Biscardi Hoodwinked Again
Posted by: Loren Coleman on August 20th, 2008
Today, Wednesday, August 20, 2005, Tom Biscardi appeared on Fox News and was interviewed by Megyn Kelly:
Tom Biscardi can’t get his stories straight. One time he tells people he touched the Georgia “body” and other times he says he only saw it through ice.
We have all heard this before.
In August 2005, Tom Biscardi said he had a Bigfoot in captivity. Biscardi made several Coast to Coast AM radio appearances, having people buy, via the internet, the $19.95/week registrations and $59.95 “passes” to see Biscardi’s pay-per-view videostreaming and the promised views of “his” captive Bigfoot.
But then Biscardi turned up, when the scheme collapsed, on Coast to Coast AM to say that he was “hoodwinked.”
From the official “Recap of Coast to Coast AM, August 23, 2005“:
“Biscardi Statement
First hour guest, Tom Biscardi offered an explanation and apology related to his earlier claims (made on Friday’s show) that he had a Bigfoot in captivity. He now says he was misled by an acquaintance of his colleague, Peggy Marx. The acquaintance, who lives in Stagecoach, Nevada, had told them of an injured Bigfoot that was being cared for by two veterinarians. As the details of her story began to unravel, Biscardi said he eventually concluded that her reports were false.”
Biscardi said it was a story from a woman in Stagecoach, Nevada. He never had a video, never saw the Bigfoot, and there probably never was a Bigfoot. He kept using the word “hoodwinked.”
“Biscardi is a Las Vegas promoter and a showman, and he’s doing it again,” Coleman said. “That’s what he’s really good at. It’s like, ‘Would you like to come into my tent? I’ll show you this one picture. Isn’t that interesting? Pay me to see more.'”
…
“He’s already gone through several hoaxes,” Coleman said. “We always say, ‘This is the end of Biscardi. He’s never coming back.’ I mean, the man has nine lives.”
Clayton News Daily, Saturday, August 16, 2008.
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.
HELLO!?! Why doesn’t ANYONE talk about the fact that the hoax/costume Bigfoot looks NOTHING like the original ‘creature’ in the press conference pictures!? We have pictures of a creature with a flat face and small-ish eyes, but then the ‘hoax’ video comes out that shows the rubber costume, but the problem is, it’s a DIFFERENT object. It’s NOT the creature (or costume) that was used in the original pictures. Where is the ORIGINAL creature (or costume)? Please, someone make some sense of this difference.
Hey don’t mistake Loren’s accessibilty for weakness. Open doors mean just about anyone or thing could step in. If he got a little excited at first, well so did I. The felon poacher was plausible.
Also hasn’t it been a long held theory that the reality of Bigfoot probably wasn’t in the hands of “bigfoot hunters?”
That hunters or outdoorsmen would most probably be the ones to discover?
Hey be easy on me, it’s me first post.
This charlatan personifies everything that is wrong with the field these days.
Unfortunately true scientific study and research is undermined by paranormal grifters who prey on mainstream curiosity and ignorance to make a quick buck or get 15 minutes of undeserved attention.
I used to be heavily involved in paranormal study until I realized that a large majority of “paranormal researchers” out there are just using the field for easy fame and fortune. Now I find myself much more skeptical than I ever was, since I have seen first hand the unethical lengths people will go to in order to “be” someone in the paranormal. Luckily we have true researchers like Mr. Coleman and others who approach the field with a high level of ethics. However this also makes them the biggest victims, since true research doesn’t make for over the top TV shows or inane Halloween segments that exploit mainstream curiosity. It’s sad to see how easily snake oil salesmen and their accomplices discredit authentic achievements and research.
And you can’t convince me this man wasn’t complicit in this orchestrated hoax, and playing fraud victim now is just salt in the wound for true researchers. He was supposedly a “victim” of a hoax before—but what kind of researcher puts out press releases and does a press conference without even having first established something as basic as it not being just a rubber suit? Oh yeah—you create a media frenzy—all while marketing photos on your website at two dollars a pop—and then pretend you were duped.
Somehow I doubt he’ll be issuing refunds to all the people who were really duped (again)—by him.
And he claims he didn’t know for sure until it was defrosted—but the photo of the three con artists next to the freezer released days before the pseudo-press conference doesn’t show the Bigfoot still frozen in a block of ice….
zmonster, keep in mind we don’t know if some of the photos were altered and afterall, it is a mask made of pliable rubber and not a rigid structure. It’s probably been twisted and distorted many times over the past few weeks and subject to freezing conditions and water, I’m sure it does look a little different. Not to mentioned lighting. Objects can look completely different in various shades of light. Recent pictures I’ve seen of it show no teeth, supposedly fake teeth from a cow (?), but they most likely fell out.
Bottom line, it’s fake.
