The Bigfoot Discovery Project

The Bigfoot Discovery Project, for a limited time,
is the sole distributor for the new video

Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax

BDP Press Release:

DVD Cover This video documents the true story of the "frozen bigfoot body" that was revealed to be a costume filled with the body parts of dead animals after two men from Georgia -at an international press conference arranged by Bigfoot Hunter Tom Biscardi--announced they had found a bigfoot corpse. The press event took place August 15, 2008 and came to be known as "Black Bigfoot Friday" due to all the Internet sites that crashed under the burden of millions of hits by people all over the world seeking details of the story.

The Bigfoot Discovery Project (BDP) and Museum, located in the Santa Cruz Mountains of Central California, became involved when Biscardi heard that the Bigfoot Museum was struggling financially, and he volunteered to help out by offering the "Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax" DVD exclusively through the BDP for three months.

The video chronicles the entire episode via a combination of live narrations by Biscardi and his colleagues, combined with live action video of the two Georgia men from YouTube, their website, and the press conference in Palo Alto. Also shown is the actual transfer of possession of the freezer holding the "body" in Georgia.

Robert Barrows, PR man for Searching for Bigfoot, Inc. (SFBI) thinks the highlight of the video for most people will be the "dissection" of the macabre "bigfoot corpse," which took place in Indiana a day or two after SFBI took possession of the freezer. It's disgusting what those Georgia men did to make the thing appear real.

Michael Rugg, curator of the BDP and the Bigfoot Discovery Museum in Felton, California said this about the arrangement: "I agreed to market this DVD because we are very much in need of additional funding due to the recession (Biscardi pledged 1/3 of sales receipts to the Bigfoot Museum). I also think the public needs to see how well-orchestrated the hoax was, and how guilty the men from Georgia were of perpetrating what I think should be considered a criminal act from the get-go. In light of the recent 'Balloon Boy' episode and the ensuing court judgment, I feel these two dudes should also be punished for the massive hoax perpetrated on the public, as well as the fraud they committed in taking $50,000 cash for the alleged 'body.'"

The video makes it clear how the former correctional officer (Rick Dyer) and the Deputy Sheriff (Matt Whitton) were able to use their police affiliation and experiences to help make the whole thing believable to Tom and his team. It was all carefully orchestrated right up to the transfer of possession.

Rugg said, "I was at the press conference and spoke to Tom that day. Based on what he told me then I'm convinced he had no idea the body was a fake." Through chronological video clips the DVD makes it obvious they were ALL fooled until some of the ice was melted and chipped away.

You'll learn how Matt and Rick set up the sting when Biscardi met with them in Georgia, allowing only the parts of the fake body that incorporated genuine anatomical elements to be available for Tom to inspect. "When he went to see the body it was late in the evening, in a location with poor lighting and they greeted him with pointed guns to set the mood and keep him off guard. He took it hook, line and sinker," Rugg explained.

They then insisted Tom call the press conference that Friday because they knew the lies would be found out as soon as the SFBI team got to Indiana and started defrosting. So they culminated the deal and got their cash on August 14 in Georgia, while Tom was in the Bay Area preparing for the press and awaiting the final DNA results.

The Bigfoot Discovery Museum thinks this video shows the cleverness and culpability of the two Georgia men as hoaxers who are also guilty of fraud. Rugg hopes it will help to get a law passed against this sort of orchestrated prank, which does indeed cause harm to the public. For example, this has already lead to several recent hoaxes aimed at getting web hits for profit, book, movie or TV deals in a fashion similar to the Balloon Boy caper. Besides the $50,000 in cash, this fiasco also cost SFBI many more thousands for wasted payroll, plane fares, gasoline and so forth, while leaving the public with dashed hopes of a solution to the mystery.

Tom Biscardi is a controversial figure in the bigfoot research community largely because he is a natural born promoter, and his tactics with the media make other researchers uncomfortable. What's more, he's a "true believer" and has been taken in more than once by hoaxers and liars along the way. Consequently, he has some out-spoken detractors among his bigfoot peers and competitors, and as soon as the DVD release was announced, some of them immediately accused him of trying to profit from the hoax.

