Classic Tales Of Cryptozoology: Does The Creature Really Walk Among Us?

Written By: Ken Hulsey

For centuries people from all corners of the globe have claimed to have seen all kinds of creatures ranging from dinosaurs to werewolves and if you are inclined to believe so, a real life "Gill-Man".

Way back in the summer of 1972 two young men claimed that they were chased from the beach at Thetis Lake, British Columbia, Canada by the "Creature From The Black Lagoon" or at least something that looked very much like it.

Was it a case of mistaken identity or overactive imaginations run wild after an afternoon of watching monster movies?

At the time the local police believed the two youths and began a search for the monster. Four days later the story seemed to be validated when two fishermen spotted the monster on the opposite side of the lake. Of course the search didn't turn up any man-fish at the time yet reports of the aptly named "Thetis Lake Monster" continued on for two more decades.

Initially the reported sighting was blamed on an escaped pet Tegu lizard which can grow to the size of a small alligator. That explanation seemed to be enough for most people but some hardcore cryptid hunters believed the creature to be a relative of the legendary "Loveland Frog" (another reported man-fish) or just another of the numerous lizard-man sightings from across North America. As most monster historians (or uber geeks like me) know lizard-men are reported to live under the mountains and cities here in California and in the swamps of South Carolina most notably.

Is there a REAL "Gill-Man" in Thetis Lake?

Well .... probably not.

In 2009 a reporter for the "Junior Skeptic Magazine" (Daniel Loxton) tracked down one of the original witnesses named Russell Van Nice who finally fessed up to hoaxing the whole affair with his buddy Mike Gold to get a little attention. Van Nice also mentioned that their description of the creature had been taken from the film "Monster From The Surf" (Beach Girls and the Monster) which had aired the prior weekend on a local television station.

Funny that no one noticed that little tidbit at the time ... then again there were probably very few people over the age of ten watching Monster from the Surf that day? Of course I would have been one of those people ... and odds are you would have been too.

Well no need to go to Canada (eh) to look for lizard-men ... guess I'll just go back to searching the catacombs here under Los Angeles. Reportedly they got a city made of gold down there!

The Creature Trades The Black Lagoon For LA In LIZARDMAN

Written By: Ken Hulsey
Source: Robert Hood / Avery Guerra

Unless this is your first ever visit to Monster Island News you know that the Creature From The Black lagoon holds a very special place in my heart. Ah yes, I fell in love with Universal's Gill-man back when I was just a sprout and have been a huge fan ever since.

Being such a huge fan of "Blacky Lagoon" I am happy to see a new trend in horror films starting to arise, that is "Creature" homage films.

Hot on the heels of the just announced "Emerald Lagoon" (dir Bobby Bragg) comes "Lizardman" the creation of director Peter Dang. This time around South Carolina's most notable cryptid is dragged kicking and screaming from his swampy home to Los Angeles where he breaks loose and causes the locals to do all the screaming.

From the trailer it is obvious that Dang is trying to recreate the work Jack Arnold and it looks like he has done a decent job on a shoe-string budget.

Here is your plot:

Billionaire Bill Hansen seeks revenge by capturing his nemesis, the scaly crypto-creature known as the Lizard Man. Hansen wants to prove to the world that the Lizard Man really exists. A group of scientists, lead by Professor Reeves examines this creature. Reeves realizes he has a chance for fame and fortune and so convinces Hansen that the Lizard Man needs to be brought to Los Angeles. During a press meeting, the creature breaks out and wreaks havoc on the people of LA.

"Lizardman" is written by Steve Goldenberg and Francis Abbey, produced by Steve Goldenberg and stars Michael Harding, James Lewis, Mike Gaglio, Tammy Klein, Frankie Cullen, Dylan Vox, Peter Stickles, Steve Blasini, Sherrie Box, Anthony Wade Vang, Mike Donahue, Amber McConnell, Amy Jokinen, Diana Terranova, Yelena Savranskaya, and Matt Easton in the monster suit.

Here are your trailers and photos from "Lizardman":

Has The Lizard Man Returned From The Swamp To Terrorize SC?

Written By: Ken Hulsey

Source: wltx.com

There's something roaming the woods of South Carolina and it's got incredibly sharp teeth and hates parked cars.

Somewhere between a Sleestack and a Sasquatch lies the infamous "Lizard Man" of South Carolina a reported monster that may have returned after taking a lengthy hiatus.

Back in the summer of 1988 a 17-year-old boy had stopped along a rural road to change a flat tire when he noticed something big running toward him. The creature that the young man described sounded like something resembling the Gorn from "Star Trek", a large 7-foot-tall upright running lizard creature with glowing red eyes. The youth took off running in the opposite direction, but when he did muster up the courage to return to his vehicle he discovered that it had been clawed and ransacked.

On Monday morning (July 4th) Leon Marshal of rural Lee County, South Carolina discovered that his car had also been attacked by some sort of mysterious animal.

"I ran into the house and told my wife to call the police because something happened to the car," he explains.

"The tooth marks went completely through the fender. That's metal! And it just bent it up. Like it was a piece of tissue paper," added his wife Ada.

This rather odd incident sounds eerily familiar to former Lee County Sheriff Liston Truesdale, "This part here is how it all started in 88. We got a call to come and look at something that had mauled a car. I went out there and looked at that damaged car, and I haven't seen anything like that before."

"They had been seeing a large creature about 7 feet tall, with big red eyes, with three pointed fingers."

"So I started asking residents, 'have you seen anything like a big tall creature round there? And the guys said, 'what you mean that lizard man?' That's how it started and you got it from the horse's mouth."

Ever since that time the "Lizard Man" has become a local celebrity of sorts that has certainly helped the areas tourist trade. Many a monster hunter / fan has ventured into Lee County to try and spot a glimpse of the creature.

Whether the monster is real or imaginary has not been proven but there is something in the Carolina woods that hates cars for some reason and attacks them whenever possible. One thing is for certain whatever it is it has huge strong jaws and teeth that can bite through solid metal and claws that can ruin a paint job. Lizard Man, giant gator, predatory mammal, dinosaur or what have you this thing is something you wouldn't want to run into on a dark night that's for sure!

Lizard Men aren't just exclusive to rural South Carolina. On the opposite coast, in California, reports of humanoid reptiles have been reported for decades. In the 40s a fortune hunter claimed that a race of lizard people had built a labyrinth of tunnels filled with gold under Los Angeles. Likewise in the 50s a man almost hit a Lizard Man on a road in Riverside. On top of that Lizard Men have been reportedly seen on the slopes of Mt. Shasta.