A man poses for photos as attendees gather to “storm” Area 51 at an entrance to the military facility near Rachel, Nevada.
Bridget Bennett/AFP/Getty Images
Millions RSVPed to a viral Facebook post calling for a massive “Naruto run” storming of Nevada’s most notorious secret site. But when the moment finally came Friday, the scene at Area 51’s back gate was a small crowd that looked like a cross between a political protest and a costume party. One man wore a lucha libre Mexican wrestling mask, while another waved the North Korean flag.
At one point the man in the mask stepped toward the barricaded gate marked with a stop sign and assumed the pose of a Naruto runner made popular by Japanese anime. An armed guard looked on as the crowd shouted “don’t do it” and then … nothing. The masked man simply turned around to be greeted by the clicks of cameras. The meme continues
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The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the small group did a lot of standing and shouting, but no actual storming of the gate at the Nevada Test and Training Range, which includes Area 51. Footage of the scene shows what’s essentially a party atmosphere, with even the guards seeming pretty amused by the whole thing.
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Consequently, there appear to be about as many fake live streams of the event on YouTube as there were actual people at the gate. As of mid-morning in Nevada, several “live” streams showed the same dark, pre-dawn footage.
For decades, Area 51 has been the source of rumors and legends about an alleged government cover-up of its encounters with aliens and alien technology. In June, Facebook user Matty Roberts posted a hoax event on Facebook calling for the masses to meet at the gate at 3 a.m. on Sept. 20 to overwhelm the tightly guarded facility “to see them aliens.”
Watch this:
Secrets of Area 51: The alien controversy
5:27
With the “storming” now complete, thousands more people are expected to attend a pair of alien-themed music festivals in the tiny desert towns of Rachel and Hiko near Area 51. The Hiko site includes a mock Area 51 gate for visitors to storm safely for all their selfie-taking needs. Our reporter Erin Carson was on the ground at Rachel Friday and reported that crowds were calm. See her photos below.
Overall, there seems to be a lot more Naruto-running going on in the safety of these festival grounds, including this guy:
Meme imitates life, life imitates meme. This is the world we live in now. Stay safe out there, folks.
Originally published Sept. 20, 10:11 a.m. PT.