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49-472: The first alien abduction narrative to be widely publicized was the Betty and Barney Hill abduction in 1961. Since that time, the credibility and mental health of alleged experiencers has taken on great importance to those seeking to determine the veracity of the abduction claims. Mainstream academics and members of the skeptics movement generally doubt that the phenomenon occurs literally as reported, and have proposed

98-535: A New York Times bestseller, and New Line Cinema released a 1989 film adaption that starred Christopher Walken as Strieber. In 1988, Christophe Dechavanne interviewed the French science-fiction writer and ufologist Jimmy Guieu on TF1 's Ciel, mon mardi ! . Besides mentioning Majestic 12 , Guieu described the existence of what he called "the little greys", which later on became better known in French under

147-620: A Candle in the Dark , where Invaders from Mars was cited as another potential inspiration. After the Hills' encounter, Greys would go on to become an integral part of ufology and other extraterrestrial-related folklore. This is particularly true in the case of the United States: according to journalist C. D. B. Bryan , 73% of all reported alien encounters in the United States describe Grey aliens,

196-517: A binary star system. In 1893, H. G. Wells presented a description of humanity's future appearance in the article The Man of the Year Million , describing humans as having no mouths, noses, or hair, and with large heads. In 1895, Wells also depicted the Eloi , a successor species to humanity, in similar terms in the novel The Time Machine . As early as 1917, the occultist Aleister Crowley described

245-550: A child-claimant reported a "baby presentation" scenario. Parents have sometimes supposedly seemed disturbed by their children's responses to the "Grey" face. He says no child in the control group of any test session has recognized or attached significance to the "Grey" image. During the second phase of the HIRT, the administrator asks each child to separate the flash cards into two piles, one pile for those depicting characters they like, and one for those depicting characters they dislike. As

294-563: A control group. Furthermore, the test consisted of three parts. The first portion of the test is treated as a flash-card type children's game where the administrator asks the child to identify the figure depicted on the card presented to them. Hopkins reports that when the allegedly abducted children encounter the Grey face, they frequently will respond by recounting a detailed abduction narrative containing elements extremely similar to those found in claims made by adults, he even recalls an instance where

343-895: A focus of abduction claims, which often describe a Grey staring into the eyes of an abductee when conducting mental procedures. This staring is claimed to induce hallucinogenic states or directly provoke different emotions. Neurologist Steven Novella proposes that Grey aliens are a byproduct of the human imagination, with the Greys' most distinctive features representing everything that modern humans traditionally link with intelligence. "The aliens, however, do not just appear as humans, they appear like humans with those traits we psychologically associate with intelligence." In 2005, Frederick V. Malmstrom, writing in Skeptic magazine, volume 11, issue 4, presents his idea that Greys are actually residual memories of early childhood development. Malmstrom reconstructs

392-404: A government-led disinformation or plausible deniability campaign, or that they are a product of government mind-control experiments. During the 1990s, popular culture also began to increasingly link Greys to a number of military-industrial complex and New World Order conspiracy theories. In 1995, filmmaker Ray Santilli claimed to have obtained 22 reels of 16 mm film that depicted

441-468: A meeting with a "preternatural entity" named Lam that was similar in appearance to a modern Grey. Crowley believed he had contacted the entity through a process that he called the "Amalantrah Workings," which he thought allowed humans to contact beings from outer space and across dimensions. Other occultists and ufologists, many of whom have retroactively linked Lam to later Grey encounters, have since described their own visitations from him, with one describing

490-599: A number of UFO conspiracy theory subplots, to form its primary story arc. Other notable examples include the XCOM video game franchise (where they are called "Sectoids"); Dark Skies , first broadcast in 1996, which expanded upon the MJ-12 conspiracy; and American Dad! , which features a Grey-like alien named Roger , whose backstory draws from both the Roswell incident and Area 51 conspiracy theories . The 2011 film Paul tells

