The Men in Black, MIBs, the UFO silencers; since the 1950s, UFO witnesses have reported encounters with shadowy figures who've threatened them into silence. Or as Nick Redfern puts it in his book, The Real Men in Black: “For years—or perhaps even for centuries — the Men in Black have been elusive, predatory, fear-inducing figures, hovering with disturbing regularity upon the enigmatic fringes of the UFO subject, nurturing their own unique brand of terror and intimidation. Like true specters from the outer edge, the MIB appear from the murky darkness, and roam the countryside provoking carnage, chaos, paranoia, and fear in their wake, before returning to that same shrouded realm from which they originally oozed.”

The Men in Black were born in a cold war age full of paranoia and deception, from the minds of two people: Albert Bender and Gray Barker. From there, these cloak and dagger menaces took on a life of their own as more and more witnesses came forward with tales of these strange silencers.

Aaron Gulyas of The Saucer Life and Great Lakes Lore podcasts joins me to discuss the origins of the Men in Black and we trade off stories of encounters with these enigmatic figures.

Sources:

The Real Men In Black: Evidence, Famous Cases, and True Stories of These Mysterious Men and their Connection to UFO Phenomena by Nick Redfern

They Knew Too Much About Flying Saucers by Gray Barker

Flying Saucers and the Three Men by Albert K Bender

Short clip of Carlos’ call to the radio tower in Mexico City, YouTube

“Captured in Mid Air: The Carlos Antonio de Los Santos” by Red Pill Junkie Case Mysterious Universe

“Carlos De Lost Santos and The Men in Black” by Jerome Clark Flying Saucer Review 1979 V 24 N 4

The UFO Experience: A Scientific Inquiry by J. Allen Hynek

The Edge of Reality: A Progress Report on Unidentified Flying Objects by J Allen Hynek and Jacques Vallee

“The Man in Black Syndrome…1” by Berthold E. Schwarz Flying Saucer Review 1978 V 23 N 4

“The Man in Black Syndrome…2” by Berthold E. Schwarz Flying Saucer Review 1978 V 23 N 5

“The Man in Black Syndrome…3” by Berthold E. Schwarz Flying Saucer Review 1978 V 23 N 6

Otherworldly Encounters: Evidence of UFO Sightings and Abductions by Nomar Slevik

“Muscatine’s ‘men in black’ lurk on roads and online by Kyle Munson, Des Moines Register

“Who are those mysterious ‘Men in Black’ along Iowa roadways? Associated Press

“Mysterious ‘men in black’ sightings reported along Muscatine Co. roadways” by David Nelson TV 6 KWQC

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