Frank Scully

Francis Joseph Xavier Scully (1892-1964) was an American journalist, author, humorist, and ufologist, best known for publicizing the Aztec, New Mexico UFO crash hoax. A columnist for Variety magazine, he wrote articles in 1949 claiming recovery of dead extraterrestrial beings from a saucer crash, based on sources Silas Newton and 'Dr. Gee,' a supposed magnetic research expert. His 1950 book Behind the Flying Saucers expanded these claims, alleging multiple crashes with tiny humanoids and magnetic propulsion craft; it sold over 60,000 copies initially and fueled the 1950s flying saucer craze. Despite 1952-1956 exposures by True magazine as a hoax by con artists, Scully reaffirmed beliefs in his 1963 autobiography In Armour Bright. No direct ties to military/government UFO programs are documented.