The notion of UFO “Disclosure” may have been born with Donald E. Keyhoe’s article in TRUE Magazine, January 1950, “The Flying Saucers are Real.” Keyhoe presented the passage below, supposedly quoting an anonymous aircraft designer described as one of the “top engineers” for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (N.A.C.A.), who shared the view that “the disks are interplanetary.”
“I think that the American public is being gradually conditioned to think in terms of space travel. I think we are being prepared for what [the Air Force] probably already knows: that the Earth is under surveillance by interplanetary travelers.
“Remember the New Jersey panic over the Orson Welles 'Men From Mars’ broadcast?" he said. “I think the government may believe that disclosure of the disks’ probable origin would set off a nationwide hysteria. Personally, I doubt it would. I think Americans could take it.”
While it was overshadowed by other aspects, the concept
of an alien cover-up and its inevitable disclosure was central to the story in a 1968 major
motion picture. Let’s take a close look at how two master storytellers confronted
the topic.
The 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey was written by director Stanley Kubrick and science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke. In Arthur C. Clarke and the Magic of UFOs, we briefly examined his negative view of flying saucers as proof of aliens. In 1963 he wrote, “I have little doubt that Unidentified Aerial Objects do exist – and equally little doubt that they are not spaceships! The evidence against the latter hypothesis is, in my opinion, quite overwhelming...”
Clarke was open to the possibility of intelligent life on other planets and wrote much plausible science fiction about it. For this reason, Kubrick approached him to create a realistic movie about extraterrestrial contact. Their story began with the birth of the human race, then jumped forward in time to 2001, when Earth had begun to colonize the moon.
We’re
introduced to Dr. Heywood Floyd, of the National Council of Astronautics, on
his flight to the moon. We gradually learn he’s been sent to oversee the
investigation of a structured object of extraterrestrial origin discovered in a
scientific excavation at the base at Clavius. Authorities have cut off communications, and as cover
story, spread rumors of an epidemic there (and the base is under quarantine).
The screenplay for 2001: A Space Odyssey by Kubrick and Clarke was originally written with narration to guide us thorough the story, but Kubrick chose to eliminate the narrator, opting for a more mysterious audiovisual experience for the audience. For Clarke’s version of the story in the novel, he included the explanatory material from the script’s narration, presenting the story in a more linear manner.
While there’s much of interest in the film, we’re focusing solely on the two scenes involving the discovery of extraterrestrial intelligence, and the U.S. government’s choice to keep it secret. There were differences in how the scenes were presented between the screenplay, finished film, then in Clarke's novel.
Scene One: Dr. Floyd’s Talk on the Moon Base
“FLOYD: First of all, I bring a personal message from Dr. Howell, who has asked me to convey his deepest appreciation to all of you for the personal sacrifices you have made, and of course his congratulations on your discovery which may well prove to be among the most significant in the history of science.
POLITE APPLAUSE.
FLOYD (cont'd): Mr. Halvorsen has made known to me some of the conflicting views held by many of you regarding the need for complete security in this matter, and more specifically your strong opposition to the cover story created to give the impression there is an epidemic at the Base. I understand that beyond it being a matter of principle, many of you are troubled by the concern and anxiety this story of an epidemic might cause your relatives and friends on Earth.
I can understand and sympathize with your negative views. I have been personally embarrassed by this cover story. But I fully accept the need for absolute secrecy and I hope you will.
It should not be difficult for all of you to realise the potential for cultural shock and social disorientation contained in the present situation if the facts were prematurely and suddenly made public without adequate preparation and conditioning.
FLOYD: This is the view of the Council and the purpose of my visit here is to gather additional facts and opinions on the situation and to prepare a report to the Council recommending when and how the news should eventually be announced. Are there any questions?
MICHAELS: Dr. Floyd, how long do you think this can be kept under wraps?
FLOYD (pleasantly): I'm afraid it can and it will be kept under wraps as long as it is deemed to be necessary by the Council. And of course you know that the Council has requested that formal security oaths are to be obtained in writing from everyone who had any knowledge of this event. There must be adequate time for a full study to be made of the situation before any consideration can be given to making a public announcement.”
The Film:
The filmed version had revisions
to the dialogue but was faithful to the scene in the script.
The Novel:
Dr. Floyd’s briefing in
the book was shorter and barely touches on the “Disclosure” aspect. Beforehand,
he discussed the rumor of a “moon-plague” with the administrator. “I'm sorry
about that but no one could think of a better cover story, and so far it's
worked.” When he addresses the staff, he says:
“I'm quite aware that some of you - perhaps most of you - are anxious that the present veil of secrecy be withdrawn; you would not be scientists if you thought otherwise. But I would remind you that this is a quite extraordinary situation. We must be absolutely sure of our own facts; if we make errors now, there may be no second chance - so please be patient a little longer. Those are also the wishes of the President.”
The next scene is the
monolith being examined. As its exposed to the rays of the sun it emits a
signal.
Scene Two: Disclosure of the True Mission
The story jumps to Dave Bowman, a member of the crew of the spaceship Discovery One, on a mission to Saturn (changed to Jupiter for the film). An intelligent computer, HAL 9000, operates the ship, but due to being programmed to lie to the crew to preserve the secret of the alien relic, it developed “neurotic symptoms,” which led to Hal killing the crew.