Rugg responded with this statement to Biscardi's critics: "Yes, Tom has been fooled by a number of hoaxers and he apparently is not a good judge of bigfoot flesh, but he's dedicated to the hunt, and has a full-time crew out in the field doing their best to obtain real evidence. Very few others have invested that kind of time and money in an attempt to get this done. I certainly don't blame him for trying to recoup some of his expenses by marketing a DVD that sets the record straight on this real life tragedy."

For purchase information click here-

Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax

Last year's event sold out... please order your ticket early:
Reserved tickets: $25 ($22 museum members) would guarantee you a seat up front(1st 3 rows)
General Admission: $15 ($12 museum members, seniors and students)Seniors (62 & over)
Children (12 & under) $5
The barbeque is an optional expense, payable at the museum when you get your food.

Payment can be made by check payable to "CapriTaurus" and mailed to:
Bigfoot Discovery Museum
CapriTaurus
P.O. Box 153
Felton, CA 95018

Paypal is an option as well, payable to mikerugg@sbcglobal.net

Shirt shop now open !!

Visit our Bigfoot T-Shirt Shop for unique Bigfoot items that you can't get anywhere else!

A Day of Music and Art to Benefit the Bigfoot Discovery Museum!

Kepi Ghoulie and his friends will be hanging out and playing music at the Bigfoot Discovery Museum on August 9th, 2009

Bigfoot Art and Music day flyer

Event will be held at:
Bigfoot Discovery Museum
5497 Highway 9, Felton, CA 95018

Seriously Seeking Sponsors

The Bigfoot Discovery Project is seeking help from a person or persons of means. We need additional funding to keep the Discovery Project operating at full speed.

Click here if interested but you need more convincing.

For more details...
call Michael Rugg at 831-335-4478
or email mikerugg@sbcglobal.net»

The Source of My Obsession

Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax

Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax

A Day of Music and Art to Benefit the Bigfoot Discovery Museum!

Click here to see the latest episode of the Bigfoot Discovery Museum Show!

Museum Membership:


