Ruth?
Ruth!
[Background chatter]
[Police sirens]
[Beeping]
Well, when did you decipher?
At exactly 04:00.
Let's have it!
It's just 3 words.
I didn't ask
For a word count.
Give me the message.
You won't believe it.
We've checked and double-checked.
It keeps coming up the same thing.
Colonel, the message is:
"Mars needs women."
You're it?
I'm it.
Since you want to limit the press,
you give me the handouts.
I'll feed the news pool.
I trust we won't disappoint them.
I'll see to it that you get everything
Short of classified information.
And anything "in the national interest"?
I don't have to be reminded
of the ground rules, stemmons.
Well then, colonel,
Maybe we can start with this question:
Just how long have we been receiving
these mysterious signals from outer space?
3 days.
Do we know from where
or from whom they are coming?
We do not.
Well, here's the $64 million question.
We know you wouldn't have come down here
- at this hour after all - the sleep you've lost
In the last 3 days
if the message had not been decoded.
What is the message?
- That information - will have to be
Given to you from another level.
From the presid...
Did you cut me off?
I'm sorry to trouble you at this hour, Mr. Secretary.
That's quite all right.
Where are we, Bob?
The code is broken.
Trouble?
Big!
Security?
I have the lid on tight.
Well, take it off for me.
The message is:
"Mars needs women."
Mars needs...
Hmmm.
It's a gag!
It's a prank!
It's a fake!
I don't think so, sir.
As you're well aware,
we've been receiving these signals
For the past 3 days now.
It's progressively stronger
and always the same rhythmic log.
The patterns we have broken
Are distinct and repetitive.
The readout has been confirmed
By the 8600 transponder.
The final message,
just those 3 words?
Well, I know it's crazy.
It could be a password.
It's not a distress signal,
Its intermittence is perfect.
I... I'm going to have to relay the message
to the president on the hot line.
Oh, um...
about the press, sir,
they voted on stemmons
to feed the pool.
You know what that means.
Now, we'll risk panic
if we give out too much information.
Well, we'll guarantee panic
if we don't give out enough.
So, open up.
Our story can be that this is nothing more
than a freakish malfunction
- of a highly - sophisticated
Global com system.
That'll be all. I'll take it from here, Bob.
Yes, sir.
Mr. President?
The rhythmic log changed
while you were in the solo room.
They're going to communicate.
Communicate?
They have a condition:
We must agree to shut down
Everything that scans.
Only radio can stay hot.
Ultimatums...
ultimatums from an enemy
we haven't even seen yet!
Sir, how can we be sure it is an enemy?
Let's go.
[Computer sounds]
Kill the servos,
transponders,
doppler relays.
[Male voice] Attention, monitor 1.
Do you read us?
Reading loud and clear.
We have attempted
to seize 3 women
by transponder.
We have been unsuccessful.
Now we come in person.
Prepare for materialization.
What do you mean
"materialization"?
Forgive me.
I forget the scientific distances
that separate us.
In the center of the room, please.
All earthmen clear
for a space of 3 yards.
I will join you
As soon as it is clear.
You reach for me,
you try to restrain me,
and just as I materialized,
- so I will - disappear.
Everyone back. Don't try anything!
My name is dop.
I come from canali primary debarkation,
Red planet Mars.
We have been spaceborne for 70 days
and we have maintained a constant
Of 25,000 miles per hour.
We have asked you to neutralize all scans
that may locate us
or determine our silhouette.
We have complied.
Now you must disclose your mission!
We come not as hostiles.
We are medical missionaries.
A critical recession in the y chromosomes
in our genetics
has resulted in a preponderance
Of male births over female.
The ratio is now 100-to-1.
Advanced techniques have failed
To solve this problem.
Therefore, we have come
these 50 million miles to your earth.
Will you define your mission?
Ours is an experimental voyage.
Our craft is small, a crew of 5,
but with room for 5 more passengers
to return to Mars.
We seek female volunteers,
unmarried, of good health
and possessing the common indicators
of fertility and reproduction.
Why, your suggestion is insane!
We are in earnest!
The life of our planet depends upon this.
Although we may sympathize
with your problem,
yours is still an overt action
Of abduction and war.
We demand that you abort your mission
and return to Mars.
