Original subtitles

Ezekiel saw the wheel.

This is the wheel he said he saw.

These are unidentified flying objects that people say they are seeing now.

Are they proof that we are being visited by civilizations from other stars?

Or just what are they?

The United States Air Force began an investigation

of this high strangeness in a search for the truth.

What you are about to see is part of that 20-year search.

Didn't take long for the tourists to get here. Welcome to Saucerville, USA.

Hey, Army, how's it going? Mr. Earl Clay?

Me? Are you kidding?

Mr. Clay?

Yeah? Howdy. Earl Clay?

That's right, Mr. Jim Pober.

Desert Weekly Herald.

What are you doing with that thing? It's a tape recorder, sir. I can see that.

Turn it off if you're planning on talking to me.

This is Harry Fitz.

My name's Gatlin, Foreign Technology Division of the Air Force.

Oh, sure, sure.

We've been expecting somebody like you. Major,

the Air Force have an opinion on what's happened here in Joshua Flats?

Just got here, Mr. Pover.

We're here in regard to this photograph which

appeared in a Los Angeles paper yesterday.

Yeah, that's it.

Mr. Clay, the text identifies the photograph as taken by you.

Well, sure, that's no secret.

That machine is what you saw? Now, Sergeant, if I took a picture of it,

that's kind of a dumb question, ain't it? Not necessarily.

Depends on what you took a picture of.

That's what I saw.

That's what I photographed.

What I hear, there's thousands of people all

over the world seeing these things right now.

Plus three or four more here in town who saw besides Earl.

Could you tell us who those are?

Well, let's see. There was Dave Mackey. He was in his cab down at the train depot.

Yeah, plus Barney Tomlinson, who owns the El Dorado Bar and Grill.

Liz Newton says she saw it.

And George LaTourette, who owns a new motel,

he thinks he saw something about that time.

That's about it. Yes, sir. Thank you.

But according to your report, and the great size of the object,

and this town being so small,

it seems to me almost everyone here would have seen it.

Well, it was late. Almost midnight.

Folks around here, they just don't stay up too late.

Was your station open that late?

No, it wasn't. Never is.

I was on my way home from a poker game when I saw it.

And you happen to have your camera with you? Yeah, in the glove compartment.

Had it with me on a birthday party the Sunday before.

Just pure luck. Mr. Clay, could we take a look at that camera? Sure, why not?

Mr. Pover, were you the one that sent this photograph to the L.A. paper?

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, it was a real break.

Earl called down to the sheriff's station, the county seat.

I have a friend there who does me favors. See,

I also work as a stringer for one of the wire services.

There you are.

Polaroid.

Yeah, same as you can buy anywhere. Anything wrong with that?

This type of camera doesn't have a negative.

We were hoping you'd have one.

We'd like to examine it.

What's the difference? Picture's a picture, isn't it?

Yes, sir.

Mr. Clay, I wonder if you could take us to the location where you saw this object.

Jim.

I'm supposed to meet Tom Fairley.

Call and tell him I'll be out at the associate place

with these two fellows from the Air Force.

He can meet me there or wait till I get back, whichever.

Right.

Come on, I'll drive.

Well, that's it.

Where were you when you took the picture?

About here. A couple yards closer, back.

Not sure. Excuse me, partner.

The thing came flat down and left straight up.

Mr. Clay, can you tell us from beginning to end everything you saw?

Well, I could, all right, but no tape recorder.

Sergeant Fitz will take notes.

My lawyer tells me that there's magazines and maybe

TV pay good money for something like this.

Yes, sir, I'm sure they will,

but we'll just file an official Air Force report for our files only.

Okay, just as long as you remember that I've got my rights. Now, let's see.

I left Barney Tomlinson's place about 11.15 or so.

Is that the El Dorado Barn Grill? Yeah, Barney's got a room in the back.

You know, it's handy for eats and drinks while we play.

Well, anyway, I was on my way home when all of a sudden I see this light in the sky.

It was just a light, you know, stretched out like a long oval.

