Narrator: IN THIS SPECIAL EDITION OF "MONSTERS & MYSTERIES,"
THEY MAY BE THE STRANGEST FEAR-INDUCING FIENDS
EVER TO EMERGE FROM THE OUTER EDGE.
MYSTERIOUS MEN DRESSED IN BLACK.
Marsh: THE MOST TROUBLING THING ABOUT
THE MEN IN BLACK PHENOMENON IS THEIR COVERT NATURE.
YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN THEY'RE COMING.
THEY'RE COLORLESS. THEY'RE EMPTY.
YOU SHOULD BE WARY.
Redfern: ARE THEY PART OF SOME SECRET GOVERNMENT AGENCY,
A SHADOW ORGANIZATION, OR ARE THEY SOMETHING WEIRDER?
COULD THEY BE ALIENS THEMSELVES?
Narrator: THERE'S EVIDENCE THEY MAY BE THE OLDEST EVIL THERE IS.
Lewis: YOU'RE LOOKING AT MEN WHO REPRESENT SATAN,
THE ANTICHRIST, AND THE FALSE PROPHET.
Redfern: THIS BEGS THE QUESTION EVEN MORE --
WHO ARE THE REAL MEN IN BLACK?
Narrator: WE'VE RECOVERED THE DETAILS
OF ONE MAN'S LEGENDARY ENCOUNTER --
THE STORY IN HIS OWN WORDS, LOST FOR DECADES.
Man: A SEARCHER? Derenberger: A SEARCHER.
Narrator: NOW FOR THE FIRST TIME,
AN ENTIRE EPISODE STEPS INTO THIS DARK DOMAIN
TO DISCOVER THE REAL MEN IN BLACK.
[ GASPS ]
-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com
CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS
DISCOVERING THE TRUE NATURE OF THE SO-CALLED MEN IN BLACK
AND THEIR DARK AGENDA IS NO EASY TASK.
THE SEARCH COULD GO BACK CENTURIES AND EXTEND WORLDWIDE.
THE HUNT COULD TAKE YOU THROUGH SCORES OF CULTURES
AWASH WITH STORIES OF DARK DEVILS,
DEMONIC TRICKSTERS, AND PREDATORY VAMPIRES.
THE MEN IN BLACK KIND OF LOOK LIKE PALE-FACED VAMPIRES.
THEY LOOK LIKE GHOULS.
THEY LOOK LIKE SOMETHING DUG UP OUT OF THE GROUND.
THEY SEEM TO ATTRACT OR CAUSE POLTERGEIST ACTIVITY.
SO YOU HAVE AN ENTIRE SUBCULTURE
THAT SUPPORTS THE DEMONIC ANGLE FOR THE MEN IN BLACK.
Narrator: IN AMERICA, NO AREA OF MEN IN BLACK PHENOMENA
IS MORE NOTORIOUS THAN THEIR CONNECTION TO UFO ACTIVITY.
Man: LATEST EVIDENCE IN THE SAUCER MYSTERY
ARE THESE EXCLUSIVE MOTION-PICTURE FILMS
FROM LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.
Narrator: FOR MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY,
REPORTS OF ALIENS ARRIVING FROM OTHER PLANETS
HAVE TOUCHED NEARLY EVERY CORNER OF AMERICA.
CLAIMS ABOUT THESE EVENTS ARE SO NUMEROUS
THEY'RE DIFFICULT TO IGNORE.
BUT I CAN'T FATHOM IT BECAUSE IT SEEMS SO UNREAL.
Narrator: YET INVESTIGATING THESE REPORTS
IS A STEP THAT MAY CREATE DANGERS ALL ITS OWN.
MEN IN BLACK HAS KIND OF PUT A FEAR INTO MY HEART AND SOUL,
ESPECIALLY IN MY EARLY DAYS OF RESEARCH.
IN OTHER WORDS, "STOP IT OR YOU'LL BE SORRY"
SORT OF SYNDROME, AND THAT'S PRETTY SCARY.
Marsh: IF YOU ARE AN EXPERIENCER,
I THINK YOU ARE GOING TO BE LOOKING OVER YOUR SHOULDER.
Narrator: WITH SOME OF THE VERY FIRST FLYING-SAUCER EVENTS,
MEN IN BLACK ENCOUNTERS EMERGED.
JUNE 1947, PUGET SOUND, WASHINGTON.
TWO HARBOR PATROLMEN, HAROLD DAHL AND FRED CRISMAN,
WERE ON A WORK BOAT WHEN THEY OBSERVED
UNUSUAL SAUCER-SHAPED AIRCRAFT IN THE SKY.
WHAT IS THAT THING?
THINK WE OUGHT TO CALL IT IN?
WHAT ARE WE GONNA SAY IT IS?
Redfern: ONE OF THESE OBJECTS WAS MANEUVERING
IN A VERY ERRATIC AND STRANGE FASHION.
AND IT SUDDENLY EXPLODED IN THE SKY,
SHATTERING ALL THIS STRANGE WRECKAGE DOWN INTO THE HARBOR.
Marsh: ONE OF THOSE OBJECTS DROPPED SOMETHING DOWN ONTO THE SHIP,
WHICH ACTUALLY KILLED A DOG.
Narrator: ACCORDING TO CRISMAN AND DAHL,
AFTER THEY RETURNED TO PORT, EVENTS GOT EVEN STRANGER.
GENTLEMEN, PERHAPS YOU'VE SEEN THE WEATHER BALLOON?
BALLOON?
IT WAS A RANDOM WEATHER-BALLOON TEST.
HEY, MAN, THERE WAS AN EXPLOSION.
EASY MISTAKE.
"EASY MISTAKE"?
NOTHING TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT.
Redfern: DAHL WAS APPROACHED BY A REAL MAN IN BLACK,
AND HE WAS THREATENED WITH HIS LIFE.
HIS FAMILY'S LIFE WAS THREATENED...
YOU WILL NOT SPEAK OF THIS TO ANYONE.
