142. The Bishopville Lizard Man

1
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,880
Imagine this.
You're driving home one night

2
00:00:02,880 --> 00:00:06,440
from your job at McDonald's.
You have a sack of fried fish

3
00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:09,200
sandwiches on your passenger
seat, just waiting to be

4
00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:12,480
devoured.
But it seems that bait has other

5
00:00:12,480 --> 00:00:16,280
plans as your car begins to jerk
to the left and you begin

6
00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:20,000
noticing the telling signs of a
flat tire.

7
00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:22,720
It's 2:00 o'clock in the
morning.

8
00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:25,720
You really don't want to pull
over to change it, but kind of

9
00:00:25,720 --> 00:00:27,560
have to.
Since your dad is going to beat

10
00:00:27,560 --> 00:00:30,840
your ass if you destroy the rim
in the wheel disc by just

11
00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:36,000
driving the last 7 miles, it's
dark out there and the swamp is

12
00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:39,440
just yards away with absolutely
no signs of civilization on the

13
00:00:39,480 --> 00:00:43,440
unlit country two lane back Rd.
you pull over and gather the

14
00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:46,280
courage.
I mean, what is there really to

15
00:00:46,280 --> 00:00:48,580
be afraid of?
It's just the dark right.

16
00:00:49,340 --> 00:00:52,340
The driver's side door swings
open as you reluctantly force

17
00:00:52,340 --> 00:00:55,740
yourself out of the safety of
the car to grab the Jack spare

18
00:00:55,740 --> 00:00:59,580
and tire iron out of the trunk.
Crickets and cicadas are

19
00:00:59,580 --> 00:01:03,260
screaming in the human Musk
filled air of escape or swamp.

20
00:01:03,300 --> 00:01:07,220
In the last remaining few days
of June, the job gets done

21
00:01:07,220 --> 00:01:10,020
pretty easily for having to do
the whole task in the thick of

22
00:01:10,020 --> 00:01:12,660
the night.
You throw the tire iron Jack and

23
00:01:12,660 --> 00:01:16,260
damaged tire back into the trunk
and you still be closed.

24
00:01:17,360 --> 00:01:19,920
A scuffle erupts from a decent
distance behind you, and you

25
00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:23,000
turn to see a large figure on
two legs running your way.

26
00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:26,760
The flight instinct kicks in and
you haul ass back into the cab

27
00:01:26,760 --> 00:01:29,760
in the car, squeeze your eyelids
down, clinch every muscle in

28
00:01:29,760 --> 00:01:34,680
your body, and sit waiting for
whatever was passed by, but it

29
00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:37,720
never does.
You slowly begin to relax and

30
00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:40,480
open your eyes as the nervous
feeling begins to fade, and you

31
00:01:40,480 --> 00:01:43,320
think to yourself that you may
have just been seeing things.

32
00:01:44,140 --> 00:01:47,300
Your eyes drift to the left to
see the upper five of an

33
00:01:47,300 --> 00:01:50,700
enormous creature with what
looks like reptilian scaly skin.

34
00:01:51,140 --> 00:01:53,540
You juggle the key as you
hastily push it into the

35
00:01:53,540 --> 00:01:56,300
ignition and turn it towards the
front of the car.

36
00:01:57,260 --> 00:01:59,700
The sound of the engine coming
to life feels good and

37
00:01:59,700 --> 00:02:02,540
relieving, but the sound of
whatever that thing was climbing

38
00:02:02,540 --> 00:02:06,420
up on top of your car doesn't.
Whatever it is, it's heavy.

39
00:02:07,120 --> 00:02:11,080
The only thing you see is 2 long
scaly fingers with large black

40
00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:14,000
claws protruding from its
prehistoric looking appendage in

41
00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:16,040
the upper corner of your
windshield.

42
00:02:16,920 --> 00:02:18,880
You slam the gas all the way to
the floor.

43
00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:21,720
Whatever that damn thing was
tumbles down the back left side

44
00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:24,360
of your car.
The relief of not having to deal

45
00:02:24,360 --> 00:02:27,000
with that thing anymore is
great, but what the hell are you

46
00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:28,440
going to say to your dad in the
morning?

47
00:02:29,550 --> 00:02:31,710
The car jerks to the right as
you hear whatever it is.

48
00:02:31,710 --> 00:02:34,550
You can scratch the top of the
cab after jumping back on it

49
00:02:34,710 --> 00:02:37,470
while you're traveling at least
35 mph.

50
00:02:39,310 --> 00:02:43,270
Congratulations, you just met
the lizard Man of skateboard

51
00:02:43,270 --> 00:02:47,230
swamp.
Welcome back to Infinite Rabbit.

52
00:03:23,060 --> 00:03:25,860
Welcome back to the Infinite
Rabbit Hole Podcast everybody.

53
00:03:25,860 --> 00:03:27,820
I'm your host Jeremy.
And tonight.

54
00:03:28,770 --> 00:03:31,050
We're going to South Carolina.
Bishopville.

55
00:03:31,050 --> 00:03:36,570
That is ooh man, this was a this
one was a long time coming guys.

56
00:03:36,570 --> 00:03:39,210
Let me tell you what now this
one was fun.

57
00:03:39,410 --> 00:03:41,690
This was a good one.
It's been a long time since I've

58
00:03:41,690 --> 00:03:44,930
done a a crypted episode.
Those have been with the show

59
00:03:44,930 --> 00:03:47,890
for quite a while now.
Know that you know I love doing

60
00:03:47,890 --> 00:03:50,450
the monsters and this was no
different.

61
00:03:50,450 --> 00:03:53,930
This was right up my alley and
thoroughly enjoyed doing the

62
00:03:53,930 --> 00:03:56,610
research for this.
Without further ado, everybody,

63
00:03:57,050 --> 00:04:01,480
Episode 142.
The Bishopville Lizardman enjoy

64
00:04:03,400 --> 00:04:07,880
Bishopville, SC with a
population of just a hair over

65
00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:11,560
3000 individuals.
Bishopville encompasses an area

66
00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:16,160
of only 2.4 square miles off of
US Route 15, with larger cities

67
00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:19,079
such as Sumter to its South and
Florence to the east.

68
00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:23,200
Brick buildings line Main St. as
they've done since the beginning

69
00:04:23,800 --> 00:04:26,440
and white bordered house
speckled the side streets

70
00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:30,480
reaching out away from downtown.
The Piggly Wiggly serves the hub

71
00:04:30,480 --> 00:04:34,080
for groceries in the Cotton
Museum for historical records of

72
00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:37,440
the area's past.
But the secrets the area holds

73
00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:41,400
don't actually call this small
town home, No, but on its

74
00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:45,120
western border lay the
Skateboard Swamp, a tributary to

75
00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:47,560
the Black River and Winyah Bay
watershed.

76
00:04:47,560 --> 00:04:51,160
And within this basin of monkey
water, overgrown Bush and

77
00:04:51,160 --> 00:04:54,840
strange calls in the night lies
the even smaller community of

78
00:04:54,840 --> 00:05:00,000
Browntown, which as of 2020.
Only held a total of 206 people,

79
00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:03,120
this is where the secrets of the
area are birthed.

80
00:05:03,640 --> 00:05:07,280
The place of desolation.
The history of hidden moonshine

81
00:05:07,280 --> 00:05:11,520
stills escapees with no place to
live in civilization of bears,

82
00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:14,360
snakes, brambles, quicksand and
sinkholes.

83
00:05:15,240 --> 00:05:19,360
The history of skateboard begins
with the birth of its name in

84
00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:22,280
1761.
A woman of nightly deeds was no

85
00:05:22,280 --> 00:05:25,080
longer welcome in the parish of
Saint Mark's, just South of the

86
00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:27,820
swamp.
To escape her arrest, or

87
00:05:27,820 --> 00:05:31,140
possibly even worse, she fled
into the swamp and was never

88
00:05:31,140 --> 00:05:33,820
seen again.
It was then that the swamp was

89
00:05:33,820 --> 00:05:37,540
first referred to as Escaped
Horse Swamp, with that title

90
00:05:37,540 --> 00:05:40,100
even showing up on land deeds
from that time.