539-648: A number of films and television shows, supplanting the previously popular little green men . As early as 1966, for example, the superhero character Ultraman was explicitly based on them, and in 1977 they were featured in Close Encounters of the Third Kind . Greys have also been worked into space opera and other interstellar settings: in Babylon 5 , the Greys are referred to as the "Vree", and are depicted as being allies and trade partners of 23rd-century Earth, while in

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588-407: A significantly higher proportion than other countries. During the early 1980s, Greys were linked to the alleged crash-landing of a flying saucer in Roswell, New Mexico , in 1947. A number of publications contained statements from individuals who claimed to have seen the U.S. military handling a number of unusually proportioned, bald, child-sized beings. These individuals claimed, during and after

637-680: A small chest, and lacking in muscular definition and visible skeletal structure. Their legs are depicted as being shorter and jointed differently from humans with limbs proportionally different from a human. Greys are depicted as having unusually large heads in proportion to their bodies with no hair on the body, and no noticeable outer ears or noses, sometimes with small openings or orifices for ears, nostrils, and mouths. In drawings, Greys are almost always shown with very large, opaque, black eyes, without eye whites. They are frequently described as shorter than average adult humans. The association between Grey aliens and Zeta Reticuli originated with

686-429: A variety of alternative explanations. Such skeptics often argue that the phenomenon might be a modern-day folk myth or vivid dreams occurring in a state of sleep paralysis . By contrast, ufologists and paranormal researchers hold positions closer to the face-value of abduction claims. The discovery of common psychological traits shared by abductees would have the potential to determine a neurological explanation for

735-498: A way that Hopkins et al. interpreted as supporting their ET interpretation of the abduction phenomenon. Based on this figure, Hopkins estimated that nearly four million Americans might have been abducted by extraterrestrials. The poll results are available at this external link: Abduction by Aliens or Sleep Paralysis Writing in Skeptical Inquirer , psychologist Susan Blackmore notes that based on her analysis, "I conclude that

784-621: A weak sexual identity. According to Yvonne Smith, some alleged abductees test positive for lupus , despite not showing any symptoms. Alleged abductees are seen by many pro-abduction researchers to have a higher incidence of non-abduction related paranormal events and abilities. Following an abduction experience, these paranormal abilities and occurrences sometimes seem to become more pronounced. According to investigator Benton Jamison, abduction experiencers who report UFO sightings that should have been, but are not, reported by independent corroborating witnesses often seem to "be 'psychic personalities' in

833-539: Is much abetted by an absence of ears, hair, and nose on both aliens. Could it be by chance? Consider this: Barney first described and drew the wraparound eyes during the hypnosis session dated 22 February 1964. "The Bellero Shield" was first broadcast on 10 February 1964. Only twelve days separate the two instances. If the identification is admitted, the commonness of wraparound eyes in the abduction literature falls to cultural forces. Carl Sagan echoed Kottmeyer's suspicions in his 1997 book, The Demon Haunted World: Science as

882-518: The Stargate franchise they are called the " Asgard " and depicted as ancient astronauts . South Park refers to them as "visitors". During the 1990s, plotlines wherein Greys were linked to conspiracy theories became common. A well-known example is the Fox television series The X-Files , which first aired in 1993. It combined the quest to find proof of the existence of Grey-like extraterrestrials with

931-542: The 1948 Aztec UFO hoax and later accounts of the 1947 Roswell UFO incident . The Grey alien has emerged as an archetypal image of an intelligent non-human creature and extraterrestrial life in general, as well as an iconic trope of popular culture in the age of space exploration. Greys are typically depicted as grey-skinned, diminutive humanoid beings that possess reduced forms of, or completely lack, external human body parts such as noses, ears, or sex organs . Their bodies are usually depicted as being elongated, having

980-481: The Swedish novelist Gustav Sandgren , using the pen name Gabriel Linde, published a science fiction novel called Den okända faran ( The Unknown Danger ), in which he describes a race of extraterrestrials who wore clothes made of soft grey fabric and were short, with big bald heads, and large, dark, gleaming eyes. The novel, aimed at young readers, included illustrations of the imagined aliens. This description would become