It is unfortunate
that you do not choose to cooperate.
Under the circumstances,
I return to my ship
to carry out our mission with
Or without your cooperation.
[Dop] In 30 seconds,
We will begin radio silence.
You will not hear from us again
until our cargo is secured
and we are well on our return
to the planet Mars.
Well, stemmons,
At least you've heard the story.
Tell it.
[Stemmons] And at the United Nations
in New York,
our ambassador has called
for an emergency meeting
of the security council.
He urged a cessation of all world conflicts
so that we may unite
to meet the threat from outer space.
He called the martians
The world's first common enemy!
[News reported in French]
And here in Washington,
the capitol
is stunned by the macabre situation.
There is no panic, just paralysis,
as the most powerful nation on earth
is humbled by 5 men in a space cylinder
hurtling toward
the approximate vicinity of
Houston, Texas.
[Short otter] Short otter to cheetah.
[Cheetah] This is 15...
[colonel] They're sending up the x-15.
[Cheetah] Cheetah 15, go ahead short otter...
[Cheetah] Trouble on cheetah. Trouble on cheetah.
[Short otter] Advise. Repeat.
Advise, advise.
Why have you broken retaliation silence?
[Cheetah] I have been stopped
At 40,000 feet.
No explanation.
- Instruments okay, - but it's like
I've hit a brick wall every time I push up.
[Hum of airplane engine]
[Short otter] Condensation, fuelling?
- [Cheetah] - Negative. Negative.
[Short otter] Advise.
Short otter to cheetah.
This is exit. This is exit.
Are you still over desert?
[Cheetah] Roger.
[Short otter] Limits?
[Cheetah] No limits.
[short otter] You must drop warhead
and return to base.
Jettison.
You must touch down before missile hits floor,
or it's certain destruction.
[Cheetah] Roger.
I'm ready to jettison.
[Short otter] Roger. Remember:
You must touch down
Before warhead reaches desert floor.
[Cheetah] Roger.
[Hum of airplane engine continues]
[Stemmons] And now, this latest
- from the strategic air - command headquarters:
Jets have been finally ordered aloft
for interception.
As you heard earlier,
the command was reluctant to order
any retaliatory maneuver or interception
until there was positive identification
of the visitors
or at least a silhouette.
But the radar, rendered impotent
by the martians, has made this impossible.
Obviously, this is a desperate
hit-or-miss interception,
in which the command
can hope for at least a visual sighting.
[Otter] Otter to formation. Over.
[23] Otter, this is 23.
My vus are acting crazy.
Altimeter, fuel, dme, everything!
[21] This is 2-1. Same here.
My panel's gone haywire.
Nothing reading right.
[Otter] Otter to big pad.
[Big pad] Read you, otter.
Have you lost your panel video?
Voice still loud and clear. Over.
[Otter] Report malfunction
of panel instruments on all aircraft.
All went out simultaneously.
Request orders. Over.
[Big pad] Roger. Return to base. Repeat.
Return to base. Over.
[Otter] Wilco.
They've neutralized everything that scans,
but they've left us voice channels.
Does that mean they can't
knock out our big transmitters?
Any intelligence that can neutralize
our big dishes on the coast
Could certainly kill our voice.
No! There's some other reason.
But what, sir?
Well, they're letting us keep our big voice
because voice can't determine
Their silhouette and locate them.
And there's another reason.
They can listen to us burn
and enjoy their superiority all the more.
What do we do now, sir?
We do the only thing we can do:
Wait!
Wait, wait, Marv.
I believe I got somethin'.
Burt, look! Look!
We'd better get out of here.
We've both
had too many.
And don't you say a word about this
to Claire, either.
She'd say that red flare
Was a pink elephant.
[Air escaping]
[Dop] Our first concern
is chemicals.
We need brine, ammonias,
salts and sodium.
The necessary chemicals are here.
- Our information - was correct.
- This ice plant - hasn't produced - For years.
Yes, our scale model was quite accurate.
Our timetable is plotted
very carefully, so listen.
Our 70 days in space have produced
no apparent ill effects, but some warnings.
Doctor?
You've already noticed the change
in surface gravity.
You're twice as heavy as you were on Mars.
You will tire quickly.
So rest whenever possible.