The Bigfoot Discovery Project (BDP) accepts the Patterson/Gimlin Film of Oct 20, 1967 as THE type specimen for the Northwestern Bigfoot or Sasquatch. The BDP will add to the dialogue on the implications of the impending "discovery of bigfoot" by Western science and the general public, while offering hypotheses as to bigfoot's place in the biological and social order. If the anthropologists are right, the only thing separating us from the forest giants is our culture. So let's revel in our humanness while acknowledging the beauty of the bigfoot's minimalistic, yet ecologically sound interactions with Mother Earth. The BDP will seek to facilitate the discovery of bigfoot by sharing information, and attempting to "flesh out" the hairy biped's dossier. There is a large enough database of sightings and encounters now available to create a hypothetical "profile" of the bigfoot creatures. Accepting the P/G film as genuine, we have a model to compare with verbal descriptions in an effort to get a consensus on the bigfoot's physical characteristics as well. This will be done against a backdrop of local history, as this area was once (and apparently still is) home to bigfoot, as were all the forests of the Pacific coast, and beyond. CapriTaurus has been an arts and crafts gallery, a folk music center and manufacturer of musical instruments. Now its the home of the Bigfoot Discovery Project. The new CapriTaurus "complex," once complete, will include exhibits of local history, unidentified hairy bipeds, and folk music. It will house a research library of books, periodicals, and tapes on subjects ranging from ABSMs to UFOs alongside art, handcrafts and collectibles. We hope that a visit here will "edutain" you, and help to open your eyes and mind to things you may not have thought about before. The Source of My Obsession In the summer of 1950, my parents and I traveled to Humboldt County frequently on camping and fishing trips. My Dad had once operated a sawmill in Laytonville, near the Avenue of the Giants. My Mom was a very dedicated driftwood collector. She loved to put on old tennis shoes and hike up and down the riverbeds in search of sculptured wood smoothed by the action of water. Driftwood was especially popular during that era as garden accents and objects of art to be displayed in the home. Because of the time my Dad had spent in Humboldt when he owned the mill, it was the area of choice for these family outings. It was during one of these trips that I first saw a bigfoot. It was early in the morning, and we were camped on a river beach. It was probably on the South Fork of the Eel River as that's where most of our outings took place. My Dad loved to cook freshly caught trout for breakfast, and I suspect that's what he and Mom were doing when I wandered off down a trail next to the river. I was between 4 and 5 years old at the time and shouldn't have gone off on my own that way, but I did. I remember passing through a bunch of tall straight plants (probably reeds of some sort) and as I brushed them away from my face and stepped out on to a sand bar I looked up into the gaze of a very large man completely covered in bushy dark hair, with nothing on but a rather poorly fitting, torn shirt. I looked at the hairy man, and he looked at me, then my parents started screaming for me, "Mikey, Mikey where are you!?" Fascinated by the sight before me I hesitated a moment, then turned and ran towards the campsite to reassure my parents that I was all right. They were relieved when they saw me, but as they began scolding me for running off alone, I insisted they follow me to see the "big hairy man." We returned to the spot on the sandbar, but, of course, the "big man" was no longer there. They had no reason to doubt that I had seen somebody, so they assured me it was nothing to fear, "It was probably a tramp, just forget about it." Now I don't remember looking for tracks or any proof of what I saw, but at 5 years old I was still willing to take my parents' word that everything was OK; the incident was something to forget. So that's what I did until 20-some years later. While reading one of the many bigfoot books I have collected over the years, I came across a passage that jogged my memory. A woman described a sighting she had while hiking near the Eel River in Humboldt County. The creature she saw was "wearing a shirt." Reading that phrase gave me an immediate flashback memory of the event I described above. I suddenly knew the origin of my life-long obsession. I began methodically collecting articles and other memorabilia about the "abominable snowman," in 1951, when the photos of mysterious footprints on Mount Everest were printed in newspapers around the world. I particularly enjoyed reading in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories about Scrooge McDuck going in search of the "Lost Crown of Genghis Khan," which was eventually found in the lair of "Goo, the Abominable Snowman!" I read every book in Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan of the Apes series. I bought and read over and over again Ivan Sanderson's book Abominable Snowman, Legend Come to Life when it was published in 1961. I watched with great anticipation, during the mid '60's, for the delivery of the San Francisco Chronicle when they ran a series