Thursday, October 21, 2010

Thom Powell Week: On the heels of PG film Anniversary

This week we celebrate Thom Powell, the contemporary researcher and author of the Bigfoot research book, "The Locals". On November 3rd he will be speaking at an event sponsored by the Oregon Sasquatch Symposium and University of Oregon. There are rumors he will provide a peak of his new book, "Shady Neighbors"

Please Note: The following reprinted content was before MK Davis's assertions of the Bluff Creek Massacre and although most disagree with MK's assertions (we do anyway), this post is more about the Patterson/Gimlin Film and Thom Powell's ponderings of the possible human-ness of Sasquatch.

On the heels of the anniversary of the Patterson Gimlin film (OCT 20) We found this insightful remark from Thom Powell on Cryptomundo. It is a response to an M.K. Davis Presentation at Don Keating’s Ohio Bigfoot conference on May 17th, 2008.



There is no doubt M.K. Davis has made his mark in the Bigfoot Community, for better or for worse. Most would say for the worse. Once heralded as one of the greatest contributers to analyzing the Patterson/Gimlin Film, his theories became controversial when he began to assert he had evidence for a Bluff Creek Massacre.

Days before he announced the "massacre", at Don Keating’s Ohio Bigfoot conference on May 17th, 2008, MK presented other less controversial assertions. These assertions supported the more human-ness of the figure of the Patterson Gimlin film, including the possibility of a top-knot and ponytail.

Although there was the back and forth that can be emblematic of our Bigfoot community, we like Thom's response to the presentation in general. Instead of entering the fray of whether or not Bigfoot is human or ape, capable of braiding its hair or not. Thom provides the sanity of context and asks us not be afraid to look past our assumptions.

To all,
I was fortunate to hear MK Davis make this presentation in Portland OR recently. He showed the audience various enhancements and how he accomplished them. He was able to identify numerous features and elements in the PGF that almost everyone is unaware of.He showed us that there is a great deal of useful and interesting information in that short clip. The short quotation that is taken out of context and published above does not come close to doing justice to the whole subject of enhancing the PGF. Davis provides compelling but admittedly inconclusive film data to support the following conclusions:

1. the creature shows a number of hair stylings like a top-knot. He concludes it’s not a saggital crest on the subject. It is a top-knot of hair. He shows his detailed analysis that supports this view and it is more compellling than most realize.

2. There is also evidence of braids and a ponytail in the head hair. These are utilitarian hair styling that are commonly used in modern and ancient tribes to keep hair cleaner and out of the way. On this basis Davis asserts that the PGF subject is closer to a vestigal member of a Native American population, not an ape. This is the essence of the assertion that the film shows a human being.

3. He presents data that supports the view that the creature is holding a stick, which could be for digging (hence the whole digger-indian thing.)

4. Most reproductions of the PGF have been darkened in the reporduction process. The closer one gets to the original film, the lighter the creature appears and the thinner the hair appears to be. This shows better views of the body outline beneath the hair/fur. Enhancements Davis performed show the breasts and facial features more plainly and definitely. His enhancements show more ‘humanish’ facial features than the animalistic features that other researchers contend are shown in their respective analyses of available copies of the PGF.

There are other interesting points about the subject and the surroundings that Davis presented. It is an excellent talk and if you haven’t seen it, you have no accurate basis to judge it. Roger Knights was at the same talk I attended so I submit that Roger’s assesments of the infromation presented are more accurate than most.

Hopefully Marlon Davis will publish an monograph so more people can get an informed view of his data and conclusions. Davis is a very skilled technician and his conclusiona are fairly sound.

A final note:
Here in the greater Portland area there is a lot of sasquatch activity in the surrounding forests. The patterns that emerge from analysis of dozens if not hundreds of unpublished accounts does, in my view, strongly support the view that at least some of these creatures are intelligent enough to qualify as human, i.e. vestigal Indians. With this body of locally available information in mind, MK Davis’ assertions are really nothing shocking. If anything, his assertions validate something that has been argued by others for a long time: that at least some of these creatures are some form of human.

Yet, the ‘ape’ paradigm still holds sway elsewhere on the continent and indeed some of these being may indeed be ape, but they probably are not all apes and I think Davis compellingly shows that the one in the PGF is not the ape that Dahinden argued, but the rather intelligent creature that Ivan Sanderson asserts. So, we’re back to the old Danhinden vs. Sanderson debate about the true nature of these creatures. Perhaps they are both correct: The bigfoot phenomenon represents multiple taxonomic grouping, as Colemen has long argued.
Best to all,
Thom Powell
May 20th, 2008 at 3:25 pm


YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
November 3rd Event
Thom Powell Week: To true believers, Bigfoot lives
Thom Powell Week: The Contemporary Researcher
Thom Powell Week: Peer Review
Shady Neighbors Book Cover

EXTERNAL LINKS
Thom Powell's book the Locals
Cliff Barackman talks about the Chehalis Project, investigated by Thom Powell

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Thom Powell Week: Book Cover Tease


Click the above picture to enlarge and see details!



This week we celebrate Thom Powell, the contemporary researcher and author of the Bigfoot Research book, "The Locals". On November 3rd he will be speaking at an event sponsored by the Oregon Sasquatch Symposium and University of Oregon. There are rumors he will provide a peak of his new book, "Shady Neighbors"

Speaking of the book, "Shady Neighbors," Thom Powell is taking Bigfoot art and Bigfoot book covers to the next level. He has commissioned our artist to create an original and unique cover for the book.