Choose your motions carefully.
Since our tenure on earth will be
for only 24 hours,
do not, repeat,
Do not eat any of the earth food.
You must continue your encapsulated diet
from the tubes.
What if there is resistance?
Fellow 3, this is a non-hostile mission.
I see no reason
for violence.
If, however, you are confronted,
you may resort to the use of hypnosis.
- Our immediate needs - are earth apparel,
An automobile, earth currency
and a map of the city and its environs.
Fellow 2, you and I will remain behind
To check power lines and supplies.
- And to see what - must be done
To make operation sleep freeze a reality.
Fellow 3, currency and a city map
are your assignments.
The best place for this is a fuel stop
which the earthmen call
"filling stations."
[Bell rings]
[Car horn]
[Dop] Fellow 4,
transportation is your responsibility.
We cannot buy or rent a vehicle,
so it must be borrowed.
To take just any automobile
would invite interference from the police.
We must be sure that the lender
will not miss the car for at least 24 hours.
[Dop] Fellow 5,
Your assignment is earth apparel.
Now, make your strike
at the first shopping complex you come to.
The locks on these doors
are of crude tri-tumbler design
and should present no problem to you
with the air-knife.
Remember, sizes must be exact
From shoes to ties.
So follow carefully the conversion charts
Between Mars and the earth planet.
These ties serve no functional purpose.
- Red planet abandoned - the use of ties
50 years ago as useless male vanity.
It simply reveals the environmental naivete
of the earthmen.
Well, apparently, we've made
our conversion to earthmen
With no ill effects.
It's unfortunate that fellow 3
Saw fit to disable the fuel-station attendant.
My action was dictated by expediency.
Well, we'll hope that it will be dismissed
as part of a juvenile crime wave
that grips earth's cities.
You've been well rehearsed in every conceivable
situation you will encounter as earthmen,
even to the use of earth slang.
And you are now,
for all practical purposes,
Earthmen.
Doctor.
Our time is short,
considering that in the next 20 hours,
each of us must survey, choose,
examine the medical records of,
and abduct a female
meeting the exacting qualifications
of operation sleep freeze.
Since the earthmen, especially the Americans,
seem to place their faith in "luck"
rather than scientific certainties,
I wish you all "luck."
having to maintain this snail's pace
is very frustrating.
I know, but we can't risk
being stopped by the police.
♪ [Bluesy music]
[Song ends]
♪ [Upbeat jazz]
- May we have a large - double room, please?
Have you a reservation?
No.
I'm sorry.
It's out of the question.
We're completely booked.
It's this martian scare.
Every newspaperman in the country
must be here.
It's bad enough when we have
a space shoot, but with all this talk
about the martians
Coming to take us girls, it's the limit.
I guess they have to sell their newspapers.
They have to sell newspapers,
And you have to sell rooms.
Huh?
Yeah, sure, um...
You could wait upstairs in the bar
and if we have a cancellation,
we can call you.
- That'd be very good - of you. Thank you.
Uh-huh.
What was that name?
♪ [Mellow jazz]
May we have 2 martinis, please?
How long have you been in Texas, mister?
You must be one of those reporter fellas.
You can't get a mixed drink here in Texas.
Beer or wine?
2 beers, please.
2 beers.
- [News anchorman] - And a spokesman
From monitor 1,
the United States surveillance center,
confirmed the fact that top military
and cabinet officers have been summoned
To the center from Washington.
After meeting nothing but big brass
and tight-lipped politicians all day,
reporters had a pleasant surprise
when one expert jetted into
Houston's international airport.
Dr. Marjorie Bolen turned out
to be a stunning brunette
who found it hard to hide her charm
Behind her horn-rimmed spectacles.
Dr. Bolen wrote her thesis on space medicine
and received a pulitzer prize for her book space genetics.
Dr. Bolen will be part of a high-level meeting
scheduled at monitor 1
for tomorrow morning.
A briefing for newsmen has been set
For tonight at the holiday inn.
That's network news for this hour.
Bulletins will be issued when received.
Stay tuned now for the sports picture.
[Sportscaster] This promises to be an exciting weekend
for the football fans both in college games
and pro games slated to be televised.
♪ Long, long ago ♪
♪ when the world was very, very young ♪
♪ In the spring, when the first of the... ♪
They didn't touch a drop.