...MAKING IT VERY, VERY CLEAR THAT UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES
SHOULD HE TALK ABOUT THIS ENCOUNTER.
YOU DON'T WANT TO ALARM ANYONE, DO YOU?
THIS PARTICULAR CASE IS IMPORTANT
BECAUSE THIS WAS THE VERY FIRST MAN IN BLACK ENCOUNTER
IN WHICH A WITNESS WAS THREATENED
AFTER HAVING SEEN A UFO.
Narrator: IT ALSO CONTAINED A KEY FEATURE OF THE MEN IN BLACK.
YOU KNOW, THE G-MAN LOOK --
THIN TIE, VERY WELL-PRESSED PANTS, BLACK OVERCOAT.
Redfern: VERY OFTEN WEARING FEDORA-STYLE HATS.
SO, THEY DO HAVE THIS AIR OF AUTHORITY ABOUT THEM,
WHICH DOES GIVE OFF KIND OF, LIKE, A GOVERNMENT ANGLE.
Narrator: THESE VISITS BEGAN OCCURRING WITH REGULARITY.
WHEREVER A UFO EVENT UNFOLDS AND SOMEONE STARTS ASKING QUESTIONS,
SOON THEY REALIZE THEY'RE THE ONES BEING INVESTIGATED.
FOR ALMOST 50 YEARS, STAN GORDON
HAS BEEN TRACKING UFO SIGHTINGS AROUND PENNSYLVANIA.
IN THE EARLY 1970s, WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
SEEMED PRACTICALLY UNDER ASSAULT.
WE HAD THIS MASSIVE WAVE OF UFO ACTIVITY
THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA.
ACTUALLY, IT WAS UNPRECEDENTED.
Marsh: ALL OF A SUDDEN, IT WAS LIKE AN INVASION.
IT WAS JUST REPORT AFTER REPORT AFTER REPORT COMING IN.
AND ONCE IT GOT UP INTO THE HUNDREDS OF REPORTS
AND THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE IN THIS REGION,
I MEAN, IT BECAME SERIOUS BUSINESS.
LIKE, WHAT THE HECK IS THIS?
Narrator: IT WAS IN THE MIDST OF ALL THE UFO SIGHTINGS
THAT STAN GOT THE FIRST CLUES
THE MEN IN BLACK WERE TRACKING HIM.
[ THUNDER CRASHES ]
AUGUST 24, 1973.
AT A TRAILER PARK IN DERRY, PENNSYLVANIA,
SOMETHING HAD JUST UNFOLDED -- SOMETHING OUT OF THIS WORLD.
Gordon: SO, WHEN WE GET ON THE SCENE, WE INTERVIEW THE FAMILY INVOLVED
AND SOME OF THE OTHER NEIGHBORS
WHO EXPERIENCED WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT.
IT WAS VERY APPARENT THESE PEOPLE WERE FRIGHTENED
AND VERY, VERY UPSET OVER WHAT THEY HAD EXPERIENCED.
YOU COULD SEE THE EMOTION.
THEY HAD SEEN SOMETHING THAT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO EXIST.
WE FOUND OUT THAT THIS WOMAN AND HER SON
WERE INSIDE OF THEIR TRAILER.
FROM THE BACK OF THEIR TRAILER, THEY HEARD SCRATCHING SOUNDS...
[ SCRATCHING ]
...AND ALSO WHAT SOUNDED LIKE BABY-CRYING SOUNDS.
[ BABY CRYING ]
THERE, AT VERY CLOSE RANGE,
SHE SEES THIS VERY TALL HUMANOID CREATURE,
WIDE-SHOULDERED, OVER 6' TALL.
THEY WERE VERY, VERY FRIGHTENED.
[ SCREAMS ]
Narrator: IT MUST HAVE BEEN ATTRACTED
TO THE TRAILER'S ELECTRICAL SUPPLY.
[ SCREAMS ]
Narrator: RIGHT AFTER, THE WOMAN'S POWER SHUTS OFF.
[ GROWLING ]
[ SCREAMING ]
Narrator: THE CREATURE DEPARTED BUT LEFT SOME RESIDUE BEHIND.
[ THUNDER CRASHES ]
THE WOMAN'S SCREAMS DREW THE ATTENTION OF NEIGHBORS,
WHO IMMEDIATELY CALLED THE POLICE.
HEY, WE'VE GOT A PRETTY BIG FOOTPRINT.
Gordon: AND WHEN THE POLICE GET OUT THERE,
THEY FIND WHAT APPEARED TO BE SOME FOOTPRINTS
THAT ARE VERY UNUSUAL.
Narrator: EVEN MORE UNUSUAL,
THE MEN IN BLACK THAT ARRIVED SOON AFTER.
[ TELEPHONE RINGING ]
LATER THAT NIGHT, STAN GORDON RECEIVED AN URGENT CALL.
Gordon: I'M ON THE LINE,
AND THE OPERATOR BREAKS IN WITH AN EMERGENCY CALL.
HELLO, STAN?
AND THE EMERGENCY CALL HAPPENED TO BE FROM THE WOMAN
WHO LIVED IN THAT MOBILE HOME.
SHE SAID...
SOMEONE CAME TO MY HOME.
THERE WAS THIS MAN HERE WHO WANTED TO TALK TO HER
ABOUT SEEING THE CREATURE THAT NIGHT.
DID THE CREATURE LEAVE ANY EVIDENCE?
SOMETHING ON THE DOORKNOB.
STAN TOLD ME TO KEEP IT.
WHO?
HE SAID HE WAS WITH YOU.
HE INDICATED THAT HE KNEW ME.
I WORK WITH STAN.
WHICH, OF COURSE, THAT WASN'T THE CASE.
IT'S OKAY TO GIVE IT TO ME.
AND IF SHE GAVE HIM THE SAMPLES, HE WOULD GET THEM TO ME.
Marsh: YOU NEVER KNEW WHEN THE MEN IN BLACK WERE GOING TO SHOW UP.
YOU NEVER KNEW HOW THEY GOT THEIR INFORMATION.
[ GASPS ] HE TOOK THE SAMPLE?