The Screenplay:
After disabling HAL 9000, Dave Bowman, the lone surviving astronaut,
establishes communication with earth. Mission Control explains what went wrong
with HAL 9000, then the truth of the mission is revealed by a taped message
from Dr. Floyd.
“Good day, gentlemen… Thirteen months before the launch date of your Saturn mission, on April 12th, 2001, the first evidence for intelligent life outside the Earth was discovered. It was found buried at a depth of fifteen meters in the crater Tycho. No news of this was ever announced, and the event had been kept secret since then, for reasons which I will later explain.
Soon after it was uncovered, it emitted a powerful blast of radiation in the radio spectrum which seems to have triggered by the Lunar sunrise. Luckily for those at the site, it proved harmless. Perhaps you can imagine our astonishment when we later found it was aimed precisely at Saturn. …We finally concluded that the only reason you might bury a sun-powered device would be to keep it inactive until it would be uncovered, at which time it would absorb sunlight and trigger itself.
What is its purpose? I wish we knew. The object was buried on the moon about four million years ago, when our ancestors were primitive man-apes. We've examined dozens of theories, but the one that has the most currency at the moment is that the object serves as an alarm.
What the purpose of the alarm is, why they wish to have the alarm, whether the alarm represents any danger to us? These are questions no one can answer. The intentions of an alien world, at least four million years older than we are, cannot be reliably predicted.
In view of this, the intelligence and scientific communities felt that any public announcement might lead to significant cultural shock and disorientation. Discussion took place at the highest levels between governments, and it was decided that the only wise and precautionary course to follow was to assume that the intentions of this alien world are potentially dangerous to us, until we have evidence to the contrary. This is, of course, why security has been maintained and why this information has been kept on a need-to-know basis.”
The Film:
The taped message is much shorter in the film and cuts off after Floyd describes the discovery of the monolith and the signal it emitted. “Its origin and purpose still a total mystery.”
The Novel:
Instead of a taped message, in the book, Bowman establishes contact with Earth and speaks to Dr. Floyd, who explains to him at length what is known and thought about the object. In part:
“And now I must tell you its real purpose, which we have managed, with great difficulty, to keep secret from the general public… Everything I am about to tell you has the highest security classification. Two years ago, we discovered the first evidence for intelligent life outside the Earth. [The monolith was a] Sun-triggered, signaling device... that it emitted its pulse… when it was exposed to daylight for the first time in three million years… the monolith may be some kind of alarm. And we have triggered it.
Whether the civilization which set it up still exists, we do not know. We must assume [they do and] that they may be hostile. …primitive races have often failed to survive the encounter with higher civilizations. Anthropologists talk of 'cultural shock'; we may have to prepare the entire human race for such a shock. But until we know something about the creatures… we cannot even begin to make any preparations. Your mission…is a scouting trip… So now you know your real objective, and can appreciate the vital importance of this mission. We are all praying that you can still provide us with some facts for a preliminary announcement; the secret cannot be kept indefinitely.”
Bowman
finds a giant-sized monolith and takes a pod to investigate. He makes the
contact with the object and finds the experience overwhelming.
The ending of the story is a bit different in the script, film, and novel, but all reflect a transformation. The extraterrestrial intelligence had placed the monolith on earth to spark the development of mankind. By following their signal into space to another monolith, we showed that our species was ready for the next step in our evolution.
While spectacular finale of the film leaves the issue of alien cover-up and disclosure in the dust, it’s worth remembering how central it was to the plot. Also, how the secrecy and cover-up resulted in suspicion, distrust, and in the case of HAL 9000, rather severe “neurotic symptoms.”
Something Spectacular
In the 1980 TV series, Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World, episode 10 was “U.F.O.s.” In the opening, Clarke said:
“I think I can claim to be a reluctant expert on UFOs. I've been interested in them for almost fifty years, long before the phrase ‘flying saucers’ was invented. UFOs are very common. If you've never seen one, you're either unobservant, or you live in a cloudy area. I've seen half a dozen good ones, and now I have some very definite opinions on the subject.”
His views were mostly skeptical. However, closing the episode, Clarke offered some more optimistic thoughts.
“Personally, I'm convinced that there must be many, many higher civilizations in this enormous and incredibly ancient universe of ours. And since we are preparing to go out into space ourselves, other older races may have been doing this for millions of years. So it's quite reasonable to think that they may have come here in the remote past, perhaps many times as indeed suggested in 2001. [He went on to say that we should look for fossilized evidence. Modern radar and space equipment can detect objects the size of a pencil.]
Is it conceivable that we've been having visitors over the last decades trying to sneak up on us, landing in obscure places, being seen by a few people, and not by these enormous tracking networks? I feel that when there really is a visitation from space, it'll be something spectacular, rather like the climax of the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind. We'll be certain of it in about five minutes.”
Clarke
made no mention of any UFO secrecy or cover-up in the show, but the closing scenario gave a clue as
to his position. Disclosure will come
from the extraterrestrials themselves, not the government.
. . .
