Milt Machlin (June 26, 1924 – April 3, 2004) was an American journalist, author and adventurer. He is best known for coining the phrases "

Bermuda Triangle The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an urban legend focused on a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysterio ...

" and " Abominable Snowman," as well as his expedition to find scion Michael Rockefeller, who disappeared in New Guinea in 1961.

Biography

Machlin was born in New York City in 1924. In 1943, after one year of college, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in the Asia Pacific theatre. After the war, he earned a degree from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

and a second degree from the Sorbonne in Paris, where his roommate was Irish poet Brendan Behan. He began his career as a journalist for Agence France Presse then as an editor for adventure magazine ''

Argosy Argosy or The Argosy may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Argosy'' (magazine), an American pulp magazine 1882–1978 and revived 1990–1994, 2004–2006 * ''Argosy'' (UK magazine), three British magazines * Argosy spaceship in ''Escap ...

''. It was during his time at ''Argosy'' that he dubbed a mysterious area in the Atlantic Ocean "The

" and a strange creature as " Abominable Snowman".

Search for Rockefeller

In 1969, Machlin traveled to the jungles of Papua New Guinea in an attempt to learn the fate of Michael Rockefeller, son of then-New York Governor

Nelson Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...

. Michael had vanished in 1961 on a trip to secure

bisj pole A Bisj, mbis or Bis pole is a ritual Artifact (archaeology), artifact created and used by the Asmat people of Western New Guinea, south-western New Guinea, Indonesia. Bisj poles can be erected as an act of revenge, to pay homage to the ancesto ...

s for the

Museum of Primitive Art The Museum of Primitive Art is a now defunct museum devoted to the early arts of the indigenous cultures of Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. It was founded in 1954 by Nelson Rockefeller, who donated his own collection of Tribal ...

, when his catamaran capsized and he was swept out to sea. While the Dutch anthropologist he was with stayed with the vessel awaiting help, Rockefeller attempted to swim in shark-infested waters to the coastline. The anthropologist was rescued the next day, but Rockefeller was never seen again. Rockefeller was declared legally dead in 1964, but a rumor surfaced that he was still alive and held captive by a local tribe. Machlin traveled to Papua New Guinea searching for any trace of him. Following his trip, Machlin later published the book, ''The Search for Michael Rockefeller'', in which he concluded that Rockefeller had indeed made it to shore only to be killed by headhunters.

Legacy

Four years after Machlin's death, filmmaker

Fraser C. Heston Fraser Clarke Heston (born February 12, 1955) is an American film director, film producer, screenwriter and actor. He is the son of actors Charlton Heston and Lydia Clarke, and has a sister, Holly Rochell Heston. Heston's filmography includes ' ...

discovered 15 reels of

16 mm film 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, educ ...

from the 1969 trip, including Machlin's interviews with Dutch missionaries who had traveled from tribe to tribe and heard stories. Heston utilised the footage to create a documentary, also called ''The Search for Michael Rockefeller''.

Selected bibliography

* * * * *

References

External links

SearchforMichael.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Machlin, Milt 1924 births 2004 deaths Brown University alumni University of Paris alumni Journalists from New York City 20th-century American non-fiction writers United States Army personnel of World War II American expatriates in France 20th-century American male writers