For one glorious week in 1953, Georgia was the middle of martian mania. Then reality reared its ugly head.
Why it matters: The list of great hoaxes wouldn’t be complete without a tricky trio who tried to pass off a dead, hairless monkey dyed green as an alien body.
Catch up quick: On July 8, 1953, Cobb County police officer Sherley Brown encountered three young men on Bankhead Highway and their astounding discovery: a lifeless martian the friends hit with their pickup.
- Two other little green men escaped the scene, the men — Atlanta barbers Edward Watters and Tom Wilson and butcher Arthur “Buddy” Payne told Brown.
Zoom out: Astonishingly, Brown let the young men go on their way with the creature. The story went viral, 1950s-style, sparking telephone calls to TV stations, newspapers and police departments with reports of similar phenomenon…