Those reporters!
I wonder...
What, doctor?
What if one of our candidates
for operation sleep freeze
just happened to be well versed in genetics,
Both fundamentally and as it applies to space?
And?
And she just happened to be
blessed physically, too.
Anatomically speaking.
I wonder if she's single.
That can be confirmed,
just as her medical history
can be determined
by one long-distance call from me.
Let's investigate.
We'll, ah...
- We'll need - a press card.
And we've got to get a room
at the base of operations.
The others may be trying
to contact us by radio.
Come with me.
I'm with the Houston post.
I'm expecting some reporter friends
of mine from the west coast.
A Mr. Ross and a Mr. Miller.
[Hotel clerk] The only recent arrival's
From the west.
Let's see, there's a mister... A Mr. Fast from Seattle.
He's with the Seattle sun.
Fast. That's it. Yes.
May I have his room number, please?
Just checked into 303.
303. Thank you very much, operator.
In exactly 5 minutes,
go to room 303 and apologize to Mr. Fast
For having rented him my room.
You'll have to resort to the hypnotic state.
Well, we don't have time for anything else.
- But what about when - he comes out of hypnosis?
I'll induce a post-hypnotic mode
and send him back to Seattle.
It's a long chance.
Well, time is short.
We have to take long chances.
5 minutes.
Yes?
Excuse me, Mr. Fast, I'm with the hotel.
A previous occupant left behind a hat.
I wonder if I could pick it...
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, sure. - Come right on in.
Feel free just to look around.
I'm sure it's around here someplace.
I'm trying to get through with the wife
On the phone. It's very important.
Go look around.
Hello?
Hello, operator?
Yes.
This is Mr. Fast.
I'm trying to get a hold of my wife
on the phone in Seattle.
And I talked to her friend...
All right. Well then, thank you.
Sorry to have troubled you, Mr. Fast.
No! No trouble at all.
Have you seen the view from this room?
View? View?
Are you afraid
of heights, Mr. Fast?
Heights? Heights? I don't follow you?
Of course,
we're only 3 stories high.
But if you look down,
- you'll see - that heights have
Their own power
of persuasion.
No, but really, mister...
It would take more than that.
Persuasion, suggestion,
Mr. Fast,
making you
want to do...
Deeply...
To do my will...
My will,
Mr. Fast.
You will do
as I say.
My will.
Will...
Yes.
You are now in a hypnotic trance.
You can help us, Mr. Fast, on this mission.
First, give me your press card.
- In a moment, - you will wake up,
But you will be
in a post-hypnotic state for 24 hours.
You will discover that you have lost
your press card
And you will go back to Seattle.
Back... to Seattle.
- And there, you will be able - to conduct your business
As though nothing had happened,
as though this had never transpired.
Yes.
When I snap my fingers,
you will leave the first level of hypnosis,
But you will remain
in a post-hypnotic state.
Yes, it is a lovely view.
[Knock at the door]
Come in.
I'm very sorry, Mr. Fast, about the mix-up.
No, no. No problem at all.
It's all my mistake, all the way around.
Funny...
What seems to be the problem?
I seem to have misplaced my press card.
Sorry about that.
Oh, no sweat, I probably left it
on the dresser at home.
I won't need it anyway.
That is, unless you know
Of some out-of-the-way place.
No, I guess you wouldn't.
I'll, ah...
Get my suitcase.
We can't risk voice response.
There's no way of knowing what they're doing
or who they're with.
But I would like at least a condition green.
Condition green, intermittent.
He reads us but doesn't
think it's safe to send.
Let's go to 4.
[Airport announcements]
He's constant. He's going to send.
Go ahead, 4. We read.
Fellow 4, here, calling red planet top com.
We read you.
4, signal is weak.
Advise.
Signal dissipated
because I'm in phone housing, airport.
Is there a progress report?
Report yellow.
Several subjects rejected.
Now have excellent lead
under surveillance.
Does the new subject conform
To basic specifications?
The subject meets physical specs,
At least superficially.
What about marital?
Can you be sure of status?
[Fellow 4] At this point, I can only be as sure
As the airline that hired her.
Understood.
Keep subject under surveillance. Out.
