Messori claims to be a „halfbreed“ Cheyenne with French citizenship. He lives in Germany where he does shows and dances at the Pullman Western City in the vicinity of Passau/Bavaria, and is also a musician playing ndn flute music.
Messori describes himself on his website:
http://www.hunting-wolf.de/My Indian name is „Hunting Wolf“. I am a halfbreed Cheyenne Indian with French citizenship.
For more than 25 years now, I am in showbusiness all over Europe.
My show is being done with original Indian costumes and I also moderate (the audience may be included).
This makes for a remarkable number of red flags in just a few sentences.
If he were of Native descent (and Messori claims to have taken up contacts to his Cheyenne relatives but decided not to live on the rez permanently), he should be aware that the term „Indian name“ is inapproriate, as is the term „halfbreed“. Similarly, Cheyenne-style garments are no „costumes“, and then there is a discrepancy between the term „Indian costumes“ and the characterisation as „original“.
Messori also does not seem to know the name the Cheyenne have for themselves.
Therefore, and judging by his Italian first and family names, it is quite safe to assume that Messori was born into a family of Italian descent in France and is not Native, but of Euro ancestry. His somewhat darker complexion and dark brown hair just offers him the possibility to claim an ndn parent in front of a gullible Euro audience.
Fans of his seem to have published an article on him in a regional wiki project:
http://regiowiki.pnp.de/index.php/Hunting_WolfHunting Wolf, real name Nello Messori, (* 1951?) is a Cheyenne Halfbreed Indian living in Lower Bavaria who is rated a veteran at Pullman City.
Life
The Cheyenne Halfbreed Indian grew up in France with his parents and siblings, on a piece of land where they grew vegetables, there were fields, hares, horses, and chicken. For long years, he did not take any interest in his Indian roots. As a young man, he traveled through Denmark, Belgium, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Spain, France, Portugal, and the Netherlands. During his travels, Nello earned his stay doing insecure and badly paid jobs. He worked as a waiter and doorman, worked at construction sites and in a company producing saunas, he loaded ships with coffee and bananas. Often, he did not speak the respective language, he had no home or friends, and more than once ended up sleeping under a bridge. At one point in time he wanted to know more about the culture of his ancestors and visited reservations in the USA and Canada. He even tried to live on a reservation for five months. But the atmosphere there is marked by unemployment, alcohol, drugs, and suicides.
Finally he went into show business. Today he is rated a veteran at Pullman city whose American History Show is not imaginable without him.
So despite having grown up with both parents, one of whom he claims to have been Cheyenne, he apparently had no exposure whatsoever to Cheyenne culture?
It is also interesting that Messori carefully avoids to mention who of his parents was Cheyenne. Of course there are a few problems there... If he claimed it was his father, then he'd have to explain the definitely Italian family name. If he claimed it was his mother, then he'd have to explain why she wouldn't teach her children a single bit of Cheyenne language and culture – and how she ended up in France in the very first place.
Similarly noteworthy is his claim of having 'visited' reservations in the USA and Canada. He apparently does not mention which reservation or reserve he 'tried to live on' for five months.
Signore Messori also keeps an online shop:
http://www.hunting-wolf.com Hunting Wolf
Nello Messori
Schulgasse xx
xxx Thannberg
Bayern
DE Germany
In this shop, Messori sells jewelry, CDs/DVDs, Asian incense sticks, sweetgrass, cedar, white sage, and flutes.
He does not specify whether the jewelry sold is just ndn style or whether it is produced by ndn artists or artisans. There are no certificates mentioned.
The online shop is not the only way Messori sells ndn jewelry, as may be seen from descriptions given by Pullman City:
https://www.pullmancity.de/de_DE/restaurants_stores/stores/mandan_erdhaus/Right next to the Mandan earth lodge in Pullman City, Hunting Wolf runs the Pueblo kiosk
and in another article:
https://www.pullmancity.de/de_DE/music_shows_events/taegliches_showprogramm/indianische_taenze_mit_hunting_wolf/Indian jewelry and further accessories may be purchased at the Pueblo kiosk
Messori's further tasks, apart from presenting dances and flute music and running the jewelry shop, Pullman City describes like this:
https://www.pullmancity.de/de_DE/music_shows_events/taegliches_showprogramm/indianische_taenze_mit_hunting_wolf/Drum music, a driving rhythm, and a dance which touches: When Cheyenne halfbreed Hunting Wolf present typical Indian dances, the audience gains a vivid image of the customs of North American Natives. His clothes decorated with beads and the eye-catching headdress with feathers shed a light of the manual skills and the highly developed culture [sic] of the Indians. […] Persons eager to learn more about the Indians may visit his lecture on Indian culture [sic] and mythology [sic] at the Mandan Earth Lodge. [...]
Who could better speak of the Indians' culture [sic] than Cheyenne Halfbreed Hunting Wolf? He visits the reservations every year for an exchange with the Natives in North America and to be able to pass on their knowledge to the people in Europe. At the Mandan Earth Lodge, he reports the present-day problems in the reservations, of unemployment and delinquency, but also of the Indians' past, of their closeness to nature, the Pow Wows, the large dance festivals, and of their wisdom until today [sic]. Playing his flute, Hunting Wolf helps us to listen into ourselves, to realise the stress of our every-day life, to get rid of ballast and to find back to ourselves. His closeness to nature and to animals we can also observe during the American History Show when he drives buffaloes through Main Street with lots of respects and love.
https://www.pullmancity.de/de_DE/restaurants_stores/stores/mandan_erdhaus/It is round, built from wood and covered with earth: The Mandan Earth Lodge houses an Indian museum with original exhibits, replicas, and pictures of North American Natives. Cheyenne halfbreed Hunting Wolf gives a vivid report of the Indian mythology and the present-day situation of the Indians in the reservations. He plays with[sic] his flute and takes his audience to a different, mystic world of wisdom and of affinity to nature.