I figured it for a plane, first off,

but they usually have those lights that blink on and off.

As it came down, I see how huge it was. Maybe a hundred feet long.

And it was sure gonna land close by somewhere.

I saw it coming down in the hills, and I heard it. I'll tell you,

for a minute there, I wanted to turn my car around and get out of there.

But I guess I wanted more to see what it was, and I saw it.

Do not be afraid.

Do not be afraid.

You cannot move now, but you will not be harmed.

We have only come to study and to observe.

Tell the others of your kind that we will return soon,

and we will breed others of our kind.

I just wheeled that car around, got out of there as quick as I knew how.

What did you do then, sir? As soon as I reached home,

I called the sheriff over at the county seat.

I'm a widower. I live alone.

I had to tell somebody.

He said he'd look into it.

He said he'd notify you people. These people you saw,

they said they'd be back. That's what they said.

So we set up a saucer watch every night.

A saucer watch? Yeah, kind of a lookout.

At least two people on duty every night to see if anything happens.

The whole town's joined in, and some from out of town.

You know, these beings, or whatever they were,

they had me stone cold if they wanted me.

But they never made a move. Earl?

Hey, Tom.

Tom Fairley, Major Sergeant from the Air Force. Tom's the head of our town council.

Job don't pay enough to be called mayor.

Well, I see you fellas didn't waste any time getting out here.

Earl tell you what happened to him? Yes, sir.

You boys plan on being here for a while?

As long as it takes us to check out all the sightings.

The which?

All the people who saw the UFO.

Oh, well, none of them saw near as much as Earl here.

Did you show them the pictures, Earl?

Sure did.

Well, what more do you need?

As much as we can get.

All the proof we can find.

Major, I'm not the suspicious kind, usually.

But I get the feeling you don't altogether believe what's happened here.

It's not our job to believe or disbelieve, Mr. Fairley.

Just to prove that something happened or didn't happen.

And if it did, to try to explain it.

I see.

Fair enough.

You'll probably be needing a place at the motel if you're staying on here.

If there's anything I can do to help.

Yes, sir, thank you.

We'd like to spend a little more time here to check out the area.

We have some equipment in your car, Mr. Clayton.

Thank you.

I told you to stay away from here, didn't I?

If I find out that you've been back here,

I'm gonna get Barney to whip the skin off your bottom. You hear?

Well, they do have a post office.

I called Wright Patterson.

I told him they'd have the photograph tomorrow. Did you tell them no negative?

Yeah, they groaned, but I told them to dig out what they could.

All I can tell you is the more that gas station cowboy kept talking,

the more my brown eyes turned blue. Maybe.

You know, someone on the moon had described our astronauts landing there.

It might have sounded something just like that.

That's what I mean.

Well, never ignore the obvious.

What?

If there are alien beings visiting our planet,

maybe they're going at it just the way we have. Come on, Major.

If they're coming hundreds of millions of miles from someplace,

their technology's got to be way out compared to ours. The Graham Greene philosophy.

Say again? Pretty fair writer, Mr. Greene.

He wrote, I could never believe in a god I could understand.

Is that what I said?

Not as well, but more or less.

Yes?

Major Gatlin? Major Jay Gatlin?

Yes.

George LaTourette, the manager.

My desk clerk said you were asking for me when you checked in. Yes.

Sergeant Fitz.

Sergeant. Would you like to sit down?

No, that's all right.

Nothing wrong, I hope. Oh, no. It's just that we were talking to Earl Clay. Yeah.

Oh, Earl.

Mr. Clay called you about it?

No, no.

I mean, yes.

Well, that is, Tom Farrelly called and said you'd be coming here,

and I should see that you were treated right. Oh, that's very thoughtful.

Mr. Clay said you were one of the people that

saw the UFO about the same time he did.

Well, I don't know. Well, I mean, I saw something,

but I didn't know it was anything until Earl said what happened.

Sir, what did you see?

Oh, just a bunch of lights in the sky.

I thought it was planes. A bunch.

Would that be more than two or three?

Yeah, I guess.

