by UFO History Buff & Author, Charles Lear
In last week’s blog, we looked at a case that started when the Sentinel out of Gulf Breeze, Florida, published three pictures of a well-defined, lit-up UFO in the November 19, 1987, edition under the headline, “UFO Sighted Over Gulf Breeze.” The caption under the top photo asks that anyone who saw the object or had information about it contact the Sentinel. Along with the photos is a letter from the photographer that begins, “To whom it may concern.” The writer explains that the pictures were taken on November 11th and that he showed them to his wife who suggested he show them to “Ed.” According to him, “Ed, in turn said that the photos should be shown to the press.” He adds, “That is why he is presenting them to you.” While he emphasizes that he is “a prominent citizen” and needs anonymity, he says he might come forward “if these photos and story spark any interest in your readership.” The photos became the subject of a long investigation led by the Mutual UFO Network. More photos and a videotape followed from the same photographer who remained anonymous until just before the publication of his book. At around the same time, a discovery in the attic of his former house by the new owner cast serious doubt on his claims.
The story was kept alive due to Sentinel Editor Duane Cook’s belief in Ed’s claims, and it wasn’t long after the first photos were published that other area residents contacted the paper describing their own sightings. Mutual UFO Network Director Walt Andrus traveled to Florida, interviewed Ed, and was given photos to examine. The primary investigator was Charles Flannigan, and the Florida State director was Donald Ware. All three were impressed with the case, and Andrus staunchly defended Ed as doubts arose about the photos’ authenticity.
Throughout 1988, the area around Gulf Breeze became a UFO hotspot and is featured in the television special UFO Cover-Up?: Live! (starting at 48:22) which aired on October 14, 1988. A live feed was setup from Gulf Breeze and host Mike Farrell says that “over 100 people witnessed a UFO” there. He introduces Cook, Ware (who claimed to have found 153 witnesses), and Chief of Police Jerry Brown. Ed is not present and is still not identified by his full name.
The studio audience in Gulf Breeze is mostly made up of local UFO witnesses. The MC there is WEAR Channel 3 reporter Mark Curtis who is featured in the “Profiles” section (page 4 of the pdf) of the March 24, 1988, Sentinel where he is quoted as saying, “I have devoted a lot of time to this story.” Curtis interviews audience members who describe sightings, and when he asks, “How many people in this room have seen a UFO?” about ¾ of the audience members raise their hands. Brown was the only one interviewed who expressed any skepticism.
Farrell then introduces Dr. Robert Nathan of JPL who had analyzed some of Ed’s photos. Nathan says, “I’m not too comfortable with the Gulf Breeze photographs.” He tells Farrell that he “feels” that many of the photos are double exposures and points out some of the questionable details such as the pictured “craft” having a different focus than the background, looking like they were lit in a room with light coming from many directions, and sharp cut offs at the tops and bottoms of some of the images indicating that they were cut and pasted.
Farrell then introduces Navy Optical Physicist Dr. Bruce Maccabee who says that after spending “hundreds of hours” analyzing the photos, he believes they were not hoaxed.
Nathan and Maccabee maintained their positions and are cited in many published accounts of the case.
Controversy arose when Walt Andrus asked Robert Boyd, who was the investigations coordinator for the Center for UFO Studies and the Alabama state director for MUFON, to join the investigation in the spirit of cooperation between the organizations. Boyd wasn’t impressed with the case and wrote the article (page 1 of the pdf) with Mark Rodeghier headlined, “Gulf Breeze Florida: The Other Side of the Coin,” that was published in the April 1988 CUFOS Bulletin. The statement summing up CUFOS’s position on the case is blunt: “The photos taken by Mr. X are most probably a hoax.” It was not long after this that Andrus demanded Boyd’s resignation (page 4 of the pdf) from his position with MUFON.
This is detailed in the August 1988 ezine, “Inside UFOlogy,” posted on Paranet. According to the article by Jim Speiser headlined, “Tensions Mount Over Gulf Breeze,” Boyd put out a press release on July 14, 1988, saying that Andrus had informed him that he was no longer a member of MUFON. Andrus told Paranet that he had asked Boyd to resign because of his “unprofessional investigative techniques.” He said that Boyd had conducted a “smear campaign” against ‘“Mr. Ed” while appearing on talk shows as a MUFON representative with faulty information. He emphasized that he only relieved him of his position and did not kick him out of the organization. Boyd told Paranet that the MUFON investigation was “shoddy” and said that when he asked Ware if the case would be destroyed should any of Mr. Ed’s photos be proved to be a hoax, Ware replied, “All the photos would have to be proven hoaxes.” CUFOS and MUFON remained at odds over the case from then on.
Tim Printy wrote extensively on the case in a series of posts on his website My Skeptical Opinion About UFOs in the section headed, “Gullibility in Gulf Breeze: The Ed Walters Story.” Ed, who had a teenage son, threw parties to which local teens were invited. According to Printy in his post, “Sightings wane, doubts rise: March to May 1988,” Boyd found one of those teens, Nick Mock, and Mock stated that Ed, at one of his parties, had shown a photograph of a ghost that seemed to be a double exposure. He also said that Ed had talked about pulling off “the ultimate prank.” Ed responded saying that Mock had been banished from his parties for bad behavior and later charged that he had vandalized his son’s car.
The photograph shows a teenage girl with the “ghost” behind her, and she spoke to the Orlando Sentinel. According to the article headlined, “They’re Baaaaack or are They?” published on April 15, 1990, the girl, Jennifer Bloomburg, said that Walters enjoyed playing “spooky party games.” In the instance when the photo was taken, Walters chose three girls, one of which was Bloomburg, told them to sit in a circle, and gave them a chant to repeat. He took their photos and said there was a spirit in the house that might show up next to “the chosen one.” The “ghost” showed up in Bloomburg’s photo, and she got scared. When Ed saw this, he took another photo of her, showed it to her, and she saw that this one had no ghost.
As Ed and his supporters fought to dispel the doubts raised by the photo, news got around that Ed had received a $200,000 advance to write a book, and this invited charges that he had created a hoax for profit. The book deal, along with Ed’s full name (and aliases), is revealed in the article (page 11 of the pdf) by Sidney Freeberg headlined, “Flash! UFOs are Real!” with the subhead, “Is ‘Mr. Ed’ Giving Us the Horse Laugh?” It was published in the August 6, 1988, Miami Herald. According to Freeberg, the New York publishing house William Morrow had given Ed the money ($20,000 of which Maccabee acknowledged he would be receiving) and in addition to this, Publishers Weekly had announced that a British Production Company had made a deal for a mini-series for as much as $450,000. Freeberg then presents Ed’s full name and aliases: “He is Edward Daniel Walters, alias Daniel Edward Walters, alias Daniel Walters, alias Daniel Hanson.”
Next week: A smoking gun?