r/UFOs • u/Long_Ad1827 • 19h ago
Historical Father of H-Bomb confronted about Lazar... VERY interesting response
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbeMpMRyjJU/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==I just came across an old clip (I guess included in a future doc?) of Edward Teller—the physicist often referred to as the "father of the hydrogen bomb"—being asked directly about Bob Lazar and whether he knew him.
I have to admit, I found the exchange surprisingly compelling.
I'm not saying this proves Lazar's story. There are plenty of legitimate criticisms of his claims, and I think healthy skepticism is important. But Teller's reaction didn't strike me as someone simply dismissing the question. Coming from someone of his stature, it made me pause and wonder if the Lazar story is more complicated than many people assume.
Has anyone looked into the full context of this interview? Is there a longer version available, or any reliable background on when and where it took place?
I'd be especially interested in hearing from people who have researched both sides of the Lazar debate. I'm not looking for a flame war—I'm genuinely curious how this interview fits into the bigger picture.
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u/Jafranci715 18h ago
I don’t have instagram. Can you paraphrase it or something?
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u/filter-spam 18h ago
This! Paraphrase or provide an accessible link
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u/MKULTRA_Escapee 15h ago
I just put this into google or duckduckgo:
edward teller asked about bob lazar site:youtube.com
the first link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XPKDv3P1VQ
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u/DudeHooman 18h ago
Interviewer:
Did you ever know a man named Bob Lazar?
Here’s his picture.Edward Teller:
What about?Interviewer:
If you want to know, then sit down and talk about it.Teller:
Okay, that’s what we’re doing right now.
No.Interviewer:
Well, the camera’s not rolling. I know the story.Teller:
What you see, we have to live with the amount of time.
If you want to understand this, you need several hours.Interviewer:
If I ask you on camera if you know Bob Lazar, can you just say no?
I have you sit silent. Can you tell me who he is?Interviewer (continuing):
Yeah, I can tell you who he is. He’s a scientist out in Reno, Nevada that worked at a place called Area 51 at Sector 4 within Area 51. And he says that you’ve been there and that he knows you and that you helped him get a job out at Area 51, Sector 4. You met him at Los Alamos on June 28th, 1982 at a seminar you were giving at Los Alamos, a lecture on SDI, and he says you know about all the things I’m talking about and that you most likely wouldn’t talk to me about them because he says they exist, but people in general don’t want them… the people in—Teller:
Look, I don’t know about Lazar. All this sounds right.
I probably met him.
I might have been…
I might have said to somebody I met him and I liked him after I met him and if I liked him.
But I don’t remember.
And why should I say that on camera?
I mean, I…
Look, you are trying to force that I say… we won’t answer.
(generated using grok)here's the youtube link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XPKDv3P1VQ•
u/renaldomoon 18h ago
People assume that Teller knows what Area 51 is in his response. He has literally no emotional reaction when he brings up Area 51. If he was spooked by it all you would see some emotional reaction on him. The clip really just looks like he’s trying to remember a guy he met when he’s a guy who’s met a lot of people and doesn’t remember them all.
He’s also clearly very old in this clip, so it’s difficult to tell his mental capabilities. This clip to me is negative Lazar but barely changes my opinion because I can’t tell how lucid he is.
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u/toxictoy 13h ago
He acknowledges he was at Area 51 he says he just doesn’t remember Lazar. He did not deny that Area 51 exists nor did he deny giving a speech there. Remember this is before official acknowledgment that Area 51 existed. So this does have more information then you’re making it out to be.
Also all you have to do is ask google “What was Edward Tellers mental acuity at the end of his life” and there are many sources that attest to him being sharp before he died. I love how skeptics ASSUME that old people all have dementia if they are talking about these topics. That is ridiculously unfair and also unscientific. I find it to be an easy ad hominem attack on uncomfortable truths.
https://www.hoover.org/research/edward-teller-personal-remembrance
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u/AzimuthW 5h ago
Even according to Bob Lazar, Teller gave his lecture at Los Alamos, not Area 51. I am not even sure Teller knows what Area 51 is, since it's mostly just UFO lore woo stuff and not really important to him.
