{{Short description|American ufologist (1929–2024)}}
thumb|right|Ted Bloecher '''Theodore Bloecher''' (August 22, 1929 – January 22, 2024) was an American ufologist, singer, actor, and author who performed on Broadway and toured with productions of ''Oliver!'', ''Hello Dolly'' and ''My Fair Lady''. Bloecher was a pioneering member of New York City gay culture, singing with the New York City Gay Men's Chorus from the 1980s.
==Early life== Theodore Bloecher was born in Summit, New Jersey, on August 22, 1929.<ref name="nicap">{{cite web |title=Ted Bloecher |url=http://www.nicap.org/bios/WHO-IS/bloecher.htm |website=NICAP |access-date=26 January 2024}}</ref> Bloecher received a scholarship to study Fine Arts at Cooper Union and first began acting for the Provincetown Players.<ref name="NYPL"/> He attended Columbia University, majoring in dramatic literature, with a minor in music.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Clark |first1=Jerome |title=The Emergence of a Phenomenon: UFOs from the Beginning Through 1959 |date=1992 |publisher=Omnigraphics |pages=79 |isbn=978-1-55888-741-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H9rWAAAAMAAJ&q=ted+bloecher+1929 |access-date=27 January 2024}}</ref>
==Career in the arts== Bloecher started his career as a singer, and worked as an actor in theater from the late 1950s until 1973.<ref name="NYPL"/> In 1953, Bloecher was profiled for his upcoming role in a production of ''Street Scene''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-berkshire-eagle-street-scene-to-op/139641293/|title='Street Scene' to Open Season At Festival Playhouse, Lenox|newspaper=The Berkshire Eagle |date=July 3, 1953|pages=13|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> In 1957, Bloecher co-authored a musical titled "The Money Colored Rainbow".<ref>https://www.newspapers.com/image/1007804180/?</ref> In 1959, Bloecher appeared in an opera titled ''The Clarkstown Witch'' based on the Nathaniel Hawthorne story Feathertop, with Bloecher taking the role of Feathertop; <ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-record-old-rockland-legend-becomes-n/139642049/|title=Old Rockland Legend Becomes New Opera|newspaper=The Record |date=July 13, 1959|pages=27|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> His performance was praised in reviews.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-journal-news/6661063/|title=Article clipped from The Journal News|newspaper=The Journal News |date=July 14, 1959|pages=6|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> In 1961, Bloecher appeared in productions of the musicals ''Tenderloin'' and ''Destry Rides Again''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/180809424|title=Courier-Post 06 Jul 1961, page Page 26|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/48551532/|title=The Bristol Daily Courier 27 Jul 1961, page Page 4|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref> In 1963, Bloecher appeared in ''The Unsinkable Molly Brown'', and ''Irma La Douce''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/433856769|title=The Boston Globe 25 Jun 1963, page 13|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/434498905|title=The Boston Globe 20 Aug 1963, page 8|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Bloecher appeared on Broadway and was part of the national touring company of the musicals ''Oliver!'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/154511023|title=The Morning News 01 Jun 1965, page Page 14|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref> ''My Fair Lady'' in the 1960s,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/155366937/|title=The Morning News 27 Feb 1962, page Page 20|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/491464534/|title=The Record 13 May 1964, page 77|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref> and ''Hello, Dolly'' in 1972.<ref name="NYPL"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/858492333/|title=Kennebec Journal 16 Aug 1972, page 7|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
In 1985, he joined the New York City Gay Men's Chorus as a tenor and served as the group's librarian.<ref name="NYPL">{{Cite web|url=https://archives.nypl.org/mss/5984|title=archives.nypl.org -- Ted Bloecher papers|website=archives.nypl.org}}</ref> In retirement, he served as a volunteer at the city's Museum of Modern Art.<ref name="NYPL"/> In 2019, Bloecher's memoir ''Coming of Age in Provincetown'' was published.<ref name="NYPL"/> In 2020, Bloecher's journals and art were exhibited as part of a retrospective on the role of queer people in New York's history; Bloecher, then aged 90, attended in person.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ana.net/miccontent/show/id/er-mult-feb20-warner-media|title="Queer City" May Be the Best Campaign Ever|website=www.ana.net}}</ref>
==Ufology== His interest in UFOs began in the summer of 1952, and he became known for his studies into early modern UFO cases.<ref name="nicap"/> In 1954, he co-founded Civilian Saucer Intelligence and he served as an officer of the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena.<ref name="NYPL"/> In 1967, Bloecher published the results of a historical study that sought to exhaustively document all reported UFO sightings during the 1947 flying disc craze.<ref name="NYPL"/><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8GBVEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA49|title=Flying Saucers Over America: The UFO Craze of 1947|first=Gordon|last=Arnold|date=December 17, 2021|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-4652-7 |via=Google Books}}</ref> The following year, Bloecher's report was adapted into a nationally syndicated comic strip by Supergirl-creator Otto Binder.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-news-1968-07-29-our-space-age-1947/128874645/|title=1968-07-29 Our Space Age — 1947 wave - 1 Earliest disks|newspaper=The News |date=July 29, 1968|pages=37|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Bloecher was a regular speaker on UFO topics, appearing at meetings in Britain, Arizona, and the 1978 MUFON symposium in Dayton, Ohio.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/dayton-daily-news-ufo-symposium/126775370/|title=UFO symposium|newspaper=Dayton Daily News |date=July 27, 1978|pages=6|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Bloecher retired from ufology in the 1980s and donated his files.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ted Bloecher |url=http://www.noufors.com/Ted_Bloecher.htm |website=Northern Ontario UFO Research & Study |access-date=27 January 2024}}</ref>
==Death== Bloecher died in New York City on January 22, 2024, at the age of 94.<ref name="obit">{{cite web |title=Theodore Bloecher |url=https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/new-york-ny/theodore-bloecher-11636726 |website=Dignity Memorial |access-date=26 January 2024}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[https://archives.nypl.org/mss/5984 Ted Bloecher Papers, 1950–2000] The New York Public Library Archives & Manuscripts *[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-JF29sir1E Ted Bloecher Oral History] New York City Gay Men's Chorus *[https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/ted-bloecher-101537 Ted Bloecher page] at Internet Broadway Database
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bloecher, Ted}} Category:1929 births Category:2024 deaths Category:Male actors from Union County, New Jersey Category:American gay actors Category:American gay musicians Category:Broadway theatre people Category:Columbia University alumni Category:Cooper Union alumni Category:Singers from New Jersey Category:Ufologists Category:Actors from Summit, New Jersey