1029-672: The autopsy of a "real" Grey supposedly recovered from the site of the 1947 incident in Roswell. In 2006, though, Santilli announced that the film was not original, but was instead a "reconstruction" created after the original film was found to have degraded. He maintained that a real Grey had been found and autopsied on camera in 1947, and that the footage released to the public contained a percentage of that original footage. Greys are often involved in alien abduction claims. Among reports of alien encounters, Greys make up about 50% in Australia, 73% in

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1078-420: The 1992 MIT alien abduction conference several investigators in attendance accused him of leading his subjects in his hypnotic regression sessions, possibly encouraging them to confabulate . However, some of Nyman's subjects disagreed with the accusations and defended him. In a study investigating the motivations of the alleged abductors, Jenny Randles found that in each of the four cases out of fifty total where

1127-532: The United States, 48% in continental Europe , and around 12% in the United Kingdom. These reports include two distinct groups of Greys that differ in height. Abduction claims are often described as extremely traumatic , similar to an abduction by humans or even a sexual assault in the level of trauma and distress. The emotional impact of perceived abductions can be as great as that of combat , sexual abuse , and other traumatic events. The eyes are often

1176-505: The abductees' families or others that may have been expected to see them have been reported. UFO and abduction researcher Budd Hopkins has designed an image recognition test (known as the Hopkins Image Recognition Test, or HIRT) for children that he claims is helpful in verifying legitimate occurrences of alien abduction. There are ten different illustrated flash cards in the HIRT, nine of which depict "images from myth, from

1225-536: The age of forty are less likely to have "hormonic" or reproductive activity going on. Although abduction and other UFO-related reports are usually made by adults, sometimes young children report similar experiences. These child-reports often feature very specific details in common with reports of abduction made by adults, including the circumstances, narrative, entities and aftermaths of the alleged occurrences. Often these young abductees have family members who have reported having abduction experiences. Family involvement in

1274-519: The ages of 2–6, they would be visited by balls of light that would enter their room at night. These balls would seem to play games with children and fly around the room. Some have interpreted them as being a way for the alleged abductees to develop their psychic abilities the way a physical ball helps develop coordination and athletic abilities. As such these intangible orbs have been dubbed "psychic toys". Although these phantasms are alleged to have appeared regularly, no corroborating sightings from members of

1323-511: The behavior that involves ... story telling". Some pro-abduction researchers argue that children do not include the image of the Grey-type alien as part of their "image bank", and consequently their reports are not likely derived from cultural depictions of UFO related phenomena. Budd Hopkins once investigated "several mask and novelty stores" for a commercially produced grey alien costume for children, but could not. He feels that this supports

1372-580: The being as a "cold, computer-like intelligence," and utterly beyond human comprehension. "...the creatures did not resemble any race of humans. They were short, shorter than the average Japanese, and their heads were big and bald, with strong, square foreheads, and very small noses and mouths, and weak chins. What was most extraordinary about them were the eyes — large, dark, gleaming, with a sharp gaze. They wore clothes made of soft grey fabric, and their limbs seemed to be similar to those of humans." Gustav Sandgren, The Unknown Danger (1933) In 1933,

1421-505: The child divides up the cards, the administrator asks for the child to explain the reasons they liked or disliked the characters on the cards. Hopkins says that abduction-candidate children usually file the alien head under the "dislike" category for the reasons "we have come to expect". By contrast, control group children often file the alien head under the "like" category, because "they had no reason to dislike something they didn't recognize". Stage three involves more active participation on