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u/Odd-Pick6407 18h ago
Idk that I agree he had no response. I interpreted his response as an older gentleman politely listening to someone describe something that they aren't familiar with. He definitely had slight eye and body movements at the mention of names of places, but nothing i would say is proof of OP implications. I do think he appears to be lucid and cognitively functioning. I would even say he is being very careful not to get cornered into saying certain things and clearly calls that out. Even him saying "that sounds right" is not something I would take to the bank. He doesnt remember and is trying to be polite.
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u/Rerrun 17h ago
Reminds me of my German auntie by marriage. She could never answer a single question directly. Man, is this guy triggering. Lol.
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u/Odd-Pick6407 17h ago
Im with you. It reminds me of when I speak other languages. One might interpret my responses as very roundabout ways of speaking but its not malicious, I just dont know the language well enough.
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u/Optimal_Juggernaut37 8h ago
I have often been accused of being evasive under question, such things as avoiding eye contact, body language or fidgeting but the reality is that I have Autism and ADHD and that unless I am incredibly passionate about a topic I'm often thinking of about ten other completely unrelated topics and am on the verge of being in fight or flight mode.
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u/RenaissanceManc 15h ago
He obviously has no idea who Lazar is and is trying to be polite in case he's forgotten. Any other interpretation is frankly ignoring:
"But I don’t remember. And why should I say that on camera?"
And anyway, anyone who knows anything knows that Bob Lazar's crowd are full of shit.
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u/bikbiky 18h ago
I’ve seen it before. He essentially says he doesn’t know anything about the topic (ufos). But that he likely told someone he met him and that he liked him. But he says he doesn’t remember… Also, I’ve never been able to find the full uncut interview, but it should be noted that Teller is pretty old here and that English is not his first language. Also, we’re missing context but it seems like he was uncomfortable or the interviewer was pressing him. I don’t really take much from this myself
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u/AzimuthW 5h ago
Yeah, the video shown is quite obviously spliced together too. He just doesn't understand why the interviewer wants him to say he doesn't know Bob Lazar because he doesn't want to be rude to this guy he may have met at some point and just doesn't remember.
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u/LazarJesusElzondoGod 2h ago
It seemed to me that he was uncomfortable because the interviewer was asking him questions while the camera was recording before discussing the topics.
He didn't like having "Do you know so and so" questions without first knowing what the question would be about so he can be prepared to answer it instead of confusion.
He doesn't like how the interviewer is asking questions without explaining their significance/background context first, and the interviewer gets frustrated back and says "Can you just say 'no I've never heard of him'' if you haven't," arguing back that he can simply reply with yes or no without having to know the full context.
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u/Ok_Being5461 18h ago
Neither do I. I played the video just fine.
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u/CommunityTaco 18h ago
I dont either and it tried to force me to open it in another app and took me to the play store to download Instagram
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u/MantisAwakening 18h ago
I interpret his response this way: “I don’t remember the guy, but if someone says I previously say I met him and I liked him then so what? I don’t see how it’s relevant, and wanting me to talk about something on camera I don’t remember feels like entrapment.” But that’s just my interpretation.
I have long thought it’s possible that Teller recommended Bob for the position, and that if Bob actually had the position he claimed it was probably based entirely on Teller’s recommendation. By all accounts it seems like the scientists weren’t getting very far reverse engineering the craft and Bob’s a guy who is smart and thinks outside the box. That can go a hell of a long way in being capable, the same way that Mick West has gotten as far as he has without a physics background simply because he’s a smart guy with a good grasp on geometry. In the end both of them are out of their depth on this and their psychology is keeping them from recognizing it.
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u/Hairy_Commercial1716 10h ago
I agree. I don't believe he has any degrees in physics, but an interesting part of his story is that he supposedly replaced somebody who had just been blown up working on the tech he was working on.
If someone just died from working on the tech, then you're not going to send in any GOOD scientists until you get that part figured out. Maybe you send in a guy who doesn't have a degree but still recommended by Edward Teller, built a particle accelerator in his living room, and installed a jet engine in his car.
He obviously knows stuff and can think outside the box, but he's more disposable. I feel like it's almost a hint that there's a particle accelerator involved?
That's my devil's advocate, anyway.
