Interplanetary Laughter
July,
1953
A more whimsical flavor is given to an alien encounter in this painting by EMSH. However, in spite of the appearance of many science fiction stories about friendly or funny beings from space, popular imagination (especially in the movies) continued to portray extraterrestrials as frightening monsters.
September, 1954. Kelly Freas, who became a frequent illustrator for Astounding Science Fiction, did this memorable cover for Fredrick Brown's space comedy, "Martians, Go Home!" Brown penned a unique tale of invaders from Mars whose most lethal weapon was their ability to pester and exasperate human beings with their sarcastic wise-cracks and endlessly repeated greeting, "Hi, Mack!" Invulnerable to all aggressive moves, and constantly underfoot, the diminutive invaders frustrated Earthlings to the point of mass insanity. There is a rumor in SF fan circles that a young Johnny Carson, who later hosted NBC's Tonight Show, posed as the model for Freas' humorous green-skinned Martian.
