TSTEP6

 

EPISODE FIVE: CANDLES, LIES & MISINFORMATION

GRAHAM (V.O.): As I prepped my recording equipment, Jerry paced around the sparsely furnished room, unsure of what to do with himself in a such an uncomfortable situation. When Jerry does finally sit, he still doesn’t allow himself to relax. His eyes are heavy and tired, but his right leg shakes nervously throughout our talk.

GRAHAM: Do you mind if I record this? For the show?

JERRY: You’re probably already recording so why did you even ask?

GRAHAM: I just want to be sure I have your permission.

JERRY: I’ll do anything I need to do to help bring my son home.

GRAHAM: Right. Well, I’ll be honest with you Jerry. I was surprised when I saw your missed call. After our first conversation I was convinced you hated me.

JERRY: No, I don’t hate you, Graham. I can’t say that I know you well enough to hate you yet. But I’m only doing this for my son. Just to be clear.

GRAHAM: Let’s get to it then.

JERRY: That’s a nice little stack of index cards. Are those the questions you’ve come to ask me?

GRAHAM: Actually, yeah. (embarrassed) They are.

JERRY: Hit me with 'em. Let’s get this over with.

GRAHAM: What was Buddha like as a teenager? Did you two get along--

JERRY: Don’t waste my time. A question like that... you know what the answer is going to be. You can pretty much script my response. Rebellious, good hearted kid. All that shit. If you want to talk I’ll talk. Don’t waste my time trying to get me all nostalgic about the good ol’ days. That doesn’t help anyone.

GRAHAM: Well, I tell you what I’ll just skip the warm up questions--

JERRY: Skip to the end. Past the end, actually. Skip to your ride home tonight. What’s the question that’s still going to be burning in you? The one you’ll repeat over and over silently in your mind. The one you’re scared to ask right now...

GRAHAM: Why did you tell Buddha he was adopted?

JERRY: Fuck you. (pause) Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I asked you to do it. And you’re right... fucking hell... I... I guess Amy told you, huh... That makes sense.... A few weeks before... it happened, before Buddha disappeared, he was over here helping me with some home improvement projects I had going on. We were laying sod in the backyard and he was telling me about how he and Amy had decided to start trying to have a kid. I... we never planned on telling him. Beth and I decided everything would be easier if Buddha never knew he was adopted. He looked enough like each of our families. There was never really any question or suspicion. But for some reason that day, I decided my son had the right to know. So I told him.

GRAHAM: How did he take it?

JERRY: I think you already know the answer to that. He was visibly upset, but I understood why. He felt he had been lied to his entire life.

GRAHAM: Do you regret telling him? Or do you feel relieved to have let the truth out so-to-speak?

JERRY: My only regret is not being honest with him from the start. It had been weighing on me for awhile. Beth was furious though. And she had good right to be. I should have talked to her before saying anything to him. It should’ve been a choice we made together. Not something to just blurt out on the way back home from Lowes. I drove an unnecessary wedge between me and Beth and all the stress of trying to find Buddha didn’t exactly bring us back together.

GRAHAM: When did you—

JERRY: Move out? Split up?

GRAHAM: Yeah.

JERRY: It wasn’t too long after we got back from New Mexico. I think the last big fight was about money. Beth trusted every person who said they could help. She blew through half our life savings before the end of the year. $1500 on telephone psychics. $500 for Tarot Card readings. A couple grand on different private investigators. Exploitative shit like that. But the one that I still remember... it was too ridiculous to forget, $2789.12 to something called Third Eye Industries for a 9 Hour Psychic Remote Viewing Session. Can you imagine? Three Hundred Bucks an Hour to pretend to go places in your mind. Shit. I got into the wrong line of work.

As much as I pointed the finger at Beth... we’ve all got our own vices to drown in. I had been doing a good job of floating above mine. I hadn’t had a drink since 1999 and that first night after we came back from New Mexico I picked up a 40z of Mickeys. It’s true what they say... taking ‘just one drink’ is like stepping on a trap door.... I fell right back in. Everyone knows when the liquor store closes, but I knew when it opened. May not seem like much, but there’s a hell of a difference between the two.