2 down, 1 to go.
Malfunction?
No, the signal is circuited.
Then he's either not responding
Or he can't hear us.
♪ [Upbeat jazz music]
[Applause]
[Song ends]
♪ [Upbeat jazz music]
Who are you?
What do you want?
Get out of here!
Ah! Ah!
Ah!
Operator, this is Mr. Fast in 303.
Would you please tell me
where Dr. Bolen's news conference
Is taking place?
Thank you, operator.
Would you like to see my subject close up?
No, I've got my own subject to find.
Your subjects are night people,
But co-eds are early risers.
I want to be on the campus at sunup.
This double weight I've been carrying
has tired me.
No, I'd better turn in.
This Dr. Bolen intrigues me.
Yes, with her knowledge of both earth
and extraterrestrial medicine,
she could be the most valuable cargo
we could take to Mars.
Goodnight.
- I guess this - martian scare
Was another joke
we fell for, huh?
Yeah, we weren't sure for a while though,
were we?
Just like these flying saucers.
Why now, we really fell for that one,
Didn't we? Heh-heh.
We sure did. It takes me back
to that radio show years ago.
Lets see, what was it? Ah...
Invasion from Mars.
Something like that, remember?
No, that was
before your time.
That was about 30 years ago.
- And it was the darndest - thing you ever heard.
Why, people were faintin' all over the country.
Heh-heh.
You know, there was even a heart attack
or 2 'cause of it.
Imagine, with our rockets
and space programs and all,
that we should let some practical joker
get on our defense system
And just scare the daylights out of us.
Do you think they're gonna catch
the prankster that did this?
You know, I just wonder what the guy's feeling like
right now, you know?
Gettin' us all stirred up,
and spendin' all that money,
and sendin' up those planes...
[Reporter 1] Well, the girls they take to Mars are going
to have it great, won't they, doctor?
[Reporters laugh]
100 men to every woman!
[Reporter 2] Just like Washington
during wwii, remember?
[Reporter 1] No, it was the other way around,
Wasn't it, fellas?
20 girls to every man.
[Reporters laugh]
gentlemen, I left some students
- who are seriously - trying to find out
About themselves and their environment,
and came here at the request
of my government because I thought
I could be of some service.
I agreed to this interview because
my special interest in education
should throw some light
on what's happening.
Now, obviously, you think it's a big joke.
Unless someone can
come up with a pertinent question
relating to the emergency that exists,
this interview is over!
Dr. Bolen...
Yes.
Fast, Seattle sun.
There's been a lot of talk
about breaking the code.
The new discoveries regarding
the structure of the DNA molecule,
and the non-chromosomal factors
involved in genetics.
Doesn't this suggest that what happened
On Mars could happen here?
Well, it looks like at least one newspaper
sent a medical reporter instead of
Ambulance chasers.
That's correct, Mr. Fast.
The public is not yet fully informed on DNA
and our attempts to break the genetic code.
However, experiments with
white mice mutations have thrown a new light
on the dominant or recessive natures
of these mutants...
At least enough to establish a possibility
Of an imbalance in the ratio of births.
Then you're saying these martians,
if they exist, could be mutants,
odd-looking creatures,
like something out of
a science-fiction movie?
[Suppressed laugh] No, Mr. Stemmons.
It's just that no real insight
into genetics is possible
without an understanding
of mutations.
Now, it's very presumptuous of us to believe
that martians are going to be any different
than we are.
It's merely a freak in their genetic code
that has brought them to this planet.
And I'm sure they don't plan to harm us,
At least not yet.
And now, if you'll excuse me, gentlemen,
I must prepare for
Monitor 1 meeting tomorrow.
Stemmons, usp.
Fast, Seattle sun.
Say, you know,
you made a monkey outta these guys.
I'm afraid they can't take it all too seriously.
How about you?
I think it's a strange vanity that makes us think
We're the only ones in the solar system.
- You know, you make - a lot of sense.
Say, I'm in charge of pool info
Out of monitor 1.
- I'm sure I - could arrange
To have you help me in the booth.
After all, I could use an interpreter.
It would be a pleasure.
Good. See you at monitor 1.
Thank you, Mr. Fast.
For what?
For keeping this session from becoming
Completely useless.
