LATEST ... On Paul Hoffman Click Here NEW!!! Now Get A DVD of Treasure CLICK HERE "TREASURE In Search of the Golden Horse" TISOGH Unofficial Web Page UPDATED Sunday, March 4, 2007 CONSTANTLY UPDATED ... So, Come Back Often !!!
Treasure: In Search of the Golden Horse is a 1984 illustrated book and accompanying video by Sheldon Renan published in the United States by Warner Books (ISBN 0-446-38160-8). The book was designed and promoted as a contest, in which readers attempted to solve the elaborate puzzle contained in the book's story to find the location of real 1 kilogram golden horse buried in a box somewhere on public land within the continental United States. The puzzle was designed by puzzlemaster Dr. Crypton (Paul Hoffman) and was considered extremely difficult. The first reader to solve the puzzle and dig up the horse by the deadline of May 26, 1989 would get to keep the horse and would receive $500,000. The solution was designed to be available either by reading the book or watching the video independently. The video, which starred Dory Dean and Elisha Cook Jr. and was narrated by Richard Lynch was available on VHS and aired on cable television, but was designed especially with the Capacitance Electronic Disc format in mind, which allowed one to shuffle through the film similarly to laserdisc and DVD in order to hunt for clues.
The deadline for the puzzle passed without any reader having solved it, and the horse was dug up by the promoters and donated to charity (Big Brothers Big Sisters of America). After the deadline, Hoffman declined to publicize the solution, however, and many readers continued to attempt to solve it after the deadline. Rumors circulated among the puzzle-solving community that a second silver horse had been placed in the location of the original horse, in conjunction with an unproduced Colecovision game. Seven months later, Nick Boone and Anthony Castaneda, having arrived at a solution, went to Tennessee Pass in Colorado and dug up a vial on National Forest Service land that contained a congratulatory message. In the following years, the area in the vicinity of the pass summit has been ransacked by other visitors in an attempt to unearth the supposed second silver horse or any other artifact of the contest.
Source: Wikipedia.com
Join Us In The Forum This from the forum sums it all up .... Sunday, March 27, 2005 I was rustling through some dusty papers in my file cabinet when I came across a photocopy of my father's final claim for the prize of "Treasure - In Search of the Golden Horse", dated March 21, 1989. It is 34 pages long, including a 2-page bibliography. It was the 52nd claim my dad mailed to D.L. Blair Corporation in Nebraska. When I found the document, I was reminded of the road trip my dad and I took to Arizona in the late 80's, in search of additional clues. Ultimately, the search for clues proved almost fruitless, but the memory of my dad (wearing blue jeans and a cotton button-down shirt) hiking through the parched desert and Indian burial grounds remains vivid. For over four years, my dad was obsessed with the book and the video. He was in his fifties at the time. At the beginning, I was 25 years old. I read the book and watched the video, and (as an illustrator and writer) found them utterly beguiling. But my fascination paled in comparison to my dad's. He was certain that the story was an allegorical tale about Native American Indians and their tragic history. Anyway, when I found his 52nd claim, I thought it would be interesting to track down what happened after the puzzle deadline had expired. Of course, I knew the internet was the only way to research such a (relatively) obscure subject. Which is how I found all of you. I have read through dozens of your posts and find them all marvelous in their passion and devotion to this faded book and fainter memory. You have rekindled the flames of a distant fire in my heart and confirmed that the search for the Golden Horse affected many more lives than my family's. My dad is 73 years old now and has lived on the same hillside in Topanga, California for the past 25 years. His mind is still sharp as a broken whiskey bottle and his spirit is still as eccentric as ever. He was embittered by D.L. Blair's refusal to award him the half-million dollar prize back in 1989, but we haven't talked about "Treasure" in more than a decade. But given his obsession with the puzzle, I felt compelled to share my memories with you. I'll keep an eye out for any replies to this post and do my best to keep sharing. Best wishes to all, Fox
The Video To Email Rick ... rick@nooga.com I seen the ghosts, that bubble in white.
