The First UFO Pictures... & Cartoons

UFO Scrapbook: Artistic Depictions from the First Month of Flying Saucers

The first flying saucer picture? It may have been the one shown below, a drawing in the Idaho Statesman, June 28, 1947, based on the testimony of Kenneth Arnold.

 

Idaho Statesman, June 28, 1947

Arnold later wrote up an account of his sighting sent it to the Air Force, who acknowledged receipt of it on July 10, 1947. The report included Arnold’s own illustration of the objects he saw.

Newspaper UFO Illustrations 

In the early rush to cover the saucer mystery, you’d expect that newspaper articles would have featured witness sketches or artists’ renderings, but those were rare. Most of the artwork was by cartoonists and published on the editorial pages, frequently using the topic to satirize economic or political issues. Very few of the cartoons or illustrations dealt with theories of the origin of the UFOs, but there were a few interesting exceptions. Here’s our sampling of about twenty UFO drawings from the first month of saucers.

The Miami News, July 6, 1947, a gag about the economy.

 

Denver Post, July 6, 1947, featured an imaginative illustration of the interior of a flying saucer by Charles Schneeman, who had a long career before and after UFOs as a science fiction artist.

Caption:

“If you're one of the unimaginative people who haven’t yet seen a flying disc, this artist’s drawing might help you see one the next time you're outdoors. The drawing, by Post staff artist Charles Schneeman, shows his conception of the interior of a flying disc, always providing that there are such things, and that they are man-made. Part of the problematic crew is shown peering through a porthole at another of the sailing saucers. The disc jockeys at the controls, from left to right, are NOT Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers and Superman.”

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 7, 1947, a gag suggesting the sightings were the product of imagination, "intoxication" due to the fear of atomic war. 

Daily News, July 7, 1947: One legend eyes a new one invading its territory.

July 7, 1947: the International News Service sent out an illustration in connection with sightings in Idaho. It was signed by “CP” and the text stated, “Above is an artist's conception of what the now-you-see-them-now-you-don't discs might look like if they turn out to be man-made devices.”

Shortly afterwards, it was circulated as a general illustration in many papers: 

“HERE'S FLYING SAUCER as envisioned by artist after hearing latest ‘eyewitness’ reports. This saucer has everything but the cup and a man from Mars in the cockpit.”

These three address the economy, business, and politics.

Des Moines Tribune, July 8, 1947

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 8, 1947

Hartford Courant, July 8, 1947

At the time, few people were mentioning aliens in connections with saucers, and most of them were kooks or jokers. Denver Post, July 8, 1947, was one of the many newspapers featuring the satirical column by Hal Boyle, who claimed to have gone on a saucer voyage into space with a Martian cyclops. The Post’s version of the column included the illustration below, artist unknown.

The economy again and again:

Asbury Park Press, July 9, 1947

The Burlington Free Press, July 9, 1947

Crockery - literal flying saucers was a frequent theme.

Press and Sun Bulletin (Binghamton, NY) July 10, 1947

The Morning News (Wilmington, DE) July 10, 1947

The Times Record (Troy, NY) July 10, 1947

The cost of living...

The Gazette (Montreal, CA) July 12, 1947

The Marysville Advocate (KS) July 17, 1947

Arizona Republic, July 26, 1947

Now for something different, a collection showcasing the overuse of saucers in cartoons.

Florence Morning News (SC) July 20, 1947

In Life magazine July 21, 1947, “Speaking of Pictures” was a light-hearted illustrated article that compared the saucers to ancient apparitions and follies. The caption stated:   

“The explanation of the flying disks drawn by Boris Artzybasheff shows residents of the planet Neptune gleefully bombarding the universe with stacks of crockery fired by atomic saucer-launchers. Neptunians thus far have aimed only saucers at the earth (top) but more favored planets have been shelled with teapots and dinner plates.”

Muggs and Skeeter by Wally Bishop may have been the first daily comic strip to use a flying saucer gag.

The Press Democrat, July 27, 1947.

There's no date on this 1947 cartoon, but it’s worth including due to the ET Expedition gag. From the aviation cartoon series, “Plane Nonsense” by Floyd E. Hill.

