In the early 70’s, David Bowie was on the Dick Cavett show…Cavett opened up the interview by addressing the question about whether or not Bowie in fact had a machine/weapon/device called a Black Noise…The story goes like this…for time immemorial, the French post offices had ads or patents or who knows what put up in their lobbies (in a fashion similar to our wanted posters) and one could order or just copy the patent. It had, before Bowie’s appearance been pulled by the French govt. Bowie said that, yes, he in fact had either the machine itself or the patent-i can’t remember which, and that it had the capacity to destroy a city! Has anyone else heard of this, or seen the show? or did i imagine/dream it?
You were out of your mind on coke.
…not really here is the interview
http://members.ol.com.au/rgriffin/GoldenYears/GYpages/GY741204DC.html
Part referring to black noise below
"Cavett: Oh, I’m sorry if you didn’t want that out. But…what is Black-noise?
Bowie: Black-noise?
Cavett: Yeah.
Bowie: Black-noise is something that Burroughs got very interested in. It’s a…one facet of Black-noise is that…um…everything, like a glass if an opera singer hits a particular note, the vibrations of that hit the metabolism of the glass and cracks it, yeah? So a Black-noise is the register within which you can crack a city or people or…it’s a new control bomb. It’s a noise — bomb in fact, which can destroy…why do you ask that?
Cavett: I mean is it a real thing? Is it something…
Bowie: …Oh yeah it is. It was invented in France.
Cavett: Could a tiro use this to…
Bowie: …well, up until last year you could buy the patent for it in the French patent-office for about 3-4 dollars.
Cavett: And it would wipe out a…
Bowie: …It depends how much money you put into it. I mean a small one could probably kill about half the people here. But a big one could …destroy a city. Or even more…I mean…
Cavett: It’s a wierd idea, isn’t it?
Bowie: Well, it’s not my idea…(laughs)…so…
Cavett: Let’s not give the instructions on how to do it. Can you recommend a good book to your fans?"
etc etc
Astro, you are a marvel! I just barely got back to the SDMB page, clicked on reload, and you had responded…with a link, no less…and to top it off, wry and much appreciated wit! I would slip you a 20 if i weren’t so cheap!
Thanks
Oh, by the way, where can i get my copy of how to make one?
It also sounds alot like what Tesla was working with. Resonence, (man I butchered that one) used as a destructive device. I’ll leave now before I misspeel and more.