Well, I can only hope that this was Mr. Biscardi’s ninth and final life as a hoax promoter, sham manager, shady dealer, etc. One can only hope that legitimate scientific methodology has not been too far eclipsed by his charlatanism. Search For Bigfoot, indeed!?! The acronym SFB stands permanently now for Sh#@ for Brains for anyone gullible enough to ever regard Tom Biscardi as any other than a carnival huckster, and not even a very good one at that. Keep up the good work Loren and company.
it just does not make sense if you look at the first pic that was released the one Lauren posted on here compared to the rubber suit pic the two suits don’t even look the same either in the face or the mass of the two suits. in the original pic the “body” appears to take up the whole freezer but the new pics/vid the monkey suit width wise and mass don’t even fill the freezer even the faces don’t even look similar this whole thing just smells rotten from all sides i hope Tom Biscardi and these two jokers get what they deserve a nice cell at the county lock up this garbage just further de-legitimizes the real search for Bigfoot in peoples eyes i think there were two fake bodies they made up and froze to see which one looked more real truly pathetic bunch these guys
I think this story is far from over. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t necessarily believe these clowns from Georgia but I found this today which makes me really wonder.
Who’s to say? What if Ripley’s Believe It or Not shows up with something in a couple of months and Bevis and Butthead are never seen again.
If you folks don’t mind, I think I’d like to have a bit of say on this. I’m a long-time lurker, first time poster – this is just something I’ve been thinking about over the past few days of reading and watching everything about this latest hoax.
First off, Tom is indeed saying exactly what he told the interviewer previously – that he did indeed touch the body, and it felt real to him. But the thing about that particular suit is the wearer’s head actually sits between the shoulders, thus the costume head has to be filled with something to maintain its shape, right? And the head was what he would’ve touched since it was at the top, which would feel, well, solid. The hoaxers also put in some teeth, and a cows tongue lolling out. Plus some eyes. Without a side-to-side comparison of the costume picture, which all of us had the luxury of, would it not have seemed real?
So, I’m of two minds here about Tom. Yes, I saw it as a hoax from the get-go, but I also have the benefit of the internet and all the research and sleuthing done by other folks. Tom did not, at least not until well after he was talking to these two Georgian idiots.
But, then again, he has had a previous hoaxing history, where he made grandios claims of a *live* bigfoot which turned out to be a hoax. Later it turned out a woman, trusted by Tom’s co-founder, completely made up the claims – kept them on the leash until the very last second when they showed up at her door (Or, at least this is his recollection). So, while I’m not absolving Tom of all blame, as he is certainly responsible for running his mouth about a product he did *not* have possession of – he was still being led on by a trusted individual. Very similar to what happened this time.
In the previous instance, as well as this one, both BFRO and Cryptomundo are painting a rather harsh light of Tom Biscardi. While I get that, I don’t think it’s as black-and-white as they’re saying. Yes, he certainly is guilty of running his mouth, but the fact is the second he knew this was a hoax he told the world. He did *not* have to do this, and just another conman would not have done it.
That’s what gets me. Hoaxsters milk a find for all its worth, not spill the beans the second they find out something’s fake.
Just some food for thought. I mean no disrespect to anyone here, it’s just my current state of mind after reading and watching everything I’ve come across about this.
Thanks for reading.
Biscardi only had one card left to play, his way out. I guess the body could not go missing before it was discovered and exposed. That pigeon holed him into playing the victim.
Either he is a victim or the most gullible and naive person on the face of the earth. There are other possibilities. He could just be plain stupid. Or he could be a very good con man, with the nine lives of a cat, that intentionally deceived the public in barkerlike fashion, with the intention of profit and celebrity in mind. Let’s analyze the possibilities, shall we?
He is certainly not a victim since he contradicts himself in his own telling of the story. He is certainly not stupid because he has the ability to think creatively and remember some details enough to sound reasonable in a news conference. No one could be that gullible. That would be an impossibility unless you were from another planet and new to earth. And no one could possibly be that naive at his age. What does that leave us with? Oh yes, he could be a very good con man, with the nine lives of a cat, that intentionally deceived the public in barkerlike fashion, publicly contradicted his own lies, with the intention of profit and celebrity in mind.
Case closed!
It looks like we are weeding out the charlatans out of the BF community, one at a time. Some have already left. Some are lurking and remain relatively silent. Some die and come back to life, over and over again. But me thinkst, one is running out of lives. I think he has pulled his last hoax. That may be wishful thinking. But after this, he is like the alleged BF body. He has no legs to stand on!
Glad to see this thing is finally over. Although, it is going to be fun to watch the blame game take place over the next couple of weeks. That ought to be interesting. Just like criminals who squeal on each other. It ought to be one big “ratfest”. I am looking forward to watching them all try to squirm away from the blame. Stay tuned! I am sure Loren will keep us updated, that is if we can find the individuals that are running and hiding.
