Back in 2002, I interviewed John for the Fortean Times, for a special issue prompted by the film adaptation of The Mothman Prophecies. To make the occasion more convivial, I invited John’s old friend George Kuchar and my girlfriend Mamie Caton, since John liked both of them (and who didn’t?). The issue in question was #156, March 2002 in the UK and April 2002 in the US.
A couple of corrections to the bibliography: the correct title for Two Women is Three Women; Kiss My Gun was never published; Bed of Nails was the original title for Three Women; The Hoodwinkers never got beyond the proposal stage; Pattern for Adventure was the original title for Jadoo. John’s memory was never particularly reliable. I’ve never seen a copy of How to Build an Atom Bomb in Your Basement, although John repeatedly mentioned it, and even cited it in one of his columns for Fate. It may have been a joke, in which case I hope it’s included in all lists of his books.
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Interesting interview. I couldn’t find anything about a serial killer in Point Pleasant with a cave full of bodies. Do you know whom he meant? I did find something about bodies found in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey.
I want to believe that if I ever saw a sofa lifting up and floating across the room I would be sure whether or not it happened on Long Island. But maybe Keel had so many paranormal experiences that they started to blur together.
Keel mentions a nuclear plant in Point Pleasant. There has never been a nuclear plant in Point Pleasant or anywhere in West Virginia. I thought maybe he was confused because of the movie. But in the movie it was a chemical plant. There is a Ksar el Boukhari nuclear waste landfill in West Virginia. But I can’t imagine the government setting up that encounter in the train with the dead ringer of Keel’s ex-girlfriend over that.
I loved your credits at the end, Doug. Not everybody can claim they came out of a toilet in Crocodile Dundee II!
Comment by Mestiere — November 12, 2021 @ 9:38 am
Thank you for sharing this Doug. Fun read.
Comment by Clarence Carlson — November 12, 2021 @ 3:50 pm
A fun interview. Thanks a lot!
Comment by Marsh — November 12, 2021 @ 8:16 pm
Mestiere — John makes a number of wild claims in this interview. I’ve never seen any mention of a serial killer or a nuclear plant in Point Pleasant, and I doubt he saw a sofa levitate. But I chose to put him in a convivial setting and encourage him to tell his stories, rather than challenge him and put him on the defensive. And I wanted to help him plug the movie, which brought him some money and recognition when he needed it.
In Crocodile Dundee !!, I actually emerged from a toilet stall, not a toilet. Thanks, FT! As for the other mention: my friend Carol Brys and I researched John W. Ransone after she found a stack of his papers in an antique shop. We were never able to shape them into a book, but we were able to pass our findings on to his great-grandson, who was delighted.
Comment by Doug — November 14, 2021 @ 7:40 am
Thanks for your answer, Doug. You did the right thing.
Comment by Mestiere — November 14, 2021 @ 6:07 pm