A Psychic Blueprint
Although few people in the general public remember Criswell today, he has achieved cult status due mainly to his appearance in three poorly-made movies by director Ed Wood, and an argument can be made that Criswell blazed a trail for many of the mass-media prophets, psychics and mediums, including Jeane Dixon, Dionne Warwick's Psychic Friends, James van Praagh, Sylvia Browne and John Edward... and possibly even David Hoy.
Like many people today, my first awareness of Criswell was a result of viewing the enjoyably bad Plan 9 From Outer Space, a sub-B movie produced by Ed Wood, and in some bizarre way, that set the hook for me. In 2002, I began prowling the Internet and found bits and pieces on the life of Criswell, but was unable to find any definitive or substantial biographies on the man.
A Mild Case of Obsession?
The search for a comprehensive and accurate biography of the man could easily be characterized as an exercise in enjoyable frustration. Even within the realm of websites that devote attention to Criswell, there is sometimes little agreement on even the most basic of facts, such as his birth name and how he got started in the prophesy business. Adding to the frustration is the sense that, in many cases, the information presented is simply the re-telling of the Criswell myth based on information lifted from another poorly-informed web source – a digital age version of the old Telephone Game, if you will. Hearsay can often be nothing more than the retelling of unverifiable information, and in the case of information imparted by Criswell, it is important to realize that Criswell was a master at altering or omitting facts in order to build and enhance his own legend.
I resumed research in 2016 and, much to my delight, I found far more information available that simply hadn't been online in 2002, and I began to get a more comprehensive picture of Criswell than I had formed in 2002. The 2016 research uncovered several news items and articles that documented Criswell's activities, but even these must be evaluated with a large grain of salt, since one must question (a) if some of the facts presented in these sources came from Criswell himself, and (b) whether the facts were properly verified before publication.
And Now...
The book offered to you now, then, is a collection comprised of many unverified facts on The Legendary Criswell. The level of accuracy is admittedly dubious, given the very nature of some of the sources used. Nonetheless, I have assembled what I believe to be the most complete biography on the man that I have encountered to date. Is it possible that at some future date, someone with access to better sources will publish a more accurate and comprehensive account of Criswell?
I certainly hope so, and when that book is published, I'll be one of the first to buy it.
Until then, I hope that what follows will contain something of interest for long-time fans of Criswell, and perhaps pique the curiosity of those who have never heard of him. The bottom line for me personally, however, is that this publication represents a letting go, if you will, of a project that was started over 20 years ago. I doubt seriously that by delaying publication any longer I will discover any previously-hidden nuggets of Criswelliana, and so it is with mixed feelings that I release this work into the wild. I will miss the hunt but, after 20 years, it's time to move on.
What's In The Book, Man
"That's all well and good," you are probably saying, "But what's in the book, and why should I care about about The Legendary Criswell?"
To answer the first question, here's a partial table of contents:
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As to why you might care about the career of The Legendary Criswell, I will first say that this book may be of interest to two different categories of readers -- the general public and the community of professional mentalists. The first category will enjoy the story of an undeniably eccentric character who made a name for himself and hob-nobbed with Hollywood celebrities. The second category of reader is more likely to read between the lines and be able to develop ideas based on how Criswell created a compelling persona and a career from practically nothing.
While Criswell wasn't the first entertainer to gain international reknown in his day as a psychic prognosticator, he was certainly one of the first to take advantage of 20th century technology. And unlike many mass-media psychics like Jeane Dixon, James van Praagh, Sylvia Browne and John Edward, it was obvious that Criswell didn't take himself as seriously as those that came after him -- he didn't seem to care if people thought he was "real" as long as they were entertained.
It's not surprising that his focus was on entertainment since, as this book illustrates, prior to his fame as a psychic he was an actor, a playwright, a Spiritualist pastor, and the manager of a celebrated Buddhist monk.
The First "Hurler"?
Finally, there is this: if you have any interest in the career of David Hoy, and his famous "Hurling The Headlines" feature, it's worth considering that he was either directly or indirectly influenced by Criswell's entire act. It's true that Criswell's persona and predictions were far more flamboyant than Hoy's, but they were definitely operating in the same time period, and it's unlikely that they were unaware of each other.
So, for less than the price of a decent martini, you have the opportunity to take a closer look at a professional who entertained the multitudes with nothing more than a finely-tuned persona and a seemingly never-ending stream of outrageous predictions. I mean, the man probably didn't even own an NW... I think there's an important lesson in that alone.
If you're ready to order Pop Culture Prophet: The Legendary Criswell, simply click on the Add To Cart button below.
POP CULTURE PROPHET
The Legendary Criswell
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