Donald Keyhoe
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Donald Edward Keyhoe | |
---|---|
Born | Ottumwa, Iowa, US | June 20, 1897
Died | November 29, 1988 | (aged 91)
Alma mater | United States Naval Academy |
Spouse | Helen Gardner |
Children | 3 |
Notes | |
Donald Edward Keyhoe (June 20, 1897 – November 29, 1988) was an American
In the 1950s, Keyhoe became a
Early life and career
Keyhoe was born and raised in
]In 1922, his arm was injured during an airplane crash in
In 1927, Keyhoe managed a coast-to-coast tour by Charles Lindbergh. This led to Keyhoe's first book, 1928's Flying With Lindbergh. The book was a success, and led to a freelance writing career, with Keyhoe's articles and fictional stories (mostly related to aviation) appearing in a variety of publications.[citation needed]
Keyhoe returned to
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/Weird_Tales_July_1926.jpg/200px-Weird_Tales_July_1926.jpg)
Writing for the pulps and glossies
By the time his UFO books appeared, Keyhoe was already an established author, with stories in the
Keyhoe wrote a number of air adventure stories for
Keyhoe's other "superpowered" flying ace was Richard Knight, a World War I veteran who was blinded in combat but gained a supernatural ability to see in the dark. Knight featured in 35 adventure stories from 1936 to 1942. [11]
Other series he wrote included the "Eric Trent" series in Flying Aces and the "Vanished Legion" in Dare-Devil Aces, and two long-running series: "The Devildog Squadron" in Sky Birds and "The Jailbird Flight" in Battle Aces. [12]
Many of Keyhoe's stories for the pulps were science fiction or Weird Fantasy, or contained a significant measure of these elements — a fact that was not lost on later critics of his UFO books.[13]
He was also a
]The Flying Saucers Are Real
Interest in UFOs broke out across the United States following pilot
As their forms, flight maneuvers, speeds and light technology was apparently far ahead of any nation's developments, Keyhoe became convinced that they must be the products of unearthly intelligences, and that the
Keyhoe's article "Flying Saucers Are Real" appeared in the January 1950 issue of True (published December 26, 1949) and caused a sensation. Though such figures are always difficult to verify,
Capitalizing on the interest, Keyhoe expanded the article into a book,
Keyhoe wrote several more books about UFOs.
Carl Jung argued that Keyhoe's first two books were "based on official material and studiously avoid the wild speculations, naivete or prejudice of other [UFO] publications."[19]
The Flying Saucer Conspiracy
In 1955, Keyhoe authored The Flying Saucer Conspiracy, which pointedly accused elements of United States government of engaging in a conspiracy to cover up knowledge of flying saucers.[20] Keyhoe claims the existence of a "silence group" of orchestrating this conspiracy.[21] Historian of folklore Curtis Peebles argues: "The Flying Saucer Conspiracy marked a shift in Keyhoe's belief system. No longer were flying saucers the central theme; that now belonged to the silence group and its coverup. For the next two decades Keyhoe's beliefs about this would dominate the flying saucer myth."[21]
The book features claims of a possible discovery of an "orbiting space base" or a "Moon base", knowledge of which might trigger a public panic.[22] The Flying Saucer Conspiracy also incorporated legends of the Bermuda Triangle disappearances.[21] Keyhoe sensationalized claims, ultimately stemming from optical illusions, of unusual structures on the moon.[23]
The NICAP era
In 1956, Keyhoe cofounded the
NICAP founder Thomas Townsend Brown was ousted as director in early 1957 after facing repeated charges of financial ineptitude. Keyhoe replaced him; he was only slightly better at managing NICAP's finances, and the organization often faced financial shortfalls and crises throughout Keyhoe's twelve years as director.[24] Even so, it would remain the largest and most influential civilian UFO research group in the United States from the late 1950s to the late 1960s.[25]
With Keyhoe in the lead, NICAP pressed hard for Congressional hearings and investigation into UFOs. They scored some attention from the mass media, and the general public (NICAP's membership peaked at about 15,000 during the early and mid-1960s) but only very limited interest from government officials.[citation needed]
However, there was increasing criticism of the Air Force's Project Blue Book. Following a widely publicized wave of UFO reports in 1966, NICAP was among the chorus which called for an independent scientific investigation of UFOs. The Condon Committee was formed at the University of Colorado with this goal in mind, though it quickly became mired in infighting and later, in controversy. Keyhoe publicized the so-called "Trick Memo", an embarrassing memorandum written by the Condon Committee coordinator which seemed to suggest that the ostensibly objective and neutral committee had determined to pursue a debunking operation well before even beginning their studies.[citation needed]