91
00:05:41,140 --> 00:05:43,260
Sooner or later the name was
changed to something more

92
00:05:43,260 --> 00:05:45,900
familyfriendly.
Another mystery of the swamp

93
00:05:45,900 --> 00:05:49,020
came in 1936.
A haunted axe that was used to

94
00:05:49,020 --> 00:05:51,780
murder a woman by the name of MM
Brown was part of an urban

95
00:05:51,780 --> 00:05:54,820
legend that described the axe
moving on its own primarily on

96
00:05:54,820 --> 00:05:57,720
Halloween night.
The act served as a grave marker

97
00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:02,480
for Miss Brown until 1978.
The Skateboard bridge is home to

98
00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:05,680
a ghostly canine known locally
as the Chain Dog.

99
00:06:06,480 --> 00:06:09,360
This canine inspector is said to
be heard running back and

100
00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:12,560
forward on the bridge while
dragging its metal chains on

101
00:06:12,560 --> 00:06:16,030
certain nights.
And in 1871, the famed

102
00:06:16,030 --> 00:06:19,390
Bishopville giant caused a lot
of panic in both Bishopville and

103
00:06:19,390 --> 00:06:22,750
Manning when a ghostly large
humanoid figure was seen by

104
00:06:22,750 --> 00:06:25,630
multiple people at varying
times, which apparently had a

105
00:06:25,630 --> 00:06:28,390
metal collar on its neck.
From this collar, they're

106
00:06:28,390 --> 00:06:30,510
swinging anvil and multiple
sledgehammers.

107
00:06:31,070 --> 00:06:34,670
A few reports say that the giant
vanished into thin air or solid

108
00:06:34,670 --> 00:06:37,550
objects, and one man even
claimed to have been touched by

109
00:06:37,550 --> 00:06:41,990
its icy hand, but nothing that
this swamp has ever offered up.

110
00:06:42,550 --> 00:06:45,630
Can hold a candle to the most
famous monster of browndown.

111
00:06:46,150 --> 00:06:49,910
The cryptozoological darling is
known by varying names and

112
00:06:49,910 --> 00:06:53,030
created a stir in 1988 that
stretched throughout the country

113
00:06:53,030 --> 00:06:55,830
and even in too far away places
such as Korea.

114
00:06:56,430 --> 00:07:00,630
The creatures reality has been
debated for 35 years, but one

115
00:07:00,630 --> 00:07:03,830
thing can never be taken away
and that is that the creature

116
00:07:03,830 --> 00:07:06,350
scared the shit out of many
people in the area surrounding

117
00:07:06,350 --> 00:07:08,870
Skateboard Swamp.
Today we're diving back into the

118
00:07:08,870 --> 00:07:11,430
story and evidence of the Bishop
of the Lizard Man.

119
00:07:12,900 --> 00:07:17,340
Early in the morning of July
14th, 1988 to Lee County

120
00:07:17,340 --> 00:07:19,620
Sheriff's Department, officers
were dispatched to the way

121
00:07:19,620 --> 00:07:22,620
residents on the fringe of the
skateboard swamp in Browntown to

122
00:07:22,660 --> 00:07:27,100
investigate a report of extreme
vandalism to the family's 1984

123
00:07:27,100 --> 00:07:30,900
Ford Ltd What they saw was not
your typical vandalism.

124
00:07:31,580 --> 00:07:34,540
There was no broken window from
an obvious attempt at a theft,

125
00:07:34,620 --> 00:07:37,820
no thin and elongated puncture
holes and tires that were caused

126
00:07:37,820 --> 00:07:40,460
by a knife.
No, the damage to this car was

127
00:07:40,460 --> 00:07:43,570
much stranger.
Reddish hair and muddy prints

128
00:07:43,570 --> 00:07:46,170
were found on and around the
automobile, and instead of the

129
00:07:46,170 --> 00:07:48,850
typical damage caused by
vandals, the officers were

130
00:07:48,850 --> 00:07:52,410
confused to see not just bite
marks, But it seemed that

131
00:07:52,410 --> 00:07:55,330
whatever caused this damage had
attempted to chew on various

132
00:07:55,330 --> 00:07:57,170
areas of the metal skin of the
car.

133
00:07:57,490 --> 00:08:00,330
The Chrome molding was torn away
from the wheel wells and

134
00:08:00,330 --> 00:08:02,810
fenders.
The side walls of the wheels

135
00:08:02,810 --> 00:08:05,330
were scratched by what looked
like large claws.

136
00:08:05,810 --> 00:08:08,610
The ornament was torn off the
hood and through the bent hood

137
00:08:08,610 --> 00:08:11,970
of the car the officers could
see that some of the wiring in

138
00:08:11,970 --> 00:08:15,530
the motor was torn out as well.
The first impression was that

139
00:08:15,530 --> 00:08:19,210
this was caused by some sort of
animal, but that wasn't really

140
00:08:19,210 --> 00:08:22,290
adding up.
Yes, the damage happened on a

141
00:08:22,290 --> 00:08:25,890
property neighboring a large
swamp, but the local animals

142
00:08:25,890 --> 00:08:29,730
were not known to resort to
attacking a parked car, so the

143
00:08:29,730 --> 00:08:32,010
officers placed a call to then
Sheriff.

144
00:08:32,010 --> 00:08:34,950
Listen, Truesdale.
After the sheriff had arrived on

145
00:08:34,950 --> 00:08:37,950
the scene, he too was stumped as
to who the culprit could have

146
00:08:37,950 --> 00:08:40,110
been.
In his 14 years of service at

147
00:08:40,110 --> 00:08:44,030
the time, he had been called out
to many animal attacks, Nothing

148
00:08:44,030 --> 00:08:46,670
looked like this.
So the decision was made to

149
00:08:46,670 --> 00:08:49,950
reach out to South Carolina's
Wildlife and Marine Resource

150
00:08:49,950 --> 00:08:52,830
Department to have a biologist
come out and attempt to clear up

151
00:08:52,830 --> 00:08:55,310
the story with the evidence that
was left by the vandal.

152
00:08:55,950 --> 00:08:58,670
One of the first things that the
biologist examined was the hair

153
00:08:58,670 --> 00:09:01,830
samples, and although not 100%
confident in his answers, the

154
00:09:01,830 --> 00:09:05,070
best idea he had at the time of
the investigation was that the

155
00:09:05,070 --> 00:09:07,310
fur may have belonged to a red
fox.

156
00:09:08,150 --> 00:09:10,750
But of course red foxes aren't
known to have the strength to

157
00:09:10,750 --> 00:09:12,670
physically cause the damage that
was seen.

158
00:09:12,830 --> 00:09:14,790
So samples of the hair were
gathered and sent to the

159
00:09:14,790 --> 00:09:17,230
University of Georgia for
further deciphering.

160
00:09:18,070 --> 00:09:20,910
The same animal was blamed for
the Prince left in the immediate

161
00:09:20,910 --> 00:09:24,440
vicinity of the car.
But March larger prints were

162
00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:27,920
found about 25 yards away that
seemed to be a very large black

163
00:09:27,920 --> 00:09:31,600
bear heading into the swamp.
So the first official narratives

164
00:09:31,600 --> 00:09:35,160
were brought forward, one being
that this was a human vandal who

165
00:09:35,160 --> 00:09:38,560
left fox fur and prints on the
con and around the car to put

166
00:09:38,560 --> 00:09:41,280
blame on another creature or
two.

167
00:09:41,680 --> 00:09:45,240
A bear had been hunting a fox
and the damage scene was the

168
00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:48,360
bears attempt to climb the car
to get to the nimble animal.

169
00:09:48,910 --> 00:09:51,870
With damage to the hood and
motor coming from the fox hiding

170
00:09:51,870 --> 00:09:55,150
in the area of the car and the
bear tearing its way to get to

171
00:09:55,150 --> 00:09:59,310
its sly meal as the
investigation was ongoing,

172
00:09:59,630 --> 00:10:03,230
onlookers and reporters began to
show up due to the reports over

173
00:10:03,230 --> 00:10:06,350
their privately owned police
scanners, and new narratives

174
00:10:06,350 --> 00:10:09,520
began surfacing.
The Neighbors of the Ways and

175
00:10:09,520 --> 00:10:12,480
the other locals in Brown Town
described that many of the

176
00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:15,720
residents have been witnessing a
large, upright walking creature

177
00:10:15,720 --> 00:10:18,880
that was described by some as
green and by others as brown.

178
00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:23,000
The creature had red eyes and
many claim that it was about 7

179
00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:26,560
feet tall, and every local that
showed up to the scene was

180
00:10:26,560 --> 00:10:29,600
thoroughly convinced that this
creature was the one to blame

181
00:10:29,600 --> 00:10:33,040
for the damage to the Wave
family car if it were not for

182
00:10:33,040 --> 00:10:35,800
the complete certainty of the
people who gathered the scene.

