What was the Maury Island incident in 1947?

The Maury Island incident involved Harold Dahl reporting sightings of six metallic, doughnut-shaped aircraft over Puget Sound and subsequent threats from a man in black.

Who were the first Men in Black?

The legend of the Men in Black began with figures in dark suits who reportedly warned witnesses of UFO sightings to remain silent.

What happened to the journalist Paul Lantz?

Paul Lantz, who reported on the Maury Island incident, faced threats from men in black suits and died mysteriously months later.

Home / Science / Witness Silenced: The Birth of the Men in Black

Witness Silenced: The Birth of the Men in Black

14 Dec

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Summary

A logger saw six doughnut-shaped aircraft over Puget Sound in 1947.
A man in a black suit warned the witness to never speak of the sighting.
The journalist who reported the incident died mysteriously months later.

Witness Silenced: The Birth of the Men in Black

The enigmatic Men in Black, now famous from pop culture, originated in 1947 with the Maury Island incident. A Washington logger named Harold Dahl claimed to have witnessed six enormous, metallic, doughnut-shaped crafts flying overhead near Puget Sound. The sighting was unusual, with no discernible propulsion and emitting strange debris. Dahl's account was soon followed by an encounter with a mysterious man in a black suit who warned him to retract his story.

This clandestine figure, who appeared to know intimate details of Dahl's sighting, cautioned the logger to deny the event ever happened, implying threats to his family's safety. The journalist who published Dahl's account subsequently faced similar intimidation from men in black suits and died months later under unexplained circumstances, fueling the legend of these shadowy figures.