1470-1279: The claim of the Roper Poll, that 3.7 million Americans have probably been abducted, is false." Betty and Barney Hill abduction Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.133 via cp1102 cp1102, Varnish XID 112518631 Upstream caches: cp1102 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Fri, 29 Nov 2024 08:42:57 GMT Grey alien Grey aliens , also referred to as Zeta Reticulans , Roswell Greys or Greys , are purported extraterrestrial beings . They are frequent subjects of close encounters and alien abduction claims. The details of such claims vary widely. That said, Greys are typically described as being human-like with small bodies , smooth, grey-colored skin; enlarged, hairless heads; and large, black eyes. The Barney and Betty Hill abduction claim, which purportedly took place in New Hampshire in 1961, popularized Grey aliens. Precursor figures have been described in science fiction and similar descriptions appeared in early accounts of

1519-415: The claims, while other commonalities or differences may serve to reinforce that the claims of the experiencers do in fact correspond with objective reality. As a category, abductees have some psychological characteristics that render their testimony suspect. Dr. Elizabeth Slater conducted a blind study of nine abduction claimants and found them to be prone to "mildly paranoid thinking", nightmares and having

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1568-437: The experiencer was over forty years of age or more, they were rejected by the aliens for "what they (the experiencers) usually inferred to be a medical reason". Randles concludes "the abduction is essentially a young person's experience". Given the reproductive focus of the alleged abductions it is not surprising that one man reported being rejected because he had undergone a vasectomy. It could also be partially because people over

1617-497: The face of a Grey through transformation of a mother's face based on our best understanding of early-childhood sensation and perception. Malmstrom's study offers another alternative to the existence of Greys, the intense instinctive response many people experience when presented an image of a Grey, and the act of regression hypnosis and recovered-memory therapy in "recovering" memories of alien abduction experiences, along with their common themes. According to biologist Jack Cohen ,

1666-473: The hypothesis that children are not familiar with "greys". John Carpenter also believes that young children are not "contaminated" with cultural images of greys. He reports that a fellow investigator who is a school teacher requested her children to draw an alien, and that none of them drew a Grey-like being. Children seem to react to their alleged abduction experiences differently from adult claimants. Many alleged adult experiencers report doubting their sanity or

1715-520: The image was to be expected. This, he said, was "obvious, but is not probative". Reports of the abduction phenomenon have been made around the world, but are less common outside of English speaking countries , especially the United States . In 1991, Hopkins, Jacobs and sociologist Dr. Ron Westrum commissioned a Roper Poll in order to determine how many Americans might have experienced the abduction phenomenon. Of nearly 6,000 Americans, 119 answered in

1764-404: The incident, that the beings had oversized heads and slanted eyes, but scant other distinguishable facial features. In 1987, novelist Whitley Strieber published the book Communion , which, unlike his previous works, was categorized as non-fiction, and in which he describes a number of close encounters he alleges to have experienced with Greys and other extraterrestrial beings. The book became

1813-404: The interpretation of a map drawn by Betty Hill by a school-teacher named Marjorie Fish sometime in 1969. Betty Hill, under hypnosis, had claimed to have been shown a map that displayed the aliens' home system and nearby stars. Upon learning of this, Fish attempted to create a model from a drawing produced by Hill, eventually determining that the stars marked as the aliens' home were Zeta Reticuli,

1862-681: The military, or a residence near a military base is also common amongst child abduction claimants. Deborah Truncale, a pro-abduction researcher believes that the reports made by children should be taken similarly seriously to those made by adults. She notes several characteristic behaviors of children fictionalizing stories, such as pausing to think, attempting to anticipate the reaction of the listener, or trying to fake convincing eye contact. Truncale sees child abduction claimants as lacking these mannerisms, instead, she says, they can be described as "generally more animated [than children making up stories] and speak[ing] quickly, [they recall] an account without

1911-490: The name: les Petits-Gris . Guieu later wrote two docudramas , using as a plot the Grey aliens / Majestic-12 conspiracy theory as described by John Lear and Milton William Cooper : the series "E.B.E." (for "Extraterrestrial Biological Entity"): E.B.E.: Alerte rouge (first part) (1990) and E.B.E.: L'entité noire d'Andamooka (second part) (1991). Greys have since become the subject of many conspiracy theories . Many conspiracy theorists believe that Greys represent part of

