1 00:00:02,800 --> 00:00:04,960 Hello and welcome to the program UFO Warning. 2 00:00:05,040 --> 00:00:07,520 In this episode, we're talking about the Lizard Man of Lee 3 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:09,800 County. That's correct, the Lizard Man 4 00:00:09,840 --> 00:00:12,840 of Lee County. Now, in the local folklore of 5 00:00:12,840 --> 00:00:16,640 Lee County, South Carolina, there exists a tale of the 6 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:20,920 Lizard Man of Skateboard Swamp, also known as the Lizard Man of 7 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:26,120 Lee County, and purportedly this creature inhabits the swampland 8 00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:28,160 in the region. It was first brought to the 9 00:00:28,160 --> 00:00:32,960 public attention in late 1980s. The reported sightings and 10 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:37,320 associated damages linked to this alleged entity garnered 11 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:40,320 substantial coverage across newspapers, radio, and 12 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:43,960 television. And Professor Joseph P Laycock 13 00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:48,400 specializes in religious studies, and he's characterized 14 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:51,160 the resulting media attention in the subsequent development of a 15 00:00:51,160 --> 00:00:54,840 cult following of this and similar claims as a discernible 16 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:58,000 chain of events. Strange sighting, media 17 00:00:58,000 --> 00:01:01,120 attention, more sightings, followed by visits from curious 18 00:01:01,120 --> 00:01:05,239 tourists and monster hunters. Meanwhile, researcher Ben 19 00:01:05,239 --> 00:01:08,000 Rafford acknowledges the compelling nature of the story, 20 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:11,200 but raises skepticism about several crucial aspects. 21 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:14,680 According to Rafford, these aspects do not withstand 22 00:01:14,920 --> 00:01:18,040 thorough skeptical scrutiny. Either way, it's a good story 23 00:01:18,360 --> 00:01:21,160 Now. On July 14th, 1988, the Lee 24 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:24,480 County Sheriff's Office responded to a report of a car 25 00:01:24,920 --> 00:01:29,120 that had been damaged overnight in Browntown, located outside 26 00:01:29,120 --> 00:01:33,840 Bishopville, SC, on the outskirts of the scape or swamp. 27 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:38,760 The vehicle reportedly exhibited tooth marks, scratches, and had 28 00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:41,240 hair and muddy footprints present. 29 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:45,240 Sheriff Liston Truesdale highlighted that this incident 30 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:48,240 marked the beginning of a series of claims that eventually 31 00:01:48,240 --> 00:01:52,000 coalesced into a narrative involving a lizard man in the 32 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:54,800 swamp. In response to the report of 33 00:01:54,800 --> 00:01:58,320 vehicle damage, Christopher Davis, a 17 year old local, came 34 00:01:58,320 --> 00:02:02,640 forward to the sheriff asserting that his car had been damaged by 35 00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:07,480 a creature he described as green, wet, like about 7 foot 36 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:12,760 tall and had three fingers, red eyes, skin like a lizard snake 37 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:15,400 and snake like scales two weeks prior. 38 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:18,680 According to the Davis, he encountered the creature while 39 00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:22,480 driving home from night shift at a fast food restaurant where it 40 00:02:22,480 --> 00:02:25,400 approached him after he fixed the flat tire. 41 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:29,320 Davis claimed to have nearly escaped the creature by applying 42 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:32,640 his brakes, causing it to roll off the car. 43 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:36,040 Subsequent media coverage elevated the attention given to 44 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:38,920 his claims, with local businesses capitalizing on the 45 00:02:38,920 --> 00:02:42,600 trend by selling Lizard Man T-shirts and the local Chamber 46 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:44,720 of Commerce endorsing the media attention. 