The“Triangle”inHistory:ashapetakesform“Theregioninvolved,awaterytriangleboundedroughlybyFlorida,Bermuda,andPuertoRico,measureslessthanathousandmilesonanyoneside.”...SoGeorgeX.SandintroducedtheTriangletohisreadersinOctober1952inashortarticleforFatemagazine,entitled“SeaMysteryatourBackDoor.”Sand’sarticlerecountedthelatestdisappearancetheSandrain1950andwentontodiscusssomeoftheotherrecentbafflingmysterieslikeNC16002,StarTigerandStarAriel,asidefromdevotingmostofthearticletoFlight19.TheTriangleremainedacolloquialexpressionthroughoutthe1950s,employedbylocalswhenanotherdisappearanceorunexplainedcrashhappened.Bytheearly1960s,ithadacquiredthenameTheDeadlyTriangle.Inhis1962book,WingsofMystery,authorDaleTitleralsodevotedpagesinChapter14—“TheMysteryofFlight19”—torecountingthemostrecentincidentsofdisappearancesandevenbegantopondertheories,suchaselectromagneticanomaliesandtheramificationsofProjectMagnet.HisbookwouldsetthetemperforTriangleTheDeadlyTriangleasitappearedina1962bookWingsofMysterybyDaleTitler.TheideathatVincentGaddisinventedtheshapeandmysteryisnonsense.Ithadlongbeenpopularbeforehistime.HeseemsmerelytohavebeenthefirstonetocallitBermudaTriangle.ItisalsononsensethatGaddisoranybodyelseeverthoughtthatMiami,Bermuda,andSanJuanwereabsolutenodalpoints.Gaddiswasmerelytryingtogivetheareageographiclifetoagrowingaudience.Fate’sOctober1952issue.TheTrianglebegins.discussionsthereafter.JustinApril1962AllanW.EckerthadwrittenasensationalpieceintheAmericanLegionMagazineonFlight19“TheMysteryoftheLostPatrol”whichintroducedsomeofthemostpopularbuterroneousdialoguepurportedcomingfromFlight19,includinglinesliketheoceanlooksstrange,allthecompassesaregoinghaywire,andthattheycouldnotmakeoutanydirections,“everythingisstrange.”Thisbecameamaypoleforelectromagneticdiscussions.However,popularityonthesubjectwasbeginningtospreadbeyondtheareaoftheAtlanticseaboard.Butthemoniker“DeadlyTriangle”containedabsolutelynogeographicreferenceinit—inotherwords“DeadlyTriangle”couldbeanywhere.TheninFebruary1964VincentGaddiswroteanarticleforArgosyMagazine.Thearticlewaslittledifferentfromothers,thoughitaddedafewmorerecentcaseslikeMarineSulphurQueen.However,itwashistitlethatfinallyclinchedwiththepublic:“TheDeadlyBermudaTriangle.”Adding“Bermuda”finallymaterializedthelocationforeverybody,thoughGaddisclarified“inandaboutthisarea”manyhavedisappeared.Inhispopular1965bookInvisibleHorizons,Gaddisdevotedchapter13to“TheTriangleofDeath.”TheconceptoftheBermudaTrianglewasspreadingrapidly.Ironically,thefirstbookpublisheddevotedtothesubjectwasentitledLimbooftheLost1969byJohnSpencer,inwhichheproposedtheareahadnorealshapeatallandelaboratelytriedtoincludetheGulfofMexicoaswellasNewJersey.Itsoldinlimitedquantities,butwaslaterreproducedinpaperbackintheearly1970sanddidwell.Dozensofmagazineandnewspaperarticlescameoutintheearly‘70s,eachauthorofferingageneralshape.RichardWinerproposed“TheDevil’sTriangle”andextendeditnearlytotheAzoresnearPortugal.IvanSandersonwassureitwasanoblongshapecenteredalmostentirelynorthofBermuda.ButnobooksoldaswellasCharlesBerlitz’s1974bestseller,TheBermudaTriangle.Sellingwayover5,000,000copiesinhardback,itbecameaphenomenon.Berlitzalsocautionedabouttheexactshape,ashadtheothers.ButtothisdayBermudaTriangleisdeferredtoforthesamereason“DeadlyTriangle”failed—thereissimplynoothernamethatcallstomindthegeneralareaasdoesBermudaTriangle。