Page 20 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper March/April 2018 Edition

20 The Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot Film

The Patterson-Gimlin

Bigfoot Film

The true history behind the iconic
Bigfoot film that launched the legend.

by Brian Dunning

You've seen it a hundred times: the iconic
picture of Bigfoot striding heavily through the
clearing, arms swinging, head and shoulders
turned slightly toward the camera. This famous
image is frame 352 of a 16mm silent color film
shot in 1967 in northern California by rancher
Roger Patterson, accompanied by his friend,
Bob Gimlin. The impact that this film has had
on Bigfoot mythology is inestimable; and
correspondingly, so has its impact upon
paranormal, cryptozoological, and pop culture
mythologies in general. I might well not be evidence that is unavailable to us. their story. Other suspicious cryptozoologists,
doing the Skeptoid podcast today if the 1967 No one has ever produced such as Peter Byrne, found holes and
Patterson-Gimlin film had not turned legend documentation like receipts showing when and contradictions in those stories. In the end, the
and fancy into concrete, tangible, see-it-with- where the film was developed. We know when version Patterson and Gimlin settled on was that
your-own-eyes reality. and where Patterson rented the camera, but they put the film onto a plane and flew it to
Whether or not Bigfoot exists is one that's not really in dispute. He had it in his Yakima, where Al DeAtley picked it up to have
question — the answer to which has not exactly possession for plenty of time before and after it developed. Byrne found that the only charter
whitened the knuckles of science — but the the alleged date of the filming. So that's yet planes that could have flown that route that day
authenticity of the Patterson-Gimlin film is another dead end. Patterson covered his tracks were all grounded due to rain and bad weather.
something else. If Bigfoot were known to be a very effectively (no Bigfoot pun intended). Since then, few serious researchers took
real animal, an investigation into the He was quite a character, and had Patterson and Gimlin's story seriously.
authenticity of the film would make sense. If always been. He'd been a competitive rodeo But the film had already grown larger
Bigfoot were known to not exist, then it would cowboy, part-time rancher, and full-time than all of them. It was a sensation, and to this
be logically moot to study the film at all; it must slacker. Few who knew him had anything day, rakes in revenue in licensing fees. DeAtley
be a fake. But for today's purpose, we're going positive to say about him. His reputation was backed Patterson and formed Bigfoot
to brush aside the larger question (which should that he never paid his bills. He borrowed money, Enterprises on November 1, just 10 days after
never be done in real science) and focus only on lied about it, and never paid it back. He was the shoot, and reported $200,000 in the first
this detail. We'll assume that the existence of physically very strong — not an ounce of fat, year. Make no mistake about it: for the late
Bigfoot is an open question (a big assumption), and thick with muscles — and was fond of 1960s and a man who used dig through the
and just for fun, let's see what we can determine showing it off. He knew everything better than dump, Bigfoot was big money. Throughout the
on whether this famous film clip is a deliberate anyone, and nobody could tell him a thing. He 1970s, Patty Patterson, Al DeAtley, Bob Gimlin,
hoax, or whether it shows a real animal, or never kept interest in one career very long. One and a wildlife film company fought numerous
whether there might be some other explanation. day he'd build stagecoaches for miniature lawsuits with one another over the rights to the
Maybe it's a misidentification, or an elaborate horses; the next day he'd repaint junk found at footage. The biggest winner was a Bigfoot fan
film flaw, or an unknown third party hoaxing the dump and sell it. But his one saving grace named Rene Dahinden, who ended up with
Patterson and Gimlin. There are many was his wife Patricia. Patty had a brother in about half of the rights, and Patty with the other
possibilities. Yakima, WA, Al DeAtley, a successful asphalt half.
Roger Patterson died of cancer only a contractor, who provided money whenever it It was in 2004 that author Greg Long dug
few years after the film was shot, and never was needed. It was this even keel that got Roger into this mess to sort everything out. Over a
offered any clue other than that the film was Patterson through. period of six years, he actually went and met
genuine. Bob Gimlin remained silent for 25 The story goes that Patterson and Gimlin face to face with all of these characters who
years, and ever since he began speaking about it had developed a strong interest in Bigfoot, and were still alive, and many other people —
in the 1990s he has firmly stated that he was in October 1967 they rented the movie camera anyone he could find who knew Patterson or
unaware of any hoax, but allowed for the and went off on horseback for a couple weeks to was involved in the film in any way. His entire
possibility that he may have been hoaxed look for it. Next thing they knew, they'd become adventure was published in his entertaining
himself. Nobody else is known to have the luckiest Bigfoot hunters in history, when the book The Making of Bigfoot: The Inside Story.
participated, and so the only two people whom creature obligingly stepped out of the woods That wildlife film company just
we can say for certain were present when the and strode across the clearing for Patterson's mentioned, American National Enterprises,
film was shot are both stonewalls. So we must camera, in the early afternoon of October 20th. turns out to have been pivotal. Patterson had
look elsewhere. Gimlin chased it on horseback, lost it, but found been driving down to Hollywood a lot, trying to
The original film no longer exists (only its footprints; then they rode about 5 kilometers sell the idea of a pseudo-documentary about
copies), and there is no record of anyone ever back to camp for their plaster of paris. They Bigfoot; based on Patterson's own self-
having possessed the original print. We don't rode back, poured plaster into the footprints, published 1966 book Do Abominable Snowmen
know why, but we're left without the original waited for it to dry, then went back to camp of America Really Exist? Studios wouldn't bite,
film's leader, which would have included the again. They loaded their horses into the trailer but ANE did. It was with their money that
date when it was developed. Thus, we have only and drove 40 kilometers on rough fire roads Patterson rented his camera and took some pre-
Patterson's word for when it was developed, so back to Willow Creek, and posted the film off to production stills of his buddies allegedly on a
we can't verify that the film was shot and Yakima to get it developed. It was about 4:00 in Bigfoot hunt, but actually in Patterson's own
developed on the days he claims it was. The the afternoon. backyard. They included Bob Gimlin costumed
original also would have included any other The glaring impossibility of this up as a native American guide. ANE's movie
shots that were taken, such as possible alternate timeline is what first raised suspicions among was to be titled Bigfoot: America's Abominable
takes. If these were ever seen, we'd know for a skeptics. In response, Patterson and Gimlin Snowman.
fact that it was faked. So that's one more line of began providing all sorts of different versions of (Continued on Page 21)