Started hiding a bottle in a locked drawer in my desk at work. I knew I’d get caught. And deep down I think I wanted to. I wanted another reason to completely let myself fall apart. One drink and it’s tomorrow. Two drinks and its June. Three drinks and it’s Christmas. Next thing I knew I was moving out and living in a shit-hole apartment across town. (long pause) But I’m proud to say that I’m four months sober last Friday. Celebrated with a Cheesecake.

GRAHAM: Congratulations. Really.

JERRY: Not that it matters now. My son is gone. I’m well past my second and third chance with Beth. This whole sobriety thing, this time it’s just for me and I have to trust that that’s going to be enough.

GRAHAM: Every day is a challenge and getting through it is something to be proud of.

JERRY: Yeah, so I’ve heard.

GRAHAM: One of the things I’ve been really interested in talking to you about is The Jeep. Buddha’s Jeep.

JERRY: It’s sitting in my garage right now. I still drive it sometimes.

GRAHAM: Really? I can’t believe it still runs, 

JERRY: I’ve never had much trouble with it since I got it back. Outside of a funky blinker. But that’s common with this model.

GRAHAM: Would you mind if I...

JERRY: You wanna go take a look at it? Yeah, we can do that.

[GARAGE DOOR OPENING]

INT. GARAGE - DAY

JERRY: There she is in all her beauty.

GRAHAM: Can I look inside?

GRAHAM (V.O.): Jerry steps toward the Jeep, running his hand along the hood.

JERRY: Be my guest. Doubt you’ll find anything though.

[GEIGER COUNTER BEEPING RAPIDLY]

GRAHAM: Ho-ly shit.

JERRY: What in the hell is that thing?

GRAHAM: It’s a Geiger Counter. It’s used to detect radioactive emissions like gamma rays.

JERRY: Radiation?

GRAHAM: Yes. And it's displaying some significantly high readings.

JERRY: Hm.. Where did you get that thing? eBay?

GRAHAM: Amazon, actually.

JERRY: Right. That’s what I thought.

[CAR DOOR CLOSE]

JERRY: I think you got what you needed. Let’s go back inside. I’d like to show you the trophy room.

GRAHAM (V.O.): Regardless of where you stand on certain aspects of Amy’s claims, one thing that’s hard to debunk or rationalize is the Jeep. Even if this is some elaborate hoax, how the hell would anyone be able to get the Jeep to the edge of Eagle’s Beak Cliff and then stand it up on its back wheels?

INT. TROPHY ROOM - DAY

GRAHAM: He looks so young here.

JERRY: Yeah that’s 1998, so that’s probably still T-ball at that time. Hard to get all those kids to stay still for the team picture.

JERRY: You see that little gold medal right there, Eighth Grade Spelling champ. This room is about more than just sports ya know. I was proud of everything he did. Up there on the wall is his first acoustic guitar. Most kids were trying to play Green Day and Buddha was sitting in his room learning Hall & Oates. 

GRAHAM: Which song?

JERRY: Maneater.

GRAHAM: Jerry, thanks for having me over. I really appreciate it.

JERRY: You know Graham I used to think you were a total piece of shit. Now I’m not so sure. (laughs)

GRAHAM: Sounds like a compliment to me. If you think of anything else you’d like to share or anything you think might help...

JERRY: I’ve got your number.

GRAHAM: Right. You’ve got my number.

GRAHAM (V.O.): This is The Subjective Truth. Stay with us.

