Fred Crisman
Encyclopedia
Fred Crisman was a writer, educator, broadcaster and self-described "disruption agent" from Tacoma, Washington
known for claims of paranormal
events and 20th century conspiracies
.
. His father was a salesman.
s, reporting on his own Shaver Mystery experiences via letters to the editors, warning of a threat from subterranean-dwelling "Deros," or "detrimental robots." Crisman wrote to Ray Palmer, then editor of the science fiction magazine ‘Amazing Stories’ with details of the incident. Crisman had previously written to Palmer and had a letter published in the June 1946 issue detailing his encounters with his outlandish ideas of ‘deros’ (detrimental robots) who ran an underground super-civilisation. He claimed to have encountered the beings while fighting as a commando in Burma during World War II
, and wrote that he sustained injuries from a futuristic laser weapon.
, an early UFO
encounter. The UFO story began with Harold A Dahl who worked for Crisman. Crisman claimed to later see the object reported by his employee and to have collected slag debris dropped on his boat. Many UFO researchers have dismissed this incident as an outright hoax, most likely perpetrated by Crisman, but others still believe the incident to be a genuine paranormal event.
which he published in 1970 through Transistor Publishing Company. "This weird, politically slanted rant about Tacoma in the late 1960s is a window into the chaos and bitterness that led to the 1971 recall of a majority of the City Council and of the fall of Mayor R.L. Slim Rasmussen. The author, Fred Crisman, was a talk radio personality who managed in the book to tie corruption in Tacoma to everything from communist infiltrators to the Kennedy assassination. The paranoid tone of the writing, shameless personal attacks, and naming of names seems like something out of the mid-50s but as a historical artifact is much more than just a novelty." Crisman was appointed by the mayor to serve on the Tacoma Public Library board.
to testify in the case against Clay Shaw
in the John F. Kennedy assassination
. When Shaw was arrested, apparently Crisman was the first person Shaw called. Various conspiracy theories place Crisman on the grassy knoll, possibly as a radio operator, or as one of the three tramps taken into custody near Dealey Plaza
. The origin of this repeated claim appears to be the Torbitt Document. "William Torbitt" is the pseudonym for a 1969 Texas lawyer-author-Kennedy Assassination-researcher who spells Crisman "Chrismon". However, a log from Rainier High School where Crisman taught shows no substitute was required for Crisman on the day of the assassination, thus supporting Crisman's claim that Crisman was teaching at the time of the assassination. Crisman's Grand Jury testimony is now public; and in Murder of a City, Tacoma, Crisman claimed no knowledge of a conspiracy, nor was he called as a witness in the Clay Shaw trial.
, a witness who testified before the House Judiciary Committee investigating the Inslaw Affair
, has been described as a young electronics whiz from Tacoma who was a close acquaintance of Crisman's, and who helped Crisman sweep (and possibly plant) electronic eavesdropping devices during the years Crisman wrote Murder Of A City, Tacoma.
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
known for claims of paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
events and 20th century conspiracies
Conspiracy theory
A conspiracy theory explains an event as being the result of an alleged plot by a covert group or organization or, more broadly, the idea that important political, social or economic events are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public.-Usage:The term "conspiracy...
.
Early life
Fred L Crisman was born 1919 in Washington, the only child of Fred Crisman and his wife Eva Pitchers, both from IowaIowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
. His father was a salesman.
Shaver Mystery
In the mid-1940s, his name appears in the pages of pulp magazinePulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
s, reporting on his own Shaver Mystery experiences via letters to the editors, warning of a threat from subterranean-dwelling "Deros," or "detrimental robots." Crisman wrote to Ray Palmer, then editor of the science fiction magazine ‘Amazing Stories’ with details of the incident. Crisman had previously written to Palmer and had a letter published in the June 1946 issue detailing his encounters with his outlandish ideas of ‘deros’ (detrimental robots) who ran an underground super-civilisation. He claimed to have encountered the beings while fighting as a commando in Burma during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and wrote that he sustained injuries from a futuristic laser weapon.
Maury Island Incident
His name next appears in relation to the Maury Island IncidentMaury Island incident
The Maury Island Incident is said to be an early modern UFO encounter incident, which allegedly took place in June 1947, three days before the famous sighting by Kenneth Arnold, widely considered the original encounter with flying saucers. It is also one of the earliest reported instances of an...
, an early UFO
Unidentified flying object
A term originally coined by the military, an unidentified flying object is an unusual apparent anomaly in the sky that is not readily identifiable to the observer as any known object...
encounter. The UFO story began with Harold A Dahl who worked for Crisman. Crisman claimed to later see the object reported by his employee and to have collected slag debris dropped on his boat. Many UFO researchers have dismissed this incident as an outright hoax, most likely perpetrated by Crisman, but others still believe the incident to be a genuine paranormal event.
