Walter Cronkite Has Died; Bigfoot Rumor Recalled

Posted by: Loren Coleman on July 17th, 2009

Walter Cronkite, 92, died on July 17, 2009, three days before the 40th anniversary of the first landing on the Moon of humans. Cronkite was tied to that event, as well as other historically significant moments.

CBS vice president Linda Mason says Cronkite died at 7:42 p.m. Eastern, after a long illness with his family by his side.

Recently, I looked back at a Bigfoot rumor associated with the man.

It popped up in 2007, seeded in D. B. Donlon’s blog, here and even mentioned by Craig Woolheater on Cryptomundo in 2007.

Using the name Walter Cronkite, who certainly in his day gave credibility to any news report, the essence of the rumor was that The CBS Evening News had broadcast footage of the capture of a Bigfoot.

This was all based on one random email:

A “Bigfoot” was captured. The evidence exists. I saw a report (mid 1960’s) on CBS news (with Walter Cronkite) showing video of a captured “typical” hairy creature – very human-like. He was bound with what seemed to be chain restraints. He stood about a foot taller that the 4 men who “escorted” him (against his will, by the expression on his face). The report said he was being taken to a secure (but secret) laboratory for testing and examination, and that for humanitarian reasons, his location would not be revealed. I waited for months for a follow-up report, but it never happened. I suggest that “Bigfoot researchers” ought to do a thorough search of CBS News archives. The video was astounding, but I’ve never seen it replayed, and CBS news never mentioned it again. (I’m not making this up.) Mike OK

But it is noteworthy, two years later, absolutely nothing ever came of it. With YouTube, you would think by now that if such footage existed, it would show up. But this story has gone the way of the “Mystery Thunderbird photo,” or the secret “Invisible Bigfoot at the Livermore Labs,” stories which are lightly chuckled about but never pan out.

One intriguing Walter Cronkite tape that I will show here is from his CBS Reports documentary on the Dexter, Michigan UFO series of 1966. Forget the UFO content. What I find instructive in this footage is the typical reaction captured here of the primary eyewitness, frustrated at not being believed. He expresses at the end of this clip his wish he had never seen what he saw. This is a theme heard often from Bigfoot eyewitnesses.

Loren Coleman 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.


12 Responses to “Walter Cronkite Has Died; Bigfoot Rumor Recalled”

  1. gridbug responds:

    I seem to recall coming across this same bit of lore… it seemed to be associated with the story of Oliver, the so-called “missing link” chimpanzee who could walk upright like a human. Strange days indeed!

  2. Richard888 responds:

    “With YouTube, you would think by now that if such footage existed, it would show up.”

    I know for a fact that footage of the Mokele-mbembe has appeared on TV at least once but it has not turned up in Youtube.

  3. Richard888 responds:

    The footage I was referring to was broadcast in “That’s Incredible!” during the 1980’s. It was a short video that showed a brontosaurus-like head and neck emerging from a lake at boat level, moving forward, and submerging again. Although the quality was grainy, the film was intriguing and might have caused as big a stir as the recent Champ video since the creature might be difficult to pigeonhole.

    I sure wish more people knew about this footage or that it was available on Youtube.

  4. forsakenfuture responds:

    The first thing that popped into my head is the old footage of Oliver that gridbug mentioned.

  5. korollocke responds:

    Thats Incredible….I loved that show! Yes I too saw the same episode. That show really should be on dvd! You should try finding Zovek clips, just as tough.

  6. raisinsofwrath responds:

    Oliver:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-C6NkRUbI38&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.unexplained-mysteries.com%2Fviewvideo.php%3Fid%3D-C6NkRUbI38%26tid%3D151580&feature=player_embedded

  7. Robb responds:

    When I was a boy (about 12 – 14, early 1980’s ), I heard a radio broadcast while in the car from one of the 3 major news networks ( ABC, NBC or CBS… sorry, I don’t recall which) that a Russian town had captured a “bigfoot like creature” that had been raiding fish from the village at night. Supposedly, Soviet scientists were being flown in to this remote village to study the creature. I was so excited by this, and stayed glued to the TV all evening, expecting that this would be the breaking news story for the day. I never heard another word about it ever again.

  8. norman-uk responds:

    Richard888

    The M-M film was a 1987 Japanese film. This is incorporated in the BBC CONGO series from 2001, shown every so often and recently all day on SKY documentaries and will be again i’m sure ! Descriptions of the series can be GOOGLED inc.wikipedia.

    Very interesting photos of m-m’s footprints can be seen at the Japanese film sites.

  9. chefkevin responds:

    I recall a radio report from my youth (early 80’s) about a farmer confronting “a bigfoot” in his cornfield in Caanan, Maine. I saw it on the local news as well, and have been curious ever since. Does anyone else from New England remember this? Loren?

  10. vicki18 responds:

    I remember when this was first on back in the sixties !
    Also i am deeply saddened at the loss of Walter.

  11. Oz responds:

    On a slightly different Walter Cronkite story… I swear I think I remember (note weasel wording) watching the CBS Evening News for Decmber 15, 1967. I was home from College for Christmass break. I seem to remember that toward the end of the newcast an aide handed some teleprinter paper to Cronkite, who after the standard “this just in” introduction said something to the effect that, “we have just received word of a major bridge collapse in …” The Silver Bridge.

    Is my memory failing (I’m about due for it), or did I hallucinate, or did it really happen. If it did, are there tapes (or a kinescope in those days I suppose) of the broadcast? Does anyone else remember this?

  12. WIDOW responds:

    Hey Richard888!

    I looked on Youtube and found a short mention of that clip of Mokele-mbembe you were talking about…check it out here but you will have to scroll through the other videos.

    I bet we can find the whole episode of “That’s Incredible” dealing with Mokele-mbembe.

    Later…

    The episode of “That’s Incredible” featuring Mokele-mbembe was episode #26. Now to see if it is on DVD!

Sorry. Comments have been closed.

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