Ron Schaffner grew up watching early science fiction and horror movies at local theaters and drive ins, many of which were based on alien invasions and cryptozoological themes. While a sophomore in high school he had a history teacher who was a big science fiction buff who introduced him to the schools librarian who had an interest in UFOs and other anomalous events. Ron began reading books by Frank Edwards, Major Donald Keyhoe and other early investigators in the field. He and his brother soon began reading old magazines like True, Saga and Argosy which contained articles about flying saucers, ghosts and stories of a strange man like beast roaming the Pacific Northwest.
For a short time he abandoned his interests in the paranormal in favor of studying the political climate of the 1960s and early 1970s, but in 1975 his interest was rekindled when a friend gave him a copy of John Keel’s Strange Creatures from Time and Space. A year later he came across a public service document in the news room of the radio station he worked at. It was an informational flyer on an organization called the Ohio UFO Investigators League. He joined the group and with the help of the leagues director, Charles Wilhelm, he began making contacts with various individuals and other organizations.
In 1977, Ron Schaffner investigated reports of a Bigfoot like creature in Ohio and Indiana, by way of newspaper clippings services and correspondence he began to take notice of the large scale strange creature reports occurring throughout the United States. In 1978 he investigated a series of multi witness accounts of Bigfoot in Stark County, Ohio. Several families in the area reported seeing large Bigfoot type creatures in an abandoned strip mine east of their residence. Ron Schaffner and his team interviewed several of the family members and they found them and their accounts to be credible.
In the early 1980s Ron began publishing a newsletter called Creature Chronicles as a way for him to exchange newsletters with other groups and independent investigators to keep abreast of what was occurring elsewhere. Ron continued publishing the Creature Chronicles until the early 1990s at which time he helped co found the Bigfoot Researcher’s Organization.
Quick Info: (where applicable)
Date of Birth: 1951
Birthplace: Unclear at this time
Current Location: Unclear at this time
Books:
Schooling and/or Degrees:
Organizations:
• Bigfoot Researcher’s Organization
Website:
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