Shockingly Close to the Truth!: Confessions of a Grave-Robbing Ufologist

by James W. Moseley and Karl T. Pflock

This amusing, revealing, and entertaining romp through the confused and controversial history of the UFO craze is a must for believers and skeptics alike. Shockingly Close to the Truth is the first and only comprehensive tell-all history of ufology from two men who have been at the center of this cultlike movement for close to half a century. James W. Moseley conveys the fun he has had over the years pursuing tall tales and purported evidence of...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1573929913
• ISBN13: 9781573929912
• Release Date: July 2002
• Publisher: Prometheus Books
• Length: 376 Pages
• Weight: 1.54 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.2" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Fun and Informative

As one who has read tons of UFO books, with a skeptical mind, I loved this book. It is a humorous and detailed look at the history of the UFO movement in the USA, by a man who has met with the principals, and knows them well. It was ingrossing, and now I am reading every back issue of Saucer Smear, a monthly newsletter put out by Moseley. Tons of fun, and educational too. Roswell believers need not bother.

Behind the scene look at 'ufoology'

This book is really helpful, it fills lots of gaps in my UFO knowledge... I'm only 20, but now I have a better understanding of what it was like back then, and how some of today's myths (or myth if you prefer) originated.

Saucerdom From The Inside

With Shockingly Close to the Truth, James W. Moseley, publisher of the long-running 'zine, Saucer Smear, has finally given us his long-awaited insider's look at America's flying saucer/UFO subculture. From the nineteen- fifties until the present day, Moseley and his co-author, researcher Karl T. Pflock, have met a virtual Who's Who of saucerdom. From famed contactee George Adamski to obscurities like Andy "The Mystic Barber" Sinatra, they're all here in colorful black and white, no punches pulled, no hostages taken. In spite of his "tell it like it is" approach, Moseley, an informed skeptic, is surprisingly forthright and even-handed in this comprehensive assessment of what he calls "The Field." Even the most outrageous rascals are given a modicum of respect, and Moseley is astute enough to recognize that the most outlandish tales are also usually the most fun. The book is fast-pace and easy to read. It covers the relatively light-hearted contactee period of the early fifties through the increasingly grim alien abduction era of the eighties and nineties. There is also a marvelous photo section that includes such early luminaries as George Adamski, Major Donald Keyhoe, Howard and Connie Menger, and Moseley's friend, the "late, great" Gray Barker (of Men In Black fame). Moseley and Pflock share a certain bemused affection for the bizarre folk they've met. For the last fifty years they've traveled a long, strange road that's been by turns mysterious, frustrating and absurd. Make no mistake about it- Jim Moseley and Karl Pflock were Out There. This book is the real thing, not just another armchair rehash. Whether you agree with their conclusions or not, it's must reading if you're a saucer fan.

Shockingly Familiar

Full disclosure: The "Esteemed Coauthor" of this book is a friend of mine. However, I would have purchased and read this book anyway, because it fills in the gaps of my experience with "ufoology." I was a latecomer to the UFO field, having become interested in the subject in 1977 and actively involved soon thereafter. Somehow I managed to escape the more tawdry aspects of the subject and its personalities through the 1950s, '60s and most of the '70s. If I hadn't, I might have approached the subject with a great deal more skepticism. As it is, I'm grateful for the experience because it gave me the opportunity to meet some extraordinary people, such as the coauthor. SHOCKINGLY CLOSE TO THE TRUTH is a history of the UFO subject, focusing on the personalities surrounding the source of the phenomenon--whatever it may be. As the character Lacomb says in the film "Close Encounters of the Third Kind": "C'est un phenomenon sociologique (It is an sociological phenomenon)." Understanding the character and motivations of those promoting a point of view can shed light on the validity of the subject itself. Jim Moseley (also known as "Supreme Commander" to non-subscribers to his newsletter "Saucer Smear") spares no one in his examination of the characters who populate this field--especially himself. He is painfully honest about his own pranks and hoaxes that have made him an outcast among "serious ufologists." He is deadly serious in his refusal to take anything about the subject--especially its proponents--seriously. There are no doubt many in the field who will find a less-than-flattering portrait of themselves in this book. Perhaps they should consider it to be a mirror. Like a mirror, the book casts a reflection on the viewer that is, uh, shockingly close to the truth.

The truth is in here!

No doubt the True Believers in ufology will be upset by this book! Everybody else---from the hardcore skeptics to people like me who believe "something" is going, even if UFOs aren't spaceships from another planet---will love this hysterically funny history of ufology and its personalities. Moseley and Pflock are at their best when skewering the pathetic gullibility of True Believers from Adamski's followers in the 1950s to the Roswell and Ed Waters frauds of the 1990s. They also do takedowns of overrated UFO "experts" such as Walt Andrus, John Keel, and Jerry Clark by pointing out their errors, self-contradictions, eagerness to believe whatever they are told, and entirely too high opinion of themselves. Clark, in particular, gets taken down several notches for pretending that certain embarassing episodes in his past, like his belief in Todd Zechel and his former embrace of the paranormal explanation of UFOs, never happened. Moseley and Pflock make a strong case that something incredible is behind the UFO mystery, but that the current crop of "UFO experts" are going to be the last people to figure out what it is. Bravo, Commander Moseley!