The agent by Stephen Marlowe
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The agent by Stephen Marlowe is a science fiction short story written in the mid-20th century. It follows struggling stage performers who are recruited by a strange theatrical agent and unexpectedly carried to Mars, where their Earth-style entertainment becomes a cultural revelation for a planet that has never known show business. The narrator, Mike Hennesy, a hungry crooner, tags along with aging actress Vera to a remote “agency” run by Quontas Quoron
and his brother Meldon. Along with a roomful of has-beens, they’re hired without auditions, fed odd “food” cubes, and then jolted by thunder and weightlessness as the office reveals itself to be a spaceship. They land on Mars, whose hardworking inhabitants lack any form of entertainment, and the troupe instantly becomes a sensation. While Mike hums standards until he learns the language, the group stages pantomimes like Romeo and Juliet; even Vera captivates audiences starved for glamour. A ventriloquist founds a performers’ union that limits new arrivals, preserving their novelty and livelihoods. As they tour the canal-linked cities, Vera launches a beauticians’ movement, rumors swirl that the dazzling secretary is a robot, and Mike and Vera marry—thriving as marquee names in a world newly awakened to art and amusement. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Marlowe, Stephen, 1928-2008 |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Lawrence, Mort (Morton) |
| Illustrator | Manso, Leo, 1914-1993 |
| Title | The agent |
| Original Publication | New York: Stratford Novels Inc., 1953. |
| Series Title | Produced from Avon Science Fiction and Fantasy Reader, April 1953 (Vol. 1, no. 2). |
| Credits | Tom Trussel (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | Science fiction |
| Subject | Short stories |
| Subject | Entertainers -- Fiction |
| Subject | Talent scouts -- Fiction |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 78912 |
| Release Date | Jun 21, 2026 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 1602 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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