We’ve saved this picture for last, a flying saucer that appeared in an advertisement one month before people were supposed to be seeing UFOs. It was a plug for the paper's comic strip section featuring a space ship "of tomorrow." The art was from Buck Rogers, where such things had been featured since 1929.

The Long Beach Independent, May 9, 1947.

UFO Religion: The Cosmic Circle of Fellowship

 

William R. Ferguson (born July 23, 1900) was the author of a 1937 self-self-help book teaching that before you could achieve your goals, one must learn to Relax First. Most of the advice was pragmatic, but there was a taste of the metaphysical:

“There was a soul that wandered out in the cosmic space... Everyone who has been born on this terrestrial sphere, was once a soul that wandered before its advent here.”

Ferguson worked as postman, then a Chicago taxi driver but quit that in 1946 to promote the invention he called the Zerret Applicator, a device infused with atomic energy that produced healing X-rays. 

From the FDA Consumer, February 1977:

“The Zerret Applicator exploited popular interest in medical uses of atomic energy following World War II. Inside were tubes of ‘Zerret Water,’ claimed to produce the ‘Z-Ray, a force unknown to science.’ This was said to ‘expand the atoms of the body’" thereby curing all diseases. Users were directed, to hold one end of the device in each hand but not to cross the legs, which would cause a ‘short circuit.’ More than 5,000 were sold at $50 each. Prosecuted by FDA, the promoter was sentenced to two years in Federal prison.”

Reborn

After prison, Ferguson found a new calling. He went into the flying saucer region business. In 1954 Ferguson founded the Cosmic Circle of Fellowship, the first publication of which was his 13-page booklet, My Trip To Mars.

Ferguson rewrote his history, retconning everything into a cosmic plan. He claimed to have had some mind-expanding experiences since 1938, but on January 12, 1947, his consciousness was taken to Mars to meet a “Celestial Being,” Khauga.

"The Martians taught me so many things in the two hours that I was there, but in particular, the one who guided me about; his name was, and is, Khauga... is the one who engineered my teleportation... This great being who had engineered everything. I found out he was the one who had… been guiding my hands and consciousness in my work. …What a revelation to know that you have been working under the guidance of one of the greatest Uniphysicists in our Solar System.”

He found out that the Martians have been observing our progress on consciousness, spiritual and scientific development for 2,000 years. Ferguson was selected by Khauga to a share a message:

“To all fellow Earthmen, I can assure you we are now in a wonderful development period… and as a result, all things will become new and finer for the enjoyment and happiness for each and every being.”

Ferguson's teachings were a stew of New Age religion, flying saucer concepts and Christianity, preparing his followers for the Second Coming of Jesus.  In 1955, Ferguson published a 38-page booklet by "Khauga the Comforter, A Message from Outer Space." It was described as, "A Decoding of the Book of Revelation (the Apocalypse) of the Bible; This Book Was a Revelation of Jesus Christ Given to His Angel to Give It to John His Servant Who Was on the Isle of Patmos When the Revelation Was Given." 

The Cosmic Circle of Fellowship became part of the flying saucer Contactee community which helped spread the word about the group, their publications, and products. Ferguson also traveled to other cities to five  lectures, but one such trip to Wisconsin resulted in a scrap with the law. As reported in Time magazine, Nov. 29, 1954, "Miscellany: Wild Blue Yonder.”

"In Milwaukee, police looked for William Ferguson, lecturer (at $1 a head) on the wonders of Mars, after he 1) tried to sell Policewoman Mary Smeaton a brain-relaxing helmet and other souvenirs he said he brought back from his trip to the planet in 1947; 2) told her she would return to her home planet Saturn after 14,000 more years; 3) rhapsodized about Martian food, which the body absorbs without the need for elimination, and Martian water, which can be swum in without getting wet."

As reprinted in The Sun-Herald (Sydney, Australia)  Dec. 5, 1954 

Flying saucer magazines generally received Ferguson more warmly. Flying Saucer News, Sept 1955:

"The Cosmic Circle of Fellowship presents William Ferguson every Friday evening at 8: P.M. in Parlor E of the LaSalle Hotel, Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Ferguson gives Flying Saucer reports and messages from outer space, and subject matter of related phenomena.”