183
00:10:36,090 --> 00:10:39,010
The sheriff would never have
taken the claim seriously, but

184
00:10:39,010 --> 00:10:42,690
good thing he did.
Many specific names and details

185
00:10:42,690 --> 00:10:44,490
were given to the sheriff and
the vandal.

186
00:10:44,490 --> 00:10:47,530
Investigation at a residence on
the fringe of the skateboard

187
00:10:47,530 --> 00:10:51,010
swamp took a strange and
permanent turn towards the new

188
00:10:51,010 --> 00:10:54,090
legend of what the locals were
now calling the Lizard Man.

189
00:10:54,690 --> 00:10:58,090
Before Sheriff Truesdale had
been called to the scene, he had

190
00:10:58,090 --> 00:11:00,170
been in the meeting with a news
reporter from the state's

191
00:11:00,170 --> 00:11:04,810
largest newspaper, simply named
The State, and it was in this

192
00:11:04,810 --> 00:11:08,320
newspaper.
By this reporter who had joined

193
00:11:08,320 --> 00:11:11,720
Sheriff Chewsdale out in
Brownstown, the story of the

194
00:11:11,720 --> 00:11:15,320
scape or lizard man would be
introduced to the world.

195
00:11:16,440 --> 00:11:20,040
Christopher Davis Sheriff
Chewsdale found it hard to

196
00:11:20,040 --> 00:11:22,880
believe that there was a monster
loose in the area, escape or

197
00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:24,640
swamp.
And when none of the people

198
00:11:24,640 --> 00:11:27,600
named during the initial
investigation of the car damage

199
00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,160
wanting to share their
experiences with the police or

200
00:11:30,160 --> 00:11:33,720
reporters, the seriousness of
the Lizard Man began to decay in

201
00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:37,420
the coming hours.
Two days after the Way family's

202
00:11:37,460 --> 00:11:41,620
vandalism on July 16th at about
mid afternoon, a man by the name

203
00:11:41,620 --> 00:11:46,020
of Tony Davis and his 17 year
old son Christopher walked into

204
00:11:46,020 --> 00:11:49,300
the Sheriff's station and shared
the son's experience with an

205
00:11:49,300 --> 00:11:52,540
unknown animal.
Tommy had seen the newspaper

206
00:11:52,540 --> 00:11:55,940
articles written by Miss Tutton
and felt responsible to report

207
00:11:55,940 --> 00:11:59,220
his son's story as it seemed
more and more each day that his

208
00:11:59,220 --> 00:12:01,620
son may actually be telling him
the truth.

209
00:12:02,270 --> 00:12:05,950
Chris Davis was heading home at
around 2:30 AM after the night

210
00:12:05,950 --> 00:12:09,230
shift at McDonald's about two
weeks before the car vandalism

211
00:12:09,230 --> 00:12:11,990
had taken place.
The route routinely takes them

212
00:12:11,990 --> 00:12:15,190
along the outskirts of the
skateboard swamp and this trip

213
00:12:15,310 --> 00:12:18,350
was no different.
As he was about 7 miles away

214
00:12:18,350 --> 00:12:20,350
from home.
One of the tires gave out on the

215
00:12:20,350 --> 00:12:24,950
Celica and the young man quickly
grabbed the tire, iron Jack and

216
00:12:24,950 --> 00:12:28,150
spare out of his trunk and got
right to the task at hand.

217
00:12:28,490 --> 00:12:31,010
The boy made quick work in the
pitch at night while being

218
00:12:31,010 --> 00:12:34,370
attacked by every bug in the
swamp, and as he was putting his

219
00:12:34,370 --> 00:12:36,970
tools back in the trunk, he
noticed that approximately 30

220
00:12:36,970 --> 00:12:40,090
yards away from them someone or
something was walking towards

221
00:12:40,090 --> 00:12:43,090
them with its arms bowed
outwards from the tree line.

222
00:12:43,930 --> 00:12:46,170
The only light that was
available in the direction of

223
00:12:46,170 --> 00:12:48,130
the incomer was the light of the
moon.

224
00:12:48,650 --> 00:12:53,290
Chris described what he referred
to as a quote redeyed devil as

225
00:12:53,290 --> 00:12:57,090
standing roughly 7 feet tall,
what looked like wet green skin.

226
00:12:57,670 --> 00:13:02,070
Red eyes and only three fingers
on each hand, Chris immediately

227
00:13:02,070 --> 00:13:05,310
ran to the driver side door and
jumped in as he sat there,

228
00:13:05,310 --> 00:13:07,990
scared of what might come from
this encounter, the creature

229
00:13:07,990 --> 00:13:10,750
came to stand about two feet
from the driver side window.

230
00:13:11,230 --> 00:13:13,790
The creature climbed on top of
the car and the only thing that

231
00:13:13,790 --> 00:13:17,070
Chris could see were two digits
from one hand hanging over the

232
00:13:17,070 --> 00:13:20,150
top of the windshield.
He made note that the claw at

233
00:13:20,150 --> 00:13:22,550
the end of the digits was black
and sharp.

234
00:13:23,010 --> 00:13:25,770
Soon after it climbed on top of
his car, the thing let out a

235
00:13:25,770 --> 00:13:29,250
guttal grunt and Chris turned
the key and sped off as fast as

236
00:13:29,250 --> 00:13:31,810
it could.
The acceleration caused the

237
00:13:31,810 --> 00:13:34,730
creature to tumble off the back
of the car and at the same time

238
00:13:34,730 --> 00:13:37,890
damaging his side mirror.
Chris watched as the creature

239
00:13:37,890 --> 00:13:41,770
hastily returned to its two feet
and began running After the car.

240
00:13:42,290 --> 00:13:45,570
Chris claimed to be traveling
about 35 mph when the creature

241
00:13:45,570 --> 00:13:48,290
caught up to him and yet again
jumped on top of the vehicle.

242
00:13:48,610 --> 00:13:50,450
He never heard the thing fall
off.

243
00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:53,680
And as he approached his house
early in the morning, Chris laid

244
00:13:53,680 --> 00:13:56,400
on his horn and tried like hell
to get someone's attention.

245
00:13:56,800 --> 00:13:59,200
As his father opened the front
door, Chris approached, yelling

246
00:13:59,200 --> 00:14:01,720
at the top of his lungs.
His father was instantly

247
00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:04,720
concerned for his son, but at
first sight he had no idea what

248
00:14:04,720 --> 00:14:08,000
it made Chris so upset.
Chris looked back and began to

249
00:14:08,000 --> 00:14:10,480
cry as he realized that the
creature was not on top of his

250
00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:12,480
car as he thought it was still
was.

251
00:14:12,960 --> 00:14:16,040
After Chris explained the event,
Tommy Davis went out to

252
00:14:16,040 --> 00:14:18,760
investigate and turn his son's
car off.

253
00:14:19,460 --> 00:14:22,100
The drivers side mirrors bent
down and there were scratches

254
00:14:22,300 --> 00:14:27,220
all over the roof.
The trackway, Deputy Wayne

255
00:14:27,220 --> 00:14:30,220
Atkinson, was manning the desk
at the Lee County Sheriff's

256
00:14:30,220 --> 00:14:34,380
Office at 2:00 AM on July 24th
when two teenagers ran into the

257
00:14:34,380 --> 00:14:36,860
station.
The boys were visually upset and

258
00:14:36,860 --> 00:14:39,700
were breathing very heavily.
Before the deputy could ask what

259
00:14:39,700 --> 00:14:41,860
was wrong, one of the boys
blurted out.

260
00:14:41,860 --> 00:14:44,020
Quote, I think we saw the lizard
man.

261
00:14:44,670 --> 00:14:48,070
Rodney Nulf and Shane Stokes
were driving their girlfriends

262
00:14:48,070 --> 00:14:51,870
home when something large and
running on two legs ran in front

263
00:14:51,870 --> 00:14:53,870
of their car and jumped the
fence on the other side of the

264
00:14:53,870 --> 00:14:55,910
road.
There isn't much else to tell

265
00:14:55,910 --> 00:14:58,670
this particular encounter, but a
few hours later woman in

266
00:14:58,670 --> 00:15:01,430
Browntown called in to report a
loud howling coming from the

267
00:15:01,430 --> 00:15:03,870
woods.
If it wasn't for the birth of

268
00:15:03,870 --> 00:15:06,870
the Lizard Man sightings and the
boys who had come in earlier in

269
00:15:06,870 --> 00:15:10,750
the night, Deputy Atkinson
wouldn't typically entertain

270
00:15:10,790 --> 00:15:13,780
such a report too much.
But this time we decided it

271
00:15:13,780 --> 00:15:15,420
might be a good idea to have a
look.

