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Criswell (Charles Criswell King) (August 18, 1907 – October 4, 1982) American TV psychic popular during the 1950s. A friend and supporter of the legendary Edward D. Wood, Jr., he turned up talking nonsense in Plan 9 from Outer Space (1958), Night of the Ghouls (1958) and Orgy of the Dead (1965). He is played by Jeffrey Jones in Tim Burton’s Ed Wood (1994).
As a psychic, his predictions were made on television and in books. Most psychics make fairly small-scale predictions, such as the death of individuals. Criswell's predictions included ones that were much more outlandish, and would have changed the world as we know it. For example, there would be a spray that would cause people to become sexually aroused, leading to all sorts of problems. He predicted cannibalism becoming widespread in Pittsburg (due to a secret government experiment). Women would lose their hair! Rays from space changing the properties of metal to act like rubber!
Parapsychologists viewed Criswell's predictions as entertainment, like The World Weekly News, a tabloid known for entertaining headlines and articles rather than serious prognostication and reporting.
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