Ad from Flying Saucer News, Aug. 1955

Coral and Jim Lorenzen found Ferguson and his kind to be a nuisance. The APRO Bulletin, Sept. 1956: 

“Wonder when the [press] will do a feature on the oddballs in Chicago who call themselves the ‘Cosmic Circle of Fellowship.’ Passing around plastic cups, which they call the Cosmic Carriers, they list on their program ‘Cosmic Music,’ etc., and are generally fouling up UFO research… part of the job… [is to look] into these things, no matter how odd.”

The press had come close. The March 10, 1956, issue of The Saturday Evening Post had run an article on a flying saucer book store, “He Runs Flying Saucer Headquarters.” It focused on the kooks and Contactees, noting the Cosmic Circle of Fellowship in Chicago “receives messages from space every Friday night in Parlor E of the La Salle Hotel.”

UFO Conventions

Ferguson spoke at flying saucer conventions, and his group held their own “Annual Interplanetary Space Conference.” The Ufologer, Sept. 1957:

“On September 13, 14, 15 The Cosmic Circle of Fellowship held their annual space-craft conference here in Washington [DC] at the New Colonial Hotel… Among the speakers were, Major Wayne Aho, who gave a very interesting talk entitled, ‘Cosmic Ambassadors.’”

Anna Keppy was a UFO activist from Davenport, Michigan, who was active in the Cosmic Circle of Fellowship. She helped arrange lectures for Reinhold Schmitt, Otis T. Carr, and Wayne Aho, pictured below.

The Quad City Times, Feb. 18, 1958

During Ferguson’s travels, he set up “Circles” in other cities, including Washington, Philadelphia, New York, and San Francisco. Back at home, Ferguson and his Cosmic Circle of Fellowship received some unfavorable press in the Chicago Tribune, June 14, 1959, “Quackery: $500,000 Racket.”

Illustration by George Sottung

Fortunately for him, the Circle was only described, not named. Business went on as usual.

AFSCA World Report, July-Aug. 1959

“The Cosmic Circle of Fellowship, Inc., present their 4th Annual Interplanetary Space Conference, September 11, 12, 13, 1959. Features include: The Pageant of the Planets, The Cosmic Dance, William Ferguson, Live Celestial Music, The Key to the Next Evolutionary Step of Man. This event will be held at the LaSalle Hotel, Chicago, Illinois.”

The organization continued to publish booklets about their religious teachings. The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library files from 1961 contain “material from the Cosmic Circle of Fellowship, Inc.”

Will the Circle Be Unbroken?

The last activity we found from Ferguson was a notice of his lecture October 19, 1966, lecture in Sioux City, Iowa, “A Story of Creation.” William R. Ferguson died June 20, 1967.

The Circle(s) carried on without him. The Presidential Library for Ronald Reagan contains a letter to the President and his Cabinet from March 18, 1981, from Cloe Diroll of the “Cosmic Study Center.” She called for “Government recognition of UFOs and acceptance of Space Beings,” based on the “unique experiences and revelations of William Ferguson.” She included a channeled message and a copy of her newsletter.

The last reference we found to the Cosmic Circle of Fellowship as a functioning entity was in the Tampa Tribune, July 25, 1992, which said the group had “about 20 members nationwide who communicate through newsletters.”

If we believe William Ferguson, since his 1947 contact, Khauga of Mars had “been guiding my hands and consciousness in my work.” Such work included the manufacture and sale of the Zerret Applicator. That crime led to a conviction, so we are granting Ferguson honorary status in an exclusive circle, the Saucer Swindlers.

. . .

For Further Reading

William Ferguson and the Cosmic Circle of Fellowship by Kook Science.

William Ferguson, The First Man on Mars by Adam Gorightly.

Lying, Saucers, and the Government

 (Originally from Blue Blurry Lines,  Aug. 2, 2017)

Most people know Major General John A. Samford from his historic July 29, 1952 press conference given after the Washington, D.C. radar incidents. He spoke on behalf of the Air Force and Project Blue Book to talk about the small but troubling percentage of UFO reports "from credible observers of relatively incredible things."