272
00:15:16,060 --> 00:15:20,100
Both Atkinson and State Trooper
Mike Hodge drove over and began

273
00:15:20,100 --> 00:15:23,060
patrolling the back roads along
the woods and swamp with their

274
00:15:23,060 --> 00:15:25,900
spotlight.
As it began their way down

275
00:15:25,900 --> 00:15:29,980
Branlett Rd. they discovered
several crunched 40 gallon drums

276
00:15:29,980 --> 00:15:32,780
strewn along the road in various
locations.

277
00:15:32,980 --> 00:15:35,580
The men got out of the cruiser
and approached to investigate,

278
00:15:35,580 --> 00:15:38,260
but found nothing out of the
ordinary other than the drums

279
00:15:38,260 --> 00:15:40,530
themselves.
So they jumped back in the car

280
00:15:40,530 --> 00:15:43,690
and headed back down the road
away before you, turning and

281
00:15:43,690 --> 00:15:46,010
heading back to where they
entered Bramlett Rd.

282
00:15:46,010 --> 00:15:47,930
From.
As they approached the area with

283
00:15:47,930 --> 00:15:50,610
the barrels, a large trackway
was highlighted by their

284
00:15:50,610 --> 00:15:53,250
headlights that were not there
just a few minutes prior.

285
00:15:53,530 --> 00:15:57,090
Each three toed print was 14
inches long and seven inches

286
00:15:57,090 --> 00:15:59,610
wide at the widest point, and
the stride length was just a

287
00:15:59,610 --> 00:16:02,950
hair over 3 feet.
It didn't take long for them to

288
00:16:02,950 --> 00:16:05,870
jump back in the car and leave
the scene as they made the

289
00:16:05,870 --> 00:16:08,510
decision to come back in the
daylight so as to not put

290
00:16:08,510 --> 00:16:11,230
themselves in danger.
Wandering in the woods following

291
00:16:11,230 --> 00:16:14,310
the tracks, the officers
returned in the morning and this

292
00:16:14,310 --> 00:16:16,670
time they were accompanied by
Sheriff Truesdale.

293
00:16:16,910 --> 00:16:20,230
In the daylight, the three men
were able to further investigate

294
00:16:20,230 --> 00:16:24,110
the litter of drums, footprints
and the damage to tree limbs up

295
00:16:24,110 --> 00:16:27,430
to the 9 foot mark that were now
visible in the daylight.

296
00:16:27,990 --> 00:16:30,030
The sheriff had seen enough to
want to take this event

297
00:16:30,030 --> 00:16:32,510
seriously and had one of the
officers head back to the

298
00:16:32,510 --> 00:16:35,870
station for casting material for
the Prince and called in the

299
00:16:35,870 --> 00:16:38,790
South Carolina State Law
Enforcement Division to request

300
00:16:38,790 --> 00:16:41,750
tracking dogs.
As the men were pouring the

301
00:16:41,750 --> 00:16:45,350
plaster into the print, a CNN
news van pulled up and the

302
00:16:45,350 --> 00:16:49,190
sheriff moseyed over to answer a
few questions before telling him

303
00:16:49,190 --> 00:16:52,310
that he had to complete the
current investigation before he

304
00:16:52,310 --> 00:16:55,670
did any interviews on the matter
as he was walking back.

305
00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:58,760
Three officers from the State
Law Enforcement Division showed

306
00:16:58,840 --> 00:17:02,040
and were instantly interested in
the strange tracks.

307
00:17:02,280 --> 00:17:05,599
These men had a job that sent
them into the woods, following

308
00:17:05,599 --> 00:17:08,400
tracks of various men and
animals, and these were like

309
00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:11,440
nothing they had ever seen.
The hounds trail.

310
00:17:11,440 --> 00:17:15,359
The tracks weigh about 150 yards
into the Monkey Swamp before the

311
00:17:15,359 --> 00:17:18,920
sky let loose and downpour ruin,
their chance at ever discovering

312
00:17:18,920 --> 00:17:24,240
what may be at the end of the
tracks, a few from the past.

313
00:17:25,060 --> 00:17:28,420
Several weeks after the trackway
that was found by the Lee County

314
00:17:28,420 --> 00:17:31,980
officers, a man by the name of
George Holloman had come forward

315
00:17:31,980 --> 00:17:35,500
about a sign that he had, prior
to the vandalism the way family

316
00:17:35,500 --> 00:17:37,580
car.
In fact, the first time the

317
00:17:37,580 --> 00:17:40,820
Sheriff Truesdale had heard the
name George Holloman was at the

318
00:17:40,820 --> 00:17:43,420
investigation by one of the
onlookers.

319
00:17:43,580 --> 00:17:45,220
Nothing had ever come from that
lead.

320
00:17:45,220 --> 00:17:48,180
But that sure changed when
Holloman walked through the door

321
00:17:48,180 --> 00:17:51,190
of the Sheriff's Office.
George Holloman was a 31 year

322
00:17:51,190 --> 00:17:53,950
old construction worker from
Brown Town and the sighting of

323
00:17:53,950 --> 00:17:58,710
something strained by skateboard
bridge happened in October 1987.

324
00:18:00,030 --> 00:18:03,470
Holloman was riding his bicycle
one evening when he had stopped

325
00:18:03,470 --> 00:18:06,750
on the South side of the bridge
and took a few swigs of water

326
00:18:06,750 --> 00:18:09,670
and lit a cigarette.
He was observing the side of the

327
00:18:09,670 --> 00:18:12,310
water falling under the bridge
and the silence of the woods

328
00:18:12,310 --> 00:18:14,430
around him when out of the
corner of his eye, what he

329
00:18:14,430 --> 00:18:18,910
originally thought was a damaged
tree stood up to about 7:00 or 8

330
00:18:18,910 --> 00:18:21,390
feet.
George watched as the creature

331
00:18:21,390 --> 00:18:24,990
stared at him and made slight
movements, but never really

332
00:18:24,990 --> 00:18:26,790
moving from his standing
position.

333
00:18:27,630 --> 00:18:30,870
A passing car's headlights
illuminated the area a few yards

334
00:18:30,870 --> 00:18:33,510
away from the creature, but the
light was enough to show bright

335
00:18:33,510 --> 00:18:37,770
red eyes reflecting back at him.
Whatever it was seemed not to

336
00:18:37,770 --> 00:18:40,850
care too much for the passing
car as it turned and began to

337
00:18:40,850 --> 00:18:43,890
walk into the tree line away
from where the passerby had

338
00:18:43,890 --> 00:18:46,410
traveled.
As the creature walked off,

339
00:18:46,530 --> 00:18:49,130
George took notice that it
seemed to be covered in hair.

340
00:18:49,370 --> 00:18:53,410
In his report that was reported
on August 13th, 1988, George

341
00:18:53,410 --> 00:18:56,970
passed on the information of the
sighting and was unsure if it

342
00:18:56,970 --> 00:19:00,530
was the socalled Lizard Man, but
he felt that with all of the

343
00:19:00,530 --> 00:19:02,850
reports going on, he found it
important to pass on the

344
00:19:02,850 --> 00:19:05,920
description of what he saw.
Shortly after George Hallman

345
00:19:05,920 --> 00:19:08,680
came forward with the story,
another man felt comfortable

346
00:19:08,680 --> 00:19:12,680
enough to do the same.
George Plyler was working at his

347
00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:16,560
home with a few men near
Daybreak in the spring of 1986,

348
00:19:17,040 --> 00:19:19,760
two years prior to Christopher
Davis's encounter.

349
00:19:20,440 --> 00:19:24,040
As the four men were putting in
a hog pen near the border of his

350
00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:27,680
property and swamp, the hairs on
the back of Plyler's neck stood

351
00:19:27,680 --> 00:19:29,760
up and he immediately had the
feeling that he was being

352
00:19:29,760 --> 00:19:32,640
watched.
His sight settled on a set of

353
00:19:32,640 --> 00:19:35,840
reflecting eyes, peering out
just past the trunk in the tree

354
00:19:35,840 --> 00:19:37,640
line.
What he originally thought was a

355
00:19:37,640 --> 00:19:40,840
deer was clearly not, as he
found himself terrified of the

356
00:19:40,840 --> 00:19:43,000
figure that laid in his
eyesight.

