Sunday, August 25, 2013

Jesse Marcel Has Died

Just minutes ago I received some very sad news. Jesse Marcel, Jr. died of a heart attack on August 24. He was alone, at home, apparently reading a UFO book when he died.

I have known Jesse for more than a quarter century. I first met him while we both
Jesse Marcel in 1994.
were in Roswell to film a segment for the old Unsolved Mysteries that aired on NBC. We had gone out to dinner with a number of those in town for the program and since we shared a military background, including that of Army Aviation, we connected immediately. As medical doctor, he was trained as a flight surgeon and I, of course, had been a helicopter pilot.

From that point I met him quite a few times as we both explored the Roswell UFO crash case. He, as a young man, boy really, of eleven was exposed to metallic debris that his father had brought home late that July night. He told the story to all who would listen with little in the way of variation.

I learned of the special bond he’d had with his father. He told me that that one day, he had asked his father what the atomic bomb looked like and Jesse, Sr. had drawn a picture of “Fat Man.” He then shredded it and burned the pieces. Although reluctant to share they story outside a small circle of friends, he did mention it at the Citizen Hearing in Washington this last May.

Over the years, I had the opportunity to interact with Jesse and never had reason to doubt his sincerity. He truly believed that he had handled material made on
Jesse with I-beam replica.
another planet and might have the first person in modern history to have seen writing created on another world. He had small, replica I-beams made with those symbols on it, and while it is just a replica, it is a very interesting one.

But what I think of mostly, these days is his military service. He had retired from the Montana National Guard as a colonel but was recalled to active duty for service in Iraq. Before he deployed, he asked me if he should take a personal computer with him and I said it had been the best investment I had made, if only for the DVD player in it.

His service there seems to have affected him more deeply than did mine. He spent a year there treating those who needed his help, but came back suffering from PTSD. The deployment cost him his medical practice because he could no longer trust his hands. Loud, sudden noises caused him to jump. He was more on edge, nervous, than he had been before going to Iraq. It was something that the government failed to recognize in the way they should have. He was a patriot who served without complaint, did what was asked of him and made the sacrifices he had to make.

I last saw Jesse in Washington, D.C. in May. He was there with several family
Jesse with daughter Denise.
members and offered his story to the former representatives and senators. They all seemed captivated by what he said, probably because he was one of the few first-hand witnesses to some of the Roswell events present. While many of us could talk of what we had been told by witnesses over the years, Jesse could talk about what he had seen and done personally in July 1947. He handled the debris.

He did call the International UFO Museum in Roswell this year telling them that this would probably be the last year he could attend. His health, while seeming not all that bad, did limit what he could do and how far he could travel. I suspect that he thought his health would deteriorate making a trip to Roswell extremely difficult if not impossible in the near future.
Jesse was a friend and a fellow warrior. I always believed that he understood more about my service in foreign lands because he shared those experiences. We connected on a level that others could not because of that military experience. Though we were never in the war zones at the same time, we did see many of the same places under similar circumstances. He served when he was needed, helped those who needed it, and contributed to our knowledge. I know that I will miss him, though not as much as his family

51 comments:

Loren Coleman said...

Sad news.

What book was he reading?

Roswell Books said...

Kevin, so said to hear this news from my friends Peter Robbins and Ruben Uriarte. I am blessed to have spent some time with Jess over the years and so thrilled to have worked with him on one of my books.

Roswell Books said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Bob Koford said...

Hi, Kevin.

I am especially very sad to hear about his troubles after Iraq. I never got the chance to shake his hand and thank him myself.

Thank you for posting this message.

Best Regards,
Bob.

Nitram said...

Hello Kevin

I'm sure we all share your sadness.
Thank you for this tribute and keep up the good work.

Bob G. Cranston, RI said...

This is some very sad news. Thank You for your service to our country and to the truth. God Bless and condolences to his family.

Shell said...

Wow what a sad loss for us all. R.I.P. we will never forget you.

starman said...

This further diminishes the list of surviving witnesses, but they've had ample time to relate what they can.

Unknown said...