It’s not easy to pull one over on me, but… they got me.
It’s not that I’m nieve, but, when a police officer, a man of integrity and honor says something it usually is(was) the truth.
This man really did an unjustice to all the honest hard working police officers out there.
Unfortunately my opinion has changed and I will always be guarded by witness testimony including that of any police officer.
Is this the same as throwing the baby away with the bath water? I don’t care!
I suspect that Lorens frame of mind was as mine… a sworn officer of the law doesn’t go around telling lies.
I would guess that many of us got hoodwinked just because of this.
As tiga pointed out, it could indeed take further twists and turns.
This ride may not be over quite yet…so buckle up!
Check out this link http://www.rickmat.org
PhotoExpert — if you are what you claim, a photo expert, then you will plainly see that the hoax/costume looks nothing like the original pictures of the ‘creature’ (if you will). They are two completely different objects. The hoax/costume has large, black eyes, is very thin, and has a rounded face. The original ‘creature’ has much smaller non-protruding eyes, a wide large body, and a flat face. THESE ARE NOT THE SAME OBJECTS! I’m not saying the ORIGINAL pictures aren’t a hoax too, however, in the interest of closing this case we need to identify the body in the original pictures.
Just putting it out there, tomdee27.
Same registrar or not, what’s the hoax of a hoax? Either way, hopefully, for the sake of the “real” Bigfoot Cryptozoology community, no stone will remain unturned and the truth will be revealed, whatever that truth may be. Sounds like we’re getting one step closer anyway.
Oh geez. Please don’t start with all this conspiracy stuff. It was a hoax, pure and simple. Rickmat.org isn’t even under the same Registrar as their other site. The whole site is just a bunch of bullsh*t.
It hurts to be tricked. I know I feel great disappointment. Now its time to move on…
I’m with mguilfordtx on this… I gotta call on Biscardi claiming to be just another victim of being duped. If he wasn’t behind this from the start, he sure saw a good thing come along and jumped onboard quick enough.
The man has lost the tiny little bit of credibility he had, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him suffer the same fate as the out-of-work cop because of this.
Looks real to me!
I was really hoping that good news was on its way. I will continue to believe, though.
mguilfordtx …what are you talking about.?
“Unfortunately true scientific study and research is undermined by paranormal grifters”
What was “paranormal” about the claims by supposed flesh and blood advocates..that they had a dead…flesh and blood bigfoot.?
They were just grifters…with as much evidence as flesh and blood advocates of sasquatch had anyway,ie ..none.
The Georgia Boys are now going to try to play another angle by saying the rubber head/suit was just a “trick” to see if Biscrapi was “trustworthy” and that they (Beavis and Butthead) *really* do have a body, but that it’s “hidden” until people start “believing” them again.
I know people want real proof, but it ain’t coming from Tom Biscardi, Matt Whitton Or Dick Dyer. Period.
This whole episode is nothing but a serious blow to what little credibility this field had achieved.
It’s my interpretation that those two thought, wrongly, that the Bigfoot community was comprised of foolish, gullible, powerless and naive idiots who “deserved” to be “taught a lesson”. They seemingly thought they’d jerk a few people around and come away with a big funny-haha water-cooler joke thing they could show their friends. Unfortunately, the cryptid community is not quite as vulnerable or small or mindless as they thought.
I posted a comment several weeks ago stating that they were in waaay over their heads, but still they pushed on. Even now i wonder if they, or their friends/family, aren’t monitoring these forums looking for another way to exploit this. If they push it too far they could end up in jail.
And- i’ve read that Whitton, far from being a “hero”, was actually shot trying to keep a person from taking his weapon. It’s a poor cop who gets shot by his OWN firearm. And Dickie Dyer couldn’t handle (ie wasn’t tuff enough) being a correctional officer so they decided to attempt to bully and defraud a group they perceived to be vulnerable. Not exactly the actions of upright citizens.
Since Loren’s already pretty well exposed Biscardi i’ll leave that topic alone. Folks- look elsewhere for the mysteries in the world, because they are being discovered by Dickie Dyer and Gary-boy Whitton.
I think that given the reality the American Idol/YouTube/Reality Show-fame-at-any-cost world we live in today, the paranormal community is going to have to expect more of these kind of human slugs to crawl out from under their rocks for a moment in the sun.
Today any nobody with a computer can be famous for basically nothing–and most have no trouble with settling for being infamous if it comes down to it. Having bragging rights to being “the guy that________”–or being on the local news for 10 seconds–would be the high point of some people’s lives. It’s hard for people with pride, ethics and true accomplishments to grasp that fact, but unfortunately it’s a sad reality.
When it comes to true research you cannot trust in common decency–or the fact that people would be ashamed to be seen as cheats, liars, or scam artists. For them it’s a small price to pay when it comes to ill-gotten fame and easy money.