357
00:19:43,560 --> 00:19:46,880
The creature stood on 2 legs
with arms that hung down past

358
00:19:46,880 --> 00:19:49,240
its knees.
The eyes were reflecting bright

359
00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:51,960
red and its face looked eerily
humanoid.

360
00:19:52,480 --> 00:19:55,520
Whatever it was took off rather
quickly as George was able to

361
00:19:55,520 --> 00:19:57,960
get one last good look at the
creature's body.

362
00:19:58,560 --> 00:20:01,560
He claimed to not remember fur
or hair on the body of the

363
00:20:01,560 --> 00:20:03,560
creature, but the legs were long
and skinny.

364
00:20:04,480 --> 00:20:08,640
When asked if he saw was the
infamous lizard man, he replied

365
00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:12,320
it had a bibe, maybe similar to
a lizard except for the head and

366
00:20:12,320 --> 00:20:14,320
it didn't have a tail or
anything like that.

367
00:20:14,920 --> 00:20:17,800
Shortly after deciding as the
sun came up, George wandered

368
00:20:17,800 --> 00:20:21,760
over where he claimed to have
seen a few threetoed prints and

369
00:20:21,760 --> 00:20:24,880
swampy muck.
A few weeks after the

370
00:20:24,880 --> 00:20:27,800
Christopher Davis encounter,
another man came forward about a

371
00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:30,480
strange event that took place
roughly a month before.

372
00:20:30,480 --> 00:20:33,760
Davis's Frank Mitchell was a
crop duster and owned a rather

373
00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:36,880
large property with a private
hangar for his plane and runway

374
00:20:36,880 --> 00:20:38,920
to go with it on the morning
question.

375
00:20:39,120 --> 00:20:41,480
The fog hung low until later in
the morning.

376
00:20:41,830 --> 00:20:44,950
Mitchell taxied his crop duster
out to the runway and took off

377
00:20:44,950 --> 00:20:48,510
down to 3000 foot stretch of
grass and just as he was

378
00:20:48,510 --> 00:20:52,550
beginning to lift into the air,
a large upright walking grayish

379
00:20:52,550 --> 00:20:56,390
creature walked into the runway,
completely unfazed by the

380
00:20:56,390 --> 00:20:59,750
approaching plane.
The small aircraft soared over

381
00:20:59,750 --> 00:21:02,550
the creature and Mitchell was
frightened as to what it was,

382
00:21:03,150 --> 00:21:05,190
losing sight of it.
Immediately as the nose of the

383
00:21:05,190 --> 00:21:08,270
plane tilted up to take off,
Mitchell made a quick bank back

384
00:21:08,270 --> 00:21:11,430
to his runway and by the time he
returned the thing was gone.

385
00:21:11,850 --> 00:21:13,770
In his retelling of the story,
he claimed that it was

386
00:21:13,770 --> 00:21:17,130
impossible to remember exactly
what the creature looked like,

387
00:21:17,130 --> 00:21:19,170
as he only saw it for a few
moments.

388
00:21:19,610 --> 00:21:22,570
But his initial thoughts were
that the face looked like that

389
00:21:22,570 --> 00:21:26,810
of an ape, not a lizard.
The Ugly side.

390
00:21:27,610 --> 00:21:31,210
On August 6th, 1988, a headline
from the State newspaper read,

391
00:21:31,490 --> 00:21:34,410
Florence Mann says he wounded
the Lizard Man.

392
00:21:35,170 --> 00:21:38,210
This propelled the circus that
Brown Town had become, and the

393
00:21:38,210 --> 00:21:41,210
local sheriff had finally had
enough of the reporters, ruining

394
00:21:41,210 --> 00:21:44,930
the quiet area and random men
wandering through properties,

395
00:21:44,930 --> 00:21:48,290
woods and swamps with loaded
rifles and shotguns.

396
00:21:48,450 --> 00:21:51,690
So Sheriff Truesdale drove down
to the Shaw Air Force Base to

397
00:21:51,690 --> 00:21:54,930
speak with the man who shot the
lizard and airman by the name of

398
00:21:54,930 --> 00:21:58,850
Kenneth Orr.
Mr. Orr story was ridiculous and

399
00:21:58,850 --> 00:22:02,130
the evidence, quote UN quote,
that he had was even more

400
00:22:02,130 --> 00:22:04,820
ridiculous.
Kenneth Orr was traveling on

401
00:22:04,820 --> 00:22:08,420
Interstate 20 to the base at
6:00 AM on August 5th when he

402
00:22:08,420 --> 00:22:12,860
took the exit for Hwy. 15 on his
approach to Gin Branch Rd.

403
00:22:12,940 --> 00:22:15,500
He witnessed a strange creature
running at his car from the

404
00:22:15,500 --> 00:22:18,820
embankment up ahead, or
described it standing 5 foot

405
00:22:18,820 --> 00:22:22,660
nine and having a lizard like
tail with green but not scaly

406
00:22:22,660 --> 00:22:24,660
skin.
As the creature got closer, he

407
00:22:24,660 --> 00:22:27,100
stepped out of his vehicle and
commanded the creature to halt

408
00:22:27,260 --> 00:22:30,460
When it didn't or fired a
warning shot into the air which

409
00:22:30,460 --> 00:22:32,620
did nothing to keep that
creature from barreling down

410
00:22:32,620 --> 00:22:35,140
towards him.
Or aimed and fired multiple

411
00:22:35,140 --> 00:22:37,260
rounds in this creature, with
one clipping the side of its

412
00:22:37,260 --> 00:22:39,620
neck.
The creature fell into his car,

413
00:22:39,780 --> 00:22:42,820
got up on its feet, and ran into
the woods, never to be seen

414
00:22:42,820 --> 00:22:45,100
again.
All that was left were a few

415
00:22:45,100 --> 00:22:48,500
scales and some blood on the
hood of his car, or collected

416
00:22:48,500 --> 00:22:51,460
the evidence in a zip lock bag
and turned it into Sheriff

417
00:22:51,460 --> 00:22:53,740
Truesdale.
When he showed up at the base,

418
00:22:54,420 --> 00:22:57,460
Truesdale became angry at the
quote UN quote evidence because

419
00:22:57,460 --> 00:22:59,060
it seemed to be nothing but
fishios.

420
00:22:59,530 --> 00:23:01,730
Or had obviously not done his
homework on the difference

421
00:23:01,730 --> 00:23:04,970
between fish and reptile scales
and even went as far to draw the

422
00:23:04,970 --> 00:23:07,850
creature you saw.
It was literally an alligator on

423
00:23:07,850 --> 00:23:10,570
two legs that looked poorly
identical to a local gas

424
00:23:10,570 --> 00:23:14,250
stations tshirts depiction of
the creature Cheersdale charged

425
00:23:14,250 --> 00:23:18,290
or with a misdemeanor weapons
offense for the unregistered 357

426
00:23:18,290 --> 00:23:21,370
Magnum in his front seat and
another misdemeanor for filing a

427
00:23:21,370 --> 00:23:24,490
false report.
Truesdale was actually sort of

428
00:23:24,490 --> 00:23:27,650
relieved, and it was his hope
that this little event would

429
00:23:27,650 --> 00:23:30,890
help deter others from looking
for the creature or submitting

430
00:23:30,890 --> 00:23:34,450
false reports, or ended up
having a warrant issued for his

431
00:23:34,450 --> 00:23:36,170
arrest.
And when he showed up to the

432
00:23:36,170 --> 00:23:38,970
Sheriff's Office, he admitted to
completely fabricating the

433
00:23:38,970 --> 00:23:41,730
entire story.
He claimed that he only wanted

434
00:23:41,730 --> 00:23:44,490
to keep the legend alive, which
worked.

435
00:23:45,500 --> 00:23:48,420
But not how he intended.
Instead, headlines in the

436
00:23:48,420 --> 00:23:50,820
following days really did number
against the airmen.

437
00:23:50,980 --> 00:23:53,980
And seeing that the circus was
finally ready to calm down.

438
00:23:54,700 --> 00:23:58,020
Not too fast now.
So on August 18th, Christopher

439
00:23:58,020 --> 00:24:01,140
Davis would take a polygraph
test to finally put all the

440
00:24:01,140 --> 00:24:04,500
naysayers in their place.
The results came back that Chris

441
00:24:04,500 --> 00:24:06,100
was telling the truth on all
accounts.