The Isreli Extraterrestrials and UFOs Research Association (E.U.R.A.) gives its condolences to the family....

Thierry29 said...

Bien triste, sincère condoléance à la famille de Jesse MARCEL.
C.R.U. R.U.B.
Bretagne- France.

ZNN said...

Kevin - A wonderful tribute to Jesse - a man who sought the truth and now has found it... Victor Viggiani Toronto Canada

Unknown said...

I was shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of Mr. Marcel today. He will be missed by all. May God bless him.

Unknown said...

I met Jesse in '97, and that meeting was a highlight of my trip to the Roswell 50th. My best to his family and we're all blessed with having known him.

Unknown said...

Condolences to his family. RIP Jesse. Regards from Scotland.

Alfred Lehmberg said...

There are few enough Bird Colonels... far fewer full birds plus Scientist, Philosopher, Healer, and combat flyer... Jesse Marcel was all of these and more. Attention. Hand, Salute. Order Arms. Rest in Peace, Sir.

David Rudiak said...

Dr. Jesse Marcel Jr., a very honest man who never wavered from his story and refused to make it more elaborate. (I know, because I would try to lead him to see if there was maybe more to it and he would NEVER go there. "I don't remember anything like that" would be his typical reply.)

He also completely backed up his father's story of finding the debris of an actual flying saucer and waking up his family to show them. Jesse's debris descriptions were unlike that of actual balloon debris and he stuck to his guns on that point as well, despite some pressure from Air Force "investigator" McAndrew who tried to persuade him otherwise. Soon after that, somehow Robert Todd got a hold of Jesse Sr.'s service file, something that Jesse Jr. could never do (being told the file had been destroyed in the St. Louis fire). Todd then misused the file to write a character assassination piece on Jesse Sr., despite 95% being flagrant lying. Todd also tried to smear Jesse Jr. He had to endure all the mud-slinging as well, as UFO witnesses often do. He thought Todd a malicious lunatic (as do I) and hated his guts.

I was shocked from Kevin's comments that Jesse suffered PTSD from being sent to Iraq. I never understood why or how the military could send a man of Jesse's age over there. I think he was the oldest AF Reserve person to serve in Iraq. He was like 67 or 68. Even generals are forced to retire at 65. What was he doing there?

I had various email correspondence with Jesse over the years. He asked for permission to use my Ramey memo work in his book about his father, which I was happy to do. I finally met him in Roswell 4 years ago, and he was always the gentleman. My condolences to the Marcel family.

Doc Conjure said...

R.I.P. Jesse Marcel, Jr. You were a brave man in so many areas. Thank you for your military service, the defending of your father, and the defending of the Roswell Crash all these years.

Sarge said...

God grant him rest.
One of the last of the people "who were there" so to speak at a given point in history.
In a few months someone will write a story about how Jesse once admitted it was a hoax, and from then on those who knew him will have to defend his memory.

Kurt Peters said...

All -

Kevin Randle, who I have met, is a fine and decent patriot whose UFO writings actually distract from his other more significant accomplishments in life.

Jesse Marcel, Jr., who I am saddened that I never did meet, essentially was in the same brotherhood as Randle. And as an AF Flight Surgeon, for him to also indulge the questions of so many UFOlogists about his experiences with his father shows his great patience...

AND to possibly help the poor Professor Rudiak to see more clearly the facts about military service, may I point out that many 'old guy' reservists volunteered after something the media calls '9-11' to go to Iraq...

...there is this one 'old' guy I've met, Kevin Randle, who, gosh darn it, did the exact same thing as Jesse Jr. !!!!

ArJuna said...

He seemed to be in fine form at the Citizen Hearing in April-May. I chatted with his family over lunch. They were a wonderful family. I have seen too many people in this field pass to the other side over the last 25 years. I do hope they found the truth on the other side. God knows the truth is elusive on this side. We must all keep up the push for truth to honor these folks who dedicated their lives to it. Rest in peace Jesse.

KRandle said...

All -

Just to be clear, Jesse had been a flight surgeon in the Army and not the Air Force.

And he was recalled to active service because he was a medical doctor. And although the Army saw fit to recall him, they refused to promote him for his service so he reamined a colonel.

