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According to Donald Keyhoe, author of "The Flying Saucer Conspiracy," the phrase "Silence Group" has been used in UFO circles since the early 1950s. Wikipedia (entry: UFO Conspiracy Theories) mentions Keyhoe and his book, which specifically accused elements of the US government of conspiring to conceal knowledge of flying saucers, with Keyhoe claiming the existence of a "silence group" orchestrating the aforementioned conspiracy. With that in mind, I began looking for science-fiction films that featured the silence group in their plot. So far, the oldest film I've discovered is Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) by Steven Spielberg, where appears a silence group, headed by scientist and UFO specialist Claude Lacombe, that works together with the US Government without the participation of civilians. The US military can be seen stalking American residents, with unmarked helicopters, in violation of Posse Comitatus statutes. The silent group meets the aliens secretly at Devils Tower in Wyoming before evacuating the nearby locals under the guise of a chemical leak. They also used the Goldstone radio telescope with the cover story that it was down for overhaul; thus, I'm curious as to which science fiction film was the first to incorporate the silence group in its plot.

Still image from Close Encounter of the Third Kind (1977). Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.

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  • I dispute the characterization of the folks in Close Encounters as a "silence group." Their function in the movie is not to suppress public knowledge of UFOs, and that's the raison d'etre of your kind of silence group. The photo caption is not using the same term as you and Keyhoe.
    – Tom
    Commented Jun 3 at 1:37
  • @Tom - If you've seen the film or read the novelization, you'll notice that the US Government and the Silence Group (headed by scientist and UFO specialist Claude Lacombe) work together without civilian involvement. The US military can be seen stalking American residents, with unmarked helicopters, in violation of Posse Comitatus statutes. Finally, the Silence Group meets the aliens secretly at Devils Tower in Wyoming before evacuating the nearby locals under the guise of a chemical leak. They also used the Goldstone Radio telescope with the cover story that it was down for overhaul.
    – Bingo
    Commented Jun 3 at 12:33
  • "Working without civilians" and even "working in secret" is not the same thing as actively suppressing knowledge among the populace. These guys are a far cry from e.g. the Smoking Man from The X-Files. But I guess it's your business if you want to muddle the concept so badly that it doesn't match any tropes actually in use.
    – Tom
    Commented Jun 3 at 13:48
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    @Tom Still the term "silence group" is oddly specific and I'd assume taken from the UFO literature of the time. I'd say it almost rises to the level of saying the Men in Black franchise is not the same as the John Keel and associates use of "Men in Black" because of their respective groups' wildly different motives.
    – lucasbachmann
    Commented Jun 3 at 15:27
  • May be of interest Donald Keyhoe appears in this 1950 documetary at 8 minutes. (And no doubt several other videos) youtu.be/D7EwnG9R6t8?si=uE1Qbi782oXeUpNf
    – lucasbachmann
    Commented Jun 3 at 16:55

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The answer is clearly* Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957) see the linked timestamp at 41:11 - where the military top brass describes the military policy to deny the existence of flying saucers. The military cover up of Plans 1 to 8 is discussed at roughly the 20 minute mark.

*Just kidding.

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  • I did start checking this list for a counter example and nothing yet. Most of the Saucer films of the early 1950s were plain invasions with no opportunities for long term cover-ups like Plan 9 has. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/…
    – lucasbachmann
    Commented Jun 7 at 18:26

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