When I was a kid, my mother’s boyfriend left the house in the middle of the night, dragging enormous boot prints through the snow in the front yard. My sisters and I thought immediately—bigfoot, sasquatch, the abominable snowman. We thought of the furry but kindhearted beast in the old Rudolph television show, but scarier, much scarier. Just weeks earlier, one of the two sisters and I had made long moaning noises, throaty groans, outside the youngest sister’s window. We got in a lot of trouble. It was Halloween times and we lacked costumes, but we began what turned into a lifelong obsession with Bigfoot.
We weren’t the only ones—for years, people have been impersonating Bigfoot by sporting both good and subpar Halloween costumes. Below are a few of their stories.
Georgia Hoax
In 2008, a Georgia Sheriff’s Deputy and his friend acquired a Bigfoot Halloween costume they thought would take them all the way. Claiming to have discovered a body, the pair went live with photos and Youtube videos (since taken down, but excerpted here [https://www.youtube.com/user/bigfootpolice]). Photos revealed a decomposing sasquatch shoved into a cooler, complete with underbite dentures.
Montana Hoax
In 2012, a Montana man dressed not in a Halloween costume, but a military Ghillie suit and set to trick drivers on a highway. Unfortunately, it was dark and his suit camouflaged him so well that he was hit by a car. 44-year-old Randy Lee Tenley was struck by a second car and died at the scene.
Patterson-Gimlin Film
This bigfoot sighting is not necessarily a hoax—unlike the others, there is no definitive proof. The Patterson-Gimlin film is considered the most credible (and first) of all bigfoot evidence and depicts what is assumed to be a female sasquatch sauntering across a meadow in California. Recently, Bob Heironimus has come forward, claiming that Robert Patterson paid for a suit and Heirononimus, eager to make a quick buck, played a lady bigfoot.
Bigfoot lore is always a hot property. In the new book released this August, Abominable Science! Origins of the Yeti, Nessie, and Other Famous Cryptids, authors Daniel Loxton and Donald Prothero look at the history of a number of famous (and infamous) beasts, analyzing evidence in favor and against their existence. While Loxton writes for Skeptic magazine, Prothero is a paleontologist—the combination allows for a thorough and interesting explanation of the things we believe in.
If you are a fan of Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot, prepare for a new season starting this Sunday, November 10th. It promises a global bigfoot exploration with something for everyone.
Director Bobcat Goldthwait's new found footage movie called Willow Creek, which has been making the festival rounds earlier this year is slated for release this fall. (See the trailer below.)
Guest post by Lydia Mondy, who believes in the power of belief and anchovies on pizza. When she isn’t hunting bigfoot, you can find her writing about Halloween costumes and cheering on the LA Dodgers.