Giorgio A. Tsoukalos (/ˈsuːkələs/, Greek: Γεώργιος Τσούκαλος; born 14 March 1978) is a Swiss-born writer, and television presenter and producer. He is a ufologist and a promoter of the ancient astronauts hypothesis.[2] He is best known for his appearances on Ancient Aliens, a History Channel series of which he is also producer.[3]
Giorgio A. Tsoukalos | |
|---|---|
 Tsoukalos at AlienCon 2016 | |
| Born | 14 March 1978 |
| Education | Ithaca College |
| Occupations |
|
| Website | thealiensguy |
Career
editTsoukalos is of Greek-Austrian heritage.[4] He is a 1998 graduate of Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York, with a bachelor's degree in Communications.[5] From 1999 to 2007, he worked as a promoter of IFBB-sanctioned bodybuilding contests, including Mr. Olympia.[6] He was lead promoter and contest director of the IFBB San Francisco Pro Grand Prix from 2001 to 2005.[7][5]
Since 2002, Tsoukalos has appeared in programs broadcast by Travel Channel, History Channel, Syfy, and National Geographic. He was the editor of Legendary Times magazine from 1999 to 2008.[8][9][10] He is a co-executive producer of Ancient Aliens, and he has appeared in more than 200 episodes since 2009.[11] He presented and co-produced the 2014 H2 series In Search of Aliens.[12]
Ancient Aliens meme
editTsoukalos's appearances in Ancient Aliens inspired a meme highlighting his unusual hairstyle overlaid with the caption: "I'm not saying it was aliens … but …"[13] Variations of the meme were uploaded by users as early as November 2010.[13][14] According to Dictionary.com, the meme mimicked "the tone of conviction used by Tsoukalos to present unfounded far-fetched pseudo-logic as fact."[14]
In a 2015 Reddit AMA, Tsoukalos said he loved the meme, adding "it's a great honor to have been embraced" by Internet users.[4][15] During a 2016 appearance on CNN Philippines, Tsoukalos's meme-ification was discussed at length. A partial transcript of the interview was later published online as "Meet the Hair Guy from Ancient Aliens."[16]
In 2021, Tsoukalos made a cameo appearance in the Resident Alien episode "Welcome Aliens". He was described by the lead character as "that high-haired gentleman".[17] The episode included several references to the Ancient Aliens meme.[18] Tsoukalos reprised his cameo in the 2022 episode "Best of Enemies".
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | In Search of | Self | 1 episode; Credited as an Egyptologist |
| 2003 | Is It Real? | Episode: "Ancient Astronauts" | |
| Is There a Stargate? | Documentary short | ||
| 2007 | Mysterious Journeys | 3 episodes[5] | |
| 2008 | Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Quest | TV documentary[5] | |
| 2008–2016 | Coast to Coast AM | Syndicated radio program; 9 episodes[19] | |
| 2009 | Race to Witch Mountain | Giorgio (cameo) | Uncredited appearance |
| UFO Hunters | Self | 3 episodes[5] | |
| 2009–2024 | Ancient Aliens | Self / Producer |
|
| 2010 | Extreme Universe | Self | Episode: "Star Gates" |
| 2011 | The Mo'Nique Show | 1 episode; Archive footage appeared in later episodes | |
| 2011–12 | The Joe Rogan Experience | Podcast; Episodes #125 and #232 | |
| 2013 | Contacto Extraterrestre | Episode: "Caídos a Tierra" | |
| America's Book of Secrets | Episode: "The Ancient Astronaut Cover-Up" | ||
| 2014 | In Search of Aliens | Self / Presenter | 10 episodes; Credited as co-executive producer |
| 2017 | Ancient Aliens Declassified | Self | 6 episodes; Highlights from Ancients Aliens |
| Next Week with Jeff Durbin | Episode: "Conspiracy Theories and Sam McClure"; Archive footage | ||
| 2018 | BuzzFeed Unsolved Supernatural | Episode: "The Unexplained Phoenix Lights Phenomenon" | |
| The Noite com Danilo Gentili | Episode: "Ufólogos" | ||
| 2019 | Truth-Seekers | Giorgio Tsoukalos (cameo) | Short film |
| 2020 | The UnXplained | Self | Episode: "The Truth About UFO's" |
| 2021–22 | Resident Alien | Giorgio Tsoukalos (cameo) | 2 episodes |
| 2022 | Les Secrets du miracle de Fatima | Self | TV documentary; Archive footage |
References
edit- ^ Childress, David Hatcher (30 July 2009). Lost Cities and Ancient Mysteries of the Southwest. Kempton, IL: Adventures Unlimited Press. p. 400. ISBN 978-1-931882-94-1.
- ^ Wood, Jennifer M. (18 April 2015). "10 Things We Learned About Aliens (and Hairspray) from Giorgio Tsoukalos' AMA". MentalFloss. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
- ^ Birnes, William J. (23 February 2016). UFO Hunters Book Two. New York: Tor Books. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-7653-2521-1.
- ^ a b "10 Facts About the Ancient Aliens Guy". History Channel. 13 April 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d e "Giorgio A. Tsoukalos". www.legendarytimes.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 15 September 2019.
- ^ Colavito, Jason (30 December 2005). The Cult of Alien Gods: H.P. Lovecraft and Extraterrestrial Pop Culture. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-1-59102-352-4.
- ^ Teper, Lonnie (3 March 2003). "Cutler Repeats as Schwarzenegger Classic Champion". Iron Man. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
- ^ "Uspto Issues Trademark: Legendary Times". US Fed News Service. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
- ^ "Giorgio A. Tsoukalos: Short Biographical Sketch". Legendary Times. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
- ^ Card, Jeb J.; Anderson, David S. (2016). Lost City, Found Pyramid: Understanding Alternative Archaeologies and Pseudoscientific Practices. University of Alabama Press. ISBN 978-0817319113.
- ^ "Giorgio A. Tsoukalos - Ancient Aliens Cast". History. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- ^ "In Search of Aliens". History. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Ancient Aliens". Know Your Meme. 15 May 2011. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
- ^ a b "ancient aliens". Dictionary.com. March 2018. Archived from the original on 22 May 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ^ Tsoukalos, Giorgio (17 April 2015). "I am Giorgio Tsoukalos. You may know me from the show ANCIENT ALIENS. AMA!". r/IAmA. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ^ Juacian, Don (26 August 2016). "I want to believe: Meet the hair guy from "Ancient Aliens"". CNN Philippines. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ^ "Welcome Aliens". Resident Alien. Season 1. Episode 9. 24 March 2021. Syfy.
- ^ Sagers, Aaron (21 April 2021). "Resident Alien: Inside That Hair-Raising Cameo". Den of Geek. Archived from the original on 22 May 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "Giorgio Tsoukalos". Coast to Coast AM. 15 September 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2022.