BLACKA said...

first Kevin Smith and now Jesse jr. Sad, I send my prays and best wishes to both families.

Now they both know the answers to what have us here.

deb said...

His attendance in Washington for the recent hearings- made difference- several congressmen NOW BELIEVE- that is crucial and required for any progress toward disclosure to ever be made. He was a warrior- for the US- as an military man and as a citizen. He is an example of the best this country has to offer.

David Rudiak said...

The anonymous Kurt Peters wrote:
AND to possibly help the poor Professor Rudiak to see more clearly the facts about military service, may I point out that many 'old guy' reservists volunteered after something the media calls '9-11' to go to Iraq...

AND to possibly help the ever-snooty and historically-challenged K.P., the Iraq War didn't begin until 18 months after 9/11, and reservists weren't called to active duty to serve in Iraq for another 16 months after that, or almost 3 years after 9/11.

The all-volunteer Army wasn't able to fill its enlistment quotas (could have something to do with a very nasty war going on) and instead Army Reservist were called to active duty in Iraq to fill in the gaps when everything started to go south. This did not happen from the beginning of the Iraq war, only after the occupation dragged on and the regular Army combat forces were stretched thin by the civil war and insurrection that followed.

Most reservist do not expect to be called to serve in war zones, particularly actual combat. Many were inadequately trained and poorly equipped. (This resulted in reports of some actual insurrections by some reservists thrust into harms way without proper preparation and equipment.) Most sent over there did not "volunteer". They were "volunteered" because there was no draft and no where else to draw on. (In fact, using a "stop-loss" clause, the military ignored their contractual end-of-service to extend their active-duty deployments, what John Kerry called the "back-door draft", hardly "voluntary" service.) Most were not happy being called up, having to leave their families, jobs, and established civilian lives. It caused extreme hardship for most. (Dr. Marcel being just one example.)

Dr. Marcel was in the Reserve, thus vulnerable, but he was UNUSUALLY old (68 when he was deployed, 69 when he left Iraq) to be sent into actual combat zones even if he had volunteered instead of ordered over there. I don't know if he went willingly as a sense of duty. I just know it is highly, highly unusual for somebody that old to be sent to a war zone, when, as I said, mandatory retirement age for even generals is 65.

Lois said...

I commend Jesse and so many like him for their perseverance of truth and disclosure. When I was a teenager my Mom once told me: "You have to stand for something or you'll fall for anything." Wise words and I've held them close to my heart, in which case I've been tested on concerning my stand with the ufo phenomenon. In 1973 my Dad, Mom and I had a strange encounter with a peculiar light source which engulfed my dad's car on our way home around 2:00 a.m. This occurred in the approximate time frame of the Pascagoula, Ms. u.f.o. It was because of this incident that I became interested in u.f.o.'s. Long ago I learned about the ridicule factor and decided I wasn't the one with the 'problem'__the problem is with those being uninformed, misinformed, having fear of being ridiculed themselves if they dared 'believe' something so extraordinary as u.f.o.'s, or intimidation to silence or create doubt. All I had to do to block the ridicule was to remember my Mom's words and stand firm.

Lois said...

I know it was tough for Jesse to have PTSD. My husband is a Vietnam veteran, therefore I'm familiar with the signs. You dared not touch my husband when he was asleep because he'd automatically jump straight out of bed ready to do combat, not to mention flashbacks when he's wide awake and the onset may be due to a firecracker, transformer blowing, sound of a helicopter, etc.
I remember after Hurricane Katrina here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and how the sky was mud thick with helicopters, military guards at the railroad tracks which lead to the beach, razor wire rolled along the RR tracks to prevent people from crossing over and looting, dump truck after dump truck hauling off debris___yes it looked like a war zone here and I wondered how many veterans would have their PTSD get worse as a result of Katrina's aftermath. I recall some night I'd sleep with a flashlight in my hand, waking up numerous times during the night and turning the flashlight toward the window__fear of having someone trying to break in or looting outside. I have somewhat of an understanding of PTSD from 2 angles.

Lois said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kurt Peters said...

