July 9, 1996: Paranoid People Hotline - Open Lines
Jul 9, 1996
2h 54m
0:00 / 0:00
Art Bell dedicates a special phone line to the self-identified paranoid, inviting callers who believe the government is watching them, tapping their phones, or otherwise conspiring against ordinary citizens. The result is a wildly entertaining open lines session that veers between genuine unease and comedy. One caller cryptically warns Art that agents have been making contact in Pahrump, at the local gas station and hospital, before abruptly hanging up when he claims to hear something. Art dismisses the theatrics but acknowledges his own belief that his phone is tapped.
Between paranoid callers, the program covers Hurricane Bertha's threat to the East Coast, Bob Dole's reversal on the assault weapons ban, the skyrocketing box office of Independence Day, and a caller from Germany near the Austrian border who discusses gold investment strategy. A woman from Macon, Georgia shares how her interest in UFOs caused her religious community to label her demonized and shun her. Art calls for clergy members to phone in and discuss how extraterrestrial life intersects with Christian theology.
A listener from Sedona, Arizona describes local rumors of a secret underground government base in Secret Canyon equipped with ELF generators, while a caller from Canada pitches his paper-design anti-gravity machine that converts rotational acceleration into linear thrust. The episode perfectly captures the eclectic spirit of mid-1990s late night radio, where government suspicion and genuine curiosity existed side by side.
Between paranoid callers, the program covers Hurricane Bertha's threat to the East Coast, Bob Dole's reversal on the assault weapons ban, the skyrocketing box office of Independence Day, and a caller from Germany near the Austrian border who discusses gold investment strategy. A woman from Macon, Georgia shares how her interest in UFOs caused her religious community to label her demonized and shun her. Art calls for clergy members to phone in and discuss how extraterrestrial life intersects with Christian theology.
A listener from Sedona, Arizona describes local rumors of a secret underground government base in Secret Canyon equipped with ELF generators, while a caller from Canada pitches his paper-design anti-gravity machine that converts rotational acceleration into linear thrust. The episode perfectly captures the eclectic spirit of mid-1990s late night radio, where government suspicion and genuine curiosity existed side by side.
Key Moments
Bow hunter's Bigfoot encounter in the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness: Art reads a faxed first-person account from Peter in Beaver Creek, Oregon: while bow hunting deer in the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness east of Estacata, he wakes to find a seven-foot, shaggy-furred creature with a foot-wide head crouched over his pack, then watches it sprint and bound up the hill at 30-35 mph.
Joe in Sedona on Secret Canyon and ELF generators: A caller from Sedona, Arizona warns of a rumored secret underground government base in Secret Canyon, citing Norio Hayakawa's claims about extremely-low-frequency generators allegedly deployed there to keep people from hiking in.