442
00:24:07,300 --> 00:24:09,980
Soon after results were
announced, a new rumor was

443
00:24:09,980 --> 00:24:12,460
making its way through town.
And that was that.

444
00:24:12,460 --> 00:24:16,300
A local bean farmer by the name
of Lucius Elmore, also known as

445
00:24:16,300 --> 00:24:19,740
Brother, was responsible for
scaring the shit out of Chris

446
00:24:19,740 --> 00:24:22,300
Davis that night.
The road in which Chris Davis

447
00:24:22,300 --> 00:24:25,860
apparently had his flat tire on
was only a half a mile away from

448
00:24:25,860 --> 00:24:29,020
the farmer's wellknown butter
bean shed, which kept air

449
00:24:29,020 --> 00:24:32,300
conditioned with multiple window
units in the summer to help keep

450
00:24:32,300 --> 00:24:35,380
the workers cool.
The shed was located at the back

451
00:24:35,380 --> 00:24:38,700
end of his property, and he had
been having recent issues with

452
00:24:38,700 --> 00:24:40,780
people stealing his window units
at night.

453
00:24:41,490 --> 00:24:44,850
So rumor was that since the
event took place so close to

454
00:24:44,850 --> 00:24:47,890
Brother's shed, it must have
been the farmer himself that

455
00:24:47,890 --> 00:24:50,770
scared Christopher.
The farmer was a very tall man,

456
00:24:51,050 --> 00:24:54,410
known to be in the six and a
half feet range and wore wide

457
00:24:54,410 --> 00:24:56,930
round glasses.
Brother may have been patrolling

458
00:24:56,930 --> 00:24:59,610
his property when he saw Chris
and went to investigate.

459
00:24:59,850 --> 00:25:03,010
His arrival may have scared the
young man who was already on

460
00:25:03,010 --> 00:25:05,170
edge being out in the middle of
nowhere in the dark.

461
00:25:05,930 --> 00:25:08,650
Chris would have jumped in the
car, and when he pressed down on

462
00:25:08,650 --> 00:25:11,250
the brake, the illumination of
the tail lights could have

463
00:25:11,250 --> 00:25:13,570
shined off the lenses of
brothers glasses.

464
00:25:13,850 --> 00:25:17,610
This became the hot topic going
through town, and although most

465
00:25:17,610 --> 00:25:20,530
of the residents now believe
Chris did see something due to

466
00:25:20,530 --> 00:25:23,610
the polygraph, many began
running with the story instead

467
00:25:23,610 --> 00:25:25,210
of the lizard man being the
culprit.

468
00:25:25,810 --> 00:25:29,810
Rumor was that Elmore himself
was even confirming the accuracy

469
00:25:29,810 --> 00:25:32,880
of the story.
Boeing questioned by reporters,

470
00:25:32,880 --> 00:25:37,200
Lucius Elmore aka brother,
denied all possibility of that

471
00:25:37,200 --> 00:25:40,520
being the case and his daughter
defended her father by stating

472
00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:43,600
that she was 100% certain that
he was in the house with her on

473
00:25:43,600 --> 00:25:45,680
that night of Christopher
Davis's story.

474
00:25:46,660 --> 00:25:51,380
On August 26th, 1988, an unnamed
Colonel of the Army Corps of

475
00:25:51,380 --> 00:25:55,460
Engineers was driving home with
his wife along Mcduffie Rd. in

476
00:25:55,460 --> 00:25:59,420
Ashwood, about 8 miles South of
Brown Town, when a large brown

477
00:25:59,420 --> 00:26:02,420
being ran across the road in the
beams, their headlights.

478
00:26:02,580 --> 00:26:05,220
The Colonel described the
creature as standing 7-8 feet

479
00:26:05,220 --> 00:26:08,620
tall, running on two legs with a
tail that didn't reach the

480
00:26:08,620 --> 00:26:10,940
ground.
His wife, who is not paying

481
00:26:10,940 --> 00:26:13,460
attention the road, only
witnessed the end of the counter

482
00:26:13,460 --> 00:26:16,300
when the creature ran into the
woods along the road.

483
00:26:16,900 --> 00:26:19,500
Unfortunately, when the officers
arrived the next morning, the

484
00:26:19,500 --> 00:26:22,020
rain from the previous night
seemed to erase all evidence

485
00:26:22,020 --> 00:26:24,020
that anything was ever at the
location.

486
00:26:24,260 --> 00:26:27,020
One thing that stands out about
this particular encounter is

487
00:26:27,020 --> 00:26:29,660
that the only detail that
doesn't seem to jive with the

488
00:26:29,660 --> 00:26:32,900
previous serious reports was
that tale that the Colonel had

489
00:26:32,900 --> 00:26:38,380
described Bigfoot.
As many who are listening will

490
00:26:38,380 --> 00:26:41,460
have already concluded, there
are many who believe that the

491
00:26:41,460 --> 00:26:44,460
Bishopville lizard man is
actually a misidentified

492
00:26:44,460 --> 00:26:47,360
Bigfoot.
In particular, a swamp ape that

493
00:26:47,360 --> 00:26:49,960
calls the southeast and southern
Gulf states home.

494
00:26:50,200 --> 00:26:53,320
A cryptozoologist from the
Cryptozoology Museum project in

495
00:26:53,320 --> 00:26:57,320
Malibu, CA, by the name of Eric
Beckyard reported after a

496
00:26:57,320 --> 00:26:59,720
oneonone interview with
Christopher Davis that he

497
00:26:59,720 --> 00:27:02,960
believed that what witnesses
were reporting as either scaly

498
00:27:02,960 --> 00:27:06,240
or fleshy skin was actually the
swampy muck coating the

499
00:27:06,240 --> 00:27:09,480
Sasquatch's hair that, when
dried, most likely cracked and

500
00:27:09,480 --> 00:27:12,200
crumbled, giving it a look of
scales in the moonlight at a

501
00:27:12,200 --> 00:27:14,440
quick glance.
He believed that the creature

502
00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:17,240
was attracted to Chris that
night due to the smell of

503
00:27:17,240 --> 00:27:18,840
McDonald's coming from a
teenager.

504
00:27:19,200 --> 00:27:21,960
But if what the citizens of
Bishopville area we're seeing

505
00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:26,240
was actually a Bigfoot, then why
would they have reported bipedal

506
00:27:26,240 --> 00:27:29,640
lizards instead?
Looking back on the cultural

507
00:27:29,640 --> 00:27:32,400
history of humans throughout
time, we can see that mankind

508
00:27:32,400 --> 00:27:35,200
has been fascinated with
retroids for as long as we can

509
00:27:35,200 --> 00:27:38,080
imagine.
Looking at art and literature we

510
00:27:38,080 --> 00:27:42,600
can see depictions of secrops, a
once king of Athens, the Chinese

511
00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:46,760
inventor of fishing and trapping
Fuji, the Egyptian God Sobek.

512
00:27:47,000 --> 00:27:50,880
In Hindu mythology we had the
beings known as the not a shock,

513
00:27:50,880 --> 00:27:54,800
the Mayan brain God, the
immortal beings referred to as

514
00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:58,320
the Xian from Taoism.
The Hopi Indians had stories of

515
00:27:58,320 --> 00:28:01,120
the people that they referred to
as their quote UN quote snake

516
00:28:01,120 --> 00:28:03,920
brothers, the Kappa from
Japanese folklore.

517
00:28:04,190 --> 00:28:06,750
Let us not forget the onscreen
depictions of the creature from

518
00:28:06,750 --> 00:28:09,670
the Black Lagoon, the Sleave
stacks from the show Land of the

519
00:28:09,670 --> 00:28:12,750
Loss, the Lizard from the
Spiderman universe and most

520
00:28:12,750 --> 00:28:16,190
recently the Frogman, the Honey
Island Swap Monster which also

521
00:28:16,190 --> 00:28:19,110
has a Mixer, Reptile and Ape
reports, and the conspiracy

522
00:28:19,110 --> 00:28:22,670
favorite bipedal race referred
to as the Reptilians, which some

523
00:28:22,670 --> 00:28:24,430
tie into the lore of the Honor
Naki.