It becomes apparent that Messori is tending the usual set of stereotypes on ndns held by Europeans, and that Pullman City also willingly exploit these stereotypes to attract audiences and present them with what they expect. This sums up to a vicious circle perpetuating the stereotypes.
All this is inappropriate enough, but during recent years, Messori apparently also convinced himself he had shamanic qualities. In his webshop, he also offers „meditation“:
http://www.hunting-wolf.de/produkte/index.htmlMy meditation is a meditational journey into your self, consisting of musical undulations and smudging aromas. Smoke is an element of meditation. The fine particles of the smudging aroma in the air can have a transmitting effect!
It is only the spirit which is ill, the body then becomes ill through this. Dive down into your self and become your own healer!
Apart from the fact that Messori got the wrong Indians there with his meditation, presenting this as a method to heal oneself from physical disease may well endanger persons believing his garbage by preventing them from seeking medical advice in time.
His approach is also completely in line with Nuage views: the diseased himself is fully responsible for the disease as well as for his own healing, and if the illness persists, then it will be the diseased's own fault.
But Messori also promotes other Nuage methods:
http://www.welt.de/wams_print/article3166909/Cheyenne-Haeuptling-Hunting-Wolf-raet-Den-Koerper-bewegen-waehrend-die-Seele-ausruht.htmlThe article promotes one Christian de May and his workout method „Indian Balance“:
... He is half Chilean, half German; half European, half Indian. He was born in Munich. His personal story is what makes training with him particularly attractive – and authentic. The Indian culture [sic] accompanies him since his childhood. His great-grandfather was the founder of the first South American Indian Mission in Chile in 1912. His parents and grandparents, too, have roots to [sic] the tribe of Mapuche Indians. They taught young Christian their ancient wisdom at family reunions, almost casually.
Another family line leads to the North American Natives, the Cherokee.
Oh, another Cherohonkee...
… A certain Hunting Wolf of the tribe of Northern Cheyenne, a tireless promoter of Indian traditions in Europe, takes part in marketing the 'Ethno-Fitness'. His address ennobles the info brochure on Indian Balance.
This is the promo address:
http://www.indian-balance.com/start.php?site=%2F47_expertenmeinung.htmlAho. My name is Hunting Wolf (North Cheyenne American Indian [sic]). Since 25 years, I represent the Indian culture and tradition in Europe. It must have been intended by the great Spirit that Christian and I crossed paths and meanwhile a good friendship developed.
Now a few words on Indian Balance. It is a connection between Body and Mind, basing on musical undulations with the aim of active relaxation. Christian and I want to unite the earlier times with today's modern century. The calm sounds of the Indian flute, matching the Indian Balance Sound, make the body move and the spirit rest.
Experience the fascination of Indian Balance, strengthen your well-being with fleeing daily routine and let yourself be placed into your inner self.
Nobody seems to have told Signore Messori that the Stereotypical Indian (TM) is supposed to finish his talk with 'Aho', not beginning it.
We may also want to add to our dictionary Nuage – Plain Speak:
„The great Spirit wanted us to cross paths“ = We met and realised we could nicely fleece some idiots for their money between the two of us.
Although as of yet no persons claim to have been taught be shame-on Messori, there is a Nuager promoting massages with him:
http://www.indianhealing.de/inhalt/indian/index_indian_meditationsreisen.htmlThe site is owned by one Diana Meißner (formerly Diana Richter). We met the lady before, as she used to be one of the followers of William Burchett/Jervis aka Firewalker aka Turtle Winds aka Medicine Turtle...
Ms Meißner is also an Indian Ambassador, and has been taught by a Crow by the name of Little Crow, and by Jorge Nopaltzin and Jorge Kokopelli Guadarrama who pose as Aztecs and shame-ons in Europe (see:
http://www.indianhealing.de/inhalt/mich/ausbildung.html ) and have been discussed here at NAFPS before.
Apart from making appearances at other events, fairs etc in Germany and Austria, Messori also seems to enjoy exploiting others to promote himself, here with a German actor:
http://www.liborius.de/augenblicke/wolfgang-fierek.htmlThe photo caption reads:
Wolfgang Fierek married his wife Djamila according to a strict ritual of the Sioux Indians. Since then, as an honourary Indian of the Oglala-Sioux he carries the name of „Wichapi Wichasa“ [sic]. Here, the Indian Hunting Wolf has come to celebrate Wolfgang Fierek's 59th birthday.
And another gem ----- Messori had his „Indian name“ registered as a Trade Mark within the European Union:
http://it.unibrander.com/unione-europea/621667EU/hunting-wolf.htmland:
http://tm.kurzy.cz/nello-messori/Trademark Name Application Registration Priority Owner HUNTING WOLF - 1120970 03.05.12 Nello Messori
