Blobsquatch Babel
Posted by: Loren Coleman on June 28th, 2006
This is a classic Blobsquatch image, one captured from the Bobby Clarke video taken in Manitoba.
A reader, Sharon Hill, reminds me that this word used by so many so casually today, “Blobsquatch,” happens to be “one of those great descriptive words made popular via the Internet.”
But what is the exact meaning, if there is such a thing, for “Blobsquatch”? And when did the word first appear? Are some photographs that some people are calling Blobsquatch images really not?
The Lake Worth Monster’s 1969 photograph may actually be one of the clearer Blobsquatch photographs out there. Or is it even a Blobsquatch?
“Blobsquatch” is specifically the object in a photograph of a supposed Bigfoot or Sasquatch that has a lack of definition and detail, an illusion created by a play of light within an often unfamiliar natural environment. It is literally a “blob” (an indistinct shapeless form) that may or may not, but probably is not, a Sasquatch. The Blobsquatch seem to be shadows in the trees, dark spots in the tall grass, light-colored objects on trails, or crossing branches in the forest that assist people’s imaginations in “seeing” a Bigfoot (when one might not be there). Or could they be real pictures of ill-defined Bigfoot in the woods?
As you click this image for a full-size version, ask yourself, is this a Blobsquatch or not?
The North East Sasquatch Researchers Association (NESRA) defines a “Blobsquatch” as “anything in a picture or film which might be possibly mistaken for a Sasquatch such as a tree stump, a large rock, [and/or] a shadow.”
The NESRA has even dedicated a page entirely to Blobsquatch pictures (taken from around the Internet) to show “how easy it is to claim that one has captured an elusive Sasquatch on film.”
Part of my and the NESRA’s meanings can be viewed as working and developing definitions for “Blobsquatch,” until someone tells me there is already an extremely formal one online.
In the meantime, let’s do a little more detective work about the who and the when of the word. Who first created and used the word “Blobsquatch”? Any readers have any hints? How long ago was the word coined? How long has the word been in use on the Internet or in print? How old is the term “Blobsquatch”?
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
… and if knowledgable contributors could reference their information (to print or web media), then one of us could wander on over to Wikipedia and begin an article.
The term, as far as I know, was first used on the internet on the Bigfoot Forum in 2002. It is still online if you can be bothered to read through the backlog. (alternately google it and it may come up at the correct point.)
I don’t have time today or I’d set one of my students on looking it up.
(wicked woman that i am)
It may have gotten its start on Bigfoot Forums. This thread there mentions the use of the word.
It also mentions the use of the word in Alton Higgins’ presentation that he made at the 2003 International Bigfoot Symposium.
I think that the only way a blobsquatch should ever be taken seriously is if there are consecutive photos taken showing it change or move from frame to frame. Why is every blobsquatch photo only ever one photo? Because it’s a blob says Mr. Rorschach.
It’s one more piece of imagination probably. Obviously, it might be several things, such us rocks, trees, horses (well…) or even other forms of life, even humans that have some passion for making hoaxes. But i guess, it is one interesting cryptolegend, if it is actually what it is said or seems to be…
It’s a fun word to say. C’mon everybody, say it with me! Blobsquatch! If you say it a few times in a row out loud, it will make you laugh. Okay, I’ve had too much coffee this am. After “googling” the term, I have found references to bigfoot forums, and blogs, but have not seen a date yet. I’ll keep looking. Also, I came across a Cryptomundo blog from March 6, titled “Elephant or Lake Monster”, and comment #6 by chrisandclauida2 mentions the term blobsquatch was coined on the big foot forums, once again, no date. Researching I will go….
This link pertains specifically to the subject.
“Oldtimer” attempts to take credit for the term, but he is quickly shown to be mistaken. Apparently it was first used by by “RavenBC” on Feb. 2003, although prior use of the word “blob” in 2002 in reference to lousy pictures led to the coining of the term.
In my photo analysis paper I give my perspective of the term:
“A second category of images includes photographs that were not necessarily faked, but in which purported bigfoot details are unclear or undetectable. Admittedly, this sometimes involves subjectivity on the part of those assessing the photographs. Indeed, opinions may vary regarding even the most compelling images, such as those in the Patterson/Gimlin film (which some critics continue to describe as “grainy” or “blurry”). Nevertheless, I believe that most unbiased observers, including those within the bigfoot research community, would have little difficulty agreeing that any photo requiring equal parts interpretation and imagination (photos sometimes characterized as “blobsquatches”) should be discounted.”
I always thought the Lake Worth photo was a smoke plume rising off a fire. I don’t even see how anyone could look at this and think sasquatch.
it is a bigfoot forum term. if someone can prove thru a link to a prior use on a different site then do it. but i am positive i never heard nor seen it used anywhere but the bigfoot forums until recently
i also wonder when the first use of the term here was?
Rick Noll may have been the first person to use the term at Cryptomundo (22 Oct. 2005).
I think the first time I ever heard the term was on a BF forum in mid 2003.
How about, “Any photograph or film/video still image that could be of a sasquatch, but is blurry to the point of showing indistinct blobs of color rather than any useful details. Therefore generally considered useless as evidence for the creature’s existence.”
I am fairly new to cryptomundo so I don’t know if you all have seen this one sent to Coast to Coast AM some time ago.
I liked this one even though it has short arms and ridiculously long claws
stonelk,
I imagine that most who have had an interest in this topic for some time have seen that photo. That’s what I would call a hoax, not a blobsquatch.
Regardless of the semantics employed, the basic point in all this, I suppose, is that images (photo or video) must be well documented and clear for them to have a chance at being considered as legitimate evidence by appropriate decision makers.
You know, if you stare at it long enough, the Lake Worth picture looks remarkably similar to the Abominable Snowman from the old Warner Brothers cartoons…”I will love him and hug him and squeeze him and call him George”….
After further inquiry, I learned I was somewhat mistaken regarding credit for the origin of the word “blobsquatch.”
While “oldtimer” was not the first person to use the term publicly, he did apparently coin the word. Details will be sent to Loren when I get permission to use the names of those involved.