47 00:02:45,160 --> 00:02:46,560 It's beneficial for the community. 48 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,600 The heightened newspaper and media coverage led to an influx 49 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:53,720 at reported sightings, turning the area into a tourist 50 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:55,920 attraction for both visitors and hunters. 51 00:02:56,440 --> 00:03:00,320 Local radio station WCOS even offered $1,000,000 reward for 52 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:04,040 capturing the creature alive. On August 5th, Kenneth or an 53 00:03:04,040 --> 00:03:07,720 airman stationed at Shaw Air Force Base filed a police report 54 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:12,120 claiming to have encountered the loser man on Hwy. 15 and having 55 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:15,600 shot and wounded it, or later recanted his account, admitting 56 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:18,400 to a hoax to maintain interest in the Lizard Man stories. 57 00:03:18,920 --> 00:03:20,400 And that's the unfortunate thing. 58 00:03:20,400 --> 00:03:22,960 You you have these things happen, and then you always have 59 00:03:22,960 --> 00:03:25,880 some someone come in and try to muddy the waters. 60 00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:29,400 It seems like sightings of the creature gradually declined by 61 00:03:29,400 --> 00:03:31,320 the end of the summer, with local law enforcement 62 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:33,760 speculating that the reports were likely attributed to bear 63 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:37,360 sightings. In 2008, CNN featured the Lizard 64 00:03:37,360 --> 00:03:41,320 Man legend in a story about a couple in Bishopville reporting 65 00:03:41,320 --> 00:03:44,160 vehicle damage, including blood traces, which were later 66 00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:46,160 identified as coming from a domestic dog. 67 00:03:46,600 --> 00:03:52,000 In 2015, local television station WCIV presented photos 68 00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:55,480 and videos purported to be of the Lizard Man allegedly taken 69 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:58,520 by Jim Wilson and other unidentified individuals. 70 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:02,760 In August 2017, the South Carolina Emergency Management 71 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:05,920 Division tweeted humorously about possible paranormal 72 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:09,440 activity during a solar eclipse, suggesting that residents of Lee 73 00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:12,920 and Sumter counties should remain vigilant for Lizard Man 74 00:04:12,920 --> 00:04:15,720 sightings. It just seems like anytime you 75 00:04:15,720 --> 00:04:19,480 have a sighting on one of these things, we have a lot less 76 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:24,640 really open minded investigation done, you know, with critical 77 00:04:24,640 --> 00:04:28,760 analysis than we do of people just kind of piling on it trying 78 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:31,720 to make a joke of it. Still a really cool story. 79 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:35,400 I want to look at a couple of these news articles now. 80 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:39,400 This first article comes to us from charlestoncity.com. 81 00:04:39,400 --> 00:04:43,000 It says 4 things you should know about the Lizard Man written by 82 00:04:43,000 --> 00:04:46,560 Paul Bowers, dated August 4th, 2015. 