of articles about the "man animal," of the Pacific Northwest. I went "ape," over hairy bipeds, and primates in general, in a big way. __Michael Rugg	The Bigfoot Discovery Project, for a limited time, is the sole distributor for the new video Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax BDP Press Release: This video documents the true story of the "frozen bigfoot body" that was revealed to be a costume filled with the body parts of dead animals after two men from Georgia -at an international press conference arranged by Bigfoot Hunter Tom Biscardi--announced they had found a bigfoot corpse. The press event took place August 15, 2008 and came to be known as "Black Bigfoot Friday" due to all the Internet sites that crashed under the burden of millions of hits by people all over the world seeking details of the story. The Bigfoot Discovery Project (BDP) and Museum, located in the Santa Cruz Mountains of Central California, became involved when Biscardi heard that the Bigfoot Museum was struggling financially, and he volunteered to help out by offering the "Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax" DVD exclusively through the BDP for three months. The video chronicles the entire episode via a combination of live narrations by Biscardi and his colleagues, combined with live action video of the two Georgia men from YouTube, their website, and the press conference in Palo Alto. Also shown is the actual transfer of possession of the freezer holding the "body" in Georgia. Robert Barrows, PR man for Searching for Bigfoot, Inc. (SFBI) thinks the highlight of the video for most people will be the "dissection" of the macabre "bigfoot corpse," which took place in Indiana a day or two after SFBI took possession of the freezer. It's disgusting what those Georgia men did to make the thing appear real. Michael Rugg, curator of the BDP and the Bigfoot Discovery Museum in Felton, California said this about the arrangement: "I agreed to market this DVD because we are very much in need of additional funding due to the recession (Biscardi pledged 1/3 of sales receipts to the Bigfoot Museum). I also think the public needs to see how well-orchestrated the hoax was, and how guilty the men from Georgia were of perpetrating what I think should be considered a criminal act from the get-go. In light of the recent 'Balloon Boy' episode and the ensuing court judgment, I feel these two dudes should also be punished for the massive hoax perpetrated on the public, as well as the fraud they committed in taking $50,000 cash for the alleged 'body.'" The video makes it clear how the former correctional officer (Rick Dyer) and the Deputy Sheriff (Matt Whitton) were able to use their police affiliation and experiences to help make the whole thing believable to Tom and his team. It was all carefully orchestrated right up to the transfer of possession. Rugg said, "I was at the press conference and spoke to Tom that day. Based on what he told me then I'm convinced he had no idea the body was a fake." Through chronological video clips the DVD makes it obvious they were ALL fooled until some of the ice was melted and chipped away. You'll learn how Matt and Rick set up the sting when Biscardi met with them in Georgia, allowing only the parts of the fake body that incorporated genuine anatomical elements to be available for Tom to inspect. "When he went to see the body it was late in the evening, in a location with poor lighting and they greeted him with pointed guns to set the mood and keep him off guard. He took it hook, line and sinker," Rugg explained. They then insisted Tom call the press conference that Friday because they knew the lies would be found out as soon as the SFBI team got to Indiana and started defrosting. So they culminated the deal and got their cash on August 14 in Georgia, while Tom was in the Bay Area preparing for the press and awaiting the final DNA results. The Bigfoot Discovery Museum thinks this video shows the cleverness and culpability of the two Georgia men as hoaxers who are also guilty of fraud. Rugg hopes it will help to get a law passed against this sort of orchestrated prank, which does indeed cause harm to the public. For example, this has already lead to several recent hoaxes aimed at getting web hits for profit, book, movie or TV deals in a fashion similar to the Balloon Boy caper. Besides the $50,000 in cash, this fiasco also cost SFBI many more thousands for wasted payroll, plane fares, gasoline and so forth, while leaving the public with dashed hopes of a solution to the mystery. Tom Biscardi is a controversial figure in the bigfoot research community largely because he is a natural born promoter, and his tactics with the media make other researchers uncomfortable. What's more, he's a "true believer" and has been taken in more than once by hoaxers and liars along the way. Consequently, he has some out-spoken detractors among his bigfoot peers and competitors, and as soon as the DVD release was announced, some of them immediately accused him of trying to profit from the hoax. Rugg responded with this statement to Biscardi's critics: "Yes, Tom has been fooled by a number of hoaxers and he apparently is not a good judge of bigfoot flesh, but he's dedicated to the hunt, and has a full-time crew out in the field doing their