Humans - mostly - were magnetically drawn downtown Friday and Saturday for the 10th annual UFO Festival, a colorful mixture of sci-fi and scholarly speculation about all things unexplained.

The two-day festival, which celebrates the 1950 sightings of a UFO over the Trent farm near McMinnville, was sponsored by McMenamins Hotel Oregon and the McMinnville Downtown Association. It included serious talks about UFO phenomena, by big names in the UFO world: Keynote speaker Linda Moulton Howe, an investigative journalist who specializes in UFO phenomenon; UFO witnesses Kris and Marc Bales; and Kathleen Marden and Stanton Friedman, co-authors of "Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience."

The weekend was filled with music and activities designed strictly for fun as well.

The parade featured a galaxy of walking entries, from the didgeridoo band Vivid Curve to a group of about 25 Star Wars enthusiast who met on the Internet. Floats landed, too - everything from a spaceship replica to alien VW buses and Mini Coopers.

Members of the Star Wars group won parade king and best alien child honors. Connie Bahner of Olympia, Wash., who called herself "Empress Recycla of the Green Galaxy," was named parade queen. All were honored with a ride on earth-bound vehicles.

Aliens R Us took home the best alien group award.

Best alien float honors went once again to perpetual winner Applied Physics. Its theme this year was "Cosmic Wine Tours, Poppin' the Cork on Uranus."

At the alien pet costume contest, dogs took the top two spots.

Noodle, Carolyn Rendon's Yorkie, won $50 for her space princess ensemble. Sophie, Amy Wilder's golden retriever, won $25 for escaping from her costume, which made it look as if she were being eaten by a giant green alien.

Third place went to an otherworldly chicken - Mike Reid's white silky rooster, who was dressed as Klingon Elvis in a rhinestone collar. Critter Cabana from Newberg sponsored the event.

Music at the Hotel Oregon capped things off Saturday night. Leah Tucker of McMinnville said she and her husband especially enjoyed Big Mama Gayle's band in Mattie's Room - especially when the singer talked her husband in to joining her for a duet of "Great Balls of Fire," featuring a toy piano.

"The costumes people were wearing were awesome!" said Tucker, who was attending her first alien events. "Coneheads, X-Files characters, aliens, Star Trekkies, Ghost Busters ... It was like Halloween."

Next year, Tucker said, she will dress up, too.