of a hostage situation arose. Police were involved by 4:00 P.M, and there were reports that the gunman opened fire. A woman was killed during the standoff, as the 28-year-old suspect was arrested.

The incident occurred at the Silver Lake Trader Joe's.

Initial reports of the Trader Joe's hostage situation said:
"Officers began pursuing the suspect in Hollywood, and they arrived at the supermarket on Hyperion Avenue about 3.30pm." 

In mythology, Hyperion is one of the 12 Titan children of Gaia and Uranus. He is also the father of Helios (The Sun). Here again we see the sync of 12 + 1 (The Sun/Son) = 13. ~ Sibyl Hunter

One female hostage was shot and killed. The suspect's 76-year-old grandmother, Mary Elizabeth Madison, was shot 7 times and was reported to be in critical condition; and another female hostage, the perpetrator's girlfriend, was shot but merely grazed by the bullet.

Trader Joe's store employee Melyda Corado was killed. Two days after the shooting, it remained unclear whether she was inside or outside the store when she was shot, and unclear whether she was shot by a police bullet or by the gunman police where exchanging fire with.

Corado means "ruddy or reddish" in Portuguese. On another thread someone said the words "silver" and "lake" both relate to the Moon. So this could be a foreshadowing of the Blood Moon lunar eclipse coming on Friday 7/27 (which some believe portends the end of the world). Astrologers say the Mars influence surrounding this eclipse can cause reckless actions, aggression and emotional problems. ~ Sibyl Hunter  

“And I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord comes.” - Acts 2:19-20

On July 21, 1969, at 02:56 UTC, astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon. After his televised steps, Armstrong performed a strange ritual of an entirely different sort, of a dark and ominous character, took place at Tranquillity Base on the moon. It was not beamed to the earth via television. Astronaut Neil Armstrong carefully took out a Masonic apron, as did Buzz Aldrin, and held it up for the cameras. Did Armstrong do this for his father? See  here.

Back to Silver Lake and the Trader Joe's...

The violent episode appears to have begun on the evening of Friday, July 20, when Atkin's cousin spotted Atkins sleeping in his grandmother's home on 32nd Street near Long Beach Avenue with a gun under his pillow. According to Atkins' cousin, Charlene Egland, Atkins, who had lived with his grandmother since he was a young child, had been quarreling with his grandmother over his live-in girlfriend; the grandmother did not want her living in the home. Atkins shot his grandmother and his girlfriend at about 1:30 pm on July 21, a Saturday, then forced his girlfriend, who was bleeding from the gunshot wound, into his grandmother's car and drove off. Police traced his car to the Hollywood area and gave chase. Suspect crashed his grandmother's Toyota into a power pole in Silver Lake in front of the Trader Joe's supermarket on Hyperion Avenue at 3:30 p.m. Atkins emerged from the vehicle holding a handgun, and firing at the police. According to witnesses at the scene, Atkins fired at police officers at least twice. Corado, the manager of the Trader Joe's store was shot. There were between 40 and 50 people inside the grocery store.

Atkins was holding his handgun as he ran into the store, police where firing at him, and it is not clear whether the store manager, Corado, was shot by Atkins or by police firing at Atkins as he ran into the store during the shootout.

During the hostage crisis, police officers in riot gear standing outside the store used mirrors to watch as hostage negotiators persuaded Atkins to release the hostages and surrender. At about 6:30 p.m., he agreed to handcuff himself, and was led form the building accompanied by four hostages to insure that he would not be shot. He was then taken into custody.

The suspect was described as an African-American male. He had lived with his grandmother since he was 7 years old. According to his cousin, Atkins had recently lost his job and two cars, according to his cousin, who lives next door, Atkins had previously slashed the tires on his grandmother's car and borked windows in hie house. The cousin described him as having a history of mental health problems, and as a quiet man who had been despondent about his future. She quoted him as having said, "The next thing I do, I'm going to die doing it or I'm going to jail."

He opened fire on the police, but no officers were reported injured. The gunman was identified as 28-year-old Gene Evin Atkins who was arrested, charged with murder, and is being held on $2 million bail.

Three Dead: The Minnesota-UCLA Incidents

There has been a shooting on the campus of UCLA on Wednesday, June 1, 2016. The incident occurred around 10 a.m. Pacific time.

Reports are that three gunshots were heard in Engineering Building No. 4. Two people were first said to be injured, but by 11:30 a.m., LAPD said they were dead.

The FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were responding, the agencies said. The Los Angeles Police Department was placed on citywide tactical alert and sent hundreds of officers to the Westwood campus and surrounding neighborhoods around 10:30 a.m.

The motive for the shooting was not immediately clear, law enforcement officials told The Times.

According to the Daily Bruin, the shooter was wearing a black jacket and black pants.

Sean Lynch, the son of a professor who works in the engineering building, was exchanging text messages with his father as the campus was placed on lockdown. Lynch said his father was in a colleague’s office and heard three gunshots, but did not see the shooters.

Whether this is a murder-suicide or a shooting of two males with an unknown suspect still on the loose is unclear from the LAPD news conference held at 11:35 a.m. Pacific.

Campus police, however, are reporting a suicide note and a handgun have been found at the scene.

Several sources identified the victim as William S. Klug, 39, a father of two who studied the interaction between mechanics and biology.