See our previous article, Pentagon UFO Report 1952: We Can Do Nothing for coverage on the conference and what was disclosed. 

Major General John A. Samford, July 29, 1952 

Gen. Samford was Director of Air Force Intelligence. Captain Edward Ruppelt, in the notes made in preparation for his 1956 book, The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects, described Gen. Samford in his entries on the key figures involved in the Air Force's Project Blue Book:

An earlier draft of Ruppelt's notes.

Samford, Major General John 

General Samford never committed himself one way or the other on the subject of UFO’s. He was always very much interested and gave me the utmost in cooperation, but he never said much. He used to ask many of the other people at meetings what they thought and there were a lot of “pro” answers but he never agreed or disagreed with anyone. The only time that I ever heard him say anything was when Col Porter got real nasty about the whole thing one day and began to knock ATIC, UFO’s, me and everything associated with the project. Then the General said something to the effect that as far as he could see, I was the first person in the history of the Air Force’s investigation that had taken a serious approach to the investigation and that he didn’t see how anyone could decide until I’d collected more data.

At the present time the General is the one who is so rabid on the fact that nothing will be released. He got “burned” real bad on the press conference in July 1952. His statements were twisted around and newsreel shots of him were “cut and pieced” to get him saying things that he didn’t. He wanted to play along with the writers but they misquoted him so badly that now he is saying absolutely nothing. Donald Keyhoe keeps writing about the “silence group” in the Air Force, those who want to clamp down on UFO news.  Gen Samford is the silence group and friend Keyhoe can take all of the credit for making him that way. 

 (From "Figures Associated With Project Blue Book")

Samford's Dynamic Disclosures in See Magazine

No mention of saucers on the cover.
See magazine, dated March 1953

See was a bi-monthly magazine, sort of a more sensational version of Life, but featuring a heavier emphasis on entertainment. See's covers featured beautiful buxom women, making it look more like a girlie pin-up magazine, but they did cover news and current events. In their last issue for 1952, See made news for its coverage of the flying saucer controversy in an exclusive interview with General Samford of the USAF. The press reported:

"'It would be foolhardy to deny the possibility that higher forms of life exist elsewhere,' reported the general just as it would be 'unreasonable' to deny that we may already have been visited by beings from outer space. Regarding the, unexplained phenomena, and the possibility of the presence of an alien intelligence, General Samford added, 'We believe that all of this eventually will be understood by the human mind, and that it is our job to hasten the understanding.'"

In Loren Gross' UFOs: A History 1952 November—December,  he summarizes the same interview from See, but emphasizes different points than the newspaper article.

The November issue of See magazine featured an interview with Chief of Air Force Intelligence General John A. Samford by the periodical's Washington editor Serge Fliegers. The General, for the most part, repeated what he said during the big press conference at the end of July. He acknowledged that 25 per cent of UFO reports were made by military personnel, rejected professor Donald Menzel's theories, and insisted that evidence of visitors from space was lacking. Have UFOs been seen over Russia, asked Fliegers? The General replied that the U.S. Air Force didn't know. The Air Force, according to Samford, also lacked satisfactory proof of the supposed "ghost rockets" reported in 1946. Before Flieger left Samford's comer Pentagon office overlooking the Potomac, he questioned the General about the possibility Communist agents were spreading flying saucer reports to put fear into Americans about Russian secret weapons. The General answered: "We cannot discount that possibility. It is under investigation."

Indiana Evening Gazette, Dec. 26, 1952

Says Space Visitors Possible

NEW YORK -- It is definitely possible that intelligent beings from some other world have been able to visit our planet, or at least to travel within our atmosphere, Major General John A. Samford, Chief of Air Force Intelligence now investigating the Flying Saucer mystery, said today, in an exclusive interview in the current issue of See Magazine, just released.

"It would be foolhardy to deny the possibility that higher forms of life exist elsewhere," reported the general just as it would be "unreasonable" to deny that we may already have been visited by beings from outer space. Regarding the, unexplained phenomena, and the possibility of the presence of an alien intelligence, General Samford added, "We believe that all of this eventually will be understood by the human mind, and that it is our job to hasten the understanding."