HE TOOK EVERYTHING.
HE'S NOT WITH US.
I'M SORRY.
PROBABLY ANY SERIOUS PERSON STUDYING UFOs IN THAT ERA
WOULD HAVE HAD SOME AT LEAST BASIC FEAR
THAT THE MEN IN BLACK WERE ALWAYS ONE STEP AWAY.
Redfern: THIS IS ALL PARTICULARLY UNNERVING
FOR THE WITNESSES
BECAUSE THE BIG QUESTION IS WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN NEXT?
IS THE MAN IN BLACK GONNA COME BACK?
Narrator: IMAGINE THE UNBELIEVABLE...
...WITNESSING FIRSTHAND AN UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT.
AS IF A UFO ENCOUNTER ISN'T SHOCKING ENOUGH,
FOR YEARS, STORIES HAVE CIRCULATED
ABOUT WITNESSES GETTING VISITS FROM MEN IN BLACK.
GENTLEMEN, PERHAPS YOU'VE SEEN THE WEATHER BALLOON.
THE FILES OF UFO RESEARCHER STAN GORDON
INCLUDE MANY INVESTIGATIONS SUDDENLY DERAILED.
THERE'S THE 1973 CASE OF AN APPARENT ALIEN ENCOUNTER
AT A TRAILER PARK IN SOUTHERN PENNSYLVANIA.
Gordon: AND THERE'S A YOUNG BOY THERE.
AND HE'S TAKING POLAROID PICTURES OF THE FOOTPRINTS.
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
Narrator: JUST THEN, A STRANGE, DARK-SUITED MAN ARRIVED.
I JUST TOOK A PICTURE.
YOU JUST TOOK US A PICTURE.
Gordon: AND HE MAKES SOME KIND OF AN ODD COMMENT LIKE,
"IT HAS BEEN DESTROYED."
MY REACTION WAS THE CONCERN OF, "WHO WAS THIS MAN?
"WHERE DID HE COME FROM? WHERE ARE THE SAMPLES?
WHY DID HE DESTROY THE EVIDENCE AT THE SCENE?"
Redfern: ONE OF THE MOST DISCONCERTING AND BAFFLING ASPECTS
OF THE MEN IN BLACK MYSTERY
IS THAT EVEN IF YOU DON'T TELL ANYONE ABOUT YOUR ENCOUNTER,
THE MEN IN BLACK STILL FIND OUT ABOUT IT.
AND THAT CAN LEAD TO INTIMIDATING PHONE CALLS,
PEOPLE BEING FOLLOWED, AND EVEN TELEPHONE MONITORING.
Narrator: AND WITH M.I.B.s, IT CAN GET MUCH WORSE.
I BELIEVE MEN IN BLACK ARE TO BE FEARED.
IF THEY TELL YOU TO DO SOMETHING
AND YOU DON'T LISTEN TO WHAT THEY TELL YOU,
THEY WILL DO ANYTHING TO GET THEIR WAY, EVEN KILL YOU.
I BELIEVE THEY WOULD KILL YOU IF THEY HAD THE OPPORTUNITY.
Narrator: STAN GORDON HAS SEEN
JUST HOW INTIMIDATING THE MEN IN BLACK CAN BE.
ONE OF HIS MOST TERRIFYING CASES UNFOLDED IN OCTOBER OF 1973
AT A PENNSYLVANIA FARM.
AND WHAT I FIND OUT IS ABOUT 9:00 THAT NIGHT...
[ COWS MOOING ]
...THEY SEE THIS LARGE OBJECT ABOUT AS BIG AS A BARN --
A BIG, ROUND, RED SPHERE
ABOUT 100 FEET OFF THE GROUND AND HOVERING.
Narrator: AS THE GLOWING ORB DESCENDED ON THE FARM,
STEVE GEIGER AND HIS TWO COUSINS SET OFF TOWARDS A PASTURE.
Gordon: THIS THING'S MAYBE ABOUT 100 FEET OR SO IN DIAMETER,
AND IT'S ILLUMINATING THE WHOLE AREA.
AND THEN THEIR ATTENTION IS DRAWN
TO TWO HUGE HUMANOID FIGURES WALKING IN THEIR DIRECTION.
THEY GET A REALLY GOOD LOOK AT THEM.
Redfern: THE CREATURES THAT STEVE DESCRIBED
ARE VERY, VERY STRANGE -- SEVEN TO NINE FEET TALL,
ARMS HANGING DOWN PAST THEIR KNEES,
AND THEY HAD THESE WEIRD SELF-ILLUMINATING EYES.
[ GUNSHOT ]
Gordon: THERE'S A FLASH OF LIGHT.
[ GUNSHOT ]
AND WHEN HE FIRES THAT SECOND SHOT,
THE OBJECT IN THE FIELD DISAPPEARS.
IT JUST VANISHES FROM SIGHT.
Narrator: HE HAD SEEN AN ALIEN SPACECRAFT AND CREATURES
THAT COULDN'T BE FROM EARTH.
Gordon: AND I REMEMBER WHAT STEVE ALWAYS SAID TO ME.
HE SAID HE'D NEVER FORGET
HOW THOSE GLOWING EYES JUST KEPT STARING AT HIM.
AND HE SAID, "LOOK, I'VE BEEN HUNTING ALL MY LIFE."
HE SAID, "I KNOW I HIT IT. "I KNOW I HIT THAT BIG CREATURE.
BUT THERE WAS NO EFFECT ON IT WHATSOEVER."
Narrator: WHILE MEN IN BLACK DON'T PURSUE EACH AND EVERY WITNESS,
CLEARLY THIS FARMER HAD SEEN TOO MUCH.
Gordon: HERE WAS A GUY THAT HAD A VERY, VERY CLOSE ENCOUNTER.
HE WAS THE ONE THAT THEY PICKED.
WE'RE GOING TO HELP YOU REMEMBER.