Boy, after my flight
and a million jokes
about sex in space, I just feel like i'm...
You're bushed.
Yes, that's the word for it.
Oh, please. I... i didn't mean for you to go.
Aren't you tired?
Emotionally, yes, but I don't think
I could sleep a wink now if I tried.
You know what i'd really like to do?
I'm not very good at guessing.
That's right, the scientific mind:
Facts only.
I guess I'm really, deep down,
like those reporters out there.
I just can't believe
We have visitors from Mars.
Right now, I'd like to be
as far away from scientific thinking
as possible,
in the most unlikely atmosphere.
[Dr. Bolen] Bread and butter.
Welcome to the planetarium.
Won't you come in and be seated?
- It looks as if - you're the only 2
That will be taking this trip to Mars today.
[Children screaming]
I think I spoke too soon.
[Narrator] Attention,
rocket control to space ship.
All systems are in readiness for blastoff.
Are you ready?
[All] Ready!
All preparations for our trip to Mars
have been completed and we are counting.
7, 6,
5...
4, 3, 2, 1.
Blast off!
Yay!
X plus 1.
Ignition stage has passed and we are
well established into main stage.
Our thrust is building up
To its full value of 396 tons.
We are leaving earth very rapidly now
and will soon be traveling
at the rate of 25,000 miles per hour.
We are now 12 days out.
According to our flight-path prediction,
you may be able to see a sight
Never before seen by human eyes:
A transit of the earth and the moon
Across the flaming surface of the sun.
Hey, that's neat.
This transit is important
for our voyage to Mars because
the timing of these objects
across the sun's surface
will indicate any corrective thrust
maneuver that must be made.
- This is necessary - for our expedition
To meet Mars at the appointed rendezvous point.
Mars:
this large multi-colored disk,
with its red, white and green
shadings is Mars.
The one planet that shows ev...
[children protesting]
[Child] Fix it!
Mars...
the one planet
that shows evidence
Of being habitable.
Its distance from the earth varies
From between 65 and 35 million miles.
It's about half the size of earth.
Cool!
If you'll notice, Mars has polar caps
Over the north and south Poles.
Between those polar caps is
one of the biggest controversies about Mars:
the crisscrossing of a network
of canals that is geometrically perfect.
Many believe that these canals
are used as part of a vast irrigation system,
by which water, which is rare on Mars,
is pumped from the polar caps
to supply the needs
of the rest of the planet.
Temperature varies from between
minus 130 degrees fahrenheit
and 55 degrees
fahrenheit,
except on the plain of salator,
Where it gets even warmer.
The red color of Mars indicates that most
of the oxygen has been eaten up in rusting
and oxidizing the rocks on the surface.
Yes, the conditions for life
do exist on Mars.
But unless somehow,
it can renew itself,
the first earth explorers will find
only the sad remnants
of a civilization
that was brighter
Than that of the earth.
And then returned to dust.
Bravo! Yay!
Thank you!
Goodbye. Goodbye, children.
We are indebted
to you, sir.
I'm surprised that our tape deck held up
as long as it did without jamming.
You know,
ever since this martian scare,
the planetarium
has been filled
to capacity.
It was my pleasure.
You know...
folks really want to believe
that the martians are coming.
They're bored.
They want some excitement.
And, after all,
they come here
- because this is - the closest thing
That they can get
to actually being on the planet Mars.
Well, I hope you don't have any more trouble.
Oh, well, thank you.
Thank you. Thank you.
And, uh, goodbye.
And come to see us again, will you?
I'm afraid a little of their enthusiasm
has rubbed off on me.
I don't really feel like going back
to the hotel now.
- When was - the last time
You took a pretty girl for a walk?
I mean a pretty girl with a Ph.D.
[Dr. Bolen] We've known one another
Less than 5 hours.
[Dop] According to
Dr. Einstein's calculations...
[Both] Time is relative.
[Dr. Bolen laughing]
[Dr. Bolen] Well, I can't dismiss
what's happening to me
with any scientific equations.
I think I better start acting less like a woman
and more like a scientist.
I'm on surer ground that way.
[Airport announcements]
You're late.
[Crowd cheering]
Hold that line!
♪ [Marching band music]
[Commentator] And now,
the event we've all been waiting for:
The crowning of the homecoming queen!