83 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,840 It's got a picture of some pretty unique looking lizard 84 00:04:50,920 --> 00:04:53,120 footprints here. It's almost done in the plaster 85 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:57,880 cast, it says. Ever since ABC News 4 published 86 00:04:57,960 --> 00:05:01,040 A hilariously grainy photo of the mythical South Carolina 87 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:04,480 monster Sunday afternoon, followed by an extremely zoomed 88 00:05:04,480 --> 00:05:07,640 out video of something moving in the woods, the Internet hasn't 89 00:05:07,640 --> 00:05:10,840 been able to stop talking about the possibility that a Bigfoot 90 00:05:10,840 --> 00:05:14,480 style Southern swamp beast is walking among us here in the 91 00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:17,800 Palmata state. What or who is the Lizard band, 92 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:21,200 and why does he hold our interest more than 2 1/2 decades 93 00:05:21,200 --> 00:05:23,760 after his disappearance? Here's the primer. 94 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:28,400 Now it seems like, you know, you have these sightings sometimes 95 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:31,440 that seem pretty solid, and then years later you'll have people 96 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:35,160 come along and try to do hoaxes or try to imitate it, so you 97 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:38,160 have to be careful of that. Anyway, says the Lizard Man is 98 00:05:38,160 --> 00:05:41,800 at least 27 years old. The first known sighting of the 99 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:46,680 Lizard Man took place around 2:00 AM on July 29th, 1988, near 100 00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:48,800 a swamp in Lee County, South Carolina. 101 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:53,200 Christopher Davis, a 17 year old, told authorities he was 102 00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:58,800 driving home working a night shift at McDonald's when his 76 103 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:03,920 Celica blew a flat tire on Browntown Rd. about a mile past 104 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:07,320 the scape, or bridge, and he pulled over to put on a spare. 105 00:06:07,880 --> 00:06:11,000 As he was placing his tools back in the trunk after changing the 106 00:06:11,000 --> 00:06:14,000 tire, he said he saw something move toward him from the tree 107 00:06:14,000 --> 00:06:16,760 line. In an interview with the item, 108 00:06:17,000 --> 00:06:22,040 he described the creature as green, wet, like about 7 feet 109 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:26,760 tall, and had three fingers with two glowing red eyes. 110 00:06:27,160 --> 00:06:29,080 Wouldn't that be something to run into in the middle of the 111 00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:31,800 night out there? Here's how Davis described the 112 00:06:31,800 --> 00:06:34,480 encounter to the Houston Chronicle After the story had 113 00:06:34,480 --> 00:06:37,840 gained national attention. I ran into the car and as I 114 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:40,160 locked it, the thing grabbed the door handle. 115 00:06:40,560 --> 00:06:44,880 I can see him from the neck down, the three big fingers, 116 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:47,800 long black nails and green, rough skin. 117 00:06:48,160 --> 00:06:50,920 It was strong and angry. I looked at my mirror and saw a 118 00:06:50,920 --> 00:06:54,520 blur of green running. I could see his toes and then he 119 00:06:54,520 --> 00:06:58,400 jumped on the roof of my car. I thought I heard a grunt, and 120 00:06:58,400 --> 00:07:01,040 then I could see his fingers through the front windshield 121 00:07:01,280 --> 00:07:02,640 where they crawled around the roof. 122 00:07:03,280 --> 00:07:06,600 I speed up and swerved to shake the creature off. 123 00:07:07,280 --> 00:07:10,400 Christopher Davis isn't around the tail, the tail, anymore. 124 00:07:10,640 --> 00:07:13,080 He was murdered in his home in 2009. 125 00:07:13,520 --> 00:07:17,640 In his Seminole 2013 cryptozoological book Lizard 126 00:07:17,640 --> 00:07:20,560 Man, The True Story of the Bishopville Monster, author Lyle 127 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:24,040 Blackburn mentions that a few other Lizard Man witnesses have 128 00:07:24,040 --> 00:07:27,440 died of unnatural causes, establishing what he calls a 129 00:07:27,600 --> 00:07:31,600 peculiar pattern of death surrounding anyone who had seen 130 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:35,000 the Lizard Man. Sounds like that thing that was 131 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:38,520 called wet weather, possibly where people that knew too much 132 00:07:38,520 --> 00:07:41,360 were just eliminated. Or it could just be strange, 133 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:44,200 coincidental circumstances, I suppose. 