Archives On The Air 30: "Flying Saucers, Like Girls, Are Here To Stay"—Frank Scully Papers

Published July 30, 2018 at 9:36 AM MDT

Frank Scully held many titles in his life: author, journalist, humorist, & politician. However, his interests eventually led him into a niche field: flying saucers.

Text of a speech given by Frank Scully at a convention published in Saucers, December 1953. Box 6, Frank Scully papers.

Scully wrote for places like The New York Sun and ran a few non-profits in California but in the 1950s he became heavily invested in the government’s treatment of UFO’s and quote: “little men with magnetic rays.”

He eventually wrote a book called Behind the Flying Saucers. Scully’s book argued that the Air Force regretted denying the existence of interplanetary ships. It was widely disputed.

Scully based his ideas on the nearly 750 sightings by both civilians and the military which could not be explained or laughed off.

Cover of The Saucerian, billed as the “world’s largest flying saucer publication,” January 1955. Box 6, Frank Scully papers.

Was Scully’s interest genuine? Was Cold War hysteria fueling his passion?

Scully’s papers are a fascinating yet chilling read and they feel as if they could be pinned to a wall with red yarn.

Come solve some conspiracies on your own in the Frank Scully papers at UW’s American Heritage Center.