Maybe four.

I was out back walking my wife's dog.

Anyway, I looked up and saw these four lights moving.

Like I said, I thought they were planes.

Then all of a sudden, they started dancing all over the sky like it was fireworks.

Next thing, one of them breaks off on its own

and goes zapping across the sky like...

I mean, it was really moving.

Really. And not a sound from any of them all that time.

Is that it?

Yeah, that's what I saw.

Did you see one of them come down as if it was going to land? No,

the dog had finished his business by then, and I wanted to get to bed.

I see.

About what time was all this?

A little after 11.

Then you weren't playing poker with Mr. Clay? No, not me.

Running this place is gamble enough for me.

Place looked pretty full when we checked in.

Picking up.

Knock on wood.

Well, thank you very much, Mr. Lauderette. Yeah, you bet. Anytime.

Now, if there's anything you gentlemen need, thank you very much. Okay. Night.

Saw four UFOs zapping across the sky, but his dog had finished his business,

and he wanted to go to bed. Not exactly a mountain of curiosity, is he?

I'm for chow. How about you?

Well, I wouldn't mind a little Ville Cordon Bleu.

Would you settle for the El Dorado Bar and Grill? Sold.

Well done.

Two steak stands, one done, one rare.

Shall I ask her if she has a friend?

First make sure she's a friend.

I was wondering, what's a stranger doing in this town after dinner?

Don't know.

Never been a stranger in this town.

Not bad. I like her.

That's half the battle.

Soldier!

None of my business, but that's the boss's girlfriend.

And the kind he is, I'd leave it alone.

Follow? Sure, all the way.

And thanks. What do you mean, the kind he is? Bad temper, and not much of it.

Hey, Pauly! Come on in here and sit yourself down.

Your mom will be back in a minute.

Hey, got your favorite tonight.

Hamburger size.

Huh?

Okay. How you doing, partner?

A friend here was out at that landing site this afternoon.

You like flying saucers?

Couldn't care less, huh?

Polly?

Hi.

You finished all your homework? Are you getting a supper?

Hamburger size, extra on the chili.

Fine.

Two steaks and... Wait!

I'll be right back.

And you remember what I told you.

I don't want you to talk while you eat.

Moms can be kind of tough, can't they?

I don't get the impression you talk much even when you don't eat.

Hey, Air Force.

Didn't see you come in.

Barney Collinson's my name. Like they say, I run

the joint. This is Harry Fitz. My name's Gatlin.

Yeah, I know. I've heard about you around town.

Well, what are you sitting here for?

Why don't you come on back and grab a table there?

Have a drink on the house.

Helen, take these plates to table one, will you?

Come on.

Get me that cola on the rocks, will you, honey?

My old man used to say, never drink the good inventory.

Well, I know what's on your mind, so what can I tell you?

What you told Mr. Clay, what you saw the night he saw the UFO land.

Yeah.

Well, it wasn't so much what I saw as what happened.

I was in my storeroom out back, was worried about running low on bourbon,

which I was, when all of a sudden the whole place started to shiver and shake.

Well, I finally made it outside, looked up, nothing. Why did you look up?

Well, I thought it was some nut in a plane, or maybe even you guys. You know,

the Air Force tests a lot of his new stuff around here.

Before I was mad, too, I was going to tell somebody about it in the morning.

Then I heard what happened to Earl, and it all fit.

Hey, Tom.

I had figured I might find you here. I was just

telling him what I saw. You saw bright lights.

Could it have been the high-beam headlights of a car?

I've looked into headlights before, mister.

These weren't no headlights. They know that, Barney.

It's just their job to be technical. Ain't that right? Part of our job.

Yes, sir.

Were you and Mr. Tomlinson in that poker game with Mr. Clay?

Every Tuesday night, rain or shine.

Then the game had broken up before you went back

to the storeroom and saw what you say you saw.

Yeah, that's right. It was after.

I think the Major's puzzled about something the same as I am.

I'm a country boy myself.

Come from a town no bigger than this.

