11-03-2008, 02:39 PM
by Simon Thalmann | Kalamazoo Gazette
Thursday October 30, 2008, 12:27 PM
KALAMAZOO -- Some say they've seen a "dog man" stalking the woods of Michigan.
And this man-sized, two-legged, upright-walking canine reportedly has been sighted as nearby as Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, according to author and researcher of the weird Linda Godfrey.
Fact or just fiction?
Judge for yourself when Godfrey speaks about her latest book, "Strange Michigan: More Wolverine Weirdness," at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Kalamazoo Public Library, 315 S. Rose St.
Godfrey, of Elkhorn, Wis., said in a phone interview that now, because of Halloween and the associated interest in the strange and paranormal, is one of her busier times of year.
"Oh, yeah," she said, "this is my crazy time."
Godfrey admitted she has never seen Dog Man, which it is commonly called in Michigan, but said she receives many reports from those who have -- reports from all over the world.
"I don't know the exact percentage" of sightings in Michigan, she said, "but there are quite a few ... and they occur mostly in the Lower Peninsula from the Indian River area (an upscale community northeast of Traverse City). ... And about halfway between Traverse City and Grand Rapids is another area of multiple sightings, and then down by Kalamazoo."
Godfrey, author of "Hunting the American Werewolf" and "The Beast of Bray Road: Tailing Wisconsin's Werewolf," and co-author of "Weird Michigan" and "Weird Wisconsin," is well-known in cryptozoology circles. Cryptozoologists study animals whose existence or survival is disputed or unsubstantiated, such as the sasquatch or the Loch Ness monster.
"I've talked to hundreds of people who've seen it and they're all quite convinced they saw something real," she said of the Dog Man. "If it's not real, there's some really strange mass hallucination that's unexplainable by science -- probably more unexplainable by science than a canine that manages to adapt itself to walk upright sometimes."
Godfrey believes it's possible the creature could be a species of wolf that's simply adapted over time to be able to walk on its hind legs when it wants to. What she doesn't think is that it's an actual werewolf.
"I do not think it's what people consider a traditional werewolf, a human being changing physically into a wolf," she said. "(But) I refuse to put a label on it because once you decide it's one thing you close the door on investigations -- you may as well just quit."
Her door to opportunities stays open.
"I just finished a book called 'Mythical Creatures,'" she said. "It's part of a series I've been doing for a New York publisher. And I'll probably do a third beast book.
"I did another book titled 'Werewolves' for the New York publisher, (and) I'm working on a novel. I have lots of things going on," Godfrey said.
Godfrey said her novel is a fantasy about a German gnome.
"It's an experience my friend had," she said. But "it does have a werewolf in it."
Videos and story here:
http://www.mlive.com/kzgazette/news/inde...man_s.html
Thursday October 30, 2008, 12:27 PM
KALAMAZOO -- Some say they've seen a "dog man" stalking the woods of Michigan.
And this man-sized, two-legged, upright-walking canine reportedly has been sighted as nearby as Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, according to author and researcher of the weird Linda Godfrey.
Fact or just fiction?
Judge for yourself when Godfrey speaks about her latest book, "Strange Michigan: More Wolverine Weirdness," at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Kalamazoo Public Library, 315 S. Rose St.
Godfrey, of Elkhorn, Wis., said in a phone interview that now, because of Halloween and the associated interest in the strange and paranormal, is one of her busier times of year.
"Oh, yeah," she said, "this is my crazy time."
Godfrey admitted she has never seen Dog Man, which it is commonly called in Michigan, but said she receives many reports from those who have -- reports from all over the world.
"I don't know the exact percentage" of sightings in Michigan, she said, "but there are quite a few ... and they occur mostly in the Lower Peninsula from the Indian River area (an upscale community northeast of Traverse City). ... And about halfway between Traverse City and Grand Rapids is another area of multiple sightings, and then down by Kalamazoo."
Godfrey, author of "Hunting the American Werewolf" and "The Beast of Bray Road: Tailing Wisconsin's Werewolf," and co-author of "Weird Michigan" and "Weird Wisconsin," is well-known in cryptozoology circles. Cryptozoologists study animals whose existence or survival is disputed or unsubstantiated, such as the sasquatch or the Loch Ness monster.
"I've talked to hundreds of people who've seen it and they're all quite convinced they saw something real," she said of the Dog Man. "If it's not real, there's some really strange mass hallucination that's unexplainable by science -- probably more unexplainable by science than a canine that manages to adapt itself to walk upright sometimes."
Godfrey believes it's possible the creature could be a species of wolf that's simply adapted over time to be able to walk on its hind legs when it wants to. What she doesn't think is that it's an actual werewolf.
"I do not think it's what people consider a traditional werewolf, a human being changing physically into a wolf," she said. "(But) I refuse to put a label on it because once you decide it's one thing you close the door on investigations -- you may as well just quit."
Her door to opportunities stays open.
"I just finished a book called 'Mythical Creatures,'" she said. "It's part of a series I've been doing for a New York publisher. And I'll probably do a third beast book.
"I did another book titled 'Werewolves' for the New York publisher, (and) I'm working on a novel. I have lots of things going on," Godfrey said.
Godfrey said her novel is a fantasy about a German gnome.
"It's an experience my friend had," she said. But "it does have a werewolf in it."
Videos and story here:
http://www.mlive.com/kzgazette/news/inde...man_s.html
