James Shelby Downard

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James Shelby Downard (March 13, 1913-1996) was an American conspiracy theorist whose works, most of which have been published in various anthologies from Feral House, examined perceived occult symbolism, twilight language and synchronicity behind historical events in the 20th century. Vankin and Whalen write of Downard,

Some conspiracy theorists question not "the facts" so much as reason itself. James Shelby Downard is one of those mad geniuses with a talent for making the most improbable, impossible, ludicrous and laughable speculations appear almost plausible. A self-described student of the "science of symbolism," Downard peels away the rational veneer of history and exposes an abyss of logic-defying synchronicities.[1]

Downard is probably best known for his essay "King Kill/33: Masonic Symbolism in the Assassination of John F. Kennedy", originally published by Adam Parfrey in the first edition of the book Apocalypse Culture, which speculates that the Freemasons were responsible for the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The essay was removed from the second edition of the book and replaced by another essay by Downard, "The Call to Chaos". Apocalypse Culture II contains another Downard essay, "America, The Possessed Corpse". Jim Keith, editor of yet another Feral House publication, Secret and Suppressed: Banned Ideas and Hidden History, included "Sorcery, Sex, Assassination" from Downard's outre writings.

Included in Cult Rapture is "Riding the Downardian Nightmare", a piece written by Parfrey concerning a visit to Downard in Memphis, Tennessee.

Friend and mentor to researcher Michael A. Hoffman II, author of Secret Societies and Psychological Warfare, Downard's influence is evident in Hoffman's work. Hoffman's website released the full manuscript of "King Kill/33" and "Carnivals of Life and Death".

Downard was assisted in many of his earlier works by his good friend, William N. Grimstad. Grimstad is better known as Jim Brandon, author of the Fortean classics, Weird America: A Guide to Places of Mystery in the United States and The Rebirth of Pan: Hidden Faces of the American Earth Spirit.

Downard died in 1996 while working on his autobiography, the first volume of which, The Carnivals of Life and Death, was published in 2006 and deals with his childhood in the Deep South, where he was first exposed to the Freemasons and Ku Klux Klan.

Downard's body of work has gained a sizeable cult following.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Vankin, Johnathan and John Whalen, "The Sorcerer's Apprentices. James Shelby Downard and the Mysteries of Americana" 2001; URL accessed February 16, 2007

[edit] Sources

  • http://feralhouse.com/titles/kulchur/carnivals_of_life_and_death_the.php
  • Jonathan Vankin and Joe Whalen, The 70 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time (Citadel Press, 2001) ISBN 0-8065-2033-7
  • "Sorcery, Sex, Assassination." in Keith, Jim ed. Secret and Suppressed. Portland, Or.: Feral House, 1993.
  • "America, The Possessed Corpse." in Parfrey, Adam ed. Apocalypse Culture II. Venice, Calif.: Feral House, 2000.
  • "Riding the Downardian Nighmare.", in Parfrey, Adam. Cult Rapture. Portland, Or.: Feral House, 1994.
  • "Secret Societies and Psychological Warfare.", Hoffman II, Michael A. Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.: Independent History and Research, 2001.
  • "Weird America: A Guide to Places of Mystery in the United States", Brandon, Jim. New York, NY.: Dutton, 1978.
  • "The Rebirth of Pan: Hidden Faces of the American Earth Spirit", Brandon, Jim. Dunlap, Ill.: Firebird Press, 1983.
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