I don't ever remember a regular poker game calling quits as early as 11. Well,

that's our quitting time.

We're a hard-working, early-rising town.

Who else is in the game?

Just what are you getting at, soldier?

Get easy, Barney.

There's Mel Ravitch, he sells farm equipment, and Doc Talbot.

Joe Huey has the used car lot, and Doug McGuire, he's a lawyer.

And the game still ends at 11, gentlemen.

Yes, sir.

Major, this is the biggest thing that's ever happened to our town.

And when you showed up here, we were glad to share it with you.

We were eager to cooperate with you and our government in every possible way.

But if you've come here to make us look like fools or liars,

then you ain't gonna be long welcome here. We have had a celestial experience.

And we don't intend to have it spoiled, nor made fun of. Mr. Fairley,

we're not here to pass judgment or to form opinions.

Our project has looked into over 13,000 sightings.

Some are pure hoaxes. About 30% are unknown.

Now, we're going to do our best to find out what

category this case falls into and put it there.

And if that spoils it or makes fun of it, that's too bad. I gotta go.

I'll see you.

You can forget to check, but if you come back, you won't like the food.

Is that all you want to tell me?

I don't appreciate your insinuations, young man,

and I don't have to answer your questions either.

But I do have to go on living in this town, do you understand? Yes, sir.

Good day to you.

Spoke to the lawyer and used car dealer.

Sounded like instant replay.

Doc back him up.

Had a feeling he didn't like it.

Want a soda? Don't mind if I do.

Great.

Terrific. Thank you.

Hey, that's a pretty good F-104. Miss? Yeah?

Is this for sale?

No.

My brother makes them out from those model kits on the shelf.

Is that so?

Mm-hmm.

That's really good work. We ought to know.

Thank you. You're welcome.

Harry, you know those real estate signs we saw on that land

between town and where the UFO was supposed to have landed?

Town Councilman Tom Fairley's in the real estate and insurance business.

Yes, but he doesn't own the land. I asked the doctor about it.

A woman named Elizabeth Newton does, last member of the Townsville's family.

Newton?

Didn't Clay also say she saw the... Real cozy, isn't it?

No manual laborers, no store clerks,

no kids who might have been sitting in a parked

car at that hour. Nobody like that saw it.

Only the people with a real stake in this town's economy. Can we prove anything?

No, and if we could, I'd say let's wish them

luck with their sideshow and move along.

Oh, Harry, let's make sure.

Give me your flight blood.

Fair enough. That's better, isn't it? You okay, Major?

I am now.

Harry, slow down. Isn't that Tomlinson's cook the one that talked to us last night?

Looks like him.

Hello.

Hiya. Keeping in shape?

The doctor already quit smoking and did a lot of exercise.

Told him I'd split the difference.

How late do you stay at the bar and grill? Till 2 o'clock curfew weekends.

Rest of the week, we're usually empty by midnight.

But you and that waitress, what's her name?

Helen Ramirez?

The two of you stayed opposing, right?

She might stay on later sometimes, waiting for Barney.

I told you about that.

Were you and she there till midnight last Tuesday?

I suppose.

No reason we wouldn't have been.

But the poker game in Barney's back room broke up at 11.

What are you fellas gonna make trouble for me for?

Is that what we're doing?

If Barney and that girl told you something, don't ask me to stay different.

You know how hard it is getting a job these days?

Especially at my age.

All right. We'll ask Mrs. Ramirez.

Where does she live?

I'm not gonna tell you.

In fact, I'm going home right now and call Barney

and tell him you guys have been asking questions.

You won't have to.

He won't hear it from us.

That's what you say now.

But you might forget and make a slip.

She might be in the phone book.

Sorry we bothered you.

You did, but I'll fix it.

Because if Barney hears it from me first, he'll know I ain't on your side.

Why are you stopping?

Helen Ramirez, waitress at the Bar and Grill.

Yeah, landing site's almost in her backyard.

Isn't it?

Well, hello.

It's Paulie, isn't it? Sure isn't talkative, Tom. Is your mother home?