DINA'S SILVERPLATE STUDIOS AD COPY: This episode of The Subjective Truth is brought to you by Dina’s Silver Plate Studio. Researching your Ancestry can be insightful and rewarding. But wouldn’t it be great if learning about your unique heritage offered something more than a poorly signed name on a list and a colorful pie chart? What if you were able to actually see your ancestors? Dina’s Silver Plate Studios, delivers high quality hd portraits of ancestors from your personal family tree straight to your door. All they need is an oral swab from three members of your family. The older the family member, the better. Using the information they gather from your samples, and bringing together science and history, the team at Dina’s Silver Plate Studios is able to generate, with 98% accuracy, high quality HD portraits of ancestors from up to six generations back in personal family tree. A new family photo of a long lost family member is the perfect gift this holiday season. For more information visit silverplatestudios.com. Enter promo code SUBJECTIVE at checkout and get 15% off. At Dina’s Silver Plate Studios, our portraits are a thing of the past. 

GRAHAM: Buddha’s 8th Grade Spelling gold medal was quite impressive.

AMY: Oh my god, Jerry showed you too?

GRAHAM: Yeah.

AMY: That used to embarrass Buddha so much. I remember the first time I came by the house to meet them. He took me on the tour and showed me the Hall of Buddha. This, of course, was when he was still living with Beth... before they uh... split. Anyways, when Jerry was showing it off, the spelling medal, he asked Buddha to spell the winning word again, and Buddha refused. It led to this whole... thing. Got really awkward and intense for awhile. And ended with Buddha yell-spelling it back to Jerry across the Dinner table.

GRAHAM: Do you remember what the word was?

AMY: Ambidextrous. I’ll never forget it. (laughs) Oh, did Jerry also show you Buddha’s guitar?

GRAHAM: Yeah, that was our next stop on the tour.

AMY: Always is. He and Buddha are so alike. So alike. 

GRAHAM: What’s your relationship with Jerry like

AMY: Now? Or back then? Because now I’m fairly confident he hates me and blames me for his son’s disappearance, but back then when we were all happy-ish, me and Jerry got along pretty well. I was probably closer to him than I was to Beth. He loved inappropriate jokes and I knew a lot of them. It’s funny, but I wasn’t even going to be a part of the whole... podcast thing initially. Not until Jerry gave Buddha shit and said he should put me on mic if he ever wanted to attract a real audience.

GRAHAM: Pretty harsh. Why did you and Buddha decide to start a podcast?

AMY: (sarcastic) For the money. Definitely for the money.

GRAHAM: (sarcastic) The fame didn’t interest you?

AMY: (sarcastic) Oh true. The fame. Can’t forget about that sweet sweet fame. (laughs) No I’m joking of course, but really, if it wasn’t a podcast it would have been a youtube series. Or a self- published novel. Or a shitty self portrait oil painting. Buddha always had this creative drive within him and he could just never stay focused on anything for very long.

GRAHAM (V.O.): A few years before the pair launched ‘Armchair Treasure Hunters’ in 2018, Buddha and Amy attempted their hand at a True Crime Podcast called Mean Old World.

CLIP FROM PODCAST 'MEAN OLD WORLD'

[PIANO MUSIC LEAD-IN]

AMY: (narrating ‘mean old world’ podcast) The worst kind of story is story about yourself. Told by someone else. You can't control the narrative. You are what they say you are. You did what they say you did. Chicago, 1946. You're seventeen. It's summertime. The war is over. The world is finally at peace. And you... You've just committed three horrific murders. Admit it. We know the truth. Tell us why you did it. This is the story of The Lipstick Killer. And this is A Mean Old World. 

GRAHAM (V.O.): The podcast only lasted a few episodes before Buddha shut down the feeds.

AMY: For Buddha I think the success wasn’t instant enough. He wanted something that would immediately pop and take over iTunes. For me, eh... it was fun at first, but there’s only so many ways to describe people being shot or stabbed. So we scrapped everything and wanted to start over. Buddha still wanted to do a podcast, but we had a hard time agreeing on a topic. We were close to just moving on entirely. We were making plans to open an Etsy store for funny mugs and one day Buddha gets off work and he’s all excited and he pitches me his idea for the Fenn Treasure angle. It all sorta clicked in place pretty quickly after that. It’s weird to say, but I have a similar feeling now. About finding Buddha. I feel excited. Optimistic even. Is that strange?

