I’ve written about this in another post, but was surprised and delighted to find that someone has posted the very piece of rare film I still have somewhere in my collection. The man’s name was Lee Crandall and he was a minor contactee personality of the 1950s. His one published book was entitled The Venusians and was released by the New Age Publishing Company (an outfit that seemingly cranked out contactee books by the truckload) in 1955.
The segment is apparently drawn from a documentary called In Advance Of The Landing, which is based on Douglas Curran’s landmark 1985 book of the same name. Does anyone know where to find a tape or DVD of this film? Supremely interesting fact: Director Dan Curtis was also the creator, producer and director of the 1960s horror soap opera Dark Shadows.
In the clip from In Advance…, Crandall is shown lecturing to a crowd in a nearly full auditorium, but the payoff is the re-enactment of his visit from a well-dressed Space Brother, who arrives at his trailer park home and presumably asks Crandall to come for a flying saucer ride. I like his line about the ship: “I have never seen such a gorgeous piece of artwork anywhere.” He asks the spaceman to wait a minute while he leaves a note for (presumably) his parents. The payoff is in the last shot where we get to read his message. I want it on a t-shirt!
Hey Greg, I was inspired to google In Advance of the Landing as a result of your post. Anyway, one thing led to another and check out the case of this guy who built a flying saucer in his backyard and disappeared one night during a bad storm. Bizarre story (there is a very cool pic of his flying saucer in the book- can be found at Douglas Curran’s website): http://tranquileye.com/truth/casebook/granger_taylors_flying_saucer.html
I looked up the Dan Curtis credits and he seems to have a lot of work in the late 1990s, which doesn’t really suggest that it was the “Dark Shadows” Curtis. Also there are FOUR Dan Curtises on imdb. Thank you. I stand corrected.
Jan 20 2009 
January 20th, 2009 at 3:58 am
Hey Greg, I was inspired to google In Advance of the Landing as a result of your post. Anyway, one thing led to another and check out the case of this guy who built a flying saucer in his backyard and disappeared one night during a bad storm. Bizarre story (there is a very cool pic of his flying saucer in the book- can be found at Douglas Curran’s website):
http://tranquileye.com/truth/casebook/granger_taylors_flying_saucer.html
January 20th, 2009 at 5:39 am
Hitching a ride with the Venereals —as Neil deGrasse Tyson likes to call them
January 20th, 2009 at 6:02 am
BenD,
I bought the original printing in 1987 or so. I remember that story.
August 23rd, 2009 at 1:43 am
I think it’s a different Dan Curtis who did Dark Shadows.
http://www.imdb.com/find?s=nm&q=dan+curtis&x=0&y=0
August 23rd, 2009 at 5:41 pm
stale,
I remember reading that it WAS the same Dan Curtis, but I can’t recall the reference now.
August 23rd, 2009 at 5:46 pm
I looked up the Dan Curtis credits and he seems to have a lot of work in the late 1990s, which doesn’t really suggest that it was the “Dark Shadows” Curtis. Also there are FOUR Dan Curtises on imdb. Thank you. I stand corrected.
Too bad. It was so perfect.