Hey, listen, partner.

Why aren't you in school?

You being punished for something, son?

Probably a couple of nights ago, you were probably in bed.

Didn't some big noise wake you up?

Tuesday night when your mother came home, did you wake up?

Didn't she say something had happened, or that Mr.

Tomlinson had told her something had happened?

Just what the hell do you think you're doing here?

Paulie, get in the house and close the door. Now, you're on my property.

We understood Mrs. Ramirez lives here.

This is my house, bought and paid for.

What do you think you're looking at? I'm warning you two,

I got a shotgun right behind that door, and you're trespassing.

We just wanted to talk to Mrs. Ramirez.

It's gonna be two on one, huh?

As long as we're wearing this uniform, mister,

you're gonna be fighting more than two of us.

Sorry, Mr. Ramirez. Another client.

I wonder what happened to the kid's father. I bet the kid does, too.

Hello.

You fellas find anything?

Anything about what?

What you're here for, the saucer business.

Why didn't you ask us that before you wrote the news story?

What's bothering you, Mr. Pilgrim?

I wrote what they told me.

I know I'm just a hick stringer, but I don't like it when my paper's used.

What don't you like?

Being warned that the paper will lose advertising if I ask too many questions.

I got more respect for myself than that.

Good attorneys and newspaper men usually know the

answers to most questions before they ask them.

Which questions became too many?

Clay lives at 42 Elm Street.

That's west of town.

Why was he driving northeast after the poker game broke up? What'd he say to that?

That he's a widower, and he knows a woman out there,

and that the rest is none of my business?

I haven't been able to trace down any woman he knows there or anywhere else.

What are some of the other questions?

Doc Talbot was called out of that poker game at 10.15 to treat an emergency.

He couldn't possibly have known what time the game broke up. There's more.

We're listening. The emergency was a farmer's wife who broke her leg in her bathtub.

Her house is less than a quarter of a mile from where the saucer landed.

Now how could the doc not have seen or heard anything?

Go on.

The lawyer didn't get home till after one o'clock in the morning.

He was drunk and he tripped off his own burglar alarm system.

Neighbors heard it go off.

That's about it so far. You gonna write that?

Not this time.

Not till I know it all. Mr. Pover, you might not win many prizes in this town,

but you're one hell of a newspaper man.

Thanks.

I hope you remember that if you dig a story out of this.

Count on it.

Thanks.

Keep writing to that executive lady in Chicago.

She's going to start to pick out her silver pattern. Just a friend, Harry.

Didn't you ever have a woman as a friend? Not if I could do better.

Has Paulie been here?

No. No, he hasn't.

What is it, Mrs. Meares?

What happened?

Oh, Barney and me had a fight.

When Barney started to hit me, Paulie tried to help.

I screamed at him because I was afraid he would get hurt.

Well, Paulie ran away.

I don't know where he is.

Did you call the police?

Yeah.

Mrs. Ramirez, why did you expect to find him here?

Don't ask me any questions, please.

Just leave me alone.

Polly's father disappeared before he was born.

I try to take care of him as best I can.

Do you think I like living the way I do?

It's all right, ma'am.

They'll find you, boy.

Okay, that'll have to do.

Get back to us if they come up with any more.

Thanks, pal.

Had the feeling they were worn alone.

Busy little town, isn't it?

How's Mrs. Ramirez? Dr. Kephart in the hospital overnight.

Took her home this morning.

What about the lab? The picture is a phony.

Just like that? No reasonable doubt? None.

First of all, the black background is absolute. Nothing in it.

And that's the key. A small flash gun of the type used to

take the picture has a distance carry of about 12 feet.

The object in the photo is described as being pretty good sized.

No small flash gun could take a detailed photo of an object of any great size.

Such as the one in question. Meaning we're dealing with something quite small.

Dark night, nothing in the background. Meaning no additional illumination used.

Just a flash.

And that's beginning to spell something, and it sure ain't mothered.

One more thing.

Under those strong glasses at the lab,

they detected a small wrinkle in the background, lower left-hand corner.