"possibly help the poor Professor Rudiak to see more clearly"

...sadly, the art of the pun is lost on the true believers.....

KRandle said...

David – Part One

Your analysis here is highly inaccurate and mostly inappropriate, given the original nature of my post.

You wrote: AND to possibly help the ever-snooty and historically-challenged K.P., the Iraq War didn't begin until 18 months after 9/11, and reservists weren't called to active duty to serve in Iraq for another 16 months after that, or almost 3 years after 9/11.

I say: In December 2002 (15 months after 9/11), we began to switch our emphasis to Iraq and in January 2003 (16 months), we had a series of meetings in the Iowa National Guard about the deployment of Guard forces in the coming months. We were told by June there would be three battalions left in the state. On February 14, 2003 (17 months after 9/11 and prior to the launch of the war), we were alerted for possible deployment and on March 1, 2003 (again prior to the launch of the war), we were called to active duty. You timeline is badly flawed and inaccurate because by the time we moved to three years after 9/11, we had already deployed, spent a year in theater and returned.

You wrote: The all-volunteer Army wasn't able to fill its enlistment quotas (could have something to do with a very nasty war going on) and instead Army Reservist were called to active duty in Iraq to fill in the gaps when everything started to go south. This did not happen from the beginning of the Iraq war, only after the occupation dragged on and the regular Army combat forces were stretched thin by the civil war and insurrection that followed.

I say: The composition of the Army has changed with the Reserve Component, made up of both the Army Reserve and the National Guard, part of the deployment strategies of the military. There are Reserve and Guard units that have unique capabilities such as water purification. They are trained and equipped at a fraction of the cost of an active duty unit. So, the Reserve Component was called to active duty prior to the first shot being fired in Iraq and at one point was nearly half the soldiers deployed were part of the Reserve Component. Your analysis of the situation in Iraq is equally flawed.

KRandle said...

David - Part Two

You wrote: Most reservist do not expect to be called to serve in war zones, particularly actual combat. Many were inadequately trained and poorly equipped. (This resulted in reports of some actual insurrections by some reservists thrust into harms way without proper preparation and equipment.) Most sent over there did not "volunteer". They were "volunteered" because there was no draft and no where else to draw on. (In fact, using a "stop-loss" clause, the military ignored their contractual end-of-service to extend their active-duty deployments, what John Kerry called the "back-door draft", hardly "voluntary" service.) Most were not happy being called up, having to leave their families, jobs, and established civilian lives. It caused extreme hardship for most. (Dr. Marcel being just one example.)

I say: Given the nature of the military structure today, this simply is untrue. After the Gulf War, which contained a large number of National Guard and Reserve units, the Reserve Component was integrated into the entire force structure. I searched out a Guard unit after 9/11 as a way to get into the fight. Both Reservists and National Guard soldiers understood that service in the Reserve Component meant they probably would be called forward in case of conflict.
Each soldier, upon entering the military, is made aware of what that service means and that Stop-Loss is just one example of the philosophy of “What is good for the Army.” It works the other way as well when there is a Reduction in Force. I would not use John Kerry as an example because of Kerry’s well known distain for the military and his well-known fabrications about Vietnam Veterans.

We deployed with the all the proper training and with the best equipment available. As the flak jackets were replaced with the interceptor body armor, our unit was one of the first to be fully equipped as but a single example.

This idea of the Reserve Component being poorly trained and badly equipped is a narrative out of the Vietnam Era and has nothing to do with the situation as it exists today or as it existed ten years ago.

My experience did not show that, “Most were not happy being called up, having to leave their families, jobs, and established civilian lives.” They were, in fact, proud to be of service. Some of our soldiers found their educations interrupted, but the universities worked with them to help them out. Employers supplied support for our soldiers and one of those employers supported a soldier who had worked for them for only a couple of months by sending hundreds of pounds of consumer goods to us, to be shared by all. The MSM narrative seemed to suggest your claim, but my experience, not only with my unit but those others deployed with us, refutes this unsupported allegation.

