Samuel Eaton Thompson (1875? - 1960?) is certainly the most unfamiliar of the 1950s contactees, individuals who claimed to have met and talked to human-appearing crewmembers of landed flying saucers. An article about Thompson's experiences is supposed to have appeared in the April 1, 1950 (!) issue of the Centralia (Washington) Daily Chronicle, but this has not been confirmed. The only other information about Thompson is purportedly an interview with him originally recorded on magnetic paper tape by UFO pioneer Kenneth Arnold in 1950, but not made available until 1980! There are some strong reasons to suspect that Thompson did not in fact exist. Contactees are persons who claim to be in regular contact with extraterrestrials. ... April 1 is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 274 days remaining. ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Kenneth Arnold (March 29, 1915-January 1984) — a private pilot from Boise, Idaho, United States, and a part time Search and Rescue Mercy Flyer — made what is generally considered the first widely reported UFO sighting in the United States. ...

The story is that Thompson encountered a landed flying saucer while walking in deep woods near Mineral, Washington on March 28, 1950. He observed some naked blond children romping on some folding steps extending from an open hatch in the saucer. Equally naked blond adults came out and escorted Thompson into the saucer, where he discovered the crew consisted of 20 adults and 25 children, all from Venus, and all firm believers in astrology. They could speak english because they were all reincarnated former inhabitants of earth. March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (88th in leap years). ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Bold text Adjective Venusian or (rarely) Cytherean (*min temperature refers to cloud tops only) Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 9. ...

Like the Aurora, TX UFO "crash" of April 1897, the Thompson contactee story is most likely an April Fool's Day hoax that was intended only to amuse knowing local newspaper readers in 1950 and would have been completely forgotten if not for Kenneth Arnold. 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Kenneth Arnold (March 29, 1915-January 1984) — a private pilot from Boise, Idaho, United States, and a part time Search and Rescue Mercy Flyer — made what is generally considered the first widely reported UFO sighting in the United States. ...

References

Lewis, James R., editor, UFOs and Popular Culture, Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2000. ISBN 1-57607-256-7.