Dana Howard was one of the numerous so-called "contactees" inspired by hoaxer George Adamski in the US in the 1950's. She published several booklets in which she claimed she flew to Venus in an Venusian rocket, or by "psychic" means, and eventually married a Venusian and raised a family on planet Venus. She claimed that when Earthlings achieve "higher spiritual level" they will all be migrated to Venus like she was.
The first encounter she claimed, in 1954, was in 1939 in California in which she allegedly met an 8-foot-tall "beautiful woman from Venus" named "Diane". She claimed "Diane" appeared to her and 27 other again in April 29, 1955, and during a lecture she gave on October 3, 1957.
Like other "contactees", Dana Howard filled her books with the usual nonsense about beautiful and peaceful Venusian, the Adamski and Blavatski-inspired Theosophical speech about "universal love", "mastery of the subconscious," remembrance of past lives, "spiritual purification" etc.
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[Ref. dh1:] DANA HOWARD:
When US citizen George Adamski told and wrote that he made friends with extraterrestrials, serving classical theosophy speeches under a "space age" dressing, he was soon followed by many others who also claimed to have befriended nice space people, and made space trips with them to Venus or some other planets. Among these so-called "contactees", Dana Howard wrote the following books, starting just a year after Adamski published his own first book:
Note: these books were short self-published booklets or small scale publications, still available in second-hand stores and several Universities libraries. "She came from Venus" is only 90 pages long, "The Keys to the Citadel of Space" is 208 pages long. Her books do not just contain what she claimed to be her personal experiences with Venusians, but also the inventions and speculations typical in this kind of literature, with topics ranging from the "Garden of Eden" to the " Lemurians", and "strange beings seen at Mount Shasta" etc.
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"My Flight to Venus", par Dana Howard. |
It is of course not possible to me to reproduce her literature here; however here is some of her claims about her first alleged encounter in 1939, since this became a "case" for some ufologists and since this is the topic of this file.
Here is the description of this first alleged encounter with "Diane" from Venus, in "My Flight to Venus":
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"Still wrapped in the warm intoxication of the spirit, my vision was directed to a gnarled old tree overlooking the antediluvian hills. Leaning casually against the grotesque trunk was a woman being of unsurpassed loveliness. Her head was radiant with a crown of fire, strands of golden hair cascading gently over her beautiful, slightly olive-tinted shoulders. The strange mystic light flooding her dark, prophetic eyes, added a wistful something to all her other charms." |
Diane form Venus told her:
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"Have no fears, Child of Earth. Let the doors of your mind be opened and we of the faraway planets will speak to you in poetry and song." |
Here is the description of space people's ship in "My Flight to Venus":
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"...a beautiful rocket-shaped ship suspended in mid-air about three hundred feet from the earth... In the main it seemed to be constructed of some sort of translucent materials, but trimmed in gold, and gem-studded. An almost invisible "ladder" extended from the ship to the earth, and I obediently followed the radiant being up the filmy stairs without questioning. Once aboard, my sacrosanct companion vanished, and I never saw her again." |
Basically, Dana Howard claimed that she met a woman from Venus, called Diane. She went with her on that planet, and she delivers tons of "messages of love" and the usual extremely naive kind of "spirituality" found in most contactees tales.