1960-438: The part of the children. The administrator will ask the child to make up a story about an imaginary encounter with the character depicted on it. This usually acts as a trigger for reporting an abduction account in the potential abductees if earlier tests had not elicited an explicit account of this type. Hopkins's test has been criticized by abduction researcher David Gotlib, who felt that Hopkins's use of terminology in describing

2009-580: The real world, and from popular culture". The tenth image is the "grey" type entity commonly associated with claims of abduction. The images are drawn simply in black and white, featuring characters drawn in what Hopkins calls a "neutral and inexpressive" fashion. This is supposed to be a preventative measure intended to keep the images from affecting the child's responses on an emotional basis. The test would be administered to two groups of about 10–12 children individually, one group being composed of children who are thought to be possible abduction experiencers, and

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2058-416: The science-fiction television show The Outer Limits titled " The Bellero Shield ", which was broadcast 12 days before Barney's first hypnotic session. The episode featured an extraterrestrial with large eyes, who says, "In all the universes, in all the unities beyond the universes, all who have eyes have eyes that speak." The report from the regression featured a scenario that was in some respects similar to

2107-412: The sense of Jan Ehrenwald ". Sometimes abductees experience the sensation of being both human and alien at the same time, a phenomenon Joe Nyman calls "dual reference". Dual reference emerges in hypnotic regression sessions wherein the subject reports pre-birth or pre-life existence as one of the same species as those he or she would later report abducting them. When presenting a paper on the subject to

2156-617: The story of a Grey named Paul who attributes the Greys' frequent presence in science fiction pop culture to the US government deliberately inserting the stereotypical Grey alien image into mainstream media; this is done so that if humanity came into contact with Paul's species, no immediate shock would occur as to their appearance. Child abduction by Greys is a key plot point in the 2013 film, Dark Skies . Greys appear in Syfy 's 2021 science fiction dramedy series Resident Alien . The Greys appear as

2205-486: The television show. In part, Kottmeyer wrote: Wraparound eyes are an extreme rarity in science fiction films. I know of only one instance. They appeared on the alien of an episode of an old TV series The Outer Limits entitled "The Bellero Shield." A person familiar with Barney's sketch in "The Interrupted Journey" and the sketch done in collaboration with the artist David Baker will find a "frisson" of " déjà vu " creeping up his spine when seeing this episode. The resemblance

2254-593: The template upon which the popular image of grey aliens is based. The conception remained a niche one until 1965, when newspaper reports of the Betty and Barney Hill abduction made the archetype famous. The alleged abductees, Betty and Barney Hill, claimed that in 1961, humanoid alien beings with grayish skin had abducted them and taken them to a flying saucer . In his 1990 article "Entirely Unpredisposed", Martin Kottmeyer suggested that Barney's memories revealed under hypnosis might have been influenced by an episode of

2303-415: The test implied it had been evaluated and standardized in a scientifically rigorous way, when in fact it had not. Hopkins withdrew the offending statements. Psychologist Richard Boylan raised a similar objection to the way Hopkins had hyped the test. Boylan also voiced criticism of the test itself, noting that the grey face was "the only anomalous figure in the set", and that a "spooky narrative" in response to

2352-506: The typical image of a Grey, assuming that it would have evolved from a world with different environmental and ecological conditions from Earth, is too physiologically similar to a human to be credible as a representation of an alien. The interdimensional hypothesis , the cryptoterrestrial hypothesis , and the time-traveller hypothesis attempt to provide an alternative explanation to the humanoid anatomy and behavior of these alleged beings. Depictions of Grey aliens have gone on to appear in

2401-431: The veracity of what they believed happened to them. Children, by contrast, never seem to doubt that their experiences happened to them. For an adult, an abduction experience can challenge much of what they believe about the world. Children however, by virtue of being in a formative stage of development, more readily assimilate the experience into their developing worldview. Many repeat-abductees report that, as children from

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