The Mysterious Origins of Man
Encyclopedia
The Mysterious Origins of Man was a television special
that originally aired on NBC
on February 25, 1996. Hosted by Charlton Heston
, the program argued that mankind has lived on the Earth for tens of millions of years, and that mainstream scientists have suppressed the fossil
evidence for this. Some material included was based on the controversial Forbidden Archeology, a book written by Hindu creationists Michael Cremo
and Richard L. Thompson
about Klerksdorp spheres and other alleged out-of-place artifacts. It also included interviews with the following people: creationist Carl Baugh
on the Paluxy tracks; Richard Milton
, author of Shattering the Myths of Darwinism, on Lucy
; Neil Steede on Incan ruins; and Graham Hancock
, author of Fingerprints of the Gods
, on Atlantis
. It was produced by B. C. Video Inc.
The program was widely criticized by the scientific community
. Donald Johanson
said it was "absolutely shameful, and it sort of sets us back 100 years". Jim Foley of TalkOrigins called it a "pseudo-scientific mishmash of discredited claims and crackpot ideas". However, the criticism did not prevent NBC from re-broadcasting the special on June 8, 1996. In response, John Carman wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle
, "You'd think the NBC brass would be a touch embarrassed by the program, and eager to let the little furor fritter away into oblivion. But then you really would be a simpleton. NBC, a subsidiary of the science giant General Electric, does not exist to sharpen minds. Science, schmience. If there was money to be made from it, NBC would tell you the Earth is flat because of repeated indentations from space aliens on pogo sticks." Dave Thomas
wrote in Skeptical Briefs that "quality science was nowhere to be found" in the program, as it had people of questionable credentials interviewed and failed to interview the leading researchers in their respective fields. Thomas further explained the show failed to challenge the extraordinary claims.
Creationist Ken Ham
criticized the production in the February 1996 Answers in Genesis
newsletter in a review titled "Hollywood's 'Moses' Undermines Genesis." Ham attacked fellow creationist Baugh's claims, saying, "According to leading creationist researchers, this evidence is open to much debate and needs much more intensive research. One wonders how much of the information in the program can really be trusted!"
Television special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
that originally aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
on February 25, 1996. Hosted by Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
, the program argued that mankind has lived on the Earth for tens of millions of years, and that mainstream scientists have suppressed the fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
evidence for this. Some material included was based on the controversial Forbidden Archeology, a book written by Hindu creationists Michael Cremo
Michael Cremo
Michael A. Cremo , also known as Drutakarma Dasa, is an American Hindu creationist whose work argues that modern humans have lived on the earth for billions of years...
and Richard L. Thompson
Richard L. Thompson
Richard Leslie Thompson also known as Sadaputa Dasa was an American author and Gaudiya Vaishnava religious figure, known principally for his promotion of Vedic creationism and as the co-author of Forbidden Archeology: The Hidden History of the Human Race , which has been widely criticised by the...
about Klerksdorp spheres and other alleged out-of-place artifacts. It also included interviews with the following people: creationist Carl Baugh
Carl Baugh
Carl Edward Baugh is an American young earth creationist. Along with others, Baugh has said he discovered human alongside dinosaur footprints near the Paluxy River in Texas. Baugh is a national television host, purporting to present science supporting creationism on the program Creation in the...
on the Paluxy tracks; Richard Milton
Richard Milton (author)
Richard Milton is a British journalist and writer who deals with often highly controversial subjects. Milton, an engineer by training, has published on the topics of popular history, business, scientific controversies and alternative science and has published a novel.-Books:Popular science book...
, author of Shattering the Myths of Darwinism, on Lucy
Lucy (Australopithecus)
Lucy is the common name of AL 288-1, several hundred pieces of bone representing about 40% of the skeleton of an individual Australopithecus afarensis. The specimen was discovered in 1974 at Hadar in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar Depression. Lucy is estimated to have lived 3.2 million years...
; Neil Steede on Incan ruins; and Graham Hancock
Graham Hancock
Graham Hancock is a British writer and journalist. Hancock specialises in unconventional theories involving ancient civilizations, stone monuments or megaliths, altered states of consciousness, ancient myths and astronomical/astrological data from the past...
, author of Fingerprints of the Gods
Fingerprints of the Gods
Fingerprints of the Gods: The Evidence of Earth's Lost Civilization is a book first published in 1995 by Graham Hancock, in which he echoes nineteenth century writer Ignatius Donnelly, author of Atlantis: The Antediluvian World , in contending that some previously enigmatic ancient but...
, on Atlantis
Atlantis
Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
. It was produced by B. C. Video Inc.
The program was widely criticized by the scientific community
Scientific community
The scientific community consists of the total body of scientists, its relationships and interactions. It is normally divided into "sub-communities" each working on a particular field within science. Objectivity is expected to be achieved by the scientific method...
. Donald Johanson
Donald Johanson
Donald Carl Johanson is an American paleoanthropologist. Along with Maurice Taieb, and Yves Coppens he is known for the discovery of the skeleton of the female hominid australopithecine known as "Lucy", in the Afar Triangle region of Hadar, Ethiopia.-Early years:Johanson was born in Chicago,...
said it was "absolutely shameful, and it sort of sets us back 100 years". Jim Foley of TalkOrigins called it a "pseudo-scientific mishmash of discredited claims and crackpot ideas". However, the criticism did not prevent NBC from re-broadcasting the special on June 8, 1996. In response, John Carman wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
, "You'd think the NBC brass would be a touch embarrassed by the program, and eager to let the little furor fritter away into oblivion. But then you really would be a simpleton. NBC, a subsidiary of the science giant General Electric, does not exist to sharpen minds. Science, schmience. If there was money to be made from it, NBC would tell you the Earth is flat because of repeated indentations from space aliens on pogo sticks." Dave Thomas
Dave Thomas (physicist)
Dave Thomas is a physicist and mathematician, mostly known for his writings and research on the paranormal .Thomas is a graduate of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, with a bachelor's degree in mathematics and...
wrote in Skeptical Briefs that "quality science was nowhere to be found" in the program, as it had people of questionable credentials interviewed and failed to interview the leading researchers in their respective fields. Thomas further explained the show failed to challenge the extraordinary claims.
Creationist Ken Ham
Ken Ham
Kenneth Alfred Ham is the Australian President/CEO of Answers in Genesis USA. He is a vocal advocate for a young Earth and a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis, and his cross-country speaking tours and many books make him one of the better known young-Earth...
criticized the production in the February 1996 Answers in Genesis
Answers in Genesis
Answers in Genesis is a non-profit Christian apologetics ministry with a particular focus on supporting Young Earth creationism and a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis. The organization has offices in the United Kingdom and the United States...
newsletter in a review titled "Hollywood's 'Moses' Undermines Genesis." Ham attacked fellow creationist Baugh's claims, saying, "According to leading creationist researchers, this evidence is open to much debate and needs much more intensive research. One wonders how much of the information in the program can really be trusted!"
External links
- NBC's "The Mysterious Origins of Man" at TalkOrigins ArchiveTalkOrigins ArchiveThe TalkOrigins Archive is a website that presents mainstream science perspectives on the antievolution claims of young-earth, old-earth, and "intelligent design" creationists...