The suspect in the shooting of a UCLA professor has been named as PhD candidate Mainak Sarkar. The victim was Professor William Klug. He was a teacher in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, according to his official bio on the school’s website.

Sarkar was first named in a report by CBS News. He was a native of Minneapolis and had a PhD in solid mechanics from UCLA.

Sardar, which is Indian (Bengal) and Bangladeshi, is a Hindu name found in several communities, from a title based on Persian sarkar "chief," "superintendent," "lord." Mainak generally means "a mountain, a Himalayan peak," and is of Indian origin. A person with the name Mainak are mainly Hindu by religion.

Klug is an ancient German surname first recorded in the early 14th century, at the beginning of the use of hereditary surnames, in Europe. Recorded as Klug, Kluge, Kluger, Klugmann, Clugel, and the diminutive Clugelin, it originates from a pre-7th century word klouc meaning "noble" or "refined." In German, the meaning of the name William is "resolute protector" and "will."

Ashley Hasti, 31, whose last Facebook photo with Sarkar dates back to 2011, has been confirmed as a student at the University of Minnesota Medical School and a former tutor at North Hennepin Technical College. She did not appear to be Facebook friends with Mainak Sarkar at the time of her death.
In a 2013 Facebook post, Hasti wrote “Second year med school is great and all, but I keep having dreams where I’m being diagnosed in the doctor’s office with the disease I’m studying.”
Brooklyn Park police discovered Hasti’s body at 12:35 a.m. Thursday (June 2, 2016) after her name was found on a “kill list” Sarkar left in his St. Paul apartment. She died of an apparent gunshot wound, according to a Brooklyn Park police official.
Hasti first enrolled at the University of Minnesota Medical Schol in 2012. In 2008, she received a bachelor’s degree from the U in Asian languages and literature, a U spokesman said. Source.

RFK Assassination Site: Ambassador Hotel

The Ambassador Hotel stood at 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, between Catalina Street and Mariposa Avenue, Los Angeles, from 1921 until it was demolished in 2005. The famed Cocoanut Grove Nightclub was the place to rub elbows with the biggest names in Hollywood for more than four decades. After the assassination of Robert Kennedy in 1968 and the decline of the neighborhood, the Ambassador's fate was sealed. Even the valiant efforts of the Los Angeles Conservancy and Art Deco Society could not save the once treasured gem.

Now, thanks to InFocusTech, you can have a replica (shown above and below) of this important historical building.

This lost icon of LA is available from InFocusTech here.

The architect was Myron Hunt, shown on the right, above. Hunt is mentioned in the writings of Frank Lloyd Wright and other Chicago architects of the era as an early member of the group which came to be known as the Prairie School, but in 1903 he moved to Los Angeles. He was involved in designing the Rose Bowl and the Mount Wilson Observatory, as well as other southern California projects. Hunt fashioned the Ambassador Hotel in an eclectic Mediterranean Revival style with Art Deco elements and signage.

The date the Ambassador Hotel was completed, 1921; the date it was demolished, 2005. The InFocusTech replica's dimensions are 3-7/8" x 4-3/4" x 1-9/16". Order here.

InFocusTech's replicas are of the highest quality and sought after collectibles.

During the 1920s, the Ambassador Hotel's nightclub Cocoanut (it is not spelled "Coconut") Grove was frequented by celebrities like Louis B. Mayer, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, Howard Hughes, Clara Bow, Rudolph Valentino, Gloria Swanson, Anna May Wong, Norma Talmadge and others. According to Photoplay, Joan Crawford and Carole Lombard were frequent competitors in the Charleston contests held on Friday nights; Lombard was discovered at the Grove.

During the 1930s the Cocoanut Grove was frequented by celebrities of cinema such as Norma Shearer and Irving Thalberg, Errol Flynn, Jean Harlow, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Marlene Dietrich, Lana Turner, John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Lucille Ball, Ginger Rogers, Gary Cooper, Loretta Young, and countless others. On February 29, 1940, the 1939 Academy Awards Ceremony was held in the Cocoanut Grove, with Bob Hope hosting. (Many movie scenes were filmed at the Ambassador Hotel. See here.)

In the pantry area of the Ambassador Hotel's main kitchen, soon after midnight on June 5, 1968, and after a brief victory speech in the Embassy Room ballroom of the Ambassador Hotel, the winner of the California Democratic presidential primary election, Senator Robert F. Kennedy (RFK), was shot along with five other people. The date was significant, for it was the first anniversary of the first day of the Six-Day War between Israel and its Arab neighbors that began on June 5, 1967. RFK was shot on the first anniversary of this war, and died on June 6, 1968.

Palestinian immigrant Sirhan Bishara Sirhan - who was not a "Palestinian immigrant," but a Jordanian Christian Arab - was arrested at the scene and later convicted of the murder. Kennedy died one day later from his injuries, while the other victims survived their wounds. During the demolition of the Ambassador Hotel, in late 2005 and early 2006, portions of the area where the 1968 shooting occurred were eliminated from the site. The portion of Wilshire Boulevard in front of the hotel has been signed the "Robert F. Kennedy Parkway."

(Disclaimer: This is a review of this replica not linked to any fiscal reimbursement. - Loren)