Like a herd of new lambs, weaving silent in the night.
And upon a great ridge, like where continents divide.
I found two adds together, like one side by side.
Knowledge will be helpful for many whom have lost.
The meanings of a "treasure" and what meanings they have cost.
No way in this world would I have expanded my mind.
To here I thank a Doc for devoting more time.
Conclusion to this story may never end here today.
But in here are my clues, adding to a single minded way.- RLH.Godson33 ABOUT TREASURE "Treasure"was a puzzle by Dr.. Crypton (Paul Hoffman) released simultaneously in 1984 as a book, a videotape and a laser disk. The book and video versions include a number of mysterious pictures and images connected by a loose plot involving the theft of a golden horse. The 1-kilo golden horse itself was buried, and the mysterious images were supposed to give instructions on how to find it. The lucky winners would get the golden horse and $500,000. The clues were interesting and obscure; it was impossible to tell which of the puzzles were relevant to the solution and which weren't. Enough of them were sort of solvable to give people hope that they were on the right track. For example, some clues written on an umbrella gave the birth and death years of Mary, Queen of Scots; and a chess game turned out to be identifiable as Anderssen vs. Kieseritzky, the"Shower of Gold" game. Evidently neither of these observations were relevant to the solution in the end. It was alleged that during the production of the video enough people were let in on the secret that the location had to be changed... but that very little of the puzzle was changed to reflect the new location. Nobody solved the puzzle in time -- i.e. by midnight of 26 May 1989. The horse was dug up by the promoters and the prize donated to a charity:Big Brothers and Sisters of America. However, the promoters and Dr... Crypton refused to make the solution public. Seven months later two men, Nick Boone and Anthony Castaneda, went to Tennessee Pass in Colorado and dug up a vial with congratulations inside.They wrote a description of their thought processes that left other frustrated treasure-seekers suspicious and annoyed: their"solution" appeared to be motivated very little by anything in the puzzle itself, so that it seemed apparent to many that they were virtually guided to that location by the promoters.This suspicion has not been confirmed or denied. ... Jim Gillogly
Here's a email received Friday, July 20, 2001 ...
Rick,
I was amazed to see a website dedicated to the "TREASURE"search. I remember back when the book first came out I was obsessed with it to the point of spending almost every waking hour thinking about it--I know, sounds crazy. I'm surprised to see people still trying to "solve" it, though I must admit I'd sure like to see a "real" explanation of what led to Tennessee Pass, Co. I was always intrigued with the picture in the "FISH"chapter. I knew Crypton was a whiz at origami among many things so I thought of folding the picture. The chef has cut (2) pcs of fish so I thought folding twice would be good. I folded from right to left once, and then folded from right to left a second time and noticed(though the fold was not exact) that the chef disappears leaving a (4) frame window above (Four corner states) and a strange design below with the letter TN or JN left on the chef's left arm(which is basically all that is left of him after the fold). Interestingly, the wave to the right has little e's splashing off of it, kind of indicating see for sea. There are four sushi dishes left in front of him after the fold also---I've tried to see how they may possibly spell "pass" but don't know if that pertains at all. But you can see the TN or JN on the chef's left arm without folding anyway. Many of the pictures had very strange things hidden in them. The girl on the carousel when turned upside down reveals a seal and two lions,but you have to look closely at the girls dresses. A silhouette of Abraham Lincoln also appears in the picture. Oh---there I go again----I guess I can't get it out of my blood!!! lol Anyway, I'd be interested in corresponding a little if you have any new thoughts. The Treasure thing for me was always a heck of a lot of fun!!
