Bob White Newspaper Articles

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A Note From The Webmaster: The following article states that Bob White has been the topic of discussion on the "Art Bell" Program. This is incorrect. You will find all public appearances listed here on www.hardevidence.info. At the time of this writing, to our knowledge, Bob White has not been the topic of discussion on "Art Bell" nor has he been invited to appear there.

Ozarker seeks truth about chunk of space debris

By Mike O'Brien
The Springfield News-Leader
Feb 1, 1999

Remember the metallic chunk of "space doo-doo" that an Ozarker says he saw fall from a mysterious flying machine?

Much has happened since Bob White of Reeds Spring first publicly told his eerie story of a Colorado encounter with a UFO and unveiled his bizarre souvenir in this column back in July:

• An Internet site devoted to the strange object has been visited more than 7,000 times by curious Web surfers.
• The hunk of metal has been the topic of discussion on national and international radio talk shows such as "Sightings," "The X Zone" and the late night Art Bell program.
• White is in the running for a $1 million prize offered by the Flying Saucer Restaurant in Ontario, Canada, for the first tangible evidence of an extraterrestrial craft.
• Experienced metalworkers have expressed puzzlement over how the chunk's extraordinary exterior, which resembles layered bird feathers, could've been formed with earthly tools, according to White.
• A retired scientist, who once was involved in super secret military weapons research and now does materials testing for an Ozarks manufacturer, has warned White that if he has stumbled across something that federal officials want kept hush-hush, "there's no limit to what the government will do to shut you up."
• Exhibitions are being lined up, so the public may inspect the odd object at close range.

Even all that activity is not enough to suit White.

"I still don't know what the thing is," the 67-year-old retired musician and comedian grouses.

"Frankly, the reason I went public with this thing was I wanted somebody to come after me and try to prove it's a fake."

"I know there are a lot of kooks and weirdos in this flying saucer game, and there always seem to be experts ready to disprove claims by those people. I really thought that if I put this thing out there, the scientists and experts would assume I was a nut, too, and they'd come after me.

"Only, I'm not a nut. I know where this thing came from. It fell out of the sky from some sort of flying object like I'd never seen before.

"What I don't know is: What is it? I'm waiting for somebody to tell me. And I'm getting suspicious because the usual bunch of scientists and experts are being strangely silent."

White has attracted a small but fervent following, including a Springfield businessman who, while insisting upon anonymity, is working up a calender of dates when the object may be put on public display.

Almost certainly the chunk of metal will be shown several times in Springfield this spring and summer. It may show up in Branson as well. And a former Springfieldian now associated with a Las Vegas casino reportedly has expressed interest in displaying it there.

"Maybe if enough people see it and start talking about it, some known authority will step up and finally figure out what we've got here," the businessman says. "That's all Bob or I or anyone who's seen the thing really want -- to satisfy our minds about it, once and for all."

While White welcomes publicity if it brings scientific inquiry, he's leery of some offers.

"I've been invited to bring it to Roswell, New Mexico, for the annual festival, or whatever they call it, they have every July to commemorate the flying saucer crash that was supposed to have happened near there (in 1947)," he notes.

"But it may be a little too weird for me. People walk around there in space suits. Even clerks at the Roswell Wal-Mart dress up as aliens that week. I'm not into that."

So for now, White continues to read e-mail prompted by his Internet site (www.hardevidence.info). Half the respondents are from the U.S. Other countries where interest seems high include Venezuela, Turkey, Mexico and Malaysia.

And White continues to wait for scientists to "come after" him and his mysterious piece of metal.

"I think it's important. I think the world needs to know the truth. This 'ol world can use all the truth it can get these days...."

Mike O'Brien is former associate editor of the News-Leader