Murder of a City, Tacoma
Crisman next appears in Tacoma in the late 1960s, railing against the city's form of government (i.e. City Manager). He hosted a radio talk show under the pseudonym "Jon Gold," and wrote a book, The Murder of a City, Tacoma,which he published in 1970 through Transistor Publishing Company. "This weird, politically slanted rant about Tacoma in the late 1960s is a window into the chaos and bitterness that led to the 1971 recall of a majority of the City Council and of the fall of Mayor R.L. Slim Rasmussen. The author, Fred Crisman, was a talk radio personality who managed in the book to tie corruption in Tacoma to everything from communist infiltrators to the Kennedy assassination. The paranoid tone of the writing, shameless personal attacks, and naming of names seems like something out of the mid-50s but as a historical artifact is much more than just a novelty." Crisman was appointed by the mayor to serve on the Tacoma Public Library board.
John F. Kennedy Assassination
During this period, Crisman was subpoenaed by Jim GarrisonJim Garrison
Earling Carothers "Jim" Garrison — who changed his first name to Jim in the early 1960s — was the District Attorney of Orleans Parish, Louisiana from 1962 to 1973. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best known for his investigations into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy...
to testify in the case against Clay Shaw
Clay Shaw
Clay Laverne Shaw was a businessman in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was the only person prosecuted in connection with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and was found not guilty.-Biography:...
in the John F. Kennedy assassination
John F. Kennedy assassination
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
. When Shaw was arrested, apparently Crisman was the first person Shaw called. Various conspiracy theories place Crisman on the grassy knoll, possibly as a radio operator, or as one of the three tramps taken into custody near Dealey Plaza
Dealey Plaza
Dealey Plaza , in the historic West End district of downtown Dallas, Texas , is the location of the assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963...
. The origin of this repeated claim appears to be the Torbitt Document. "William Torbitt" is the pseudonym for a 1969 Texas lawyer-author-Kennedy Assassination-researcher who spells Crisman "Chrismon". However, a log from Rainier High School where Crisman taught shows no substitute was required for Crisman on the day of the assassination, thus supporting Crisman's claim that Crisman was teaching at the time of the assassination. Crisman's Grand Jury testimony is now public; and in Murder of a City, Tacoma, Crisman claimed no knowledge of a conspiracy, nor was he called as a witness in the Clay Shaw trial.
Inslaw and The Octopus
Crisman died in 1975, but his name continues to resonate in the world of conspiracy theories. Michael RiconosciutoMichael Riconosciuto
Michael Riconosciuto is an electronics and computer expert who was convicted on seven drug-related charges in early 1992. Riconosciuto professed a defense centered on the Inslaw Affair...
, a witness who testified before the House Judiciary Committee investigating the Inslaw Affair
Inslaw
Inslaw, Inc. is a small, Washington, D.C.-based, information technology company. In the mid-1970s, Inslaw developed for the United States Department of Justice a highly efficient, people-tracking, software program known as: Prosecutor's Management Information System...
, has been described as a young electronics whiz from Tacoma who was a close acquaintance of Crisman's, and who helped Crisman sweep (and possibly plant) electronic eavesdropping devices during the years Crisman wrote Murder Of A City, Tacoma.
Books that mention Fred Crisman
- Beckh'am, T. E. (Thomas Beckham) Remnants of Truth ISBN 1424338123, 9781424338122
- Thomas, Kenn. Maury Island UFO IllumiNet (1999)ISBN 1-881532-19-4
- Nomenclature of an Assassination Cabal AKA "The Torbit Document" republished as NASA, Nazis & JFK: The Torbitt Document & the Kennedy Assassination, AUP, US, 1996 paperback, ISBN 0-932813-39-9
- Fonzi, Gaeton. The Last Investigation.
- Sprague, Richard E.. The Taking of America 1, 2, 3.
- Marrs, Jim. Alien Agenda - Investigating the Extraterrestrial Presence Among Us HarperPaperBacks (1997)ISBN 0-06-109686-5
Magazines
- UFO 34 Vol.8 No. 5 The Secret Life of Fred L. Crisman by Anthony L. Kimery pp. 34–38
External links
- Crisman, Fred; The Majestic Documents
- Conspiracy Planet Fred Crisman:Key Man in JFK/UFO Conspiracy/Coverup
- Maury Island UFO: Fred Crisman and covert infiltration of ufology
- Thomas, KennKenn ThomasKenn Thomas is a conspiracy theorist, writer, university library archivist, and editor & publisher of Steamshovel Press, a parapolitical conspiracy magazine...
; The Invasion Was Televised: Crisman and The Invaders - Kenneth Arnold and The Maury Island Incident
- Fred Lee Crisman's Grand Jury Testimony for the Garrison Investigation
- Crisman self published book Actual Tacoma record of self published book by Fred Crisman
- Maury Island Incident Recorded history of Fred Crisman and UFO incident on Maury Island
- Video interview of Maury Island incident