Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot Footage: CZ’s Zapruder Film

The footage is to the Bigfoot branch (hominology) of cryptozoology what the Zapruder film is to the JFK assassination.Mysterious America

Thousands of miles of footprints. Hundreds of years of traditions. Scores and scores of close, first hand encounters. Then in 1967 the next piece of the puzzle fell into place– an actual filmed representation of what scared individuals had reported seeing . And it occurred before the era of video and digital cameras, and before the existence of consumer photo manipulation software like Photoshop….

Roger Patterson wanted to make a documentary film about Bigfoot. And to do that, he decided, in October of 1967, to follow up on reports he was hearing of new tracks being found back in the Eden of Bigfoot, Bluff Creek.

Patterson decided to make the journey there with associate, Robert (“Bob”) Gimlin, a part Native American outdoorsman.

First Patterson rented a Kodak K200 16mm cine camera from Sheppard’s Drive-In Camera Shop, in Yakima, for the trek. On October 18, 1967, the shop’s owner reported to local authorities the camera was overdue. Roger Patterson was so busy searching; he’d forgotten to return the camera on time.

As they were riding in the Six Rivers National Forest that memorable day of October 20, 1967, they filmed the trees, each other riding their horses along the trails, and other background material that would be useful in their proposed documentary.

Finally, early in the afternoon, Patterson and Gimlin rounded a bend and spotted a large upright creature on one of the creek’s sandbars. The dark, full-figured creature was covered with short hair (even on its large pendulous breasts) and possessed a sagittal crest (a bony ridge on top of its head)….Bigfoot! The True Story of Apes in America

While scientists who have examined this footage remain divided on its authenticity to date–claims about men-in-suits from Hollywood notwithstanding–no firm evidence has surfaced to cast serious doubts on the film or the events that produced it. In particular, the apparent movement of the muscle underneath the hair argues strongly against a hoax.The Field Guide to Bigfoot and Other Mystery Primates

The tantalizing curious nature of the Patterson-Gimlin footage verifies for all time the need for more evidence and future searching. After all, the footage reinforces the notion that this creature is walking away, not towards us, inviting us to follow.Bigfoot! The True Story of Apes in America

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A note about why you are seeing these images here, at Cryptomundo, again: The previous posting of M. K. Davis’ P-G animation (which we originally had the okay to post) was withdrawn from Cryptomundo. This was necessary after we were told by someone other that Marlon K. Davis that Davis did not want his enhancement of the footage posted here. When our attempts to directly communicate with Davis were forestalled, we took the gif down. However, due to my recent blog, M. K. Davis and I have opened a dialogue.

Anyway, a truly positive outcome is that Davis is renewing his permission for these images above to be seen by you, here. Actually, he now tells us that he “did not request that [Cryptomundo] remove the animation from your website….I had nothing to do with any of that, and in fact felt flattered that you wanted to post it.”

Examine the footage a few times. See anything new?

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.

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