Famous UFO 'abductee' dies

CBC News/October 19, 2004

Portsmouth, NH -- Betty Hill, the woman known as "the first lady of UFOs," has died of lung cancer in New Hampshire at the age of 85.

Hill and her late husband gained notoriety in the 1960s when their story of being abducted by extra-terrestrials came to light. Barney Hill died in 1969.

The Hills arrived home from a trip to Canada in 1961 only to notice that the dress Betty had been wearing was torn and tear-stained, both their watches had stopped and they had no memory of a two-hour section of the drive.

Three years later, under hypnosis, the Hills recalled being kidnapped and examined by aliens. A leaked transcript of their hypnosis session was eventually published in a Boston newspaper.

Short extra-terrestrials with big eyes

The Hills said their car had stalled in the middle of the road in New Hampshire's White Mountains when life forms took them into their space craft. They described the beings as resembling short, bald humans with big eyes and high foreheads.

Their story became the focus of a 1966 bestseller, Interrupted Journey , and a television movie called UFO Incident starring James Earl Jones and Estelle Getty.

The Hills travelled across the U.S. to give speeches and made many radio and TV appearances recounting their experience.

Betty Hill retired from UFO lecturing in her 70s. In 1995, she published a book called A Common Sense Approach to UFOs.

Hill donated most of the money she earned from telling her UFO story to various charities.

Outside of her lecturing life, Hill worked as a social worker for the state of New Hampshire, specializing in adoptions.

In recent years, she has complained about the deluge of UFO sightings and abduction reports. She said she doesn't believe they're all true, because planes wouldn't be able to fly through the air if so many alien aircraft were hovering around.