Missing Time with Art Bell ALEXANDER D. ALLINS ow that Larry King took over the enon of "missing time." Oh yes, ladies Art Bell: "Here's a homegrown weird- spotlight in the land of psychic and gentlemen, the very "missing time" ness fir you. Bonnie Kristel and her that so frequently accompanies the phe- business associate Jessica . were on phenomena, UFO, and UFO their way from the Bay Area to CES Las N nomenon of alien abductions; the alien abductions, one feels a wave of warm nos- Vegas. talgia for Art Bell. To those who do not abductions where the UFOs swoop out I was talking to Bonnie, who is a frequent the AM dial of the radio between of the sky attracted by some fluctuations ham radio operator, on a 40M band. the hours of 10 P . M . a n d 5 A.M., it may be in Earth's magnetic field; the fluctuations and so right in the middle of the conver- sations. worthwhile to mention that Mr. Bell, that arc noticed around the areas of antenna towers, radio telescopes, power "Bonnie": /; was day before yesterday. until recently when he was replaced by In the afternoon. Midday. And we were the radio-show host George Noory, was generation plants ... etc., etc. Some of traveling over the mountains of the host of the Coast to Coast AM radio this lore would be implied while other Tehachepy [California] toward Las show. The show's format centered on all portions of it would be proven on that Vegas. And we got to the top of the sons of madcap ideas so blatantly "bor- night's show. And, more impressively, it mountain. And they have a big wind- would be shown that An Bell himself was mill firm plant there, where they have rowed" by Larry King of CNN. windmills generating electrical power a witness to, and participated in, one there. Why would a man who proudly dis- most singular experience. plays a "CSICOP Associate Member" Art Bell: Yes, it's quite incredible actually. certificate on the wall of his office listen The event involved two scientist "Bonnie": . and we saw the wind- to such drivel as Coast to Coast, one may friends of Art, whom he identified as mills and when we got to the top we ask? Well... the intellectual rationaliza- "Bonnie Kristel" (spelling of the last were talking to you on the ham radio. tion that appears on the pages of name is phonetic), a geologist who spe- And you got off for a few moments. SKEPTICAL INQUIRER seems to be that a Art Bell: / said I'm gonna get a bite to cializes in exploration of underground eat. And we signed off temporarily. And true skeptic is someone who keeps an caves, and her friend and co-traveler I said I'll be back in a few minutes. open mind. In reality, the reason for lis- "Jessica" (not mentioned by her last And . then I guess the next time I tening to the callers that inundate the heard you was easily an hour, maybe radio aether is simply this: They just name during the show, but identified more than an hour, later. 1 was call- make one feel so . so . .. normal. Yes, later in the program as a physicist). The ing you. And then suddenly there you women were driving from the San were. so, what happened? normal. Normal by comparison. "Bonnie": Well it seemed like only a Francisco Bay area to Las Vegas, Nevada, Fortunately, while George Noory few minutes to me. But it ended up where they planned to attend the annual being forty-five minutes or an hour hosts the show on weeknights, Art Bell Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Utter. And the funny thing is that you still sits in the host's chair on the week- can be driving and not realize that you Some time after leaving the Bay area, ends. C'mon, fellow skeptics! One can- passed an exit. But this particular not not like Art. The dear man literally they apparently experienced a clear-cut instance, Jessica and 1 both realized this episode of "missing time." In the course at exact same time.... defines poppy in the Dutch poppycock. Art Bell: You realized that you'd lost Consider the show that graced the Los of the program, it also transpired that an fyoti1^ Angeles airwaves on January 10, 2004. not only the intangible fabric of time was disrupted; the entire town of "Bonnie": Somehow we got trans- Mr. Bell starts by impressing his ported to a place further away than we audience as soon as the show hits the air. Mojave, California—a small desert were actually headed to. During that night's show, he said he community in the Golden State—had Art Bell: How much further? would physically produce bona fide sci- inexplicably disappeared off the face of "Bonnie": Well it was at least forty- entists that would confirm the phenom- the Earth as well. five miles or fifty miles away Art Bell: Plus you passed a place where Here is an excerpt from the show as you normally would have stopped for Alexander D. Allins is a physician in Los best as it could be transcribed (square gas and all the rest of it. I mean you Angeles. brackets indicate statements added): actually planned to stop for gas, right? KEPTICAL INQUIRER luly/August 2004 61 "Bonnie": Yes, we planned to slop for might have been. You've checked Art changes topic to a friend of his, gas at a town called Mojave. your body, haven't you? He-he-he .. also a truck driver, "whose name is Tim" [Could Art possibly be implying an who apparently also experienced several Then the discussion turned to the alien abduction here? Alien experi- instances of "missing time." Without description of the stop at Mojave. It mentation on humans? Strange and batting an eyelash. Art turns the conver- appears that both women not only unexplained body scars and subcuta- neously placed alien artifacts?] sation back to the topic of "missing simultaneously "lost" close to an hour ol "Jessica": Yes. That's the first thing I time" and inquires of the caller if she has their lives, but they have also lost the thought was, something, like, weird hap- experienced any "missing time her- entire town of Mojave, California: pened in the middle of the afternoon. .. along a highway . It wasn't even the self"—good going. Art! One must "Bonnie": And we don't remember night time.... admit that Art's replacement on the anything about that. And the funny "Bonnie": In the broad daylight . show, George Noory, would never be thing is that we both remember nothing two individuals who pride themselves able to backpedal so seamlessly and ele- about that period of time. on being scientists.. .. gantly as Mr. Bell! "Jessica": We are scientists. This stuff The conversation then turned to how doesn't happen to us. We hear about this. The caller is nonchalantly faded off the two women found themselves way But to experience this is . spooky. I'm the air, and Art concludes with this past Mojave, California, next to a solar sure some of your listeners have some deepest of thoughts: "If people in the experiences like this. energy plant near die exit for Kramer cightccn-whcclcrs, you know the big Art Bell: Well, congratulations and ones, are missing time, then what the Junction, California. welcome to the club. Art then asks for Bonnie's friend, "Jessica": There are more things than hell is the truck doing in between?" Jessica, to come to the phone and pro- heaven and earth, right? Forget it that the woman truck driver ceeds to interview her on air. Jessica Art Bell [concludes the call by ad- just reduced the entire claim of "missing dressing the listening audience over essentially confirms her friend's story: time" by Art's two "scientist" friends to a the airways of Coast-to-Coast\: There laughable blunder—obviously, and Art Bell: So, Jessica, so what do you was an experience worth hearing think happened out there' about. The question is: Where were without realizing it, the women simply "Jessica": / have no idea. I'm a physi- they? Or when were they? Or whatever? took a new bypass that took them cist, so I'm supposed to understand these So, maybe some of the rest of you had around the town of Mojave. things. And the strange thing is that some experience with something like But Art's listeners did not let him for- Bonnie's and my memories ended at the this. But I thought I'd toss it out for get. Approximately ten minutes later same time. And our memories of the what it's worth. And it's certainly worth power plant started at the same something. into the show, another truck driver— time. ... It's like someone cut these identified as "Karen"—calls the show to forty-five minutes out of my life. confirm the explanation of the first Art Bell: You are not a strong believer Later in the show, Art takes a call from a in the paranormal, are you? truck driver regarding the "missing female truck driver: "Jessica": No. I am not. I believe in time" and "missing town of Mojave." physics of the world. That things should Art Bell: " Wild Card" line, you are on "Karen": Hi. About the "missing operate a certain way They are not sup- the air! Hello. time. " That previous lady caller took the posed to happen like this.