And black cloth wrinkles.

You know, I bet we're both thinking the same thing. Good thinking. Come on.

Excuse me.

The last time we were in here,

your sister told us that you made these excellent

airplane models here in the toy section.

Oh, yes, sir.

What did you do with the one you made for Mr. Clay?

Now, wait a minute.

What is this? This is an official United States Air Force investigation.

Are you this young man's father?

Oh, sure I am. Hal Henshaw.

But my boy ain't done nothing wrong.

Earl Clay took a picture several days ago. He claims it was a UFO that landed here.

Our scientific laboratories in Ohio have established that this is not so.

What's that got to do with Mark?

Picture's a fake.

A deliberate fake.

I'm done talking to you people.

You can just move on out.

What the Major means is we're not law enforcement officers. We don't arrest people.

If we find evidence of a crime, for instance, a conspiracy to defraud the public,

it's our duty to turn that information over to your state attorney general's office.

How old are you, son?

Eighteen.

He's old enough.

Legal age.

Pa.

Yeah, I heard him.

Let me think on it a minute.

Major, as head of the town council,

I'm asking you and your sergeant to take your suspicions

and slander and get out of this town today.

Yes, sir, we're going to do just that.

But I think we're going to leave our suspicions

right here in town for you people to deal with.

Mr. Fairley and his friends,

some of them with him now and the others you know about...

They decided this town needed a little help in its wallet.

So they made up a story and they faked a photograph. That's a lie.

You can't prove that. We can, but we don't have to.

Mr. Clay, do you remember that fine little model of a saucer you took a picture of?

You don't know what you're talking about.

Young Mark Henshaw does.

Mark?

Ladies and gentlemen, your flying saucer.

We don't know the exact landing time, but to make it look like night,

it was photographed against a piece of black cloth.

Ensure you're a damn fool. Don't you call me names. I never wanted no part of this.

Sergeant Pitts?

Bill from your local garage.

One windshield shot of fruit glass.

I don't know about you, Mage, but I miss the wind

and the rain in her hair. Harry, slow down.

Hey, Paula, you all right?

Where have you been?

What happened to you?

Barney was hitting my mom.

We know, partner.

But she's okay. Except she's worried like crazy about you.

Well, Barney said it's not true.

What he said to her?

To everybody. To you.

What Barney said about what, son?

The machine that came down from the sky.

We know that, partner.

By now, everybody in town knows that.

But it wasn't the way Barney and Mr. Clay said.

The way they said what?

I'm the only one who saw it.

Paula, you sure you're all right?

You're not dizzy or anything, are you?

Paulie, can you tell us exactly what you saw?

My mom and Barney told me not to.

She only said it because she was scared of them.

But I don't care anymore.

And it wasn't last Tuesday. It was maybe three weeks ago.

They needed time to build a model.

And it wasn't that night either.

I don't know what they said it did, but it was in

the afternoon, after school. I was flying my kite.

Then all of a sudden, my kite caught on fire. And I saw this big machine in the sky.

Do you receive this?

Do you receive this? I have taken your form and converted your

radio language so that I might be understandable to you. Do you understand me?

I am from the 17th planet of a star which is half the

distance from the center of our galaxy to your sun.

I have been sent here to planet three.

You do not understand.

You are the third planet from your son.

You are three.

I have been sent here to three because our probes

have recorded a primitive intelligence.

Do you understand me?

You have no reason to fear me or those who will follow me here.

We only come to learn when we feel that your life form

has the capacity to interact with ours and others.

There will be additional contact.

Do you understand me?

It went away so fast, it was like it disappeared.

Paulie, how'd you feel when it was over, when the stranger went away?

I was sorry.

You don't believe me.

We believe you saw everything you told us.

And now I think we better get you home to your mother.

You don't have to. I could take a shortcut over the hill.

Good luck partner.

A hoax, huh? What about our report now?

I don't know that he could make up that kind of detail, or that kind of language,

or his age if he could. Major, you're not asking me to believe.

I'm not asking you to believe anything, Sergeant.