Frank Kelly Freas’ Preliminary Sketch for Frederic Brown’s “Martians, Go Home” Now On Display In 'Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame'

Preliminary drawing for "Martians, Go Home" by Frank Kelly Freas. From the Juanita Green Rothbard and Harold Rothbard Artwork Trust.

There's another new addition to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame at MoPOP!

Frank Kelly Freas — one of the most popular science fiction artists of the 20th century — created hundreds of book and magazine covers. He painted covers for Mad Magazine, helping to define the look of Mad mascot Alfred E. Neuman (who looks a little like Freas himself!).

Frank Kelly Freas's Sketch for Fredric Brown's "Martians, Go Home" Short Story. From the Juanita Green Rothbard and Harold Rothbard Artwork Trust.

Now on display from the Juanita Green Rothbard and Harold Rothbard Artwork Trust is a preliminary sketch of one of Freas' most famous covers, for the Fredric Brown short story "Martians, Go Home" in Astounding Science Fiction magazine, 1955. Even by 1955, the little green man was a cliché in science fiction, and Brown's humorous story is both a parody and reversal of the classic Martian invasion story.

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