Thanks, Joe SperlingInteresting Facts Dr. Crypton is married to Ann Braybrooks, a writer of children's books like Disney's Pocahontas and Disney's The Little Mermaid. Some people have mentioned the Ad in the September 1990 issue of "Treasure"Magazine that told of a new "Treasure." It was written by a lay person who had worked to solve TISOGH. Look at the ad. ... The treasure map at the start of the video .... According to the Capt. Nemo theory. The trees at the burial site were all straight up except one like they are in this pic. Note each line has a point on each end and a "T" (for tree?) on the other.If you leave out the tree that is slanted you can see "14th." The mountains in Colorado are called "The Fourteeners" for their altitude being 14,000 feet. Could the map above be semi-imposed on a monument, see the two corners of the pic. Her father made a secret place to hide a secret key Notice the ribbon is laying in the shape of a Greek Tau to "T" for Tennessee? Notice he is actually on a bench rather than a table. Is this the email address for Dr. Crypton? I sent an email to this address asking.I'll include any response here if and when it comes. Or, you might want to write yourself ... phoffman@paulerdos.com About Dr. Crypton: From: uftree.com: 1. Paul Hoffman (#2161) birth date unknown. He married Ann Marie Braybrooks in Woodstock, Ulster County, NY, July 29, 1995. (Ann Marie Braybrooks is #2160.) Ann was born in Harbor City, Los Angeles County, CA December 20, 1959.Ann is the daughter of Alan Braybrooks and Marymar Newton. Paul Hoffman and Ann Marie Braybrooks had the following child: 2 i.2 Hoffman (#2162). Email Received:
Have you ever found a e-mail for Dr Crypton? I recently came across your web page while looking up Sheldon Renan`s name, I am probably like most of those that had searched far and wide for fame and fortune except that I wanted to succeed in solving the puzzle before my brother did, I hold in memory the most amazing stories of searching for the Golden Horse. Though at the present time it would take me days to write it in this e-mail, it is one that I am sure it would completely be interesting to all that had forsaken in the journey of Amanda and the TricPony that had disappeared. In short, my brother whom passed away shortly after the game was over spent thousands in searching by auto and plane tickets, hundreds on top of hundreds for books, movies, laser disc player and misc. pens, markers, lots of Xerox copies, hell he probably went into the thousands with all of that to, if you know what I mean. He broke every damn rule there was and thank god we are not doing time in a federal prison someplace on the east coast. Even though I had taken my own journey`s later, my first was with my brother not because I was into the search it was because he had cancer and our mother insisted that I go with him just in case he had health problems. The horse had turned him into a Madhatter along with the gold and the money for which was not to be had on that island of mud to where he thought it was. We were over 3000 miles from home, just the two of us, with a rented car, a rented room, a backpack, a shovel, a flashlight and a tattered taped together book of Treasure: In search of the Golden Horse, that took us to places we had never been before and a trip into the unknown. This is only part of his story and the journey we took together, as far I my own journey`s are in concerning this matter by myself which came later after our returning to where we had started from , they are a treasure to be had by all. If you find this interesting enough so far lets keep it going, you might be quite amazed to what I think about the puzzle, the clues and the solution, also I browsed through part of the forum from your web page it seemed to only at most mention that of Colorado. I have to wonder how many of those whom had questions or replies written in there every got out of their arm chair and gave it their best shot into realizing just how treasured America really is whether its a mud hole in Carolina, a giant tooth standing behind the timberline lodge in Oregon or a wrapped old museum on the plains of Nebraska, treasure to me is like finding a penny on the ground or the memories of Rocky Raccoon in the Black Hills of South Dakota and one day if I have any cents left at all I will be able to afford to go home.