134 00:07:45,520 --> 00:07:48,800 It says he's a biter. Davis only came forward with his 135 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:52,480 story after the Lee County Sheriff's Office started 136 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:56,000 investigating A mysteriously damaged car in the rural 137 00:07:56,000 --> 00:07:59,680 Browntown community on the outskirts of Bishopville. 138 00:08:01,680 --> 00:08:03,280 Blackburn describes the incident. 139 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:06,600 In The Lizard Man Cometh, the opening chapter of his book. 140 00:08:07,240 --> 00:08:11,320 A family by the name of Way reported that their 1985 Ford 141 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:15,160 Ltd had been mauled during the night while they slept. 142 00:08:15,680 --> 00:08:18,800 The vehicle, which had been parked under an open metal 143 00:08:18,800 --> 00:08:22,880 carport, had suffered extensive damage to the molding side walls 144 00:08:22,880 --> 00:08:25,160 and hood. It would have seemed like the 145 00:08:25,160 --> 00:08:28,960 work of a vandal, but hair and footprints found on the car LED 146 00:08:28,960 --> 00:08:31,120 them to believe some kind of animal might have been 147 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:34,280 responsible. But what kind of animal would 148 00:08:34,280 --> 00:08:37,520 sink its claws and teeth into the metal skin of a car? 149 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:42,280 The hair fibers were determined to have come from a red fox, and 150 00:08:42,280 --> 00:08:45,280 a biologist said that the footprints on the car it could 151 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:48,600 have come from a black bear, not an uncommon sight in the nearby 152 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:50,920 swamp. Still, why would a wild animal 153 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:54,320 attack a car Moby Dick style? The rumors started flying about 154 00:08:54,320 --> 00:08:57,960 a monster on the loose, and after Davis gave his account, 155 00:08:58,000 --> 00:08:59,800 other witnesses started telling their stories. 156 00:09:00,200 --> 00:09:03,160 Before this week's newly surfaced photograph, Lizard Man 157 00:09:03,160 --> 00:09:06,360 sightings had been reported as recently as 2011 and 158 00:09:06,360 --> 00:09:09,200 Bishopsville and surrounding communities. 159 00:09:09,240 --> 00:09:13,400 Here's a short SCETV documentary, says, And I'll go 160 00:09:13,400 --> 00:09:16,080 ahead and I'll post a link there at the Kofi site you can take a 161 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:18,440 look at that goes on. It says. 162 00:09:18,440 --> 00:09:23,440 For a brief time in 1988, Bishopville became world famous, 163 00:09:23,520 --> 00:09:25,560 and of course, people capitalized on it. 164 00:09:25,960 --> 00:09:28,440 Christopher Davis signed autographs and answered 165 00:09:28,440 --> 00:09:31,840 questions at the makeshift Lizard Man Information Center 166 00:09:32,040 --> 00:09:34,560 inside Bishopsville's Cotton Land Restaurant. 167 00:09:34,880 --> 00:09:39,080 According to Blackburn, Lizard Man T-shirts and hats became hot 168 00:09:39,080 --> 00:09:41,320 sellers as far away as Myrtle Beach. 169 00:09:41,840 --> 00:09:45,720 The county started hosting a Lizard Man 5K race, and at least 170 00:09:45,720 --> 00:09:47,880 three songs were written about the Lizard Man. 171 00:09:48,200 --> 00:09:51,840 The string of sightings proved to be a small economic boon in 172 00:09:51,840 --> 00:09:54,960 Bishopville, and some locals have called for a statue to be 173 00:09:54,960 --> 00:10:00,480 erected for the creature. And then there's the SCC Cotton 174 00:10:00,480 --> 00:10:03,360 Museum, a Bishopville institution that includes an 175 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:06,120 exhibit to this day about the legend of the Lizard Man. 176 00:10:06,400 --> 00:10:10,920 Executive director