Billy Meier
A Swiss farmer whose claims of contact with blonde aliens from the Pleiades spawned a detailed, enduring UFO religion and global following.
Born 1937 (age 89)·Swiss UFO religion founder·Birthday: February 3·The Silent Generation
Biography
Billy Meier's story is a foundational text of modern ufology, a sprawling saga that began in the Swiss countryside. A former farmhand and one-time soldier who lost an arm in a bus accident, Meier claimed that starting in 1975, he began having regular telepathic and physical contacts with humanoid aliens from the Plejaren star system. He backed his claims with a vast archive of evidence that believers find compelling and skeptics dismiss as crude hoaxes: blurry photos of saucers in trees, grainy films, and samples of alien metal. Beyond the visuals, Meier produced thousands of pages of 'contact notes' detailing cosmic history, spirituality, and warnings for humanity. This elaborate canon became the scripture for the FIGU society, the religious group he founded. Regardless of the truth of his evidence, Meier's impact is real; he created a self-contained, complex mythos that has attracted dedicated adherents worldwide for decades, positioning himself as a prophetic figure in a technological age.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Billy was born in 1937, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Billy Was Born
The biggest hits of 1937
#1 Movie
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Best Picture
The Life of Emile Zola
Billy's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1937Born
Hindenburg disaster; Golden Gate Bridge opens
Gas: $0.20/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" — Ella FitzgeraldBest Picture: The Life of Emile Zola
1942Started school
Battle of Midway turns the tide in the Pacific
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $3,175Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"White Christmas" — Bing CrosbyBest Picture: Mrs. Miniver
1950Became a teenager
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1953Could drive
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1955Could vote
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1958Turned 21
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1967Turned 30
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1977Turned 40
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1987Turned 50
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1997Turned 60
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
2007Turned 70
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 80
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 89 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Founded the FIGU (Free Community of Interests for the Border and Spiritual Sciences and Ufological Studies), a UFO religion with international members.
- Produced an extensive archive of photographs, films, and metal samples purporting to show extraterrestrial vehicles and technology.
- Authored the 'Contact Reports,' a multi-volume set of detailed transcripts of his alleged conversations with Plejaren beings.
- His case became one of the most widely debated and investigated in UFOlogy during the late 20th century.
Did You Know?
He claims to have had prophetic contacts with extraterrestrials as a child, which resumed in his adulthood.
Many of his famous UFO photos were taken near his home in Hinterschmidrüti, Switzerland.
Skeptics have replicated several of his UFO photos using simple models like a vinyl record or a bathroom sink drain.
He served in the French Foreign Legion for a brief period in his youth.
“The beamships from the Plejaren are real; I have the metal samples.”