It has been fun, a good-nite,
Gideons IslandColorado Denver = Dancer State Flower: Rocky Mountain Columbine - Climbing (Mountains & Stairs?) State Color: Redor Ruddy - Blowing (His nostrils blowing) Peaks over 14,000 feet = 14 steps each time Amanda feet were shown Michael Dooling has a website with his "solution"to Treasure .. Sheldan Renan's 1990 "Treasure" Magazine Article: Here's a web page dedicated to Richard Lynch the "voice-over" narrator of Treasure ... Thanks to marie5for this new bit ... From the book, Page 53 ... The piece is the shape of Tennessee with a mountain on top of the state. A website called "Armchair Treasure Hunting"... and it has a big section on the possible solution to Treasure. Mr. Maps Elisha Cook played Mr. Maps and his big movie was The Maltese Falcon in which he was looking for a black falcon. Notice the page is the basic shape of Colorado. The treasure chest (with the black falcon or dingus) is located on the page at virtually the same place as Leadville or the Tennessee Pass in Colorado. The map is divided into six squares. There are six states surrounding Colorado. The maps on the page are crumpled into mountainous looking shapes.... Rick I received an email from a fellow searcher about her visit to the burial site at the Tennessee Pass:
Rick, There was a large hole, filled with posters, and some puzzles (at least that's what I took them to be) wrapped in plastic and cards in Ziplock bags. Across the top of the hole were tree branches and on top of the branches were stones and rocks. It looked like someone was trying to protect the "buried" things from the elements, but at the same time still leaving them visible. In the middle of the pile of rocks was a wooden cross that said, "TREASURE," and I think the back said "RIP." This whole area was surrounded by neon pink ribbon strung from tree-to-tree, as in a crime scene. The particular tree that Nick & Tony supposedly used as a guide had a tiny gold metal plaque on which was engraved "Bullsh*t" and underneath the words "Jim 8 Ken"---don't know if that means Jim Aitken, or the "8" is as close as they could get to engraving "&"... or who knows... Attached to the same tree was a rather large sign on neon yellow poster board that was enclosed in plastic. It read," Golden Horse Sh*t" and underneath, "Do Not Dig Too Deep." One of the cards enclosed in a Ziplock in the grave was addressed "To All Treasure Contestants" (I think) and it was a New Age type card with a flying horse on the front. The inside read, "May the HORSE be with you" and it was signed, "The Fraud Squad" or some such thing. In another Ziplock was a pair of black gloves. The Ziplock read, "Beware of the man who is also a bird"... Still another baggie had some sort of map of CO, with the words "GOLD MINE" pasted on the front of the map. On the baggie was written, "In Memory of Elijah Cook" By far the strangest was an extremely large neon pink poster board, covered in plastic and scrolled up. It was a collage of sorts---- words snipped out of newspapers and magazines--- all seemingly placed to make messages. The things I can see on my photo most vividly are (we're in the process of moving, and my better shots are packed at the moment), "It's Never Too Late," "More to Do" "Find the real reasons" "Coming back to make case" "Suit seeks more" "Agree to arbitration" "Work Together" and "Feel sympathy for the scientist." "He's the charmed one"..." a metal god does have a voice" "Unlimited gold" "Can be had" "for a price" "greatest collaboration" "a small disaster" "interpretation falls short" These are about 1/2 of the phrases...... They can be strung together in many different ways, obviously. Additionally, there was one of those black "FOR SALE" signs (with red letters) that people buy when they want to sell their home by owner or put in the back window of their car... But in the white space where you would normally write the price or a phone number, this sign had a series of shapes---like the rabbit card--- and letters were filled in so that the entire sign read:
FOR SALE
L-O-G-I-C L-I-N-K-S
N-E-V-E-R U-S-E-DSo, that's about all I can remember without actually seeing my more detailed photos. Have you been there? Do you know anybody who has been? This absolutely blew me away. I somehow didn't expect to find all of this. I don't know what I expected, but not this!!! What do you make of this??? Any ideas who could've done it or, more importantly, WHY??????????????? Your website was listed somewhere---maybe on the back side of that big poster ... I can't remember exactly where...the big blackmail type poster did say "Finally a plan for the rest of us" and "The Internet site to start your education" but I know your site was NOT listed on the front. Any ideas????????????? Thanks! Roxy
More Interesting"Treasure" Links: The American Treasure Hunt Society Forum ...(Loads Slowly) A Partial And Somewhat Controversial Solution ... Just Some of the clues Rick Igou found ... what do you think? Mr... maps was played by Elisha Cook, the actor and his picture was in the book as well.He, I believe was in the 10th. Mountain Division in the Army during WWII. The horse was supposedly hidden near the 10th. Mountain monument. Amanda picked up a red beret which was probably used by the 10th. Mountain sine they were a division of the Special Forces. The rabbit in the video represented the 10th. because they wore white since they were ski troopers. I believe the hunt started in St. Louis at the arch and went west to Colorado. There is a full sized stuffed horse in the museum (beneath the earth)under the Arch which was Amanda's "real horse" The Rocky Mountains in that area are called the "Fourteeners" by mountain climbers. Amanda always took 14 steps each time she was shown walking. For example: 14 steps up the lighthouse, 14 steps down the New Orleans street, 14 steps in the wilderness. Look at page 10 and right next the page number (10) is water (thawed) or TH the symbol for thaw!! .... and the shape came from the mountain on page 48 ... thus .. 10th Mountain Division! Notice the ribbon laying on the table when the blacksmith was polishing the "gold"horse. It was blue and laying in the shape of the Greek "Tau"or T ... thus Tennessee Pass.