Jason Cock reached out and reached by phone 177 00:10:10,920 --> 00:10:14,160 today, says interest has picked up since the latest sighting 178 00:10:14,640 --> 00:10:16,200 quote. Oh, there's always interest 179 00:10:16,200 --> 00:10:18,360 anytime they show anything about the lizard Man. 180 00:10:18,760 --> 00:10:22,280 People call, people want the T-shirts and all that, so we're 181 00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:24,160 happy to supply your fantasy, Clock said. 182 00:10:24,480 --> 00:10:27,400 Wait, so it's just a fantasy, You have to come here and find 183 00:10:27,400 --> 00:10:30,520 out for yourself, Clock said. What you have to understand is 184 00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:33,840 even back to the dinosaur age, there was a lizard looking 185 00:10:33,840 --> 00:10:37,240 creature that stood on its hind legs like the lizard man is 186 00:10:37,240 --> 00:10:39,240 described. The Native Americans talked 187 00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:41,400 about men with tails that came to live with them. 188 00:10:41,800 --> 00:10:44,000 So the stories have been going on for centuries. 189 00:10:44,360 --> 00:10:47,080 Makes you wonder doesn't it? Well, you know, it's weird how a 190 00:10:47,080 --> 00:10:50,600 lot of this paranormal stuff does kind of overlap with Native 191 00:10:50,600 --> 00:10:55,760 American tradition and lore. The article goes on. 192 00:10:55,760 --> 00:11:00,440 It says in August 1988, Kenneth Orr, an airman stationed at Shaw 193 00:11:00,440 --> 00:11:04,200 Air Force Base near Bishopville, told Lee County Sheriff Liston 194 00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:07,680 Truesdale that he had crossed paths with the Lizard Man while 195 00:11:07,680 --> 00:11:10,760 driving to the base at 6:00 AM. He said he fired a warning shot 196 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:12,840 with his revolver before shooting and wounding the 197 00:11:12,840 --> 00:11:15,160 creature. The state picked up the story 198 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:17,360 with the tabloid worthy front page headline. 199 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:20,520 Florence Man says He wounded Lizard Man, according to the 200 00:11:20,520 --> 00:11:23,360 newspaper reports at the time, Or drew a sketch of the creature 201 00:11:23,360 --> 00:11:26,520 and presented some blood and scales that were on the road 202 00:11:26,520 --> 00:11:28,560 that were on the hood of his vehicles as evidence. 203 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:31,360 But the sketch looked suspiciously like the one that 204 00:11:31,360 --> 00:11:34,480 was being sold on T-shirts in town, and the scales appeared to 205 00:11:34,480 --> 00:11:37,640 come from a fish. There was one other problem with 206 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:40,480 the story. Or eventually admitted he had 207 00:11:40,480 --> 00:11:43,960 perpetrated A hoax and was charged with a misdemeanor count 208 00:11:43,960 --> 00:11:47,240 of filing a false report, according to newspaper reports 209 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:49,960 and assigned statement to the Sheriff's Office that was 210 00:11:49,960 --> 00:11:53,680 reprinted in Blackman's book or wrote I made the report just to 211 00:11:53,680 --> 00:11:55,880 keep the legend of the Lizard Man alive. 212 00:11:56,240 --> 00:11:58,280 Some people do crazy things sometimes. 213 00:11:58,560 --> 00:12:01,240 There is, of course, little evidence to prove the existence 214 00:12:01,240 --> 00:12:05,120 of Lizard Man, and plenty of evidence to suggest otherwise, 215 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,360 starting with the latest fact that the latest sighting appears 216 00:12:08,360 --> 00:12:10,600 to be of a man in a rubberized costume. 