On Venusian medicine:
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"The principle of spiritual healing is simple indeed. Could I but take you behind the scene I would show you the framework or the structure that carries the life substance. You would see it is constructed with the art and skill of a spider's web, and not too unlike it in appearance. It is made up of infinitely fine silken wires through which flows a substance slightly heavier than the consistency of milk . . . whitish in color with a slight tint of blue in the auric emanation." |
And just as expectedly, the Venusian "technology" she made up is the usual meaningless blah-blah found in other "contactees" productions, for exemple, about "teleportation":
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"In teleportation the vibrations must transcend time and space. Time and space is eliminated. There must be intense visualization. When the vibrations are speeded up-raised a full octave above the usual norm, then seemingly lifeless matter yields to the mind's every command. In teleportation there must be but 'one thought' and that thought... all powerful." "My daughter, teleportation is the act of uniting spirit with matter at center. This you have seen in your vegetable kingdom where it is called spontaneous generation. Again I repeat, in rare instances teleportive powers have been given to earth beings. Teleportation is very difficult for terrestrians, for yours is a planet of slow vibration while ours is instantaneous. Earthman, even the 'greats' - more often than not, go off balance in their attempts." "An objective-subjective relationship runs through all things. Where there is perfect balance, so-called lifeless matter springs to life merely by the power of thought." "Again I repeat . . . before teleportation is possible a foundation must be first created. Only then can the creative power of God's inspired WORD be made flesh. You saw the result of this Godly command when I manifested to you and others in teleportive substance. First by means of a dynamic creative will I affirmed that which was flesh should be made spirit. In an instant the atoms of my fleshly body started to disintegrate. Instantly I was surrounded by an invisible shadow body. In the length of time it takes thought to travel through space I arrived at my destination. Still clothed in a 'thought body' I again gave the command that the invisible should take on embodiment. I spoke the Word: 'I AM DIANE. I AM MADE MANIFEST IN EARTHLY FORM.'" |
"Diane the Venusian" and Earth science:
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"Your earth scientists are today trying every sort of magic in an attempt to short - circuit thinking. We Venusians need no scientific precision instruments for having learned how to keep our minds clear. Sharp and clean we carry our mind patterns to their own fulfillment." "Thought is free. It can go anywhere, at any time. Thought can travel through space. It can travel with the speed of light. Thought can function one plane to another. That is why our beneficent influence can be sent to any part of the universe. World domains are no barriers to thought. When earthlings learn how to control and manipulate thought, they will go straight because they will think straight. Then only can earthlings get real enlightenment and wisdom." |
In her next encounter with "Diane" in 1955 in Los Angeles, no rocket-ship from Venus was necessary as "Diane" just "communicated" with her through a seance with so-called medium Beatrice Lilly Candler on April 29, 1955, and also "materialized" (allegedly before 27 people) in a church. Many other alleged encounters followed.
And finally Dana Howard claimed that she married and man from Venus and raised a family with him on our sister planet.
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Dana Howard at her bookstand at George Van Tassel's Giant Rock "contactees" convention in 1957. 
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[Ref. jc1:] JEROME CLARK:
The author indicates that Dana Howard, who claimed to have visited Venus, claimed Diane was a Venusian who started to appear to humans in 1939, returned in 1955 and was seen many times again.
Dana Howard claimed diane came "in the same miraculous manner as the Lady of Lourdes and Our Lady of Fatima", and was physical like a human in appearance being but was "created of substance not of this Earth".
Dana Howard claimed that on October 3, 1957, she was lecturing at the Women's Clubhouse in Fontana when a strange warmth came on her, and after the meeting, several audience members rushed up to her and told her they saw the appearance of a young woman transposed over Howard's body, one Eleanor Warner saying it was the figure of a very beautiful very young woman with long golden hair, very slim body and small waistline, and that she seemed to "glow in the golden light". One Trudy Allen claimed she was overcome with the "transcendant beauty" of the appearance.
Dana Howard claimed that Diane appeared to her and 27 witnesses for the first time on April 29, 1955 and identified herself as a Venusian, and that the same week UFOs appeared fourth time over Palm Springs, California, where Dana Howard lived.
Jerome Clark indicates that a further reading is "The Drama behind the Spaceships", an article by Dana Howard in Flying Saucer Review, 4, 3, May/June: 21-23.
[Ref. go1:] GODELIEVE VAN OVERMEIRE:
The Belgian ufologist indicates that in 1939, in the USA, in an unspecified place, according to her book, Dana Howard claims she was granted a first appearance of the extraterrestrial from Venus named Diane.
The source is indicated as Jean SIDER: "Ovni, les envahisseurs démasqués", RAMUEL pub. 1999, p 78.
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| Id: | Topic: | Severity: | Date noted: | Raised by: | Noted by: | Description: | Proposal: | Status: |
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"Contactee" tall tale.
* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.
| Main Author: | Patrick Gross |
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| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Created/Changed By: | Date: | Change Description: |
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| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | August 20, 2009 | Creation, [dh1], [jc1], [go1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | August 20, 2009 | First published. |