best to obtain real evidence. Very few others have invested that kind of time and money in an attempt to get this done. I certainly don't blame him for trying to recoup some of his expenses by marketing a DVD that sets the record straight on this real life tragedy." For purchase information click here- Anatomy of a Bigfoot Hoax . Last year's event sold out... please order your ticket early: Reserved tickets: $25 ($22 museum members) would guarantee you a seat up front(1st 3 rows) General Admission: $15 ($12 museum members, seniors and students)Seniors (62 & over) Children (12 & under) $5 The barbeque is an optional expense, payable at the museum when you get your food. Payment can be made by check payable to "CapriTaurus" and mailed to: Bigfoot Discovery Museum CapriTaurus P.O. Box 153 Felton, CA 95018 Paypal is an option as well, payable to mikerugg@sbcglobal.net Shirt shop now open !! Visit our Bigfoot T-Shirt Shop for unique Bigfoot items that you can't get anywhere else! A Day of Music and Art to Benefit the Bigfoot Discovery Museum! Kepi Ghoulie and his friends will be hanging out and playing music at the Bigfoot Discovery Museum on August 9th, 2009 Event will be held at: Bigfoot Discovery Museum 5497 Highway 9, Felton, CA 95018 Seriously Seeking Sponsors The Bigfoot Discovery Project is seeking help from a person or persons of means. We need additional funding to keep the Discovery Project operating at full speed. Click here if interested but you need more convincing. For more details... call Michael Rugg at 831-335-4478 or email mikerugg@sbcglobal.net»	Click here to see the latest episode of the Bigfoot Discovery Museum Show! Frequently asked questions Local Bigfoot sightings Progress on the premises Teddy Roosevelt Connection Hoaxer's Hall of Infamy South Felton Timeline Bigfoot Discovery Book Bigfoot Discovery Project Blog Museum Membership: We are now accepting museum memberships (offering discounts, a monthly newsletter and so forth.) Click HERE for more information. Our regular museum meetings will usually be held on the third Sunday of every month at 6 pm 2010 Meeting Schedule January 17 Plans for Discovery Day IV, Anatomy of a Hoax DVD, Sylvanic Videos February 21 March 21 April 18 May 16 June 20 July 18 August 15 September 19 October 17 November 21 No meeting in December Museum Newsletter Archive Here are past issues of our Museum Newsletter. Become a member and receive the newsletter when it is first published, along with an overview of the activities of the Museum Study Group (meeting minutes). Non-Members will have access to past issues here, which will be archived from time to time. Non-members will not have access to the meeting minutes. Newsletter photos by Tom Yamarone, Mike Rugg and others. Vol 1 No 1 May 2005 Premiere Issue (1 MB .pdf) Vol 1 No 2 June 2005 Bellingham Conference (1.8 MB .pdf) Vol 1 No 3 July 2005 Zayante Habitat (1.1 MB .pdf) Vol 1 No 4 August 2005 School Visit (790 kb .pdf) Vol 1 No 5 September 2005 Marx-Biscardi (788kb) Vol 1 No 6 October 2005 Patterson-Gimlin (876kb .pdf) Vol 1 No 7 November 2005 Bluff Creek (1.8 MB .pdf) Vol 1 No 8 December 2005 Historical Archives (1.3 MB .pdf) Vol 1 No 9 January 2006 John Green Trip (1.10 MB .pdf) Vol 1 No 10 Febuary 2006 Pee Wee Herman (1.0 MB .pdf ) Vol 1 No 11 March 2006 Vance Orchard (2.0 MB) Vol 1 No 12 April 2006 Membership (848kb) Here are past issues of Volume 2 of our Newsletter: Vol 2 No 1 May 2006 Malaysian Bigfoot (744kb) Vol 2 No 2 June 2006 Grand Opening (864kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 3 July 2006 Clawed (608kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 4 August 2006 Museum Campout (776kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 5 September 2006 Loch Lomond (672kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 6 October 2006 Autumn Williams (864kb .pdf ) Vol 2 No 7 November 2006 Rummage Sale (394kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 8 December 2006 Yowie Authors (376kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 9 January 2007 Jaimie Jackson (504kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 10 Febuary 2007 CA BFRO (416kb .pdf ) Vol 2 No 11 March 2007 Bigfooter Visit (324kb .pdf) Vol 2 No 12 April 2007 Bonny Doon BF (436kb .pdf) Here are past issues of Volume 3 of our Newsletter: Vol 3 No 1 May 2007 Discovery Day Prep (404kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 2 June 2007 Bigfoot in Parade (496kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 3 July 2007 Report on Bigfooot Discovery Day (756kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 4 August 2007 Pogonip Bigfoot (776kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 5 September 2007 Gimlin Outing (672kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 6 October 2007 40th Anniversary (864kb .pdf ) Vol 3 No 7 November 2007 40th in Willow Creek (328kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 8 December 2007 MonsterQuest DNA (528kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 9 January 2008 Pogonip Bigfoot (388kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 10 February 2008 Molar Tooth Found (365kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 11 March 2008 Cal Bigfoot Exhibit (728kb .pdf) Vol 3 No 12 April 2008 Bigfoot Resort (464kb .pdf )