As you know, all week long, these finalists
have been under the eyes of the judges,
who are basing their selection today
on those qualities
That make up the ideal woman:
Good looks, good health,
Good deportment
and personality.
In short, the good woman,
As we know her in the 20th century.
One of these lovelies will carry
her honors and her crown
throughout the year on campus.
And that student who most approaches
the perfect woman,
as chosen by, first, the student body,
and then by the exacting eye
of the judges' panel today.
I believe I hear
a gun signaling
the judges have reached a decision.
[Judge] And now, ladies and gentlemen,
homecoming queen
by a majority of the judges:
Brenda noland, senior.
[Commentator] There you have it:
The queen, Brenda noland,
A really popular girl on campus.
As you heard, she is a senior.
Her major is journalism
and she looks for a career
in mass-media communication.
Although some lucky young man
may change those plans,
for the time being, she is queen on campus
And the pride of her sorority, delta gamma!
[Doorbell ringing]
Yes, hypnosis, Mr. Secretary. Hypnosis:
That science that we only now
are beginning to use properly.
The martians have got to be using hypnosis.
The striptease artist,
we dismissed that
As a routine missing persons report.
But remember, her car is missing, too.
Then the airline hostess, then today,
the homecoming queen disappears.
And don't forget the martian's voice,
As you gentlemen described it.
It had a hypnotic Cadence
that makes it very difficult to disobey.
But let's not speculate, let us use logic.
So far, the pattern of activity
Has been erratic.
But soon, we will have a pattern
that will give us a lead.
At any rate, we are dealing with an enemy
that professes non-hostility,
while abducting earth females.
We are helpless
because he has mastered a science
that we still treat as a parlor game.
One thing we can be sure of,
he is working against time
and he will stop at nothing
to achieve his goal
Before his time runs out.
Yes, it's true.
The worst fears of the experts
here at monitor 1 have been confirmed.
What seemed like a cruel joke yesterday
has now been confirmed as the truth.
In less than 12 hours,
3 women, all beautiful and all unmarried
have disappeared, leaving no trace
of what may have happened to them.
The experts in space genetics
and space communications
have been in conference here all day
Without so much
as a coffee break.
One thing we do know about the victims,
they have to be pretty special to qualify.
Darn wind.
There's an old painter's trick:
White paint.
You just put a few dabs of the paint
Onto the canvas here.
And stick the paper to the paint.
Somehow white works best
and there's no paint-out problem
when you go to use the canvas.
Well, I'll remember that.
Trees...
Funny, trees are the most difficult things
in the world to paint properly.
Yet children always start with trees.
That's right, they do.
Trees do have a fascination.
If you stare at the sun
through the leaves of the trees,
you get an almost hypnotic sensation.
I never thought of that.
- I never thought - about it,
Painting
and hypnosis.
Number 4.
All lovely,
built like goddesses,
And unmarried.
1 more to go.
Now, there's got to be a pattern
here somewhere...
A clue.
Now, the blue pins are where
the strikes were first made:
The filling station, the clothing store.
And the red pins
are where the girls disappeared.
If we draw our primary peripheries,
we find that the action surrounds this area,
principally made up of a big lake,
just east of the city.
Now, there's nothing here
but abandoned wharves,
an old ice factory,
and a large generating plant.
Pardon me, colonel,
you said an old ice factory?
Yes.
How long has that been inoperative?
Well, the city condemned it years ago.
Could there be a chemical inventory
There now?
Yes, there could be.
Ammonia, salts, brine?
Dr. Hayward?
Well, if I recall, it's just as it was.
It was padlocked back when we had
- the controversy - over the fluoridation
Of the city
water supply.
Then that could be your target.
Explain your theory.
Most of you are familiar
with the term "sleep freeze"?
Labs are now conducting experiments
In the new science of frozen surgery.
In transplants, in operations that have
to be postponed for a period of time,
it's literally suspended life
through frozen techniques.
- Now, more than - 1 authority
Has suggested that
our first interplanetary travel will be done
In a state of sleep and frozen.
Hence the term "sleep freeze."
If these techniques are perfected,
man can be thrust through space
never knowing the ill effects
of space travel,
or the boredom from being confined in
A closed vehicle over a long period of time.
