Philosopher of the Damned
The pioneering voice of Charles Fort
Almost unclassifiable in nature, the enduring work of paranormalist writer Charles Fort (1874–1932) served to poke holes in the straight story of materialist science and provide a framework for documentation of oddities and the unknown.
Fort’s four books on anomalous phenomena — starting with The Book of the Damned in 1919, followed by New Lands (1923), Lo! (1931), and Wild Talents (1932) — drove readers to ask questions about strange airships (in an age before UFOs or UAPs), mysterious beasts, and unknown powers that might otherwise never have gotten considered.
By “damned” the writer meant facts (or at least reports) that did not fit in: outsider testimonies, observations, theories, and ideas; items considered unfit for consumption, and so were pushed to the margins.
Fort assembled news reports of things happening around the world that were not supposed to occur, like objects in the sky before we had the term flying saucers; frogs, stones, and blood falling from the heavens; strange beasts (including wolf children and wild men); lights on the moon; floating islands; spontaneous human…
