„This book was a defiantly different deal, and still is.
Keel's thesis flies in the face - convincingly - of the extraterrestrial hypothesis, and the whole spaceships-from-beyond explanation of the phenomenon fiercely defended to this day. For that Keel
was more or less excommunicated in the 1970s by the UFO true believers, who at the time brutally suppressed many reported aspects of UFO sightings that failed to fit their preconceptions.
Keel points out that UFOs come in too many "form factors," and apparently break down or crash too often, to be sensibly attributed to advanced space explorers. Contact experiences are too often
absurd or nonsensical, percipients too often lied to. UFOs too often mimic the characteristics of paranormal phenomena reported since ancient times, from the Bible's wheels of fire and angelic
visitations to fairies and leprechauns. Most likely, deduces Keel, the UFO phenomenon is perpetrated by a trickster intelligence occupying a different reality frequency. Not from the Pleiades, but
from right here - this intelligence, sometimes helpful, sometimes hostile, but most often indifferent, has always been with us, but adopts new frames of reference to relate to humanity as it evolves.
Angels in ancient days, spindly Victorian-looking airships in the 1890s, sleek flying saucers crewed with "spacemen" as we became a spacefaring species. They can project as solid objects when they
want to, but the flood of reports of UFOs vanishing on the spot, fading away through the color spectrum or acting like biological ("soft") objects suggest there's more to this than nuts and
bolts.
Keel's laborious research methods (in the pre-Internet 1960s he was dependent on clipping services and long-distance phone calls) seem slow and quaint now. But he assembled UFO data as no other
non-government researcher had to that point.
This is a landmark book in the UFO field, genuinely mind-expanding, from one of the two or three best writer-researchers ever to crack the topic.“
T. I. Farmer
John A. Keel (March 25, 1930 - July 3, 2009) was an American journalist and influential UFOlogist best known as the author of "The Mothman Prophecies." In the 1950s, he spent time in Egypt, India, and the Himalayas investigating snake charming cults, the Indian rope trick, and the legendary Yeti, an adventure that culminated in the publication of his first book, "Jadoo." In the mid-1960s, he took up investigating UFOs and assorted forteana and published his first knockout UFO book, "UFOs: Operation Trojan Horse," in 1970. The book shredded the then trendy nuts-and-bolts extraterrestrial hypothesis for UFOs in favor of one that linked UFOs to a variety of paranormal and supernatural phenomena that have taken place throughout history. Keel was one of the first to note that the UFO phenomenon appears in different disguises-and that one could not begin to decipher this great mystery without first taking into account its many and varied deliberate deceptions. Other than a few corrections, this Anomalist Books edition essentially follows the original 1970 edition of "UFOs: Operation Trojan Horse."
Since the beginning of recorded time, mankind has been plagued by unknown forces and beings, baffled by archaeological phenomena, and haunted by the inexplicable accuracy - and inaccuracy - of prophecies and "visions."
In the classic "Our Haunted Planet," John A. Keel brings into chilling focus strange truths about the earth and its mysterious inhabitants. Could an unseen, prehuman race have taken careful measures to remain hidden from surface dwellers? Are they still watching us from their secret hiding places, manipulating and misleading us, using us for their own entertainment, and controlling our actions?
"Our Haunted Planet" is an entertaining survey of anomalous "Fortean" events such as UFOs, enigmatic stone monuments, Men in Black, missing ships and aircraft, phantom radio broadcasts, teleportation, missing time, black magick, tulpas, angels, demigods, tricksters, and much more.
Unlike most ufologists, who settle on a literal interpretation of such phenomena, Keel is broad-minded and courageous enough to include all possibilities - including the impact of occultists and spies on the fields of ufology, conspiracy, and cryptozoology. Within these pages, modern "spooks" appear alongside the gods of the ancients, creating a mind-expanding pastiche that may either heal your soul, send you to the loony bin, or just keep you up all night as you ponder the meaning of its forbidden secrets.
John Keel's disturbing follow-up to The Mothman Prophecies! Is there a single intelligent force behind all religious, occult, and UFO phenomena?
