The Martian Monkey is the name given to the monkey used by Edward Watters, Tom Wilson and Arnold Payne to perpetrate a hoax in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

in 1953.

The hoax

In 1953, young Atlanta barbers Edward Watters and Tom Wilson, along with butcher Arnold Payne, took a dead

rhesus monkey The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies that are split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally b ...

and removed its tail, applied large doses of hair remover and used green food coloring to make the corpse of the monkey appear abnormal. They then used a

blow torch A blowtorch, also referred to as a blowlamp, is an ambient air fuel-burning gas lamp used for applying flame and heat to various applications, usually metalworking. Early blowtorches used liquid fuel, carried in a refillable reservoir attache ...

to create a burning circle in the pavement. On July 8, 1953 Officer Sherley Brown came across the scene by accident and was told by the hoaxers that they had seen many creatures just like it. They claimed that they had hit the dead one with their truck and the other creatures had left in their

flying saucer A flying saucer (also referred to as "a flying disc") is a descriptive term for a type of flying craft having a disc or saucer-shaped body, commonly used generically to refer to an anomalous flying object. The term was coined in 1947 but has g ...

, which is what caused the scorch marks. The prank was played at the height of

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

hysteria in the United States. As a result, the Atlanta Police Department received constant phone calls after news of the story broke, with multiple residents adamant they had seen the flying saucer that the pranksters described. The situation was propelled further when a veterinarian agreed that the animal was not from Earth. The United States Air Force was also called in to investigate.

Hoax revealed

The hoax was discovered hours after the event by Dr. Herman Jones and

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

anatomy professor Dr. Marion Hines. They found that the anatomy of the creature was identical to that of a monkey and Hines is quoted as saying "If it came from

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

, they have monkeys on Mars." Wilson, Payne and Watters eventually admitted to the hoax. Watters was made to pay a $40 fine "for obstructing a highway."

Present day

The Martian Monkey is now on display in the

Georgia Bureau of Investigation The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is the state bureau of investigation of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is an independent, statewide agency that provides assistance to Georgia's criminal justice system in the areas of criminal investiga ...

mini-museum, along with other notable items, such as an illegal

moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...

still and the fibers that solved the

Atlanta child murders Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. The exhibit is showcased along with the news report that was published at the time.

In the media

Nate DiMeo Nate DiMeo is an American podcaster, screenwriter, and author based out of Los Angeles, and the host of his award-winning podcast, ''The Memory Palace''. He is also the author (although the fictional character Leslie Knope is listed as the author ...

retold this story in "Every Night Ever", episode 67 of his podcast

The Memory Palace ''The Memory Palace'' is a monthly historical podcast hosted by Nate DiMeo that debuted in 2008. The program features historical narratives concerning such subjects as the Cardiff Giant and the CIA project Acoustic Kitty. It is currently dist ...

. The story was featured in season 6, episode 8 of the Travel Channel show ''

Mysteries at the Museum ''Mysteries at the Museum'' is an hour-long television program on the Travel Channel which features museum artifacts of unusual or mysterious origins. Plot Each episode is focused on interesting and unusual artifacts held in museums. The show ...

''. In "

Steel Ball Run is the seventh story arc of the Japanese manga series ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'', written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. Set in the United States in 1890, it stars Johnny Joestar, a paraplegic former jockey who desires to regain the us ...

", in the backstory of Steven Steel, it is mentioned that Steven's career went into shambles after a hoax similar to that of the Martian Monkey was revealed.

References

External links

* {{commons category-inline Alleged UFO-related entities 1953 in Georgia (U.S. state) History of Atlanta Hoaxes in the United States 1953 in science 1950s hoaxes Individual animal corpses