Kenn Thomas, R.I.P. (1958-2023)

From Loren Coleman's 9-24-23 obituary for author/editor/publisher Kenn Thomas: 

St. Louis area resident and author Kenn Thomas, born June 12, 1958, passed away on September 22, 2023. He was a former university librarian and archivist, and a conspiracy writer, and editor/publisher of Steamshovel Press, a parapolitical conspiracy theory magazine.

Kenn was a friend of many writers, including Jim Keith, Greg Bishop, Jim Martin, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Adam Parfrey, Mae Brussell, Tim Binnall, Kevin Nealon, Ron Bonds, Stephen Miles Lewis, Robert Sterling, and, me, Loren Coleman [...].

Thomas wrote over a dozen books on various conspiracy topics, including NASA, Nazis & JFK; Maury Island UFO, about the possibility that Fred Crisman was connected to the assassination of John F. Kennedy; and The Octopus: Secret Government and the Death of Danny Casolaro, about the Inslaw affair. In 2004, Feral House published a new edition of The Octopus, extending the suggestion of connections to the post-September 11 attacks world and al-Qaeda. A new edition of Maury Island UFO was published by Feral House in 2011 as JFK & UFO: Military-Industrial Conspiracy and Cover-Up from Maury Island to Dallas.

Thomas called his research interest "parapolitics," the study of conspiracies of all colors—from alien abductions and the Illuminati, to the John F. Kennedy assassination and the September 11, 2001 attacks. The New Yorker called his work "on the cutting edge" of conspiracy.

To read the entire obit, click HERE. 

I'd like to point out that Kenn Thomas published one of my early articles in the pages of STEAMSHOVEL PRESS. Upon its quiet debut in 1992, STEAMSHOVEL PRESS quickly rose to the top tier of 1990s DIY zines. At some point in the late 1990s, Kenn and I corresponded via mail about our shared love of Jack Kirby, and we chatted briefly in person one night at the Midnight Special Bookstore on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica where he signed books for his many fans and delivered a well-received lecture about Maury Island, the mysterious and ubiquitous Fred Lee Crisman, and the hidden history of UFOs. Above all, I highly recommend checking out his nonfiction book THE OCTOPUS (co-written with the late Jim Keith). Rest In Peace, Kenn!