217 00:12:11,240 --> 00:12:13,360 This is one of these things. It just seems like a parallel 218 00:12:13,360 --> 00:12:17,280 narrative to me. I mean, the young man makes this 219 00:12:17,320 --> 00:12:22,520 report clear back in the 80s. And then here we are, you know, 220 00:12:22,520 --> 00:12:25,360 35 years later or something, 30 years later when this was 221 00:12:25,360 --> 00:12:27,640 written. And we have this picture and it 222 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:31,000 looks to me like obviously somebody in a costume and 223 00:12:31,000 --> 00:12:34,520 they're, it's almost like they're using these people 224 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:38,280 joking around and having fun with this thing as a way to 225 00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:44,920 denigrate and and devalue the report by this original 226 00:12:44,920 --> 00:12:47,520 eyewitness. Kind of like what happened with 227 00:12:47,560 --> 00:12:49,400 Roswell. You know, we have someone come 228 00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:52,640 forward and say, yeah, we had this crash spaceship or multiple 229 00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:56,840 ships, there were bodies. And then, you know, you come 230 00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:59,600 along in the 90s under Bill Clinton, I believe it was when 231 00:12:59,600 --> 00:13:03,840 they came out and said it was some sort of crash test dummy or 232 00:13:04,200 --> 00:13:07,080 secret project. And then even after that, I 233 00:13:07,080 --> 00:13:11,880 believe it was like in the mid 2000s, ten 2012 area, they came 234 00:13:11,880 --> 00:13:13,800 out with it with another parallel narrative. 235 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:16,360 They just don't quit. Then the article kind of 236 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:20,480 finishes up with a little more of a debunking quote here from 237 00:13:21,520 --> 00:13:25,240 this fellow Kenneth Orr talking about how people are basically 238 00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:28,320 trying to just pursue religious belief in the paranormal. 239 00:13:28,360 --> 00:13:30,760 You see that in a lot of these articles, they do report some of 240 00:13:30,760 --> 00:13:33,120 the facts and then they spend the rest of the article talking 241 00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:35,640 about why it couldn't possibly be true. 242 00:13:36,120 --> 00:13:38,600 They spend some parallel narratives, usually from the 243 00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:40,560 hoaxers. But I think the important thing 244 00:13:40,560 --> 00:13:43,280 about this is it's just the detailed interview this young 245 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:47,440 man gave, you know, Quebec here in the in the mid 80s. 246 00:13:47,440 --> 00:13:51,960 It looks like this next article is from WYF f4.com. 247 00:13:52,600 --> 00:13:55,600 It says people still talking about South Carolina's Weirdest 248 00:13:55,600 --> 00:13:58,920 Legend festival, held three decades later. 249 00:13:59,280 --> 00:14:03,360 Man who first reported Lizard Man attack in 1988, was gunned 250 00:14:03,360 --> 00:14:05,880 down in 2009. This is my Carla Field. 251 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:08,600 Yeah, the story has a very strange twist. 252 00:14:08,600 --> 00:14:11,800 I mean, this young guy reports this encounter that he had, It 253 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:13,840 seems like he was very sincere about it. 254 00:14:14,520 --> 00:14:16,200 It's had a big impact on the community. 255 00:14:16,200 --> 00:14:18,840 People just haven't let it go. And then he ends up getting 256 00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:19,760 killed. What? 257 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:23,080 Like a little over what? 20 years later, it says. 258 00:14:23,440 --> 00:14:26,960 Greenville, SC. Over the weekend, a festival was 259 00:14:26,960 --> 00:14:30,600 held commemorating one of the weirdest events ever recorded in 260 00:14:30,600 --> 00:14:35,400 South Carolina history, and one about which some people love to 261 00:14:35,400 --> 00:14:37,680 debate. Now, this article here is dated 262 00:14:37,680 --> 00:14:40,280 June 3rd, 2019, so it's a little more recent. 263 00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:44,600 The second annual Lizard Man Festival was held at the Cotton 264 00:14:44,600 --> 00:14:47,480 Museum in Bishopville May 31st to June 2nd. 265 00:14:47,880 --> 00:14:51,280 The festival included panel discussion about Lizard Man and 266 00:14:51,280 --> 00:14:55,000 related paranormal topics on Saturday and tours of Lizard Man 267 00:14:55,000 --> 00:14:58,360 trail important Lizard Man locations including the escape 268 00:14:58,360 --> 00:15:02,520 or swamp on Sunday, it says. Sometime in either June or July 269 00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:06,080 1988, depending on the source, Christopher Davis, then 270 00:15:06,080 --> 00:15:10,400 seventeen, reported encountering a creature that quickly became 271 00:15:10,400 --> 00:15:13,120 known as the Lizard Man of scape or swamp. 