GRAHAM: I wouldn’t say that it’s strange, but I would caution you to temper your expectations. I don’t want to feel like I’ve come here and filled you with false hope.

AMY: False hope is better than no hope. 

GRAHAM: I just—

AMY: I know there’s only an infinitesimal chance that I ever see him again, but please let me have this. But please just let me have this....  

GRAHAM: Okay. Go ahead...

AMY: I listened to the tapes of us in New Mexico a few times to see if, I don’t know, something would stand out to me that didn’t stand out while I was there. Or when I listened to the tapes before.

GRAHAM: Any luck? 

AMY: Not really, no, but that did send me down a UFO rabbit hole online. I thought that even with what I told you and what Buddha and I had said on the tapes, we didn’t do a great job of describing what we saw that night. So I started looking for pictures that looked similar. I found three that are really close. There’s one on page 179, of a book called, Beyond the Phoenix Lights. But the best one to look at if you really want to understand what we saw, is a post on Reddit under the title, ‘Moms boyfriend took this photo of seven lights floating together in Joshua Tree, CA.’ It creeps me out how similar it is. And I’m not saying Aliens abducted my husband. What I’m saying is that I did see this thing, and I think we should look into it. Maybe there’s something there.

GRAHAM: Email me the pictures and I’ll post them on the site. There’s always a chance that someone else has seen something similar. You mentioned you also looked into the (pause) thing in the cave?

AMY: That’s a whole different story. My creepypasta research had me thinking it was a Rake or a full grown Dover Demon or something worse, i don’t know. 3AM on the internet is a weird time and place. You can convince yourself of anything. 

GRAHAM: You're not going to tell me the Earth is flat, right?

AMY: Of course not. Its hollow. And full of nazis. (Laugh) But, no seriously though, after hearing the one caller, Dave from Buffalo, I think was his name... He said it sounded like a bear with mange, so I decided to look into it. I didn’t want to believe it at first, but after looking at some pictures and videos of bears with mange... I can say yeah... that’s probably what it was. Just some sick scared bear I woke up. Buddha probably never even saw it.

GRAHAM: (sarcastic) So, it's a not a HideBehind?

AMY: No. (laughs) Probably not.

GRAHAM: I’m a little hesitant to ask you this third one, but I’m interested in seeing where it leads us.

AMY: You’re making me nervous.

GRAHAM: I saw your post about attempting to ‘jump dimensions’... Is this something you’re actively trying to do?

AMY: Yeah, I’ve been dabbling.

GRAHAM: Is this about Stephanie Jacobsen and what she claims happened to her?

AMY: Yeah, so I guess that's where it started, but really its about what happened to me. Remember I was in the woods and then I woke up in that weird hotel. No one can explain that to me. Stephanie and this whole alternate dimension, dimensional jumping thing... Its the closest thing I have to an answer. 

GRAHAM: How’s it done? 

AMY: Look I know its not real.

GRAHAM: I did a cursory google and saw something about a candle and a mirror. Is that right? I’m actually kinda interested.

AMY: Sorta. The introductory method, if you will, is called The Mirrored Candle. So obviously you’re going to need a mirror. And a candle. The bigger the mirror, and the bigger the candle, the better.

GRAHAM: Got it.

AMY: You’re going to want to try and do this on or as close to 4am as possible. At different times of the day it’s going to take more to get it done.

GRAHAM: Like a larger candle and mirror?

AMY: Exactly. I can tell you’re mocking me. So stop it. The next thing you’re going to want to do is turn off all of the lights and sounds in the room.  Make the area around you as quiet and as dark as possible. Light the candle. Face the mirror. Focus on your own face and try to relax your mind. Hum to yourself. Not a tune, just a constant tone. Hmmm.. Like that.

GRAHAM: How long do I do that for?