Dr. Bolen is right.
But may I ask you, how do you
happen to be familiar with "sleep freeze"?
Freezing is the key
in our latest mapping techniques
with non-chromosomal genes.
I'm no scientist, but as a soldier,
I feel I'm on safer ground
when I know where the enemy is.
And I think we just may have found him.
Something's up.
They haven't been this positive
Since the alert began.
Now they've cut everything.
It must mean they're getting somewhere.
It must be something
Dr. Bolen has said.
If I remember correctly, there's a water canal
that enters the ice plant.
Large enough for a vehicle
Of some kind to enter?
Within reason, yes.
I've cut the news arteries.
Now, each of you must regard our plan
as top secret.
Now, we can't make a raid with a large party
or during the daylight hours.
Now, since I feel that their departure
is scheduled for after dark,
we can risk waiting until then.
However, after sundown,
Every second is precious.
Dr. Bolen is in on this.
Fast, this is an important story.
I want you to get her confidence.
I must.
What do you want to do this evening?
Just being with you is enough.
Hungry?
No, not really. Are you?
Not really. I-I had a late lunch
while you were in that inner circle.
How did... how did you ever become
an authority on genetics?
Oh, I grew up with it.
My father devoted his entire life
to that field.
Then after he died, it seemed only natural
For me to continue his work.
- He must be - very proud of you
Winning the pulitzer prize.
He made it all possible.
Would you like to meet my father?
Yes.
[Tour guide on tape] I am the talking woman.
As you walk about these corridors,
you will see some of
the outstanding illustrations
of the work of the late
Dr. Gustave Bolen,
the renowned authority on genetics
in the 20th century.
Today, the theories and discoveries
of this renowned scientist are explored
in health museums like this one
All over the country.
Dr. Bolen's credo is found
In the words of Alexander pope:
"know thyself, presume not god to scan;
"the proper study of mankind is man."
Do you agree
the best study of mankind is man?
Or woman?
What time is it?
I kiss you and your
only response is:
"What time is it?"
It's 8:02. A late date?
Of course not. I have a mission.
I'm on an assignment, remember?
This time tomorrow night,
you'll be safe and snug in Seattle.
I may never see you again!
Tomorrow?
What do you mean, tomorrow?
We think we've found
the martians' hideout.
And there's gonna be
a raid on it tonight.
Why didn't you say something before?
I'm sworn to secrecy.
- I'm not allowed - to say where.
I know where. When?
At 9:00.
[Sighs]
I have to go.
It's best that you don't go with me.
[Crickets chirping]
[Martian] The exotic dancer is secured.
Pulse is high.
Temperature?
Pulse normal.
Sedative is at zenith.
Blood pressure at zenith.
Temperature: 99.4.
Pulse?
Sedative at zenith.
Blood pressure: 118/78.
Pulse: Normal.
Dilation reduced.
Blood pressure: 125.
Sedative at zenith. Temperature: 99.1.
Pulse: High.
Blood pressure: 122 over 82.
Dilation high.
[Door opens and closes]
Abort the mission!
We've been concerned for you, fellow 1.
There's no time for concern.
There's a raiding party on the way.
They're due here any minute.
Abort! Take to the ship!
Fellow 1? You?
Please leave before they arrive.
Nobody leaves this room!
What happens if you go
Without the women?
There's no time to complete preparations
of the subjects.
They'll have reinforcements soon.
I'm not coming with you, fellow 2.
To abort this mission is failure enough.
To leave you behind
Would mean death to us all!
Why not take both of them?
We could freeze her en route.
As a test case for insemination?
You must make a decision.
One of you goes.
Dr. Bolen would compensate
for the aborted mission,
One good subject.
But if you decide to go,
I don't have to remind you
of the consequences of your actions...
Or of abandoning your mission.
You must decide now!
She stays!
What I have to say is for your ears only.
The word "love" went out of
Our vocabulary 100 years ago.
But whatever love is,
I know it must be what I feel for you.
[Gunshot]
[Gunshots]
Subjects are under mild sedation.
They'll come out of it shortly
With no ill effects.
[Spaceship starting up]
[Spaceship taking off]
What were they like?
Will you be able
to describe them?
Well, can't you tell us anything?