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FOLLOW US: SEARCH: Browse by Movie REEL FACES HOME The Mothman Prophecies (2002) Starring Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Debra Messing, Will Patton based on the book "The Mothman Prophecies" by John A. Keel Reel Face: Real Face: Richard Gere Born: August 31, 1949 Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA John A. Keel Born: March 25, 1930 Birthplace: Hornell, New York, USA Death: July 3, 2009, New York City (congestive heart failure) Laura Linney Born: February 5, 1964 Birthplace: New York City, New York, USA Mary Hyre Born: September 30, 1915 Birthplace: Clipper Mills, Ohio, USA Death: February 15, 1970, Point Pleasant, West Virginia (after a four week illness) Mothman Sketch from the movie. Mothman Sketch by eyewitness Linda Scarberry. It�s really very fictionalized, maybe we should have said 'inspired by true events' rather than �based on true events�. -Mark Pellington, director (Entertainment Weekly, 2002) Questioning the Story: TweetDid John Klein really work for the Washington Post? No. The real John Klein (Richard Gere�s character), John A. Keel, was a paranormal researcher and author. Keel was in Point Pleasant, West Virginia in 1966 to write about UFO�s for Playboy magazine when he was introduced to the Mothman events (USA Today). His subsequent book, The Mothman Prophecies, became the inspiration for the movie and is considered by many to be the definitive source on the Mothman legend. Watch John Keel speak about the creature, the Silver Bridge collapse and his interactions with lights in the sky in the Mothman videos section below. In reality, The Mothman Prophecies true story brings to light that it was Laura Linney's character's real life counterpart, Mary Hyre, who was the journalist. She did not work as the local sheriff like Laura Linney's Connie Mills character in the movie. Mary Hyre worked for The Athens Messenger and was in close contact with John Keel during his investigations into the sightings in the area. Following her death, Keel spoke of Mary in a letter, writing, "I still can't quite believe she is gone. We had a lot of strange experiences together which we never told anyone about." -Mothman: The Facts Behind the Legend Was John�s wife (Debra Messing�s character) in the movie based on a real person? No. The Mothman true story reveals that John Keel (the real John Klein) was not married. Scenes in The Mothman Prophecies movie that include �his wife� are not comparable to any real life events that occurred. Was Will Patton�s character, Gordon Smallwood, based on a real person? WTAP's Ronald Maines speaks witheyewitness Woody Derenberger (right). No. According to The Mothman Prophecies director, Mark Pellington, Patton's character was not based on a single individual. "He�s invented," said Pellington, "a composite of two of the major witnesses who had intense Mothman manifestations." (USA Today) The most notable of these two witnesses is Woodrow Derenberger, who claims to have spoken and met with Indrid Cold, a supposed alien with telepathic powers who resembled an average-sized man. Indrid Cold and the Mothman sightings are considered separate unexplained events that happened in the same general area during the same time period. -The Mothman Prophecies book Were Mothman witnesses� eyes and ears affected? Yes, in many cases the eyes were affected. Most witnesses who saw the Mothman or other UFOs experience �eyeburn� or klieg conjunctivitis due to intense exposure from ultraviolet rays. They often describe a sandy dry feeling in their eyes, usually accompanied by redness, swelling and watering. Mary Mallette, one of the first witnesses of the Mothman, was the only person to experience any ear trauma. At a later sighting, after hearing a �loud metallic noise�, her ear began to bleed. Keel noted that the bleeding was �a sign of concussion, meaning the air pressure had changed suddenly.�-The Mothman Prophecies book Who were the first witnesses to see the Mothman? Couples Steve and Mary Mallette (left)and Roger and Linda Scarberry (right). The first eyewitnesses to see the Mothman were two married couples, Steve and Mary Mallette and Roger and Linda Scarberry on Tuesday, November 15, 1966. It was close to midnight when the couples spotted the creature while driving in Scarberry's car. They described it as being around six or seven feet tall with red eyes and a wing span of 10 feet. "It was like a man with wings," Mallette said. However, they pointed out that its head was not an outstanding characteristic. The light grey creature was a clumsy runner, but they estimated that it flew at about 100 miles an hour, stating that it flew across the top of their car. They noted the creature's eyes, which glowed red, only when their lights were on it. -The Point Pleasant Register Did witnesses ever lose track of time during their encounters? Yes. When researching The Mothman Prophecies true story we discovered that some witnesses reported feeling that their experiences were much longer or shorter than...

Mothman Prophecies True Story - John Keel, Silver Bridge, Indrid Cold