Television appearances
On January 22, 1958, Keyhoe appeared on a CBS live television show the Armstrong Circle Theatre to speak on the topic of UFOs. Keyhoe charged that a U.S. Congressional committee was evaluating evidence that "will absolutely prove that the UFOs are machines under intelligent control". However CBS stopped the audio portion of the live broadcast. Herbert A. Carlborg, CBS director of editing stated "this program had been carefully cleared for security reasons".[26]
On March 8, 1958, Keyhoe appeared on
In 1967, Keyhoe appeared as himself on the May 23 episode of To Tell the Truth, receiving three of four possible votes.[28]
Keyhoe was portrayed by actor Adam Greydon Reid in an episode of the television series Project Blue Book. In the episode, "The Lubbock Lights" (aired January 22, 2019), Keyhoe is a writer (spelled in the IMDB credits as "Donald Kehoe") who federal agents try to intimidate into clearing his UFO stories through them before publication.[citation needed]
Later life
NICAP's membership plummeted in the late 1960s, and Keyhoe was blamed by critics within NICAP for the organization's decline. Some NICAP members accused him of incompetent handling of NICAP's finances and personnel, and of being too authoritarian in his leadership style. By July 1969 NICAP was facing bankruptcy, and Keyhoe was forced to lay off five of NICAP's nine staff members.
In 1973, Keyhoe wrote his final book about UFOs, Aliens from Space. It promoted "Operation Lure", a plan to entice extraterrestrials to land on Earth, and described the problems Keyhoe had getting information from government agents.[33]
Beyond this book, Keyhoe had little contact with ufology as he settled into retirement. However, he did speak at several UFO conferences after his ouster from NICAP. In 1981 he joined
Several of Keyhoe's books are now in the public domain and are available online.[citation needed]
Books
- Flying with Lindbergh, 2003 (reprint), Kessinger Publishing, ISBN 0-7661-4294-9
- ISBN 1-59605-877-3
- Flying Saucers from Outer Space (1953), Henry Holt and Company, NY
- The Flying Saucer Conspiracy, 1955, Henry Holt and Company, NY
- Flying Saucers: Top Secret, 1960, G.P. Putnam & Sons, ASIN B000EB427C
- Aliens from Space: The Real Story of Unidentified Flying Objects, 1973, Signet Press, ASIN B000HYOMMG
- The Vanished Legion, 2011 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 0-9820950-6-6
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange War, 2011 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 0-9820950-8-2
- The Complete Adventures of Richard Knight Volume 1, 2011 (reprint), Altus Press, ISBN 1-6182700-7-9
- The Complete Adventures of Richard Knight Volume 2, 2017 (reprint), Altus Press,
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Enemies, 2012 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 0-9820950-9-0
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Operators, 2014 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1-937590-02-4
- The Jailbird Flight: Dead Man's Drome, 2015 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1-937590-04-8
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Staffels, 2015 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1937590055
- The Complete Adventures of Eric Trent, Volume 1, 2016 (reprint), Altus Press, ISBN 9781618272829
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Spectres, 2016 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1-937590-08-6
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Hell, 2017 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1937590109
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Squadrons, 2018 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1937590130
- The Jailbird Flight: The Devil Flies High, 2018 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1937590116
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Deaths, 2019 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1937590147
- Captain Philip Strange: Strange Rivals, 2021 (reprint), Age of Aces, ISBN 978-1937590161
- Devildog Squadron: The Crimson Fog, v1 2022 (reprint), Age of Aces
- Devildog Squadron: The Flying Juggernaut, v2 2023 (reprint), Age of Aces
- The Complete Adventures of Eric Trent, Volume 2, 2023 (reprint), Altus Press
See also
- Condon Report
References
- Gale Group, 2001. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Michigan: Gale, 2009. galenet.galegroup.com Fee via Fairfax County Public Library. Document number: K1656000899.