In commenting upon the 20 percent of flying saucer reports which remain mysteriously unexplained, General Samford declared the saucers' behavior indicates they "either have unlimited power or no mass." Many "credible people have seen incredible things," he asserted, "some of which have later been satisfactorily explained, while others so far have defied explanation."

General Samford said that the Air Force is keeping nothing from the public regarding Project Flying Saucer. The only information not disclosed is names of those reporting saucer sightings and the method used by Air Force Intelligence to investigate and evaluate these reports.

A Harvard professor's theory that flying saucers are caused by reflected light has not yet been proved, General Samford reported. Even if it were true, he stated, "It would not account for all reports, by any means."

The general branded as false the rumor that jet pilots have had orders to shoot at saucers. "We have thousands of letters and telegrams begging us to rescind this 'shoot-on-sight order. But no "such order was ever given."

The theory of the late Secretary of Defense, James A. Forrestal, that flying saucers were related to this country's experiments with "man made moons" -- platforms that could be suspended in the atmosphere for defense and observation -- was categorically denied by General Samford. "Saucers are in no way related to these moons," he said.

Here's a partial transcript of the See magazine article itself:

Flying Saucers- the last word!

SEE presents an exclusive interview with the worlds best informed military man – Major General John A. Samford – on the worlds most exciting modern mystery 

Frequent Queries Answered Below

What do flying saucers look like?

Why did they make no sound? 

Are they really caused by reflected light? 

Does mass hysteria explain them?

Do they contain visitors from space? 

No other mystery has so inflamed the imagination of The 20th century man as the Mystery of the Flying Saucers. And no one else among us knows more about the flying saucer stand Major General John A. Samford, a tall quiet gentleman with penetrating eyes and a crack record as a fighter pilot, who sits in a corner Pentagon office overlooking the Potomac. General Samford is Chief of Air Force Intelligence. As such, he is head of Project Saucer, which has been investigating the enigmatical objects which have streaked across our heavens.

Last summer, when another rash of saucer sightings spread from coast to coast, General Samford how they press conference to quiet public furor. But that conference left a number of points on answered or unemphasized. Hence, in an effort to fill the gaps in public understanding of the subject, the questions which appear below were put to General Samford by Serge Fliegers SEE's Washington editor, who has followed saucer reports from Stockholm to Seattle.

Q: General Samford, what do flying saucers look like? 

A: There is no single pattern. Unidentified aerial objects, as I prefer to call them, have been described as having cone shapes, disc shapes, ball shapes. Reports have them going and incredible speeds. 

Q: When did the reports start coming in? 

A: Here in the U.S., the Air Force started investigating such reports in the fall of 1947. On December 30, 1947, it directed its Air Force Material Command, at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio to set up a project to evaluate all facts concerning them. 

Q: How many reports of come in since then?

A: Serious reports analyzed by Dayton center total about 1500. Sixty-odd percent come from the civilian population. About eight per cent come from civil airline pilots, and about twenty-five per cent from military personnel, including military pilots.

 

Q: But doesn't that destroyed the "mass hysteria" explanation of saucer signings? After all, most pilots are pretty reliable man. 

A: The Air Force has never believed that all reports on unidentified aerial objects are caused by hysteria. But careful evaluation by our Dayton center showed fully 80 per cent of the reports concerned natural, explainable occurrences. 

Q: What is your reaction to that Harvard professor's (Dr. Donald Menzel) theory that flying saucers are caused by reflected light? 

A: The theory is appealing, but has not yet been proved. Therefore the Air Force cannot yet accept it as a satisfactory explanation. Furthermore, it would not account for all reports, by any means. 

Q: Violent headlines have declared that jet pilots had orders to shoot at the saucers. Is that true? 

A: We have thousands of letters and telegrams begging us to resend this "shoot on sight "order. No such order ever was given. I repeat, the Air Force never ordered it to pilots to shoot down any of these so-called "flying saucers." The pilots had orders to find and find out what they were all about. 