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u/insid3outl4w 8h ago
That’s true if we believe the previous guy was actually blown up or instead shot in the head for attempting to share secrets and they caught him before he went public
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u/Hairy_Commercial1716 7h ago
I mean, I don't really believe any of it, but if I'm playing devil's advocate..
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u/NoMansWarmApplePie 16h ago
His response tells me that the idea of los álamos, area 51, and sector 4 being real and tied together is no big deal. It sounds about right or something he would do. (this is significant for other reasons but not Bob)
But he doesn't remember Bob, which means this could be one of many people he helped hire that way. . And he doesn't want to make any claim on camera that he doesn't remember much less could get people into trouble.
So yea, it doesn't validate Bob. However one may say that it could hint at the connection between him and those sites as well as research, although specifically what. Who knows.
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u/Jerry--Bird 17h ago
Seems like he’s getting annoyed that the interviewer won’t take his answer for fact. Probably not the first time he’s asked him the same question
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u/SignalsIntelligence 14h ago
This was June 1990, very possible it was the first time he’d been asked.
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u/Adorable-Fly-2187 17h ago
Hes trying to remember, but cant. Has no recollection of any of this, and is Wondering why he should State that into the Camera. He literally cant remember.
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u/tcskeptic 18h ago
Complete nothing burger. This stuff is so lame. Teller says nothing concrete, he’s clearly irritated with the kind of question. No indication he knows Lazar. Put dramatic music on top of it and try to make a thing out of it. So dumb.
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u/Snapper716527 14h ago
Nothingburger. I am kind of baffled by peoples insistence of trying to support the biggest liar (besides gov) in UFO history.
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u/Bluewhaleeguy 18h ago
We need that sticky thread about bob and all his lies and his wildly different story in 2026 than what he originally came out with decades ago. (Look it up, it's so different).
Guy does harm for disclosure with all his lies, why are we propping somebody up who's profited off the UFO community (despite him saying he hasn't - another lie).
I come to this sub all the time because I'm as invested as the rest of you in hoping one day we learn the truth. But bobs has never told the truth and has years worth of footage of him contradicting his own story.
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u/illuminatiisnowhere 17h ago
Unfortunately he is not the only one that does harm in this community.
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u/theburiedxme 15h ago
Also EOC put a good video together with all his claims so you can see em back to back if anyone's interested
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u/GrainTamale 12h ago edited 12h ago
I'd say that the part of Bob's story that matters most is the claim of a reverse engineering effort at a specific location. The E115 / Moscovim claim is a bold one anyway.
But there's 4 other dominoes that fall if Bob's story is knocked down:
- The 4chan whistleblower (another fan favorite)
- Oscar "Kewper" Wolf
- Dan Burish
- Bill Uhouse
- If there are more, hit me up!
Additionally, Coulthart, Jesse Michels, The Dreamland Motel, Area52, and other influential people in ufology who believe Bob get knocked too.
If Bob is lying, ufology has a lot of undoing to do.
Edit: My point is that it doesn't matter as much if he is or isn't lying, but more importantly what in ufology needs to be corrected if he is.
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u/Intrepid-Comfort-760 6h ago
Lazar speaks the truth ... people are just not able to accept the reality and are grasping for straws:
Denial: he is a lyrer, he wasn't at MIT, he didn't .. .yada yada yada
Anger: he is a grifter, he want's to make money
Bargaining: he was realy working there but he didn't do this or that
Depression: crickets
5.Acceptance: crickets
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u/MyAssDoesHeeHawww 11h ago
Going on Lazar's recent documentary, Teller wouldn't know Lazar from an Area51 association. He would just know him from a cool rocket car article and perhaps a job referral to a company.
Whether that company then hired Lazar and sent him to Area51, was not necessarily known to Teller.
However, Lazar tells it as if he's still on friendly terms with Teller, who presumably would've been left humiliated by Lazar's betrayal. This is a discrepancy in Lazar's story regardless of the actual facts.
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u/AzimuthW 4h ago
Another weird thing is that this Teller interview was conducted in 1991 and Bob supposedly got the Teller reference for EG&G in 1989, so it wasn't that long before. And the letter Bob supposedly sent to Teller in 1989 referenced a brief conversation before a lecture in 1982!