You Say: Dr. Marcel was in the Reserve (no, he was in the National Guard, part of the Reserve Component but not the Reserve), thus vulnerable, but he was UNUSUALLY old (68 when he was deployed, 69 when he left Iraq) to be sent into actual combat zones even if he had volunteered instead of ordered over there. I don't know if he went willingly as a sense of duty. I just know it is highly, highly unusual for somebody that old to be sent to a war zone, when, as I said, mandatory retirement age for even generals is 65.

I say: I do know his attitude and it was one of willing service… and every officer knows that he or she may be recalled after retirement if they possess skills that are critical to the military. Jesse, as a medical doctor had those skills, but given his age, had he wanted to get out of it, he could have. Your analysis does a disservice to Jesse and I thought about deleting it as inappropriate but also thought it deserved a response.

Jorge said...

Saddened to hear of his death.I tried to follow him in the media.Always found him credible.I believe he's in a better place to have his questions answered.

David Rudiak said...

Kevin, as bad as Ufology is, politics are even worse. My point remains why the hell was Dr. Marcel called to active duty at age 68? He may have been the oldest soldier over there.

Maybe he went willingly with a sense of duty, but he says himself in his book that he was disillusioned by the Iraq War and finally understood why his father was so embittered after Roswell, that he had devoted himself to military service and felt abused.

He also writes of how the USAF Roswell authors misrepresented his testimony and how he received numerous, anonymous, hang-up phone calls when he received an unusual invitation to go to Washington to attend a UFO conference and also speak to a government official there. Someone seemed to know his every move and he suspected he was being monitored. Both he and his wife Linda found the calls disturbing. Linda Marcel thought the whole family was being threatened in a veiled manner and wouldn't let him take the family to Washington.

The government official he met in Washington (Dick D'Amato), who confirmed to him that Roswell was a real ET event still buried deep in the black budget, gave him a phone number to call if he or his family were threatened in the future.

Neither his father or he spoke of Roswell for many years, he writes, "as doing so would pose a very real danger to our careers, if not our very lives."

I think all this keeps begging the question why a 68-year-old colonel in the National Guard (whose primary purpose is protecting the homeland, NOT fighting foreign wars) would be called back into active duty service to serve in a war zone. How many 65+-year-old retired generals were there?

Given all that Dr. Marcel wrote, the Marcel family DID feel threatened. I don't think it unreasonable to raise the possibility that he was being punished for being outspoken about Roswell and going contrary to the official party line. He obviously suffered greatly as a result, coming back with PTSD and having his medical practice destroyed as a result. It may have broken his health.

cda said...

Kevin:

So we are now told that Marcel and family felt "threatened". Threatened by what? Perhaps DR can spell out his thoughts on this, although it would be out of line with your topic. In particular I am most interested to hear about how Marcel was possibly being "punished" for what he wrote and said about Roswell.

Is DR actually telling us that Marcel felt bound to serve in Iraq because he (Marcel) felt guilty that he had already talked too much about Roswell?

Whew!

Larry said...

Kevin:

Thanks for explaining the backstory about Jesse Jr.

And thank you for your service.

Lance said...

There really is no limit to the heights of silly paranoid fantasy that Rudiak will entertain.

By all accounts Jesse Marcel, Jr. was an honorable, honest and upstanding individual and his service to his country is to be respected and remembered.


Lance

KRandle said...

David -

This is simply not the forum for this discussion and I will delete any further postings that do not reflect my purpose here.

And since it is my blog and my rules, I will say that you do not understand the mission of the National Guard. It is a part of the total force and those who are apart of it can expect deployment as needed. Your understanding of the National Guard is out of date and erronious.

Morris said...

Jesse jr. obviously was a fine man. May he rest in peace.

J.B. van der Zee, Netherlands

Lawrence said...

I have always made my position on Roswell clear, not a believer at all. However Marcel Jr always came across as sincere and earnest, a decent bloke. I am pretty sure that he told the truth as he perceived it and remembered it, even as I don't think that his truth coincides with the Truth about Roswell. I hope that doesn't come across as condescending, it isn't intended to be.

Larry Lesh said...