[ SCREAMING ]
Narrator: FOR DECADES, AMERICA HAS BEEN AWASH WITH RUMORS
OF MYSTERIOUS MEN IN BLACK -- HOVERING, HARD TO DEFINE,
YET SPREADING THE WORD, "WE'RE WATCHING YOU."
Redfern: WHEN IT COMES TO THE MEN IN BLACK,
WHAT WE DO KNOW IS THAT UFO WITNESSES
HAVE BEEN ACTIVELY MONITORED, WATCHED, AND THREATENED.
AND THAT'S VERY FRIGHTENING FOR THEM.
Narrator: IT'S A SCENARIO THAT STAN GORDON DISCOVERED BACK IN THE 1970s
WHEN HE FIRST STARTED TRACKING UFO REPORTS.
CASE IN POINT, ONE NIGHT IN OCTOBER 1973,
STAN RECEIVED AN URGENT CALL
ABOUT AN ALIEN ENCOUNTER AT A FARM.
LIKE, FLUORESCENT GREEN.
YOU SEE THESE MARKS HERE -- WE WERE SITTING ON THE PORCH.
STATE TROOPERS WERE ON THE SCENE.
THE GROUND IS, LIKE, BRIGHT GREEN.
SO I GRABBED MY SHOTGUN.
Gordon: AND WHAT THE TROOPER TELLS ME
IS WHERE THE OBJECT HAD BEEN ON THE GROUND,
THAT WHOLE AREA IS NOW SELF-LUMINESCENT GLOWING --
100, MAYBE 150 FEET OR SO IN DIAMETER, HE ESTIMATED.
THE LIGHT COMING UP FROM THE GLOWING AREA
IS COMING UP ABOUT 12 INCHES OFF THE GROUND.
HE JUST APPEARED OUT OF THE WOODS.
BY THE TIME WE GOT THERE... AND HIS EYES WERE GLOWING.
...THE FARM ANIMALS STILL WOULDN'T GO
ANYWHERE NEAR THAT AREA.
Narrator: AS THE DAYS PASSED,
STAN GORDON STAYED IN TOUCH WITH THE FARMER STEVE GEIGER.
Gordon: AND WE TALKED TO HIM
ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF DOING HYPNOSIS.
AND HE KIND OF LOOKED AT US A LITTLE FUNNY
AND SAID, "WHY DO YOU WANT TO HYPNOTIZE ME AGAIN?"
AND WE SAID, "STEVE, WE NEVER HYPNOTIZED YOU."
Narrator: AS STAN WOULD LEARN, SHORTLY AFTER THE UFO INCIDENT...
...STEVE WAS VISITED BY TWO STRANGE MEN,
ONE DRESSED IN AN AIR FORCE UNIFORM,
THE OTHER A BLACK SUIT.
HE ALWAYS ASSUMED THEY WERE CONNECTED TO MY RESEARCH GROUP.
THESE MEN WANTED TO,
AGAIN, DO A THOROUGH INVESTIGATION WITH HIM.
THEY WANTED TO GO OVER ALL THE DETAILS WITH HIM.
Narrator: AFTER THAT,
THIS FARMER'S WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN.
THIS ISN'T HAPPENING.
WE'RE GOING TO HELP YOU REMEMBER.
Narrator: HYPNOTIC TECHNIQUES WERE APPLIED.
[ SCREAMING ]
[ BREATHING HEAVILY ]
IS THIS WHAT YOU SAW?
YOU'RE NOT CRAZY. EVERYTHING IS PERFECTLY NORMAL.
IT'S REALLY NOT EVEN WORTH MENTIONING...TO ANYONE.
AND THEY TOLD HIM HE WASN'T CRAZY, THAT HE SAW WHAT HE SAW,
AND THAT THEY WOULD BE IN TOUCH.
[ BELL RINGING ]
BUT THAT WAS THE LAST THEY EVER HEARD FROM THEM.
RIGHT AWAY, WE KNEW SOMETHING UNUSUAL HAD OCCURRED.
WE HAD NEVER HYPNOTIZED HIM.
NONE OF THE PEOPLE
ASSOCIATED WITH OUR RESEARCH GROUP HAD HYPNOTIZED HIM.
AND WE WANTED TO FIND OUT WHAT WAS HE TALKING ABOUT?
Marsh: THAT WAS JUST ONE WAY OF KIND OF CONTAINING IT.
HOW ELSE COULD YOU TAKE JUST A GENERAL --
SOMEBODY FROM THE GENERAL POPULATION --
HOW DO YOU SUPPRESS THEM?
YOU THREATEN THEM.
Narrator: ACCORDING TO THOSE WHO KNEW HIM,
THE MAN NEVER GOT OVER THE TRAUMA.
Gordon: I DIDN'T DOUBT THE FACT
THAT HE HAD A VISIT BY THESE "MEN IN BLACK."
I'M SURE IT WAS HARD FOR HIM TO GET PAST ANYONE
WHO WOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH AN EXPERIENCE LIKE THAT.
IT HAS A LONG-LASTING EFFECT.
Narrator: PARANORMAL RESEARCHER CLYDE LEWIS
HAS NO DOUBTS ABOUT THE MEN IN BLACK.
Lewis: THEY'RE THE CLEAN-UP CREW.
THEY'RE THE GUYS BEHIND THE CURTAIN.
SO, WHEN THINGS GET OUT OF HAND,
WHETHER A UFO SIGHTING OR AN EXOTIC AIRCRAFT IS SEEN
THAT NOBODY'S SUPPOSED TO SEE, OR SOMETHING,
THEY'LL SHOW UP AND THEY'LL TELL YOU, YOU KNOW --
THEY'LL TELL YOU THAT THIS IS SOMETHING
THAT YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE DEALING WITH.
Narrator: AFTER THESE INVESTIGATIONS, STAN REALIZED WHAT HE WAS UP AGAINST.
IN SHORT ORDER, WITNESSES FORGET THEIR STORIES,
MISPLACE EVIDENCE.
THEY NEVER SAW ANYTHING.