AMY: For as long as it takes.

GRAHAM: Is it okay to blink?

AMY: Yeah, it's okay to blink. You’re not having a staring contest with yourself, you’re just trying to connect with your internal essence.

GRAHAM: My internal essence.... gotcha.

AMY: So if you’re not being a condescending asshole and you’re instead following along with the instructions at home, then at this point it should start to feel creepy and uneasy while you stare into your own reflection. 

GRAHAM: How do I know when it’s... done its thing?

AMY:  If your flame still burns then you’re still in your original dimension. You haven’t jumped anywhere. But if it goes out suddenly, close your eyes, take in a deep breath and then re-open them. That’s it. To see if it was successful you’re supposed to start looking for signs. Small differences in your new dimension compared to your old one.

GRAHAM: You mentioned this was the beginners method. What's the advanced way of going about doing this?

AMY: Yeah. It's a little more dangerous and expensive so I definitely discourage anyone from attempting this at home.

GRAHAM: Right. Safety first. 

AMY: It's called The DeLuca Method. You'll need a Copper Clawfoot Bathtub. A stereo. A few dozen gallons of water. And an Amplifying Helmet. 

GRAHAM: Amplifying Helmet? Amy come on.

AMY:  It sounds dumb, but it's not a joke. I have one.

GRAHAM: (sarcastic) Where does one get an Amplifying Helmet?

AMY: Mock it if you want, but--

GRAHAM: Sorry... Sorry..

AMY: I know how I sound.

GRAHAM: I’ll stop being a condescending shithead.

AMY: Promise?

GRAHAM: I promise.

AMY: The helmet sits over the crown of you head and down over your eyes. It has these gears over the eyes.

GRAHAM: Is it metal?

AMY: Yeah and its heavy as fuck. Very uncomfortable, but its pretty cool. You just put it on, empty your mind and let yourself drift. One you do the gears over your eyes start turning. If you lose focus they'll immediately stop. It reminds me of this one time at SXSW when Buddha and I did this Dominos Pizza themed video game. We had to wear these small visors over our foreheads and  stare at a screen. On the screen was a dividing line in the middle and an image of a pizza. They told us to stare directly at the pizza and focus on nothing but the pizza. And then the pizza would move left to right depending upon who maintained better focus. It really worked. Crazy shit. And that was like six years ago. 

GRAHAM: Getting a bit off track

AMY: No, it's all tied in. What I mean is that I think its working in the same way. 

GRAHAM: But what's the helmet actually supposed to do?

AMY: Different things for different people. Or different situations. But in this particular scenario you're supposed to hear a voice and the voice will tell you a number.

GRAHAM: What number?

AMY: Different for each person. But once you know what your number is the next step is to prep your stereo. You’ll need to be able to play a song that emits at 8Hz. It’s like, the magic vibration to connect with the universe or something.

GRAHAM (V.O.): I believe what Amy’s referring to here is the Schumann Resonance. Another name for the electromagnetic frequency of Earth, and supposedly, the human mind. In the Theta state, that fuzzy time between lucidity and sleep, the brain waves of the human mind operate at a frequency of 8Hz.

AMY: It shouldn’t be hard to find some music that plays at that frequency. They’re all over youtube now.  Find something that’s long or looped because you might need it to be playing for awhile. Once you have the music going turn the speakers up to the maximum volume and start filling up the tub.

GRAHAM: Hot water or cold water?

AMY: Doesn’t matter. Your choice. Once the tub is full, climb in and slowly submerge yourself into the water. Take a deep breath, think of nothing but your number and then lower your head. Once completely under the water you should begin counting backward from your number. Slowly. On beat with the passing seconds. If you think of anything else besides your number, you fail and it won’t work. If you get out of the water prior to finishing your countdown, you fail and it won’t work. If you drown, obviously, you fail and it won’t work. But if you’re able to finish your countdown with a clear mind, entirely submerged underwater then you should have, at this point, successfully completed The DeLuca Method.