272 00:15:13,680 --> 00:15:17,560 A newspaper article said Davis was attacked by 7 foot Blizzard 273 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:20,400 type creature while he was changing a flat tire. 274 00:15:20,800 --> 00:15:24,440 The article quoted Davis saying he set its searing eyes, 3 275 00:15:24,440 --> 00:15:27,760 clawed fingers and snake like scales made him initially 276 00:15:27,760 --> 00:15:30,360 believe he was under siege by the devil himself. 277 00:15:31,200 --> 00:15:33,960 The same article said two men told Lee County deputies they 278 00:15:33,960 --> 00:15:36,840 had been chased by a similar creature while they were getting 279 00:15:36,840 --> 00:15:39,120 water out of a spring two weeks before. 280 00:15:39,600 --> 00:15:42,520 The article said the mystery has fed on rumors, which have 281 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:45,720 multiplied since Tom and Mary Way's car was mauled last 282 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:49,280 Thursday while they slept. Their forged torn molding and 283 00:15:49,280 --> 00:15:53,360 dented sidewalls, broken hood ornament, along with red hairs 284 00:15:53,360 --> 00:15:56,960 and footprints left behind indicate some kind of animal was 285 00:15:56,960 --> 00:16:00,240 responsible, a report in 2009 said. 286 00:16:00,240 --> 00:16:04,200 In the summer of 1988, twelve more people claim to see the 287 00:16:04,200 --> 00:16:08,000 lizard man escape or swamp. Some people were chased by the 288 00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:11,400 creature and others were slowly being followed until a creature 289 00:16:11,400 --> 00:16:14,920 was spotted and ran away. There were also more reports of 290 00:16:14,920 --> 00:16:19,200 mutilated cars. On July 24th four teenagers on a 291 00:16:19,200 --> 00:16:22,520 double date saw a massive looking thing run across the 292 00:16:22,520 --> 00:16:25,080 road about 20 feet in front of them. 293 00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:28,240 Shortly after receiving this initial report, the police 294 00:16:28,240 --> 00:16:31,800 received several more reports of howling and screeching coming 295 00:16:31,800 --> 00:16:34,240 from the area. Officers were dispatched to the 296 00:16:34,240 --> 00:16:39,280 area and discovered 340 gallon cardboard drums smashed and 297 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:42,560 scattered all over the road. Several trees also had their 298 00:16:42,560 --> 00:16:45,520 tops torn off about 8 feet off the ground. 299 00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:50,400 There were also more 3 toed footprints measuring 14 inches 300 00:16:50,400 --> 00:16:56,520 long by 7 inches wide that fall to trail almost 900 feet into 301 00:16:56,520 --> 00:16:59,960 the swamp itself. Be a lot of work to go to if 302 00:16:59,960 --> 00:17:02,440 you're faking one of these sightings and the fact that 303 00:17:02,440 --> 00:17:04,160 these trees had their tops torn off. 304 00:17:04,480 --> 00:17:07,920 So you see, we get into this different article here and we 305 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:10,720 have a lot more focus on the sightings themselves. 306 00:17:10,720 --> 00:17:13,560 And there are multiple sightings, multiple encounters, 307 00:17:13,839 --> 00:17:15,760 and physical evidence left behind. 308 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:17,640 I think it's why it's so important. 309 00:17:17,680 --> 00:17:20,079 When you're looking at this stuff, you really have to look 310 00:17:20,079 --> 00:17:21,599 at it for more than one perspective. 311 00:17:22,160 --> 00:17:25,079 Authorities never figured out what led to the reports, but the 312 00:17:25,079 --> 00:17:28,840 legend has lived on, seemingly taking on a life of its own as 313 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:31,320 years past. Well, maybe what led to the 314 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:33,280 reports was people actually saw this thing. 