SOME OF THESE CASES SEEM TO SUGGEST A POSSIBILITY
THAT THERE MAY, INDEED, BE A GOVERNMENT AGENCY
THAT CONTINUES TO INVESTIGATE UFOs
AT A VERY HIGH SECRETIVE LEVEL, AND THEY'RE OUT THERE
DOING INTERVIEWS AND GATHERING EVIDENCE.
SO, THERE WAS THAT BIG QUESTION STILL REMAINED --
WHO WERE THESE MEN?
WHY DID THEY WANT TO INTERVIEW THE WITNESS?
AND WHAT WERE THEY GONNA DO WITH THE INFORMATION?
Narrator: THEY MAY EVEN WELCOME
WORD OF THEIR SPECIAL BRAND OF TERROR TO TRICKLE OUT,
SENDING THE MESSAGE "YOU COULD BE NEXT."
Redfern: SINCE 1947, THERE HAVE BEEN LITERALLY HUNDREDS
OF MEN IN BLACK REPORTS ALL AROUND THE WORLD.
THE U.S. GOVERNMENT'S OFFICIAL STANCE ON THE MEN IN BLACK
IS THAT THE MYSTERY'S NOTHING TO DO WITH THEM.
THIS BEGS THE QUESTION EVEN MORE --
WHO ARE THE REAL MEN IN BLACK?
Narrator: SOME ARE CERTAIN
THE MEN IN BLACK MUST BE FROM THE GOVERNMENT.
OTHER CLUES SUGGEST THE MYSTERY GOES MUCH DEEPER,
TO A SHADOWY GROUP WHOSE IDENTITIES
MAY GO BEYOND THIS WORLD AND THIS POINT IN TIME.
IN WEST VIRGINIA, ON THE NIGHT OF NOVEMBER 2, 1966,
A SEWING-MACHINE SALESMAN NAMED WOODY DERENBERGER
WAS DRIVING HOME.
HIS STORY HAS BEEN AMONG THE MOST DISCUSSED CASES
IN THE MEN IN BLACK PHENOMENON.
LOST FOR DECADES, AUDIOTAPES OF HIS ORIGINAL TESTIMONY
WERE RECENTLY RECOVERED.
Narrator: FAR FROM THEIR HOLLYWOOD PERSONA
ARE THE STORIES OF REAL MEN IN BLACK --
SECRETIVE, SINISTER,
AND, ACCORDING TO SOME INVESTIGATORS,
THEY MAY BE EXTRATERRESTRIALS OR TIME TRAVELERS
FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION.
THAT MIGHT EXPLAIN WHY MEN IN BLACK
ARE SOMETIMES SEEN WITH ODD PHYSICAL FEATURES,
AS IF THESE ALIENS HAVEN'T QUITE MASTERED THE HUMAN FORM.
PALE SKIN, TIGHT LIPS, BULGING EYES.
THEY LOOK EMACIATED, THEY LOOK ANEMIC,
THEY DON'T REALLY LOOK HUMAN.
Narrator: ONE SUCH CASE CENTERED ON AN ENCOUNTER
WITH A TIME-TRAVELING MAN IN BLACK,
A MYSTERIOUS FIGURE WITH A TERRIFYING GRIN.
WITHIN THE APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINS
IS THE SMALL WEST VIRGINIA TOWN OF PARKERSBURG.
NOVEMBER 2, 1966.
SEWING-MACHINE SALESMAN WOODY DERENBERGER
WAS DRIVING THROUGH THE AREA.
HIS EXPERIENCE THAT NIGHT
WOULD TURN ANY INVESTIGATION OF MEN IN BLACK
IN AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT DIRECTION.
LONG LOST TAPES FROM A RADIO INTERVIEW
HE DID THE VERY NEXT DAY
REVEAL A MAN PROFOUNDLY AFFECTED BY THE ENCOUNTER.
[ ROCK MUSIC PLAYS ]
THE EVENING STARTED OUT LIKE MANY OTHERS --
A LONG JOURNEY HOME AFTER WORK.
A FAMILY MAN, WOODY HAD A LOVING WIFE AND TWO CHILDREN.
MOM AND DAD ALWAYS GOT ALONG REALLY WELL.
PEOPLE WOULD CALL US "THE CLEAVERS"
BECAUSE OF HOW WELL OUR FAMILY ACTED.
Narrator: THIS NIGHT WOULD ALTER HIS LIFE
AND THAT OF HIS FAMILY'S FOREVER.
[ THUD ]
Bowman: HE HEARD A NOISE IN THE BACK OF THE TRUCK,
AND HE WAS AFRAID ONE OF THE SEWING MACHINES HAD FALLEN OVER.
[ WHOOSH ]
Narrator: THEN A SPACECRAFT BIG AS LIFE
LANDED DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF HIS TRUCK.
FORCED TO STOP, WOODY MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT HE WAS DREAMING.
A DOOR SLID OPEN ON THE SIDE OF THE CRAFT.
AND WHAT LOOKED LIKE A MAN STEPPED OUT.
Sheppard: HE HAD ON A BLACK TOPCOAT.
UNDERNEATH THAT TOPCOAT,
HE SAID YOU COULD SEE, LIKE, A GLISTENING KIND OF MATERIAL.
Bowman: THIS MAN HAD AN UNUSUAL, SPOOKY-LOOKING GRIN ON HIS FACE,
STRUCK MY FATHER AS BEING SCARY.
WHO ARE YOU?
WOODY.
DO YOU HAVE A FAMILY?
YES.
Narrator: SOMEHOW, WOODY WAS HEARING THE GRINNING MAN SPEAK.
AND AS FAR AS I UNDERSTAND, THIS WAS ALL MENTAL.
THERE WERE NO SPOKEN WORDS THAT CAME FROM HIM.
I-I KNEW WHAT HE WAS ASKING ME.
Bowman: AND THAT'S WHAT SCARED DAD FIRST
BECAUSE HE COULDN'T UNDERSTAND HOW HE'S HEARING WORDS.
THIS MAN IS TALKING, BUT HE'S NOT OPENING HIS MOUTH.
AND HE TOLD MY FATHER THAT HE WAS A TYPE OF A SCOUT.
