"The Day After the Day the Martians Came" is a short story by American writer

Frederik Pohl Frederik George Pohl Jr. (; November 26, 1919 – September 2, 2013) was an American science-fiction writer, editor, and fan, with a career spanning nearly 75 years—from his first published work, the 1937 poem "Elegy to a Dead Satelli ...

, first published in

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'' ...

's anthology ''

Dangerous Visions ''Dangerous Visions'' is a science fiction short story anthology edited by American writer Harlan Ellison and illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. It was published in 1967. A path-breaking collection, ''Dangerous Visions'' helped define the New ...

''. The story is set in the lobby of a Florida hotel, one day after the landing of a NASA ship bearing live Martians. The bored, jaded reporters playing poker in the bar while waiting to check out pass the time by telling Martian jokes, which are simply mundane ethnic jokes with Martians swapped in. The hotel's small-minded manager Mr. Mandala, incapable of wonder, views the Martians with indifference (except for the windfall profits.) He treats his black bellhops with petty condescension; after all the reporters are gone, he remarks to one of the bellhops that the Martians mean nothing, to which his employee gnomically and ominously replies that they mean a great deal to him. "The Day After the Day the Martians Came" was adapted by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

in ''

Worlds Unknown ''Worlds Unknown'' was a science-fiction comic book published by American company Marvel Comics in the 1970s, which adapted classic short stories of that genre, including works by Frederik Pohl, Harry Bates, and Theodore Sturgeon. Publication h ...

'' #1, May, 1973, illustrated by

Ralph Reese Ralph Reese (born May 19, 1949) is an American artist who has illustrated for books, magazines, trading cards, comic books and comic strips, including a year drawing the '' Flash Gordon'' strip for King Features. Prolific from the 1960s to the 1 ...

. Pohl published a follow-up story, "''Sad Solarian Screenwriter Sam''," in the June 1972 issue of the

Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy fiction magazine, fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence E. Spivak, Lawrence Spiva ...

. It followed an ambitious Hollywood screenwriter trying to capitalize on media hype surrounding the Martians by pitching a film adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs'

Barsoom Barsoom is a fictional representation of the planet Mars created by American pulp fiction author Edgar Rice Burroughs. The first Barsoom tale was serialized as ''Under the Moons of Mars'' in 1912 and published as a novel as ''A Princess of Mars' ...

novels (while still in the dark about the not-very-impressive nature of the actual Martians.) In the mid-80, Pohl revisited the setting with five new short stories set in the same milieu, which were published in

Asimov's ''Asimov's Science Fiction'' is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy named after science fiction author Isaac Asimov. It is currently published by Penny Publications. From January 2017, the publication ...

, MF&SF, and Omni between 1986 and 1987: The seven stories were combined with three previously-unpublished ones (''The Missioner,'' ''The Beltway Bandit,'' and ''Across the River'') and nine short pseudo-journalistic interstitial vignettes in a 1988 fix-up novel, The Day the Martians Came.

References

External links

* 1967 short stories Short stories by Frederik Pohl Dangerous Visions short stories {{1960s-sf-story-stub