Hi Victor,
Glad to be of some help, after the arising debate on the AA. I might add
something, as you can see. Please, feel free to post my essay and preliminary
remarks to the List. I'll be honoured to see my contribution within it.
Best
Maurizio Baiata
Alien Autopsies
And Special Effects
By Maurizio Baiata
April 7, 2006
On 27 March 1995, a dispatch released by the Italian press agency ANSA, said: "A
footage showing a dead extraterrestrial has been announced": I got in touch
immediately with my British colleague Philip Mantle, who kindly gave me Ray
Santilli's phone numbers. We arranged an appointment in early April in Cannes
during the MIP TV. While having coffee with Santilli on the Croisette, I
suddenly realized that he lacked information about the UFO issues as well as
their researchers, but we overcame the mutual distrusts, as we both came from
the same musical and television background. As far as the footage in his hands,
Santilli was referring to the Roswell crash, taking place in New Mexico on 1947.
According to Santilli, the images were of good quality and referred to the
autopsies of two recovered non-human beings, the site of the crash with the
military involved, as well as President Truman. However, Santilli underlined
that the material consisted of seventeen 16millimeter film-3 minutes-reels, for
over 50 minutes, shot in black and white; and that the technical processing of
the footage, from film print to video, would have implied relevant problems,
therefore, the question of when the first public show of the footage was due,
was premature. I asked him about the reliability of his source - the cameraman.
He said that he placed in him the highest confidence and, even though he
couldn't reveal his identity, the images would have shown the evidence that the
footage was real and came from the US military. I arranged a second appointment
at last, this time in London, and I expected to be allowed to examine all the
material.
I arrived in London on Tuesday, 25 April, 1995, and, at 2.00 PM, Ray Santilli
was waiting for me in the Merlin Group premises, in Balcombe Street. Santilli
told me about overwhelming problems due to the transfer of the original films to
video and therefore he was unable to show me the footage, suggesting that I go
back home.
Behind his desk, laying on the floor, there were approximately fifteen old
canisters, green-grayish in color, about 25 cm in diameter each, with labels
stamped over, whose contents depicted dates, and photo-developing instructions.
Santilli opened one canister and pulled out a film - maybe a 16 mm. - which
appeared to be "pasted", and said: "You see, the film is damaged and many others
are in the same condition. It's impossible to process it quickly; we need more
time". Then he showed me the codes, a square and a triangle, labeled on the
initial edge of the film, which, according to him, belonged to Kodak. I asked
him about the Truman's clip. "Yes it's in there, but it's been damaged, and I
doubt we can make up for it". On my persistent request to my remaining in London
and waiting for the film projection, Santilli told me to return at 3 PM on the
following day. I had lunch with Santilli and Reg Presley (former singer of The
Troggs and close Santilli friend) and at 2.30 PM I was in Santilli's office
where he arranged the showing on VHS, claiming that the footage dealt on the
first autopsy. Santilli hardly made comments on the images, which lasted
approximately 12 minutes. As I stated on several occasions, the being of this
footage appeared to me different from that of the Alien Autopsy Footage. It is a
body of slightly female features, devoid of sex organs in evidence, with no
injury, and a swollen belly. The autopsy incision is vertical, starting from the
neck to the lower belly. A "vaginal" examination is performed and, through a
sharp tool, probably long surgical forceps, a white filamentous substance is
extracted. Following the rib cage opening, a bright object is removed from the
alveolus identical to the one found in the Alien Autopsy Footage. On the spur of
the moment, my comment right after was that the being appeared "human". Santilli
replied: "Are you joking?". Presley and I were quite shocked and insisted on our
viewing the footage one more time. Santilli unwillingly accepted this. At last,
an appointment was arranged for the projection of the rest of the material (the
famous May 5th showing at the London Museum). As far as I am know, I was one
among the few who has seen the first autopsy, as well as the reels in their
canisters in Ray Santilli's office. Also, while in London, I met Volger
Spielberg - unaware that he was Santilli's partner in the production of the
"Autopsy Footage": he was supposed to have the remaining films (undoubtedly the
first autopsy footage). I thought Spielberg had a great influence over Santilli,
but showed a very elusive personality.
During my research I could verify the trustworthiness of the anatomic pathology
procedures, having personally assisted to the postmortem examination performed
on two human dead bodies in the Forensic Institute of the Rome University by Dr.
Massimo Signoracci. I then excluded any proximity between the Santilli Footage
beings and the human being.
Under the new light given to the controversy by the Philip Mantle statement and
if indeed the hoax hypotesis is confirmed, I wish to comment as follows:
1. Everything has been orchestrated by Santilli,
Shofield and their partners in the music and documentary video business,
apparently only for their own financial gain. In this case, we should consider
the first, unseen, autopsy of which I spoke also a fake.
Hypothetically then, in the second autopsy the same puppet creature has been
used, just altering some body parts in order to obtain the effect of two
distinct beings on the slab.
2. It may be possible that the first autopsy film might be close to the real
thing: that is why it magically disappeared after a very limited viewing by a
selected group of experts, and it might still be in the hands of Volger
Spielberg. Subsequently, the film of a second autopsy may have been
“reconstructed”. It is my guess that Santilli’s “new maneuver” could turn out to
be a boomerang: Why? See my remarks, just regarding the dissections:
A: Let’ see the “AA Making of”; let’s see the studio shots, the props, the
actors, and the real cameraman in action.
B: Still we will need to explain, among other things, the reasons for the
erroneous opinion expressed by two prominent Italian pathologists, professor
Pierluigi Baima Bollone (Forensic medical dept., Turin University) and Dr.
Massimo Signoracci (Forensic medical dept. University of Rome) with regards to
the biological anomalies found in the dissected body, anomalies not easily
reproducible with special effects.
C: After the opening of the skull, for instance, the brains are removed, cutting
through the membrane (dura madre), with a very accurate procedure. Is this a
sheep brain? As professor Bollone and professor Corrado Malanga (Pisa
University) pointed out, a mark, or indentation is present on the left side of
the skull, suggesting a gun shot effect: where is the bullet, why we do not see
an exit hole out of it?
D: What about the strange object, triangular in shape and translucent, found in
both cavities chest of the two creatures?
E: What about the eyes, covered by a black membrane, that is removed during the
second autopsy? Still, a Santilli invention or a “reconstruction”, but under
whose suggestion?
F: Right at the time of the “official” showing at the London Museum (May 5th,
1995) Santilli had in his possession the film of the first autopsy. What this
one has not been shown, then? What prevented Santilli to do so, after his
promises, given to me and some other interested parties?
Once we have answers to these preliminary questions, and once
we do have Santilli showing the “first autopsy” for adequate comparison with the
released one, then we can probably admit it is a fake. Same applies to the
“Debris Footage”, a section of the Santilli Footage I’d like to see discussed
here or elsewhere with competence. More to come.
Maurizio Baiata
Area 51 Magazine - Italy
Managing Editor