HE TOLD ME THAT -- THAT HE WAS A SEARCHER.
A SEARCHER?
A SEARCHER.
HE ASKED HIM A LOT OF QUESTIONS SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION,
YOU KNOW, SEARCHING TO SEE WHAT'S GOING ON ON EARTH.
Narrator: COLLECTING INFORMATION BASIC TO THE MEN IN BLACK PHENOMENON.
FINALLY, WOODY MANAGED A QUESTION OF HIS OWN.
DAD SAID, "WELL, WHO ARE YOU?"
COLD.
INDRID COLD.
THE HATCH OPENED.
IT HOVERED THERE FOR JUST A FEW SECONDS.
AND THEN IT SHOT AWAY AT A VERY HIGH RATE OF SPEED.
AND HE SAID TO ME, "WE WILL SEE YOU AGAIN."
"WE WILL SEE YOU AGAIN.
WE'RE COMING BACK TO SEE YOU, WOODY DERENBERGER,"
SAID INDRID COLD.
"I'M COMING BACK."
AND THAT'S THE THING
THAT MR. DERENBERGER SAID FRIGHTENED HIM THE MOST
WAS THAT THEY WERE GOING TO COME BACK.
AND HE SAID, "WE WILL SEE YOU AGAIN."
DO YOU BELIEVE HE WILL?
I'M AFRAID HE WILL.
I-I DON'T WANT HIM TO,
BUT I HAVE A FEELING THAT HE WILL.
Narrator: MEN IN BLACK --
THEY APPEAR WITH DISTURBING REGULARITY,
SPREADING PARANOIA AND FEAR.
WHAT IS THEIR TRUE AGENDA?
IN 1966, SALESMAN WOODY DERENBERGER
CAME FACE-TO-FACE WITH A MOST PECULIAR MAN IN BLACK.
AND THE ENCOUNTER WAS JUST THE FIRST
OF MANY EXTRAORDINARY VISITS.
WOODY'S DAUGHTER, TAUNIA BOWMAN, WAS A YOUNG CHILD AT THE TIME
AND REMEMBERS HER FATHER RETURNING HOME THAT NIGHT.
Bowman: WHEN HE WALKED THROUGH THE DOOR, WE ALL KNEW DAD WAS HOME.
HE WAS WHITE AS A SHEET. Y'ALL GO TO BED.
I'D NEVER SEEN DAD LIKE THAT,
AND NOTHING EVER SCARED MY FATHER.
MY FATHER WAS A BIG GUY.
Sheppard: MRS. DERENBERGER SAID THAT WHEN HE CAME HOME,
HE COULD NOT HAVE BEEN ANY WHITER
IF HE HAD BEEN LYING IN A COFFIN.
HE LOOKED LIKE A DEAD BODY.
DADDY, WHAT'S WRONG?
GET TO BED NOW!
Bowman: HE TOLD MY BROTHER AND I
THAT WE HAD TO GO UPSTAIRS AND GO TO BED.
SO I SNUCK DOWNSTAIRS
AND LISTENED TO MY DAD TELLING MY MOM THE EVENTS THAT HAPPENED.
YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED TO ME TODAY.
MOM TOLD DAD IF HE WAS TRYING TO SCARE HER...
IT'S WORKING.
THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED.
THAT'S WHEN MOM PICKED THE PHONE UP
AND CALLED THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT.
Narrator: OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS, INDRID COLD, THE GRINNING MAN,
WOULD DROP IN ON THE DERENBERGERS,
SOMETIMES BRINGING OTHER VISITORS, ALSO DRESSED IN BLACK.
WHERE DID YOU GUYS COME FROM?
Bowman: INDRID COLD KNEW WHERE WE LIVED.
HE WOULD POP UP IN WEIRD PLACES AND THEN DISAPPEAR.
BRING TAUNIA INSIDE, PLEASE.
AND IT WAS AT THAT POINT THAT I WASN'T
EVEN HARDLY ALLOWED TO PLAY OUTSIDE
BECAUSE OF ALL THE STRANGERS IN THE AREA.
TAUNIA, COME HERE.
Redfern: WHEN IT COMES TO THE COMPARISONS
BETWEEN INDRID COLD AND THE MEN IN BLACK,
THERE ARE ACTUALLY A NUMBER OF INTERESTING SIMILARITIES.
THERE'S THE GRINNING FACTOR AND ALSO THE BLACK TOPCOAT.
THERE'S THE FACT THAT COLD KEPT COMING BACK TO THE FAMILY HOME.
MRS. DERENBERGER, FOR EXAMPLE, WAS SOMEWHAT CONCERNED BY THIS.
Narrator: MEN IN BLACK HAVE MADE REPEATED VISITS
TO PROMINENT UFO RESEARCHERS.
THE EFFECT OF THESE MEETINGS ON WOODY DERENBERGER
WAS LIFE-CHANGING.
WHAT WAS MOST FASCINATING
WAS THAT IN THE WAKE OF THESE EVENTS,
DERENBERGER BEGAN TO DEVELOP VERY KEEN SENSES OF E.S.P.
THIS TOTALLY FREAKED HIS WIFE OUT
BECAUSE HE WAS ABLE TO TELL HER --
SAY, FOR EXAMPLE, IF SHE WAS OUT SHOPPING,
WHO SHE SPOKE TO, WHERE SHE WENT,
WHAT SHE'D BOUGHT AT THE STORE, THINGS LIKE THAT.
Marsh: WE'RE DEALING WITH SOME TYPE
OF OTHERWORLDLY, NONHUMAN BEINGS...
...WHO WERE INTERACTING WITH THIS GUY,
YOU KNOW, CAUSING HIM TO HAVE
ALL KINDS OF ODD THINGS HAPPEN TO HIM.
Narrator: IN THE LATE 1960s, THERE WERE AT LEAST FOUR SEPARATE SIGHTINGS
OF THE GRINNING MAN IN BLACK.
IT RAISES THE QUESTION --
WHO REALLY WAS INDRID COLD AND WHAT WAS HIS AGENDA?