524
00:28:24,670 --> 00:28:27,310
All of which bear the likeness
in some way to the Bishopville

525
00:28:27,310 --> 00:28:32,790
Lizard Man on July 30th, 1990.
All six members of the Blyther's

526
00:28:32,790 --> 00:28:35,870
family encountered the Lizard
Man after almost two years of

527
00:28:35,870 --> 00:28:39,790
silence from the creature Bertha
Blyther was driving home along

528
00:28:39,910 --> 00:28:42,830
Brown Town Rd.
With her five children, ages

529
00:28:42,830 --> 00:28:45,790
ranging from 4 to 18, as they
were approaching the

530
00:28:45,790 --> 00:28:49,110
intersection of Hickory Hill Rd.
They were traveling at

531
00:28:49,110 --> 00:28:52,830
approximately 25 mph when
something large jumped at the

532
00:28:52,830 --> 00:28:55,870
passenger side of the car and
attempted to pull her 11 year

533
00:28:55,870 --> 00:28:58,950
old Tamesha out of the roll down
window.

534
00:28:59,630 --> 00:29:03,190
Bertha turned into the left lane
of the two lane Rd. is whatever

535
00:29:03,190 --> 00:29:06,310
it was jumped at their moving
car during the attack.

536
00:29:06,310 --> 00:29:09,510
The only thing that any of them
saw were the lower half of an

537
00:29:09,510 --> 00:29:13,430
upright brown hairy creature.
But as Bertha speed up her 18

538
00:29:13,430 --> 00:29:16,630
year old son, Johnny turned to
look out the back window and

539
00:29:16,630 --> 00:29:19,670
noticed that whatever it was was
bringing itself to its feet

540
00:29:19,670 --> 00:29:22,510
before disappearing into the
darkness as the car gained

541
00:29:22,510 --> 00:29:24,530
distance.
They all explained that it was

542
00:29:24,530 --> 00:29:27,810
very big and having had two arms
as it was attempting to reach

543
00:29:27,810 --> 00:29:30,130
into the car and stood on 2
legs.

544
00:29:31,490 --> 00:29:35,570
In the fall of 1991, the young
Elmore couple were driving along

545
00:29:35,570 --> 00:29:38,610
the road that connects Brown
Town to Cedar Creek when Brian

546
00:29:38,610 --> 00:29:41,330
witnessed something crouched
down on the side of the road in

547
00:29:41,330 --> 00:29:43,770
the headlights of his car As the
couple drove by.

548
00:29:43,770 --> 00:29:46,610
Whatever it was stood up and
Brian shockingly asked Michelle

549
00:29:46,610 --> 00:29:49,330
if she had seen it.
Michelle denied seeing and told

550
00:29:49,330 --> 00:29:51,090
him that he probably saw a cow
or something.

551
00:29:51,550 --> 00:29:53,790
That's when Brian turned the car
around to see if they could find

552
00:29:53,790 --> 00:29:55,830
it again.
As they approached the area, the

553
00:29:55,830 --> 00:29:58,150
creature stood in front of the
headlights and was illuminated

554
00:29:58,150 --> 00:30:00,790
in a way that caught Brian in
awe as he almost hit the

555
00:30:00,790 --> 00:30:02,710
creature.
He swerved at the last second

556
00:30:02,910 --> 00:30:06,230
and the thing ran into the
woods, the official reports

557
00:30:06,230 --> 00:30:09,990
quoted Brian stating Quote like
a gorilla but bigger, and

558
00:30:09,990 --> 00:30:12,670
Michelle described it as a
brownish black and standing

559
00:30:12,670 --> 00:30:15,150
roughly 7 feet tall.
So what do you think?

560
00:30:15,710 --> 00:30:17,830
Could there be a connection
between Lizard Man sightings and

561
00:30:17,830 --> 00:30:20,720
our beloved Bipedal 8?
Or could there possibly be two

562
00:30:20,720 --> 00:30:25,560
creatures in one place, The
famous Mr. Lizard Man?

563
00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:28,720
There was no doubt.
Besides all the reports coming

564
00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:31,840
in from what were mostly
credible witnesses, the country

565
00:30:31,840 --> 00:30:34,680
began to really pay attention to
the area surrounding

566
00:30:34,680 --> 00:30:37,870
Bishopville, SC.
On July 20th, another article

567
00:30:37,870 --> 00:30:40,510
was published which outlined
Christopher Davis's encounter

568
00:30:40,510 --> 00:30:43,630
with an unknown bipedal creature
on the outskirts of Skateboard

569
00:30:43,630 --> 00:30:46,790
Swamp, and Chris instantly
became not only the talk of the

570
00:30:46,790 --> 00:30:49,910
town, but places far and wide
began paying attention to the

571
00:30:49,950 --> 00:30:52,830
area surrounding skateboard.
Chris became the center of

572
00:30:52,830 --> 00:30:56,150
attention for reporters, radio
stations and carrier citizens

573
00:30:56,150 --> 00:31:01,030
alike, with a radio station out
of nearby Bishopville, WAGS AM

574
00:31:01,030 --> 00:31:04,510
being the first to land the big
interview, followed closely by

575
00:31:04,510 --> 00:31:06,230
local newspapers.
The item.

576
00:31:06,350 --> 00:31:11,750
The State, Lake County Observer
and the Independent Mail WCOS FM

577
00:31:11,750 --> 00:31:14,670
radio station out of Columbia
really skyrocketed the story of

578
00:31:14,670 --> 00:31:18,270
the loser man when they offered
$1,000,000 reward to anyone who

579
00:31:18,270 --> 00:31:20,710
had captured a desert man alive
soon after.

580
00:31:20,710 --> 00:31:23,670
The Associated Press and the
United Press International would

581
00:31:23,670 --> 00:31:26,270
get a hold of the story in
Bishopville as well as the

582
00:31:26,270 --> 00:31:29,190
little town of Brown Town, South
Carolina would soon become the

583
00:31:29,190 --> 00:31:31,630
hotspot for curiosity seekers
from all over.

584
00:31:31,850 --> 00:31:34,930
The furthest place take notice
was the Korean Times, which

585
00:31:34,930 --> 00:31:38,370
reported on both the way
families carve vandalism and the

586
00:31:38,370 --> 00:31:41,250
Christopher Davis account.
But the most famous account of

587
00:31:41,250 --> 00:31:44,490
press coverage surrounding the
Lizard Man was when Tom Brokaw,

588
00:31:44,650 --> 00:31:47,890
host of the NBC Nightly News,
had made a mention of the

589
00:31:47,890 --> 00:31:50,850
creature with a Lee County
Lizard Patrol hat sitting on his

590
00:31:50,850 --> 00:31:54,970
desk from that point.
Floodgates opened, and soon the

591
00:31:54,970 --> 00:31:58,250
little town was being featured
in the likes of NBC's Today

592
00:31:58,250 --> 00:32:02,850
Show, Fox News, Time magazine,
People magazine, CBS Evening

593
00:32:02,850 --> 00:32:06,410
News, CNN, Unsolved Mysteries
and Good Morning America.

594
00:32:06,760 --> 00:32:09,960
Paul Harvey of the ABC Network
even brought up the Lizard Man

595
00:32:09,960 --> 00:32:13,760
to the audience of over 1600
radio stations nationwide,

596
00:32:13,760 --> 00:32:15,800
including the Armed Forces
Networks.

597
00:32:16,000 --> 00:32:19,040
A song from the famous country
musician of the 60s, Jim

598
00:32:19,040 --> 00:32:22,040
Nesbitt, who is from
Bishopville, was inspired by the

599
00:32:22,040 --> 00:32:25,800
famous reptilian in the latter
half of July in 1988 and wrote a

600
00:32:25,800 --> 00:32:27,760
song simply titled The Lizard
Man.

601
00:32:28,480 --> 00:32:32,400
The craze slowed down by the end
of August in 1988, but the

602
00:32:32,400 --> 00:32:34,880
public's interest in Lizard Man
never really died.

603
00:32:35,290 --> 00:32:38,690
In modern times TV shows such as
Destination Truth Factor, Fake

604
00:32:38,690 --> 00:32:43,370
Paranormal Files, Animal X, Lost
Tapes, We Are What and Mysteries

605
00:32:43,370 --> 00:32:46,610
the Museum have all dedicated
entire episodes or segments to

606
00:32:46,610 --> 00:32:50,050
the famed humanoid reptile and
countless podcasts have followed

607
00:32:50,050 --> 00:32:52,930
in their footsteps.
The book I use is my primary

608
00:32:52,930 --> 00:32:55,050
resource.
Lizard Man, The True Story of

609
00:32:55,050 --> 00:32:58,370
the Bishop of Monster by Lyle
Blackburn is the only book that

610
00:32:58,370 --> 00:33:01,330
I have found that is complete
dedicated to creature itself,

611
00:33:01,490 --> 00:33:04,410
yet many others have dedicated
chapters or segments to the

612
00:33:04,410 --> 00:33:09,780
creature.
Modern Encounters In 2008, Bob

613
00:33:09,780 --> 00:33:12,020
Rossen of Bishopville was
getting ready to head to the

614
00:33:12,020 --> 00:33:14,180
hardware store when he was
shocked to find that the

615
00:33:14,180 --> 00:33:16,860
family's blue Dodge Caravan was
damaged overnight.