Strange manifestations have haunted humans since prehistoric times. Beams of light, voices from the heavens, the "little people," gods and devils, ghosts and monsters, and UFOs, have all had a prominent place in our history and legends. In this dark work, John Keel explores these phenomena, and in doing so reveals the shocking truth about our present position and future destiny in the cosmic scheme of things. Are we pawns in a celestial game?
In the Orient, there is a story told of the seven towers. These citadels, well hidden from mankind, are occupied by groups of Satanists who are chanting the world to ruin. Perhaps this is just a story; perhaps there is some truth behind it. But what if there is yet another tower, a tower not of good or evil but of infinite power? What if all our destinies are controlled by this cosmic force for its own mysterious purposes? And what if UFOs and other paranormal manifestations are merely tools being used to manipulate us and guide us toward the cosmic role we are fated to play? Perhaps, after all, we are not independent beings but are instead the creations and slaves of the eighth tower.
Andrew Colvin (Hrsg.)
Selected Writings of John A. Keel
The „Selected Writings-Series“ is a collection of magazine articles and lectures by John Alva Keel, the man many consider to have been the 20th Century’s premiere investigator of all things unusual and “Fortean.” Many of the articles in this anthology were revolutionary, and explored ideas popularized in Keel’s classic books. Written in Keel’s engaging trademark style, they are sure to delight fans with their fresh, unparalleled insights into the nature of reality.
In these pages, John Keel displays the keen observational skills and investigative tenacity that made him the enfant terrible of ufology for decades. In this no-holds-barred analysis - some of which was written almost 50 years ago - Keel shreds most of the sacred-cow beliefs still held by many in ufological and “cryptozoological” circles today, presenting theories so radical that they are only now becoming accepted: the “4-D” or “interdimensional” thesis; the “breakaway civilization” theory; the possible role of “ancient aliens” in human history; the synthetic and/or hallucinatory nature of many “alien abduction” and “Men in Black” encounters; the role of spy agencies in paranormal research; and the alarming connection between UFOs, animal mutilations, and attacks on unsuspecting humans.
In short, the Selected Writings-Series is witty, incisive, impassioned, and prescient, and cohesively brings Keel’s message into focus in a way that perhaps no other book has.
This 2013 edition features illuminating forewords by noted writers Gray Barker and Tessa B. Dick (widow of science-fiction writer Philip K. Dick), as well as an introduction by the editor, Andy Colvin (author of "The Mothman's Photographer" and "Mothman Speaks").
This 2013 edition features forewords by researchers Leon Davidson and Doug Skinner, as well as an introduction by the editor, Andy Colvin.
"Searching For the String" showcases not only Keel’s wit and charm, but also his incisive and impassioned intellectual capabilities. This 2014 edition features an expanded “Letters” section, several photographs, and introductions by the editor, Andy Colvin, and saucer pioneer Gray Barker.
"The Great Phonograph in the Sky" covers a wide variety of topics, such as Eastern magic, statistical problems in UFO research, creature sightings, earth mysteries, psychological warfare, skyquakes, poltergeists, radio anomalies, and phantom ships, planes, submarines, and humans. This special edition features several interviews with Keel which, along with his writings, showcase his wit, affable charm, and impassioned intellectual capabilities.
"The Perspicacious Percipient" covers a wide variety of topics, such as the illusory nature of our physical senses, statistical problems in UFO research, and how to investigate phenomena such as flying saucers, creature sightings, Men in Black, physical trace evidence, poltergeists and other manifestions, radio anomalies, and phantom ships, planes, submarines, helicopters, and humans.
This special edition features Keel's never-before-published, six-part article, "New Perspectives," in which Keel deftly explains quantum physics and what it means to ufology and Forteana. Keel also revisits the Mothman situation, providing us with a rare summary of those events in the Afterword. Throughout these pages, Keel displays the delightful wit, affable charm, and impassioned intellectual capabilities that made him famous.
"The Passionate Percipient" covers a wide variety of topics, such as Eastern magic, statistical problems in UFO research, creature sightings, earth mysteries, psychological warfare, skyquakes, poltergeists, radio anomalies, and phantom ships, planes, submarines, and humans. This special edition features Keel's never-before-published article for Playboy Magazine, "Operation Trojan Horse," which later informed Keel's breakthrough book of the same name. In these pages, Keel displays the delightful wit, affable charm, and impassioned intellectual capabilities which made him famous.