GRAHAM (V.O.): I did some research after speaking with Amy and though I was unable to find any reliable historical reference for The DeLuca Method, I was surprised to find that The DeLuca Method has been bouncing around Pop Culture for the last few years. In P.J. Riley’s 2018 music video for the song ‘I Will Never Die’ the singer appears to be re-enacting The DeLuca Method, as well as the Mirrored Candle, and the occult game, Three Kings. And as recently as this year, in the 2021 movie, “Two Flat-Earthers Kidnap a Freemason” comedians Chris O’Dell and Justin Devlin, appear to be attempting The DeLuca Method during a montage scene. Another thing I found was a website. Lots of testimonials. Pull quotes. Pictures. And a link to a store where you can buy an amplifying helmet. Something called Conductive Water. And even a custom made Copper Clawfoot Bathtub. All your dimensional jumping needs in one place. And with every order over two hundred dollars you'll get a free paperback copy of, "The Center of the Universe," by the creator of the site... Sophia DeLuca. My ever quirky father would call these people Goose Map Salesmen. Someone who knows the way and is willing to sell you the map. And if you look DeLuca up on Youtube you'll get gems like these...

SOPHIA DELUCA: (on YouTube video) There are blank pages. In unbound books. In empty spaces on library shelves. Waiting to be filled with our story. Listen. History is being rewritten… Can you hear it? You and your universe. Ever changing… bit by bit. Cells dying to be replaced by new cells. Creating an entirely new you and the world around you. Sometimes it slips… Do you feel it? Now I want you to imagine your perfect self. The one who did all the things you wanted to do. The one who always kept in touch.  The one who always kept their cool. And I want you to imagine that version of yourself dying… Suddenly and violently… Now I want you to imagine the worst version of yourself. The one who did all the things you wanted to do.  The one who lashed out. The one who ignored it. And I want you to imagine that version of yourself sobbing… Locked away in a dark empty room. All alone. Begging for help. Do you want to help them? Do you? Now I want you to imagine the you version of yourself. The one who did all the things you decided to do. The one who said all those things you said. The one who wasted all that time. And I want you to imagine that version of yourself …on fire… 

GRAHAM: How do you know if it worked?

AMY: The best part of the DeLuca Method is that there’s a built in way to check that. 

GRAHAM: How so?

AMY: The first thing you think about when you pop up out of the water, the very first thought that crosses your mind, this will be your subject. You’re supposed to give it a few days, and look around in your daily life for that subject to present itself. In some of the testimonials I read online, people were saying they got Owls or Clowns for their subject and then saw Owls and Clowns everywhere for weeks. Others would say that their subject was something simple, but rare, like a red paper clip. And then the red paper clip would show up everywhere in their life.

GRAHAM: So have you been able to find your red paper clip, yet?

AMY: Still looking...

GRAHAM: Well at least things seem to be getting better for you. I’ve noticed your name popping up everywhere over the past few weeks. Abductee Files with Amy Kline. An interview on Mysteries of the Universe. Jacob Carrol’s Campfire Calls... 

 AMY: Why do you sound upset when you say that?

GRAHAM: I get it. I’m a fan too, but do you think this is helping us?

AMY: Are you really going to be upset with me for doing other podcast interviews?

GRAHAM: I thought we agreed that we would work together to tell your side of what happened.

AMY: And we are. What does it matter if I also talk to other podcasters? Isn’t finding Buddha what really matters? Isn’t that what you told me?

GRAHAM: I want to be sure that the narrative isn’t being twisted.

AMY: No, Graham, you want to be the one who is twisting it. We’re in here talking about alternate fucking dimensions right now.

GRAHAM: You brought it up.

AMY: Yeah, but only one of us is getting paid for it though. 

[CALL DISCONNECTS]

GRAHAM: Shit... 