616
00:33:17,540 --> 00:33:20,100
It looked like some animal had
attacked it for hours.

617
00:33:20,580 --> 00:33:22,740
The hood had multiple bite
marks, the fenders were

618
00:33:22,740 --> 00:33:25,500
scratched, bent and bit through,
and there was blood in some

619
00:33:25,500 --> 00:33:27,780
places with damage.
When the Lee County Sheriff's

620
00:33:27,780 --> 00:33:30,900
Office showed up to the scene,
nobody wanted to be the first to

621
00:33:30,900 --> 00:33:34,020
say what everyone was thinking.
The Lizard Man was back.

622
00:33:34,640 --> 00:33:38,080
Almost 20 years later, the
damage was so severe to the

623
00:33:38,080 --> 00:33:40,400
material of the vehicle that
nobody believed that it could

624
00:33:40,400 --> 00:33:42,680
have been done by a fox, coyote,
or bear.

625
00:33:43,000 --> 00:33:45,960
Miss Rossen was the one that put
the story together after the

626
00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:48,800
typical number of cats in the
neighborhood drastically

627
00:33:48,800 --> 00:33:52,000
decreased in the same night.
The running theory in the story

628
00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:55,000
of the Rawson's vandalism case
is that whatever it was wanted

629
00:33:55,000 --> 00:33:58,360
to get to a cat or multiple cats
that were under the van through

630
00:33:58,360 --> 00:34:00,960
the attempts at a meal, the
places in which a cat would

631
00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:03,760
easily hide were the places that
were most affected.

632
00:34:04,260 --> 00:34:06,900
The cats are known to find their
way into the engine area of cars

633
00:34:06,980 --> 00:34:09,699
under the hood, and some are
known to lay on top of the tire

634
00:34:09,699 --> 00:34:12,580
in the wheel well.
After gathering DNA samples from

635
00:34:12,580 --> 00:34:15,100
blood, the sheriff had taken a
moment to look around the

636
00:34:15,100 --> 00:34:17,659
immediate area, which included
the field where the bodies of a

637
00:34:17,659 --> 00:34:20,940
cow and a coyote were found.
Months later, the results were

638
00:34:20,940 --> 00:34:23,820
in the culprit was identified as
a domestic dog.

639
00:34:24,540 --> 00:34:27,139
Neither the Rawsons nor the
Sheriff's Department bought that

640
00:34:27,219 --> 00:34:29,540
as an explanation for the damage
done to the van.

641
00:34:29,860 --> 00:34:32,940
Then Sheriff Melvin was stated
saying, Quote, if I didn't see

642
00:34:32,940 --> 00:34:34,719
the van.
I might have believed it.

643
00:34:35,280 --> 00:34:38,840
A number of theories had come up
surrounding the results, one of

644
00:34:38,840 --> 00:34:41,480
which was that the swabs may
have been tainted by the German

645
00:34:41,480 --> 00:34:43,880
Shepherds of a neighbor who had
come to see the damage.

646
00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:47,800
Another possibility was that
whatever it was may have had the

647
00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:51,280
blood of a dog on its body when
it went after the cats, but

648
00:34:51,280 --> 00:34:54,639
whatever it was, the masses do
not believe that it was a

649
00:34:54,639 --> 00:34:58,000
domestic dog, and the legend of
Bishopville Lizardman had seemed

650
00:34:58,000 --> 00:35:01,900
to have come full circle.
On the 4th of July in 2011, Leon

651
00:35:01,900 --> 00:35:04,660
Marshall was shocked to find his
Dodge Journey in the solar state

652
00:35:04,660 --> 00:35:07,780
and promptly called the Lee
County Sheriff's Department Yet

653
00:35:07,780 --> 00:35:09,620
again.
There were teeth prints on the

654
00:35:09,620 --> 00:35:12,460
hood and Fender, but this time
there seemed to be a rather

655
00:35:12,460 --> 00:35:15,980
large trail of dried saliva and
a few white and black hairs left

656
00:35:15,980 --> 00:35:17,780
behind.
The Sheriff's Department seem to

657
00:35:17,780 --> 00:35:21,180
be done with these cases and
denied the chance to run a DNA

658
00:35:21,180 --> 00:35:24,860
sample on the evidence, so this
particular case may never be

659
00:35:24,860 --> 00:35:27,470
solved.
But in season two of the Scifi

660
00:35:27,510 --> 00:35:31,110
Channel show Factor faked, The
team created multiple different

661
00:35:31,110 --> 00:35:33,750
tests which resulted in bullets
being shot at a car,

662
00:35:33,790 --> 00:35:37,390
hydraulically operates, steel,
jaws, and a bunch of commonly

663
00:35:37,390 --> 00:35:39,950
owned tools.
The only one of the tests that

664
00:35:39,950 --> 00:35:42,390
yield similar results for the
power tool, which led the team

665
00:35:42,390 --> 00:35:45,510
to believe that this was all a
hoax or a case of vandalism.

666
00:35:45,790 --> 00:35:48,510
Many have come forward to deny
the Factor fake findings

667
00:35:48,510 --> 00:35:51,550
throughout the last decade.
Well, that's it travelers.

668
00:35:51,590 --> 00:35:53,590
That's everything I found
regarding the Bishop, Phil

669
00:35:53,590 --> 00:35:55,610
Lizardman.
Not enough info?

670
00:35:55,850 --> 00:35:59,530
Well, that's okay because next
week we dive into other reptoid

671
00:35:59,530 --> 00:36:03,410
creatures of cartigology and
maybe one or two of those lizard

672
00:36:03,410 --> 00:36:06,250
brains can shine a light on the
mystery of skateboards.

673
00:36:06,250 --> 00:36:09,490
Lizard man.
Thank you all again and I'll see

674
00:36:09,490 --> 00:36:12,050
you next time.
The next path of the infinite

675
00:36:12,050 --> 00:36:13,730
rabbit hole.
Bye.

676
00:36:17,610 --> 00:36:20,330
I would like to thank you once
again for tuning into the

677
00:36:20,370 --> 00:36:23,710
Infinite Rabbit Hole podcast.
Please make sure to give us a

678
00:36:23,710 --> 00:36:27,070
follow and one of those
beautiful five star ratings on

679
00:36:27,070 --> 00:36:30,870
your podcast player of choice.
If you would like to join the

680
00:36:30,870 --> 00:36:34,310
conversation and stay up to date
on all things infinite rabbit

681
00:36:34,310 --> 00:36:37,470
hole, head on over to Facebook
and search for the Infinite

682
00:36:37,470 --> 00:36:40,670
Rabbit Hole Facebook group.
You Don't Know it's Us when you

683
00:36:40,670 --> 00:36:43,070
see the logo.
If you would like to help

684
00:36:43,070 --> 00:36:45,870
contribute to the cause, there
are a few ways to do so.

685
00:36:46,790 --> 00:36:50,510
First, head on over to anchor
dot FM forward slash infinite

686
00:36:50,510 --> 00:36:52,920
rabbit hole.
And click on the subscribe

687
00:36:52,920 --> 00:36:56,640
button where for $5 a month
you'll get access to all the old

688
00:36:56,640 --> 00:36:59,760
episodes that will never see the
free spotlight ever again.

689
00:37:00,320 --> 00:37:03,320
It's horrible stuff, but if
you're into that kind of thing

690
00:37:03,560 --> 00:37:06,960
and go check that second, head
on over to

691
00:37:06,960 --> 00:37:10,800
infiniterabbithole.com and click
on the IRH Merch Shop tab and

692
00:37:10,800 --> 00:37:14,560
grab yourself a sweet Tshirt
sticker or whatever else you see

693
00:37:14,560 --> 00:37:18,840
that you wouldn't mind owning
Until next time travelers.

694
00:37:18,960 --> 00:37:23,590
I'm Jeremy and I'll see you.
But the next fork in the path of

695
00:37:23,590 --> 00:37:38,030
the infinite rabbit hole all
right.

696
00:37:51,140 --> 00:37:52,460
Now it's heat for everyone else.