TV Odyssey Broadcasting Station
Posted by: OldLakeArchivist
February 1, 2004
For newcomers:
Yes, Channel 94 existed in Deep Lake.
Yes, multiple people have come across what seem original Odyssey tapes.
No, they cannot be duplicated (we’ve tried VHS-to-VHS, VHS-to-digital, direct capture, etc.).
Yes, the “fire” story is the official explanation.
No, there are still no records of the building.
Please read the pinned posts before asking if this is an ARG.
Reply by: JuniperRoad
Adding to the test log:
We tried digitizing Tape 3 again last night. Standard RCA out to capture card.
Playback on the VCR = normal (after 11 p.m., obviously).
Capture feed = full blue screen.
Audio file = blank. Not even static.
The tape itself still works afterward. No degradation.
Reply by: MesaMom73
My sister drove her tape out to Las Cruces last year to see if it was a “location thing.”
Tape works fine everywhere, just when the clock strikes 6 (a.m.) the thing stops working.
Make of that what you will.
Reply by: SandiaStatic
For clarity:
It’s not just that they can’t be copied.
It’s that the copy knows it’s a copy.
We hooked two VCRs together in my garage (yes, Deep Laker, born and raised).
The source tape displayed fine on the TV.
The recording deck showed blue on its own tiny preview screen while recording.
Like it refuses to see it.
Reply by: CarlFromCarl’sHardware
I still think it has something to do with the broadcast itself, not the tape.
Channel 94 wasn’t cable. It wasn’t satellite. It just… appeared on UHF.
My dad’s old Zenith only picked it up if the rabbit ears were angled toward the lake.
Not the water tower.
The lake.
Reply by: HighDesert1990
We’ve mapped this already. There are too many supposedly certain places the station was supposed to be. The lake’s empty, as are all the other places.
What I find interesting is that no outside ever found a tape.
They’re not on eBay.
They’re not in thrift stores.
They don’t show up in estate sales.
They circulate house-to-house, or just, show up.
Reply by: LakebedLurker
Can we stop pretending the fire makes sense?
My aunt worked at the Sentinel in ’95.
She remembers being told not to “overreport” it.
Her words.
Overreport what? A building fire in a town this small would’ve been front page for weeks.
Instead we got two paragraphs and a chili cook-off.
Reply by: DesertStatic
We pulled NOAA weather logs for the supposed night of the fire.
No smoke reports.
No wind anomalies.
No emergency band chatter archived.
Deep Lake is flat. You’d see smoke from anywhere.
Reply by: JuniperRoad
Has anyone else noticed the tapes feel warm?
Not hot. Just… slightly above room temperature.
Even when they haven’t been played in years.
Mine’s been in a plastic bin since 2004. Still warm.
Reply by: MesaMom73
Yes.
And heavier than blank VHS tapes from the same era.
We weighed them in 2022. Average blank VHS: ~180g.
Odyssey tapes: ~214g.
Before anyone asks, yes, same brand casing.
No, we’re not opening one.
We agreed on that.
Reply by: AnalogKid
Small correction:
We agreed on that after what happened to Tom.
Reply by: SandiaStatic
We’re avoiding content discussion here, but for documentation:
The “blue screen if watched before 11 p.m.” rule is consistent across 17 confirmed tapes.
11:00 p.m. Mountain Time.
Not adjusted for daylight savings.
We tested that twice.
Reply by: CarlFromCarl’sHardware
Channel 94 used to sign off at 3:17 a.m.
3:17, exact.
Does anyone remember that tone right before it cut?
Reply by: LakebedLurker
Yes.
And the way the clouds looked during sign-off.
Not ours.
Stop saying it was ours.
Reply by: OldLakeArchivist
One more record anomaly:
Property parcel for “DL Broadcasting” still appears in 1994 tax rolls.
Assessed value: $0.
Structure description: “non-permanent.”
By 1996, parcel number reassigned to open land.
Coordinates redacted.