- ^ a b
Donald E(dward) Keyhoe. (April 30, 1998) Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2002. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2009. galenet.galegroup.comFee via Fairfax County Public Library. Document number: H1000053777.
- ^ "Donald E. Keyhoe, 91, Exponent of UFOs". The New York Times. December 3, 1988. p. 33. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
- ^ "UFO Investigator, Author Donald E. Keyhoe, 91, Dies". The Washington Post. December 2, 1988. p. d.06. Archived from the original (Fee) on October 20, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
- ISBN 1-57859-029-9
- ISBN 978-1949501322.
- ISBN 9781558887411.
- ^ The Marine Corps Gazette. Marine Corps Association. 1922.
- ^ "Magazine Data File".
- ^ "Captain Strange, the Brain Devil! Character sheet for an almost forgotten pulp hero. – HERO Games Discussion Boards". Hero Games. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
- ^ "Magazine Contents Lists: Page 111".
- ^ "Magazine Contents Lists: Page 111".
- ISBN 0-88962-585-9.p. 188
- ^ Folsom, Ryder. "-A A +A INQUIRY BY MAJOR DONALD E. KEYHOE (DELETED)". FOIA. C.I.A. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
- ^ Folsom, Ryder. "UNTITLED (KEYHOE IS INSISTENT IN PURSUING THIS MATTER)". FOIA. C.I.A. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
- ^ Folsom, Ryder. "UNTITLED (TO DONALD KEYHOE FROM J. S. EARMAN STATING STILL HAVE INSUFFI CIENT". FOIA. C.I.A. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
- ^ Ruppelt, Edward J. (1956). The Report On Unidentified Flying Objects. New York: Ace Books. p. 89.
- F&SF, Fall 1950, p.83
- ^
C.G. Jung(1958). Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen in the Skies. p. xiii.
- ISBN 9781523928668.
- ^ a b c Peebles, p. 111-113
- ^ Keyhoe, p. 37
- ^ "A Natural Land Bridge on the Moon".
- ^ a b (Peebles, p. 162)
- ^ (Peebles, p. 141)
- ^ "HeraldTribune.com – De Void – The mainstream media's lonely UFO web log. – HeraldTribune.com". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2008.
- ^ "The Mike Wallace Interview with Major Donald E. Keyhoe, 3/8/1958". Archived from the original on January 13, 2019. Retrieved September 27, 2008.
- ^ "To Tell the Truth". CBS. August 25, 2017. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
- ^ (Peebles, p. 231)
- ^ (Peebles, pp. 231-232)
- ^ (Peebles, p. 232)
- ISBN 0-520-23905-9.p. 17
- ISBN 0-912212-26-8.
Further reading
- Jerome Clark, The UFO Book: Encyclopedia of the Extraterrestrial; Visible Ink Press, 1998
- Edward J. Ruppelt, The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects
- Ann Druffel, Firestorm — Dr. James E. McDonald's Fight For UFO Science, Wild Flower Press, Columbus, 1997, ISBN 0-926524-58-5(passim, especially pp. 450–474)
- Michael D. Swords, "UFOs, the Military, and the Early Cold War" (pp. 82–122 in UFOs and Abductions: Challenging the Borders of Knowledge, David M. Jacobs, editor; University Press of Kansas, 2000; ISBN)
- H. W. Wilson, Current Biography, 1956, February 1989
- Curtis Peebles, Watch the Skies: A Chronicle of the Flying Saucer Myth; New York: Berkley Books, 1995.
External links
- Donald E. Keyhoe Archives
- Works by Donald Keyhoe at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about Donald Keyhoe at Internet Archive
- Works by Donald Keyhoe at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
- The Flying Saucers are Real by Donald Keyhoe (free ebook.)
- Donald E. Keyhoe Archived January 13, 2019, at the Wayback Machine interviewed by Mike Wallace on The Mike Wallace Interview March 8, 1958