The image above is what those artist-types call a study, basically practice to see how to create textures (like the liver spotted skin of a primate) or lighting (like the way a sunset highlights fur). Proportionals and sizing is also worked out, like perhaps a baseball would look even smaller in the hand of a Sasquatch.

You may ask yourself why would a Sasquatch hold a baseball. that's a question for Thom Powell on November 3rd!

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
November 3rd Event
Thom Powell Week: To true believers, Bigfoot lives
Thom Powell Week: The Contemporary Researcher
Thom Powell Week: Peer Review

EXTERNAL LINKS
Thom Powell's book the Locals
Cliff Barackman talks about the Chehalis Project, investigated by Thom Powell

Monday, October 18, 2010

Thom Powell Week: Peer Review

This week we celebrate Thom Powell, the contemporary researcher and author of the Bigfoot Research book, "The Locals". On November 3rd he will be speaking at an event sponsored by the Oregon Sasquatch Symposium and University of Oregon. There are rumors he will provide a peak of his new book, "Shady Neighbors"

We like to say, "How your peers say what they say, says a lot about what they are saying about you." Then we sit in the lotus position and ponder the infinite reflection of emptiness.

Joking aside, we find it insightful when we read what Cliff Barackman has to say about Thom Powell. As Bigfoot researchers they are peers in the community, both have slightly different approaches, but, in the end, the same goal.

We know if your visiting us you've already been to Cliff's blog, but please visit his site today he has breaking news on the TV show he did with Bob Saget.

Without Further Ado here is one of our favorite post
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2009
Trying Something New by Cliff Barackman

I was invited to the woods this past week by Thom Powell, author of the excellent book The Locals (scroll down to see the book). Thom thinks outside of the box when it comes to bigfoot research, and his intelligent ideas are always refreshing and fun. Hanging out with him is never dull, and he nearly always has something great up his sleeve. This idea would prove to be in a direction I had never gone.

For this excursion, Thom explained that while most bigfooters seem interested in call blasting or playing rather disagreeable sounds into the woods to lure in bigfoots, he wanted to play something totally unoffensive, pleasant, and multi-cultural (quite the understatement when considering the intended audience). He chose the song "Smaointe" by the artist Enya.

To further entice the creatures' curiosity, he picked lavender, rosemary, and even sunflowers from his own garden to leave out in conspicuous locations near the camp as gifts for the bigfoots. Again, Thom was looking to leave something that would be interesting to them in ways other than food might be. The herbs made my car smell great, so maybe he's onto something.



Thom Powell placing a "gift" of garden herbs on a large stone.



We travelled into Mount Hood National Forest to a camp at the end of a logging road. The camp was near a talus slope overlooking a spring. The rocky hillside was perfect for blasting the recordings since it would reflect the sound outward rather than absorb the sound, as happens with trees.

Thom left the "gifts" on prominent rock piles near camp. We explored the area and set up our gear utilizing what little daylight we had left. I brought out my "big guns" for this trip, since it was only to be a few hours (I had to work the next day). I brought my 500 watt Yamaha PA system which pumps sound through two speakers with crystal clarity. I set the speakers up with them angled outwards by perhaps 45 degrees in order to create a "big" sound, which can be more important than being just loud.


Thom setting up the sound system.



Shortly after sunset, we let the diatonic sounds of Enya echo through the countryside. When the six-minute song ended, we started it over again. In fact, we played nothing but that one song for nearly a half hour.

I don't own any Enya music, but she's a talented musician and very good at what she does. It was not hard to allow her majestic music to add to the moment of watching the last shades of pink and purple play in the wisps of clouds over the Cascades to the west. It was downright lovely. Of course, by the fourth or fifth time through the song, most of the magic was lost...


I only wish a photograph could capture the loveliness...



While no bigfoot activity was noticed that night, that does not mean that Thom's experiment was a failure. Thom knows that this is a long-term game plan. He will do this same activity again. He wants the local bigfoots to recognize him by his sounds and his efforts. He hopes that by trying benevolent means to lure the locals in, he will be recognized as benevolent himself.

In Thom's words, he is not striving to prove these things are real, he's striving for understanding. An advanced thought, to be sure.

What I'd like to suggest to the reader is that everyone should be out there repeatedly trying their own ideas. Sure, learn from those with experience, but as a bigfooter one should try to think about new ways to grab the critters' attention. More importantly, put those ideas to the test. In fact, test those ideas many times before writing them off as not working. You might get an interesting visit one night, but if you don't, maybe there was no bigfoot nearby at all.

Either way, enjoy the woods, and try something new. We're not getting very far with traditional thinking, so let's start thinking outside of the box. Way outside...

Oh, and one last thing. Share your results with other bigfooters so they can try the same methods. They might be able to confirm your findings, and perhaps add to them. That's science, after all. Not sharing your data is, well, like not having any data at all.


Cliff Barackman enjoying a sunset while bigfooting.

SRC: http://northamericanbigfoot.blogspot.com/2009/08/trying-something-new.html


YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
November 3rd Event
Thom Powell Week: To true believers, Bigfoot lives
Thom Powell Week: The Contemporary Researcher

EXTERNAL LINKS
Thom Powell's book the Locals
Cliff Barackman talks about the Chehalis Project, investigated by Thom Powell
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