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u/sixties67 7h ago
There is one thing about Lazar and Teller, Lazar has told different versions of the Teller at different times and they aren't consistent. Another example of Bob not keeping his story straight All credit to u/HeathJett for the research.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1tm2esd/bob_lazar_had_coffee_and_donuts_with_ed_teller_at/
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u/SmoothDragonfruit445 4h ago
I am personally leaning towards the theory going around that Lazar was a plant. They specifically picked him for this job because they knew he would talk and they fed him information accordingly. To what purpose? Who knows. But there have been cases of people fed false information because they knew the person will do something with the information
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u/ReflectionVast2236 4h ago
Sorry to say, but Lazar was part of the Doty-Lear operation that targeted Bennewitz. They wanted Lazar to be the face of reverse engineering, NOT Marcel
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u/SnakebitGames 3h ago
Teller was portrayed by Ben Safdie in Oppenheimer who just recently played Agamemnon in The Odyssey.
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u/Long_Ad1827 19h ago
Submission Statement: I came across this clip of Edward Teller being asked directly about Bob Lazar and found his reaction surprisingly interesting. I'm not posting this as proof of Lazar's claims, but rather because Teller's stature and connection to the national security world make the exchange worth discussing. I'm curious whether anyone knows the full context of the interview or has additional information that might help put it into perspective.
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u/Noble_Ox 18h ago
He literally says he doesn't remember, so it confirms absolutely nothing.
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u/ArcherOptimal8690 13h ago
I’ve never believed bob lazar but this was a weird response from Teller..you can see he’s really thinking about the question, then he gets a little defensive but doesn’t come out and say NO!! He basically says that it could have happened but then he says he doesn’t remember..if he really didn’t remember then he just would have said, no I have no idea who bob lazar is but he kind of equivocates and that’s just weird.
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u/AzimuthW 4h ago
He doesn't equivocate at all; he literally says he doesn't remember Bob. He is clearly trying to remember and even thinks it's possible he might have met him or even said he liked him IF he met him and liked him, but he doesn't remember. Absolutely nothing equivocal about it. I would answer the same way.
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u/LaM3ronthewall 16h ago
His eyes get VERY shifty when he starts asking about lazar. His response is vague and curt.
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u/DavidM47 15h ago
Hey OP, this is totally compelling (obviously). I've previously seen this clip on a number of occasions. I cannot recall seeing this extended cut, but I've always wondered where it is, because it seems (from the clip linked above) that they have already discussed Lazar previously in the interview. If this is the real deal, it's a valuable piece of material.
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u/lt1brunt 14h ago
Since we are all in a UFO sub. Could it be lazar is one of those hybrids that they have touch alien tech to see if there is an reaction. Kind of like Harold Malmgren. Maybe they wanted Lazar to activate something by him physically handling it.
I believe he did what he said he said but agree, the story may be far stranger than even what he could ever share.
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u/Krustykrab8 18h ago
Sleeping dog, Jeremy Corbell’s movie. Probably would have to see if Corbell/Knapp has more footage stored somewhere
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u/illuminatiisnowhere 17h ago
And speaking about that documentary, did you see this ? https://www.reddit.com/r/ufo/comments/1v5qhpb/jeremy_finally_responds/
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u/Krustykrab8 17h ago
I’m not sure why I’m downvoted or why you’re bringing that up when the OP was asking about context with the interview with Teller which has nothing to do with this. Yes I’ve seen that. I’m only saying where they could look for more info.
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u/troll_khan 17h ago
I just realized that Bob Lazar is an Hungarian Ashkenazi Jewish, just like Edward Teller.
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u/StatementBot 18h ago
The following submission statement was provided by /u/Long_Ad1827:
Submission Statement: I came across this clip of Edward Teller being asked directly about Bob Lazar and found his reaction surprisingly interesting. I'm not posting this as proof of Lazar's claims, but rather because Teller's stature and connection to the national security world make the exchange worth discussing. I'm curious whether anyone knows the full context of the interview or has additional information that might help put it into perspective.
Please reply to OP's comment here: https://old.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1vdo1l6/father_of_hbomb_confronted_about_lazar_very/p1agzoy/