Lewis: HE WAS ANOTHER -- SORT OF AN M.I.B.
INDRID COLD -- HE IS THERE TO TELL YOU
THAT SOMETHING IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN.
THESE GUYS -- THEY SEE THEMSELVES AS CUSTODIANS.
THEY SEE THEMSELVES AS BEING PART OF,
YOU KNOW, PUSHING OUR EVOLUTION IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
Narrator: IN THIS VIEW, THE MEN IN BLACK HAVE ALWAYS BEEN AROUND
SECRETLY SHAPING EVENTS ON EARTH.
Sheppard: WHO ARE THEY? YOU KNOW, WHO ARE THEY?
I BELIEVE THAT THEY COME BACK
AND THEY CHECK ON, YOU KNOW, PROGRESS.
SO, IF I HAD TO SAY WHO INDRID COLD WAS,
I WOULD SAY INDRID COLD WAS PROBABLY OUR BROTHER --
OUR BROTHER FROM ANOTHER WORLD.
Narrator: WHILE SOME IMAGINE MEN IN BLACK ARE BENEVOLENT GUARDIANS,
OTHER CLUES POINT TO A MUCH DARKER AGENDA.
Redfern: WHAT'S PARTICULARLY INTERESTING
ABOUT THE MAJORITY OF MEN IN BLACK REPORTS
AND, IN A FASHION, PARALLELS WITH THE INDRID COLD STORY
IS THAT PEOPLE GET A SENSE OF DREAD FROM THEM.
AND ALSO, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF REPORTS
WHERE THE MEN IN BLACK ARE SEEN GRINNING.
MOST PEOPLE ARE VERY SCARED AND INTIMIDATED BY THE MEN IN BLACK,
NOT JUST BY THEIR THREATS, BUT BY THE WAY THEY LOOK.
THEY SORT OF LOOK LIKE PALE-FACED GHOULS OR VAMPIRES.
Narrator: NOW THERE'S EVIDENCE THE MEN IN BLACK
MIGHT BE EVEN SCARIER THAN IMAGINED...
THE OLDEST EVIL THERE IS.
DEMONS CALLED FORTH BY THE DEVIL HIMSELF.
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA.
REVEREND DR. RAY BOECHE IS AN ORDAINED PASTOR OF 25 YEARS
AND A PARANORMAL INVESTIGATOR.
Boeche: I'D INVESTIGATED CASES,
NUMEROUS CASES OF PEOPLE WHO HAD HAD THESE KINDS OF ENCOUNTERS.
I NEVER EXPECTED THAT SOMETHING LIKE THAT
WOULD HAPPEN TO MYSELF.
Narrator: ONE AFTERNOON IN 1987, BOECHE AND TWO COLLEAGUES
BEGAN SEARCHING THROUGH FILES
DOCUMENTING AN INFAMOUS MEN IN BLACK CASE.
[ PIANO PLAYING ]
[ THUNDER RUMBLES ]
[ FIRE CRACKLING ]
DR. HERBERT HOPKINS WAS A RESPECTED PSYCHIATRIST
WHO HAD PERFORMED HYPNOSIS SESSIONS ON CLIENTS
CLAIMING TO ENCOUNTER MEN IN BLACK.
[ Distorted ] GOOD EVENING, DR. HOPKINS.
I NEED TO SPEAK WITH YOU ABOUT YOUR WORK.
Boeche: THIS INDIVIDUAL, DRESSED IN A BLACK SUIT,
BEGINS TO QUESTION HIM ABOUT -- GENERALLY ABOUT THIS UFO CASE.
VERY TALL, VERY THIN.
THESE TAPES ARE OF NO USE TO YOU.
THEY NEED TO BE EXPUNGED.
THIS ODD INDIVIDUAL BEGAN TO TELL DR. HOPKINS
THAT HE SHOULDN'T INVESTIGATE THIS,
HE SHOULD LEAVE THIS ALONE.
DO YOU SEE THE COIN?
AND SO DR. HOPKINS BEGINS TO LOOK AT THE COIN IN HIS HAND.
Narrator: THIS MAN IN BLACK WAS THREATENING TO DO MORE
THAN DESTROY EVIDENCE.
THE STRANGER SAYS, "IF YOU DON'T LEAVE THIS CASE ALONE,
THAT'S WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO YOUR HEART."
DESTROY THE TAPES, DR. HOPKINS.
THAT WAS THE THREAT THAT WAS MADE
BY THE MAN IN BLACK TO DR. HOPKINS.
"IF YOU CONTINUE, I'LL CAUSE YOUR HEART TO VANISH."
DR. HOPKINS WAS, AGAIN, ABSOLUTELY TERRIFIED.
ABSOLUTELY TERRIFIED.
AND HE FOLLOWED THE STRANGER'S INSTRUCTIONS
AND BURNED ALL OF HIS RECORDS,
BURNED HIS TAPES OF THE HYPNOSIS SESSIONS AND SO ON,
AND WAS EXTRAORDINARILY TRAUMATIZED --
EXTRAORDINARILY TRAUMATIZED BY THAT EVENT.
[ WOMAN SCREAMING ]
Narrator: GOING THROUGH HOPKINS' PAPERS WOULD LAUNCH REVEREND BOECHE
INTO HIS OWN TERRIFYING ENCOUNTER
WITH A DEMONIC MAN IN BLACK.
WHAT'S HAPPENING?
OH, MY GOSH.
[ GASPS ]
[ WHIMPERS ]
AND WE SAT THERE WITH OUR EYES FIXED STRAIGHT AHEAD.
IT WAS THIS INCREDIBLE WAVE OF TERROR
THAT -- THAT GRIPPED ALL THREE OF US.
Narrator: RUMORS OF MEN IN BLACK CONTINUE TO CIRCULATE.
THEIR ORIGINS UNKNOWN.
SOME SUGGEST THESE DARK FIGURES
ARE MUCH MORE SINISTER THAN WE EVER THOUGHT.