Dr. Marcel was an officer and a gentlemen above all. When called by upon by his country for service he went at great personal cost and did what he believed was his duty.

Thank you Kevin for a short solid eulogy to a great man.

I have often wondered if there's a great secret organization protecting the Roswell secrets. And if so what those members of it must think about themselves and they deceptions they've been party to.

I'm fairly certain the good doctor wasn't in on it and like me he would have wished to know before he left our plane of existence. May he rest in peace and condolences to his grieving family. My best,

David Rudiak said...

cda wrote (part 1 of 2)
So we are now told that Marcel and family felt "threatened". Threatened by what? Perhaps DR can spell out his thoughts on this, although it would be out of line with your topic.

These aren't "my thoughts" but Jesse Marcel Jr.'s. I'm only repeating what he said himself in his book "The Roswell Legacy." The Marcel family at times felt threatened because of Marcel Sr. and Jr.'s involvement with Roswell. I gave one quote where Jr. said both he and his father didn't speak out for a long time for fear of their careers and even their lives.

Then there was the incident in the early 1990s where the Marcel family was invited to Washington D.C. to a UFO conference, all expenses paid, as it turns out by the Prince of Lichtenstein, who had a deep interest in UFOs. Soon after, at his medical practice, Marcel got an urgent call from someone in Washington saying that Marcel should speak with him when he was in Washington, saying he had important information for him.

This turned out to be Dick D'Amato (though Marcel keeps him anonymous in his book). When Marcel went to Washington, he said he met with D'Amato, who took him deep in the basement of the Capital Building to a secure room. D'Amato told him he was charged with investigating the black budget and "the 'black government' within the government, where funds were being spent without appropriate oversight to maintain a false story about the Roswell Incident and cover the story up. He said his job was to report to the Senate Appropriations Committee, to advise them as to where these tax dollars were going..."

"He then asked me if I had received any threatening phone calls. I told him about the anonymous hang-up calls... but assured him none had gone so far as to actually threaten us."

Marcel and (also his wife Linda who wrote a separate chapter) had earlier written about these numerous hang-up calls that began right after Marcel got the invitation to go to Washington. Linda Marcel in particular got very paranoid because of all the calls and didn't want the rest of the family to go for fear that they might all be killed. (I'm just relating what is in the book, which states what their state of mind was at the time.) Jesse Marcel wasn't nearly so paranoid about this, but did also find the calls unusual and disturbing.

Marcel then wrote that D'Amato wrote down contact information if Marcel or his family was ever threatened and to contact him immediately. "To this day I have kept that piece of paper and have even stored a copy of the information in a safe place, should the need for it ever arise."

So for me to relate all this from the book apparently makes me "paranoid", when I am relating what the Marcels themselves said. As to who would be behind the threats, Marcel goes on with his own beliefs about the "black government" saying he thinks "it is something more than than the fabrication of wild-eyed conspiracy theorists."

"While some members of our elected government--such as the official with whom I met--know about the 'black government,' they discuss the existence very discreetly, if at all, knowing that if all evidence of an extraterrestrial visitation can be made to disappear, the elimination of an overly talkative government employee would be child's play."

David Rudiak said...

Response cda (2 of 2)
In particular I am most interested to hear about how Marcel was possibly being "punished" for what he wrote and said about Roswell.

Clearly Jesse Marcel felt they might be in some danger from what he believed was a highly secretive arm of the government controlling the "black budget." Putting someone in harm's way by sending them into a war zone at age 68, beyond mandatory military retirement age, would be one way to "punish" someone, if that is what happened. (I don't know, I was merely raising the possibility.)

He came back with PTSD, so clearly he found the experience highly traumatic. He also said after this experience he finally understood is father's disillusionment and bitterness with the military following Roswell, although he remained the loyal, patriotic soldier and never publicly said a bad word.

Gilles Fernandez said...

A very sad news I reported in our UFO-Skeptic forum, yesterday, learning this very sad new via FB and Kevin's blog...
RIP, Jesse Marcel Jr., from France.
Très Sincères condoléances à la Famille.
Gilles Fernandez.

cda said...