Random Stuff have found ...At least part of TREASURE was filmed in Mendocino, California.... and go to 1983 and see what I mean. Here's the lighthouse that is shown in the video .. note that the one on the book cover is different and has a red band on it. Some say the lodge in the video is located at Mt. Hood, Oregon. Haven't found any pictures online yet.
Who is Sheldon Renan?Sheldon Renan- Chief Executive Officer Sheldon Renan, CEO of Clarity, has written and produced work for PBS, Showtime, and Paramount Television. Once a historian of experimental film and media, Sheldon began producing videodiscs in 1981, later expanding into theme park and corporate theater work. He has written and/or produced major interactive media pieces for IBM, Intel, Xerox,Sony, as well as attractions for Universal Studios theme parks in Los Angeles, Orlando, and Japan, including "Murder She Wrote Mystery Theater", "The Alfred Hitchcock Theater","Hercules and Xena", and the "Twister" attraction at Universal Studios in Florida. ... Thanks to Marie5 Who is Dr.. Crypton? PAUL HOFFMAN Paul has been president and editor-in-chief of Discover magazine, the country's largest science monthly, since 1987. Paul was a special science correspondent for Good Morning America and has appeared on CNN,ABC News, and The Charlie Rose Show. He has written for many national magazines, including The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine,Smithsonian, and Business Week, and was the first winner of the National Magazine Award for Feature Writing. He has written ten books, including Archimedes's Revenge: The Joys and Perils of Mathematics. Paul lives in New York City. Also ... Paul Hoffman is the publisher of Encyclopedia Britannica. He is also the host of the five-part PBS series "Great Minds of Science"and a frequent commentator on television shows such as "CBS This Morning," "The News Hour with Jim Lehrer,"CNN news, and "Inside Space." For ten years, Hoffman was president and editor-in-chief of Discover magazine.He is the author of ten books, including Archimedes' Revenge:The Joys and Perils of Mathematics. A recovered chess addict and current cooking fanatic, he lives in Chicago, Illinois, and Woodstock, New York with his wife Ann Braybrooks, who writes children's books. Paul Hoffman interviewed Erdös over the last ten years of his life and followed him on mathematical sojourns. Hoffman's November 1987 profile of Erdös in The Atlantic Monthly, "The Man Who Loves Only Numbers,"won the National Magazine Award for feature writing, the most prestigious award in American magazine publishing.
Who is Jean-François Podevin? (Artist and Illustrator of TREASURE) Some on the illustrations you'll see there will send chills up your spine! ... Who is Elisha Cook, Jr. (Mr.. Maps) Date of birth: 26 December 1903, San Francisco, California, USA Date of death: 18 May 1995, Big Pine, California, USA Elisha Cook Tribute ... Elisha Cook, Jr. appeared in, or contributed to the following movies ... Elsiha Cook Jr. played cabbies and snitches, jailbirds and piano players in over 120 feature films ... Cook's E! Online Film Credits ... Elsiha Cook Jr.
©2001 - 2007 Rick IgouEmailRick Or Visit Nooga.com or ThuhBull.com This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. This is TreasureIn Search of the Golden Horse. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault. It's all Dr. Crypton(Paul Hoffman's) fault.