Flying Saucers Not Hostile 

Naturally, if a jet fighter pilot sees an object approaching at great unknown speed,  heading, say, for New York City, he is going to try to contact it. Then, if it proceed against his warnings and its actions appear hostile, he will try to intercept it. 

Q: Has the Air Force any reason to believe that these unidentified aerial objects may be a danger to us, or may be trying to harm us?

A: None whatsoever. 

Q: You say that 80% of the sources reported could be explain naturally. What about the other twenty per cent? 

A: The Air Force is still trying to answer that. 

 - - -

The Air Force Responds

The part about Gen. Samford saying it was unreasonable "to deny that we may already have been visited by beings from outer space," was a pretty spectacular claim to be coming from the United States government. In response to the See article, the Air Force issued a press release to correct the record. We've been unable to locate the document, but have the fragments from it carried in newspaper articles.

Oil City Derrick, Dec. 29, 1952

"As limited as man is in his knowledge and understanding of the universe and its many forces, it would be foolhardy indeed to deny the possibility that higher forms of life existed elsewhere.
It would be similarly unreasonable to deny that intelligent beings from some other world were able to visit our planet, at least to travel within our atmosphere.
"However, the Air Force desires to reiterate emphatically that there is absolutely no evidence to indicate that this possibility has been translated into reality."

According to Donald Keyhoe's Flying Saucers from Outer Space, the See interview was a counterfeit:

"I saw the AP story on it," I said. "But the Air Force is a little sore about that article. (Al) Chop told me they didn't interview General Samford directly—it was supposed to be labeled a hypothetical interview based on public statements he'd made."

A "hypothetical interview." Serge Fliegers' article was a mix of fact and fiction.

Who was Serge Fliegers?

Mike Wallace (L) interviewing Serge Fliegers (R) in 1962.

"Serge Fliegers See's Washington editor..." was best known as a European correspondent for Hearst newspapers. A mini bio of him appeared in The Freeman magazine, April 1953:

Serge Fliegers was brought up in Switzerland, educated at Cambridge and Harvard. As a correspondent he has traveled in Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, speaks eight languages, including Arabic. Between covering the United Nations for the Inter Continental Press and writing magazine articles, he manages to find time for his special interest- opera and instrumental music.

In 1964, Fliegers' name came up during the Warren Commission's investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Word got to them that Fliegers claimed that an anti-Khrushchev, pro-Chinese group in the Soviet Union had trained Lee Harvey Oswald to assassinate the President. Investigating the credibility of Fliegers and his sources, investigators contacted Dan Brigham, an editor of the New York Journal American newspaper. Brigham was able to give them Fliegers' location for questioning, and reported that Fliegers was "one of the biggest fakers in the business and anything he says has to be taken with a large grain of salt." 

Warren Commission Exhibit No. 1444
https://www.history-matters.com/archive/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh22/pdf/WH22_CE_1444.pdf

When Fliegers was questioned about the source of his assassination information,  he said that his source may received this information from another source who, in turn, may have received the information from contacts in Russia. Pressed for the identity of his source  Fliegers was evasive and said it was impossible for him to contact him by telephone. The information went nowhere, and turned out to be rumors and speculation repeated by a reporter as if it were facts.

The Policy of Silence

Was the See interview an example of what Ed Ruppelt was saying, that Gen. Samford's comments were "cut and pieced” to get him "saying things that he didn’t?" Samford's statements were similar to his remarks from the July 29, 1952 press conference on the Washington, D.C. UFO radar incidents. 

Project Blue Book's files has the AF transcript of Samford's press conference:
https://www.fold3.com/image/1/12428060
Saturday Night Uforia has an easily searchable version of the transcript.
http://www.saturdaynightuforia.com/html/articles/articlehtml/samfordpctanscript.html

If the See "interview" had it's origin there, great dramatic license was taken with Samford's words. Maybe after getting burned by Serge Fliegers in See, Gen. Samford set an example for the Air Force, setting the policy that the best way to handle the press on the UFO topic was silence, "saying absolutely nothing."

Thanks to The Saucers That Time Forgot's Claude Falkstrom for the lead on this article, and to Jan Aldrich for additional details on the AF press release refuting the See article.

. . .