I suggest that the reason Jesse Marcel jr was recalled to serve in Iraq at the advanced age of 68 was that there was a shortage of ear, throat and nose specialists at the time (or at least a shortage of those with military experience), and thus his vast ENT experience might well be needed.

I further suggest that those responsible for his recall had no knowledge of, and most probably had never even heard of, Marcel's involvement in the Roswell incident.

Beyond this, I do not care to speculate.

KRandle said...

CDA -

I suggest that the reason Jesse Marcel was called to service was because he was a medical doctor and there was a shortage of doctors... his medical speciality might have played into this.

I suggest that there was no more nefarious purpose than that. Anything else is baseless speculation and doesn't belong in this posting.

Cosmic Connie said...

What a beautiful post. My partner Ron Kaye and I were privileged to meet the Marcels when we helped Jesse Marcel with the first edition of his book, "The Roswell Legacy," which was originally published in 2007.
http://tinyurl.com/oha588w

Jesse and his wife Linda graciously hosted us in their beautiful Montana home for a few days, and the Jesse Marcel we came to know was a sincere, intelligent man, as good as they come. He did speak frankly of his PTSD but nevertheless was justly proud of his service to his country.

While I personally remain skeptical of the other-worldly claims re the Roswell debris (and skeptical of UFO claims in general), I believe Dr. Marcel was indeed very sincere in both his beliefs and his remembered observations, and I felt he consistently stated his case very intelligently, even in the face of disbelief and ridicule. Despite my own snarky/skeptical blog persona (the "Cosmic" in "Cosmic Connie" is intended to be ironic), I am, beyond that, a person who is open to the mysteries and wonders of a vast universe.

But most of all... I really liked Jesse. And I was very sad to learn of his death.

RevRon's Rants said...

I, along with my partner Connie Schmidt, had the privilege of working with Jesse and Linda Marcel on his book, and of spending a few days with them in Montana, attending to details and just getting to know them.

I am convinced that both Jess and his father were honest and honorable men, and that they were telling the truth about what they witnessed firsthand. There were too many things - both that appeared in the book and that were omitted at the author's request - that corroborated Jess' story. I hold Jesse, Jr. in the deepest respect, and am hopeful that at some point, both he and his father are recognized for their clarity and bravery in telling a story that some would have preferred to be kept silent.

David Rudiak said...

"There were too many things - both that appeared in the book and that were omitted at the author's request - that corroborated Jess' story."

RR_R, could you elaborate on what was left out of the book that you also felt corroborated his story?

Unknown said...

Dr. Marcell was one of my physicians concerning my medical issue with regards to and specially the E.N.T. aspect of care from being a 'nam vet and extreme hearing loss. However, I am not here to discus that.
Dr. Marcell was a person I could talk to as in one on one. We talked of many things as the rules of engagement were left outside the door.

He was like the brother I never had.
My wife and I were very awestruck of his passing. Our condolences to his family.
So, in closing, I would like to share a prayer with all of you :
handed down through many generations. It goes something like this

"It is said a man hasn't died as long as he is remembered. This prayer is a way for families, friends and fellow veterans to remember our fallen brothers and sisters. Do not stand at my grave and weep I am not there, I do not sleep. I am a thousand winds that blow, I am the diamond glints on snow. I am the sunlight on ripened grain, I am the gentle autumn rain. When you awaken in the morning hushting rush of quiet birds in circled flight, I am the stars that shine at night. Do not stand at my grave and cry, I am not there, I did not die."
:

Unknown said...

He went to Iraq because he was a patriot and would have went regardless of age as long as he could contribute, which he did. He wanted to go and wanted to be active duty. I know him personally as most of you are speculating.

KRandle said...

He was a fine man, a fine officer, and a true patriot. As I mentioned, his recall to active duty had nothing to do with UFOs or anything else.

Unknown said...

In 1952, Jesse was a wondefful 9high school classmate, and was one of the nicest and smartest kids I ever knew. He moved away the next year. At that time, I had no knowledge of Roswell. I spoke with him in the early 90s, He was a very special person, and I was very sad to hear of his passing, and I will always cherish his remark in my Sophmore yearbook.