GRAHAM (V.O.): When I decided to take on this project I knew it would present unique challenges. I knew the facts had been widely distorted. And I knew the emotional bruising hadn’t been given enough time to heal. But I also knew that cold cases don’t get attention... unless they get attention. So I’m doing my best to do just that. To bring attention to the disappearance of Buddha Kline, one way or another, but with that being said, there is definitely a wrong way to do it. I know I don’t own this story. It’s okay if you want to help spread awareness and cover the Buddha Kline disappearance on your true-crime-comedy-and-drinking-with-friends podcast, but if you do, please treat the victims with some respect, and get your facts straight. People, as a whole, tend to be on the gullible side. And when presented with information posed as fact from a supposedly reliable source, people will trust that the information is indeed, the truth. And there’s a good chance they will pass the information they’ve learned onto someone else and so on and so on. 

[MUSIC: SUB URBAN "CRADLES”]

GRAHAM (V.O.): In 1917, a journalist named H.L. Mencken set out to demonstrate that gullibility. He published a comprehensive history of the bathtub, from its inception to latest innovations. Included specific facts, dates and names... it was very detailed work. And all of it, a complete fabrication. The experiment was, however, a success, as many of the bathtub facts stated by Mencken are still circulated and cited today, over one hundred years later. Misinformation has a way of sticking around. So stop that shit. And to whoever’s been following me around town driving the blacked out Cadillac. I see you too.

[VOICEMAIL BEEP]

DEREK (voicemail): Listen up kids, it's story time with Derek again. So, we recovered the acorn and Anna Dietrich, and overnight my life changed forever. Literally. The very next morning I was informed that I’d been removed from my civilian duties which was a non-subtle way of saying that, on the record, I was dead. And they made it clear that the only reason I was still alive was because Anna Dietrich requested it. I guess her having pressed a gun to my head had somehow endeared me to her. She took to calling me Schatz or Liebling. Never my real name. Derek was dead. I was no one from nowhere. I was a twenty-two year old former Air Force Intelligence Officer working in a 12-level underground base with a team of researchers and scientists and a woman who claimed she traveled twenty-three years through time... Sounds strange, but you’d be surprised what kinds of things can be normalized after a few years of working somewhere.

In my office it was UFOs, Monsters, Little Goblins and lots of big hairy ape shapeshifters... Bill, one of the guys in creative, had a thing about Bigfoots. Bigfoots? Bigfeet? How do you say it? Anyway. It doesn’t matter. The point is, we were just exploring this new technology and having fun with it. We never considered the consequences. The roots of Project Screwdriver can be traced back much further in American history, but it really didn’t get started until Anna Dietrich’s arrival in 1965.

Before she came screaming out of the sky in that metal acorn, we were sitting in a hanger still trying to make a Beechcraft Transport Plane disappear. Anna’s return marked a radical shift in what we were trying to do and quite possibly what the human race was capable of doing. We started to focus on frequencies. Vibrations. The natural hum of the world, if you will. And that really opened up a lot for us. We believed we’d discovered a true balance between biology and technology.

Lots of deep pockets were interested in what we could produce for them. Our first test run was in 1966, in our own backyard of Point Pleasant, West Virginia. We thought about all of the different possibilities. A meat shower? A plague of Cicada? It was like The Wild West or The Old Testament. We could make whatever we wanted. Bill had this thing he thought we’d be able to engineer. He called it the Sheepsquatch.

Old man Levinson, Hilbert, and even a few of the Princeton guys were all in there to hear his pitch. We laughed the poor bastard out of the room. But... as we talked about all the ways we’d have made it better, a different monster came into form. It took some time to decide on the specifics, but two days after Valentine’s Day, 1966, the Mothman was born. The Mothman went on to be a success. A huge success, really. But it was not without blowback. We’d pushed it a bit too far and might’ve... done something we shouldn’t have. But no one seemed to care and we had more funding than we knew what to do with. The powers that be packed up our little operation and moved it out West. To New Mexico. And eventually, I made sure Bill got the chance to make his Sheepsquatch a reality too.