315 00:17:33,760 --> 00:17:36,360 Numerous magazine and newspaper articles have been written about 316 00:17:36,360 --> 00:17:38,360 the legend. Several books have been written 317 00:17:38,360 --> 00:17:41,400 about Lizard Man, including one by Texas writer of Cryptozoology 318 00:17:41,400 --> 00:17:44,080 Research allow Blackburn title Lizard Man. 319 00:17:44,080 --> 00:17:47,480 The true Story of the Bishop Bill Monster Davis, the original 320 00:17:47,480 --> 00:17:51,480 Lizard Man victim, was back in the news in 2009, unfortunately 321 00:17:51,480 --> 00:17:54,680 because he was gunned down in his home when he was 37. 322 00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:58,560 The came in. Devar Butler, 19, and Angori 323 00:17:58,560 --> 00:18:03,520 Central Slater, 22, were charged with murder in Davis's death 324 00:18:04,000 --> 00:18:06,520 during the total eclipse of 2017. 325 00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:09,480 South Carolina Emergency Management tweeted a map of 326 00:18:09,480 --> 00:18:14,360 possible Lizard Man sightings from 1980 to 2001 overlaid on 327 00:18:14,360 --> 00:18:18,200 the path of the eclipse with the tongue and cheek warning. 328 00:18:18,440 --> 00:18:21,680 This historical map is in response to recent media reports 329 00:18:22,000 --> 00:18:24,760 about possible paranormal activity associated with the 330 00:18:24,800 --> 00:18:31,320 upcoming total solar eclipse. SCEMD does not know if Lizard 331 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:34,240 Men and become more active during a solar eclipse, but we 332 00:18:34,240 --> 00:18:38,440 advise that residents of Lee and Central Counties remain ever 333 00:18:38,440 --> 00:18:40,360 vigilant. You have to wonder, why is it so 334 00:18:40,360 --> 00:18:43,160 important for these guys to taunt people with stuff like 335 00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:44,960 this? They have the time to create 336 00:18:44,960 --> 00:18:50,000 this silly little lizard man sightings map and just as a way 337 00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:53,320 to, I suppose, taunt the people that pay their wages. 338 00:18:53,720 --> 00:18:56,480 Anyway, really cool story I think. 339 00:18:56,680 --> 00:18:58,680 A sad ending for the guy that saw it. 340 00:18:59,800 --> 00:19:03,280 It kind of this whole lizard man thing though it speaks to a lot 341 00:19:03,280 --> 00:19:06,160 of different aspects of the UFO phenomenon. 342 00:19:06,320 --> 00:19:09,320 You know, other people have talked about these reptilian 343 00:19:09,840 --> 00:19:13,240 aliens that have abducted them or they've had encounters with 344 00:19:13,760 --> 00:19:16,840 and so I think it deserves some serious study. 345 00:19:17,080 --> 00:19:19,280 The fact that I like about this article is that they talk about 346 00:19:19,280 --> 00:19:23,600 these these 8 foot tall trees having their tops snapped off. 347 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:25,520 Something that you would think of what happened with Bigfoot, 348 00:19:25,520 --> 00:19:30,320 with a scrutual just kind of annoyed or enraged and starts 349 00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:34,000 you know just turning the living daylights out of trees and 350 00:19:34,000 --> 00:19:36,480 stuff. And also the fact that the 351 00:19:36,480 --> 00:19:39,520 tracks went 900 feet back into the swamp. 352 00:19:40,040 --> 00:19:43,200 Now, you know I don't live in South Carolina, but that seems 353 00:19:43,200 --> 00:19:46,120 like quite a lot of work to go to walking back into the swamp 354 00:19:46,120 --> 00:19:50,120 swamp, making these tracks just to do a hoax on someone. 355 00:19:50,680 --> 00:19:53,000 The fact that we had lots of people reporting this thing, you 356 00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:55,960 know, right around the same area it you could say, well, mass 357 00:19:55,960 --> 00:19:59,240 hysteria, but you know people took the time we had the we had 358 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:01,760 the vehicles that were damaged. They claimed it was possibly a 359 00:20:01,760 --> 00:20:04,280 bear or something. Pretty weird that you didn't 360 00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:07,760 have that going on before the sighting of the lizard man. 361 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:10,360 Until next time, this is UFO Warning. 362 00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:11,120 Over and out.