MAN-IN-BLACK INCIDENT

On April 25, 1978, I was scheduled to appear on the Jaycees Talk Show on CJCS Radio at 6:30 p.m. I was busy in the afternoon in my den, compiling the information that I wanted to touch upon during the show. The time was between 2:30 and 3:00 p.m. when there was a knock on my front door. I opened it and immediately stepped back in shock.

A classic Man-in-Black stood before me. He was slightly shorter than I was - around 5' 6" - and he was slightly bent over, which made him seem even smaller. His complexion was a darker color then my own - being closer to an olive hue. His cheeks were so sunken in that they looked like they were pinned together on the inside of his mouth. He had high cheekbones and a very sharp, angular face. His eyes were the most prominent feature, being larger than normal and slightly slanted - not Oriental looking, though - more outward, almost a wrap-around effect. The man's face had a sinister expression, and his eyes enhanced it. His complexion wasn't smooth. It appeared to be pitted and rough. His mouth was thin and drawn. His nose appeared small and straight. His hair was black and very short, as if it was just growing back in again.

He wore a black turtleneck and black slacks, although his pants seemed to have a faint sheen to them, making them appear lighter than the turtleneck in color. His shoes looked like a dark brown and were shined. He was a very thin man, and his clothes hung oddly on his body.

He was holding a picture album in his left hand and, after a moment of just standing there staring at me, he reached over with his right hand and opened the book. I glanced down and saw a picture of a young boy posed attractively and one of a woman and child. At the same time, the man started to speak, and his manner of speech shocked me as well. His words were mispronounced and formed difficulty, his mouth moving very slowly and carefully working out each word. Even with his great effort to speak, the quality of his speech was extremely poor. He spoke very softly, and I didn't catch all that he said, but what I did hear was to the effect of: "Do you want a picture taken of yourself or your children? We have a mobile in the area."

It took me a few seconds to decode his sentences. When a person speaks, there are natural pauses and inflections to the words that help the listener understand the message. This was missing in his speech. The words all ran together and many were broken up. My mind had to unscramble it in my head and put in the missing pauses and reconnect words. It was a strange feeling to reconstruct his sentence. Only when I accomplished this did the message make sense to me.

My reply was simply, "No, I have enough pictures." The man stood for another long moment, staring at me. He suddenly turned and ran out the door. I was stunned and numbly closed the door then realized that I should be watching him to see where he goes, so I quickly opened the door again - only about 30 or 40 seconds had passed. My house was not located on the end of a street, so he should have been still in sight. He was gone! At no time, during this encounter, did I see any vehicle behind him on the street. He should not have disappeared so fast.

He never threatened me nor warned me to stop any particular research. That evening, I went to the radio station and was the guest on the talk show. All the calls in were clear, except for one from an investigator in my group (name withheld by request). I'll call her Anne. Her call was filled with a sudden static on the line, badly broken up, and barely audible. The calls proceeding and following hers were fine.

After I got home, I called Anne and told her about the breaking up of her call on air and also about the strange man who had come to my door (I made no mention that I felt he was a Man-in-Black.) There was a long silence on her end of the line then she blurted out, "He was here, too!"

Anne told me that, about a week previous, this same man had come to her door, asking if she would like some pictures taken of her family. Since Anne is an older woman and her children are all grown and gone, she decided to have a picture taken of her champion dog to give to her husband on his birthday.

Arrangements were made and a couple of days later a large, black van pulled into her yard. Anne said there were no markings at all on the sides, displaying the name of the photography business. Both men were dressed in black suits. They came to her door and demanded that she bring the dog into the van, instead of them going into her house. She described the one man (the taller of the two) as being the same one who came to my door, and the other one was slightly shorter and stockier. The shorter man seemed to be having trouble breathing. At first, Anne thought that the man was asthmatic, because he was panting instead of breathing normally. One man asked her what time it was and appeared to be agitated that it was taking her so long to bring her dog to the van. She had the impression that she was holding them up from getting to another appointment.

Anne had a very difficult time getting her dog into the van. It would whine and cower, and she had to drag it. At no time did either of the men offer to help her. Once inside, the two men set up their equipment and took the dog's picture. Anne didn't elaborate on what the inside of the van looked like or what equipment they had in it, or even what transpired while she was there. She stated simply that they took her dog's picture and she left. She was very vague and resistant to my further inquiries. Soon after that, Anne quit my UFO research group, without any explanation. I didn't hear from her again.