Boeche: THE BIGGEST THING THAT APPEARS TO PUT THEM IN THE REALM
OF THE DEMONIC IS THE FACT THAT THEY SEEM
TO BE MORE OF A SPIRITUAL BEING IN NATURE --
A SUPERNATURAL BEING --
AND THREATS THAT SEEM TO CARRY
VERY MUCH A SENSE OF MALEVOLENCE.
Narrator: JUST THIS SORT OF MEN IN BLACK RECENTLY CROSSED PATHS
WITH CLYDE LEWIS, HOST OF A POPULAR PARANORMAL RADIO SHOW.
Lewis: THAT ENCOUNTER WAS BIZARRE.
HE HAD A BLACK HAT.
HE HAD A BLACK OVERCOAT, WHITE SHIRT, BLACK TIE.
AND HE DIDN'T LOOK LIKE HE BELONGED THERE.
Woman: HEY, MISTER.
CAN I BUM A CIGARETTE?
I DON'T SMOKE.
WHATEVER.
THEN HE WAS GONE. HE HAD DISAPPEARED.
I FIGURED, "OH, MY GOSH, YOU KNOW,
"THESE GUYS ARE FOLLOWING ME, OR THEY'RE OBSERVING ME.
SOMETHING'S GOING ON."
AND IT WAS VERY UNNERVING.
Narrator: CLYDE HAD EVERY REASON TO FEEL APPREHENSIVE.
I TRIED TO TAKE A PICTURE OF HIM WITH MY CELLPHONE,
AND WHEN I SNAPPED THE PICTURE --
AND I HAD IT RIGHT ON HIM.
I PUT MY CELLPHONE ON THE GUY... [ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
...TRY TO SNAP THE PICTURE.
HE'S NOT THERE.
AND IT JUST -- I THOUGHT, "HOW CAN THAT HAPPEN?
"HOW CAN I PUT MY CELLPHONE RIGHT THERE,
ARMS AWAY, SNAP THE PIC -- NOTHING?"
AND I WAS BLOWN AWAY.
Narrator: A MAN IN BLACK SUDDENLY VANISHING IS ONE THING.
IT'S EVEN WORSE WHEN HE UNEXPECTEDLY APPEARS.
ONE NIGHT IN 1987, IN LINCOLN, NEBRASKA,
REVEREND BOECHE AND TWO COLLEAGUES
WERE RESEARCHING ACCOUNTS OF MEN IN BLACK ENCOUNTERS.
Boeche: WE WERE AT A LONG TABLE,
AND WE WERE SORTING THROUGH THESE DOCUMENTS
INTO SOME KIND OF RATIONAL ORDER
SO WE COULD REALLY BEGIN TO EXAMINE THEM.
[ INDISTINCT CONVERSATION ]
YEAH, EXACTLY LIKE IT SAYS.
AND AS WE SAT THERE, I BEGAN TO BE AWARE
OF JUST A VERY UNEASY FEELING.
Narrator: IT MAY HAVE BEEN UNWISE TO DELVE TOO DEEPLY
INTO THE MISDEEDS OF THE MEN IN BLACK.
[ GASPS ]
THE EVIL DOCUMENTED IN THOSE FILES
CAME TO LIFE DIRECTLY BEFORE THEM.
Boeche: IT WAS THIS INCREDIBLE WAVE OF TERROR
THAT GRIPPED ALL THREE OF US.
AND WE JUST SAT THERE UNABLE TO MOVE.
Narrator: SATISFIED IT HAD TERRIFIED ITS VICTIMS,
THIS DEMONIC MAN IN BLACK VANISHED INTO THIN AIR.
Boeche: WHEN THREE OF US HAVE EXACTLY THE SAME EXPERIENCE
AT EXACTLY THE SAME TIME
IN EXACTLY THE SAME CIRCUMSTANCES,
IT BEGINS TO MAKE ME WONDER, YOU KNOW,
"WHAT SORT OF EXTERNAL FORCE CAME INTO PLAY THERE
TO CAUSE THIS TO HAPPEN?"
SOMETHING THE THREE OF US NEVER FORGOT.
WE'VE NEVER FORGOTTEN THAT.
WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?
I HAVE NO IDEA.
Narrator: AFTER THIS HARROWING ENCOUNTER, REVEREND BOECHE
SUSPENDED THE GROUP'S RESEARCH INTO THE MEN IN BLACK.
Boeche: IT IS DEFINITELY A TRAUMATIC EVENT
THAT NO ONE WANTS TO REMEMBER, NO ONE WANTS TO TALK ABOUT,
AND EVERYONE WHO'S EXPERIENCED IT WISHES THEY COULD FORGET.
AND THE SCARS NEVER GO AWAY. THEY NEVER GO AWAY.
Narrator: THAT LINGERING MEMORY,
A SENSE OF PROFOUND DREAD ETCHED IN YOUR MIND
SEEMS TO BE A UNIVERSAL FEATURE OF THE MEN IN BLACK PHENOMENON.
Redfern: THESE CASES ARE DEFINITELY NOT HOAXES OR HALLUCINATIONS.
TOO MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD CREDIBLE ENCOUNTERS
THAT ARE VERY SIMILAR TO EACH OTHER.
Boeche: IT'S SOMETHING THAT IS VERY PSYCHOLOGICALLY SCARRING.
IT'S ALMOST AS IF YOU HAD BEEN STALKED BY A PSYCHOPATH,
AND YOU NEVER GET OVER THAT.
VERY MUCH THE SAME THING WITH THE MEN IN BLACK.
Lewis: THEY'RE NOT COMIC-BOOK CHARACTERS
FOUND IN A STEVEN SPIELBERG MOVIE.
THEY'RE REAL INDIVIDUALS. THEY ARE HERE TO OBSERVE US.
THEY MOVE ABOUT IN A CLANDESTINE WAY.
AND THEY MAY EVEN HAVE CONTACT
OR MAY EVEN ARE IN CAHOOTS WITH PERHAPS A SATANIC PATH.
BEWARE -- M.I.B.s ARE REAL.