The Count who never dies

 

"In Search Of..." is an old NBC series about the paranormal. The episode linked to above (which is really only 20 minutes long) was aired in 1977, and is titled "The Man Who Would Not Die". It´s narrated by Leonard Nimoy (Spock in Star Trek) and deals with the mysterious Count de Saint Germain, a 18th century alchemist and adventurer who dazzled the French aristocracy with his ability to make precious gemstones. Or maybe not, since it seems everything about this man is shrouded in mystery and urban (or is it urbane) legend. He died under the protection of the Danish-German prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel (himself an extremely long-lived man!), the royal governor of Schleswig-Holstein, then a Danish possession. Or did he? Saint Germain was supposedly seen at various places around Europe after his "death", and his legend is still alive and well.

Sensationally, "The Man Who Would Not Die" features an interview with Elizabeth Clare Prophet, the leader of The Summit Lighthouse (alias the Church Universal and Triumphant), who claims to channel messages from Saint Germain, now an "Ascended Master". Prophet is allowed to expound at some length on the weird message of her cult, claiming that Saint Germain was Columbus in a previous life, and that he somehow inspired the American Declaration of Independence! The documentary also shows a "church service" of Prophet´s group, featuring people doing the Bellamy salute while shouting "Hail Saint Germain". Everyone else had stopped using the Bellamy salute by 1977, I think, since it might easily be confused with the Nazi salute! Since Prophet´s group was inspired by the fascistic Guy Ballard, their "hailing" (or is it heiling) of the old alchemist´s portrait looks very, very bizarre... 

The NBC program features an interview with a Theosophist and a token skeptic, who (sensibly enough) regard the mystery count as a rather typical 18th century adventurer in the mold of Cagliostro and Cassanova. There are also "interviews" with Louis XV, Madame Le Pompadour and Voltaire, obviously starred by actors speaking English with a funny French accent. "The Man Who Would Not Die" ends inconclusively, Nimoy simply saying that we really don´t know what happened to Saint Germain after his (real or percieved) death in 1784, and that all further statements about him are matters of faith. 

Since Saint Germain isn´t a household name (I think), I was somewhat surprised to discover this immortal gemstone from the YouTube archives, but there you go...

An updated version might perhaps look at the idea that Saint Germain is working with the Ashtar Galactic Command, or that he is somehow connected to a certain Donald J Trump...