C.U.F.O.R.N. (Canadian UFO Research Network) investigated this incident as a possible Man-in-Black event. Anne was never available to them for questioning. She avoided me and them completely. The studio that the men claimed to work for was called, and the investigators found out that the studio had stopped taking pictures by mobile vans and no one fitting my description worked for them. They had no knowledge at all that someone was going around posing as a photographer for their studio, and the manager was very upset at the thought.

It was discovered during the investigation that my next door neighbor had also had this Man-in-Black come to her door on the day he came to mine. He was wearing dark sunglasses and actually handed her the photo album. She opened it to look at all the pictures but found only two photos in the whole book. During this time, the man just stood and stared at her, and when she handed the book back in confusion, he asked her if she wanted any pictures taken. It's apparent that he must have gone to her house by mistake. He came to mine next and had removed his sun glasses.

I remember that my first thought when I saw him was one of revulsion. He had a truly sinister appearance to him. I reacted as if I had been threatened by his presence. At the same moment, I thought "MIB!" but kept trying to dismiss this thought from my mind throughout the encounter. I was certain that he had come due to my scheduled appearance on a talk show that evening.

This was my first Man-in-Black encounter, and I will never forget it! There have been other incidents which I will write about in the future.



CHARACTERISTICS OF A MAN-IN-BLACK

Here's what to look for if you've noticed a mysterious figure, in your vicinity, watching you, either from a black car or from the shadows:

SKIN COLOR: M.I.B. have been described as olive hued at one extreme and pasty white at the other and every color in between.

HAIR: The hair has been reported as being extremely short, giving the witness the impression that its head had been shaven recently with a new crop of hair just growing back in.

EYES: The eyes are very unusual. Some are described as Oriental; while others are compared to Mongoloid eyes. There may also be a wrap-around effect to them.

EARS: Sometimes pointed or mis-shaped ears have been reported, but this feature is not very common. Usually, normal ears are observed.

MOUTH: A M.I.B.'s mouth is usually small and straight with minimal lips.

HANDS: The fingers are unusually long and tapering. Many times, an M.I.B. will approach the witness with its arms crossed and its hands tucked under its arm-
pits, thereby hiding them from view. This behavior suggests that there might be something notable about their hands and they are trying to prevent the witness from seeing what it is, because it might provide a trait that will enable M.I.B.'s to be identified in a crowd.

CLOTHES: Almost all have worn black - hence the name "Man-in-Black." They have been observed sporting black topcoats, ill-fitting black suits that are out of fashion with the times, black turtlenecks, black slacks and even carrying black briefcases. Some have lightened their wardrobe to brown and even grey.

SHOES: The shoes of an M.I.B. might have very thick soles (usually an inch or so) which seem to serve as an insulation from the planet's influence.

SPEECH: There have been cases where a M.I.B. talks in a low, halting voice, which people mistake for a speech impediment. A loud, peculiar laugh, which sounds more like a cackle, has been noted. M.I.B. can also possess an odd accent that can't be placed and may use outmoded slang expressions. Mechanical monotones and an inhuman voice have also been reported.

BREATHING: The breathing of a M.I.B. is quite different than normal. Some witnesses describe it as being short winded; others claim that it sounds like an asthmatic gasping for air. Panting is common. Sometimes a M.I.B. will ask for a glass of water then take a pill that helps its respiration.

PREOCCUPATION WITH TIME: Many witnesses have reported that the M.I.B. seemed overly concerned about the passage of time and asked, on more than one occasion, what time it was. Possibly, it only has a limited period of safe operation on our planet, so visits must be brief.

DISGUISES: A M.I.B. can show up at the witness's door wearing an Air Force uniform and using the name of an existing officer at a nearby base, but usually changing the rank. NORAD, CIA, FBI have all been used by a M.I.B. sporting normal attire and identification.

A word of warning: If the man at your door checks out on all the previous descriptions here, don't believe any credential that is produced. False I.D. is the easiest thing in the world to get if you know the right people in the right places.