Junior medical officer aboard the Champion.
He hated Martians and disobeyed orders against going armed. He shot at a Martian
in a moment of panic, and promptly disappeared.
[mentioned in passing] Product of Manna
Bakeries, promoted by the Fosterite
Church; the bakery was possibly owned by the Church.
Angela (no last name)
Name that Jubal
Harshaw chose for the heroine of his True Confessions story, "I
Married a Martian". He claimed that names ending in "a" implied a
C-cup figure.
Patty
Paiwonski claimed Valentine
Michael Smith must be an angel after she witnessed a few of his
"miracles". (He did appear in that guise at the end of the book.)
Owner of the carnival, Baxter's Combined Shows and Riot of Fun, with which
Valentine
Michael Smith worked. (He was also known by the stage name Professor
Timoshenko.)
Gilbert Berquist
Joseph
Douglas' executive assistant. He obstructed Ben
Caxton from seeing the doctor in charge of Valentine
Michael Smith. After Mike and Jill
Boardman escaped from the hospital, he traced them to Ben's apartment and
came for them with a security officer; Mike caused the two to disappear after
they threatened Jill.
Valentine
Michael Smith was taken there for medical care and observation after
arriving on Earth, and no doubt also to keep him under government control.
Biddle, Firsby, Frisby, Biddle &
Reed
[mentioned in passing] Law firm of which Mark
Frisby was a member. ["Firsby" may be a typographical error for "Frisby"
in the Berkley paperback edition; Mark is referred to as "the younger
Frisby".]
1. Nurse who rescued Valentine
Michael Smith from "protective custody" in Bethesda
Medical Center at Ben
Caxton's instigation. She took him to Jubal
Harshaw after Ben disappeared and an attempt was made to arrest her. She
became Mike's water
brother, accompanying him on his travels and becoming a high priestess in
the Church
of All Worlds. She was called "Dimples" by her co-workers, "Little
Brother" by Mike.
Mrs. Barkmann (no first name).
Jubal
Harshaw's deliberate mispronunciation of Jill Boardman's surname, to
confuse Heinrich
in his attempt to arrest her.
Married Dr. Winifred Coburn in order to be eligible for the Mars
expedition, and was chosen commander: his other tasks included pilot,
astrogator, relief cook, relief photographer, rocketry engineer. He died at
age 30 shortly after the expedition landed on Mars. He was the father of Valentine
Michael Smith.
Dr. Winifred Coburn Brant
Member of the Mars
expedition: semantician, practical nurse, stores officer, historian. She died
at age 41 shortly after the expedition landed on Mars.
New name that Sam suggested
to revive the Church
of All Worlds after the headquarters was burned down.
Brush (no first name)
Physician on duty outside Valentine
Michael Smith's suite after the television broadcast by Smith's double. He
claimed the patient in the room was Rose
Bankerson.
Cahuenga Cave
Saint Petersburg nightclub that advertised real Los Angeles smog and six
exotic dancers. It sponsored the local NWNW
broadcast.
Mr. and Mrs. Harrison Campbell VI
[mentioned in passing] Wealthy couple whose son was born to
a host-mother while they vacationed in Peru.
Journalist and friend of Jill
Boardman. After interviewing "Valentine
Michael Smith" and raising doubts about the identity of the person he
actually saw, he was drugged and kidnapped; he was only released through Jubal
Harshaw's intervention. After some initial reluctance, he joined the Church
of All Worlds.
(Also a cameo in The Number of the Beast)
Champion
Federation
ship launched to Mars 25
years after the Envoy (with
World War III intervening), with an all-male crew. The crew brought Valentine
Michael Smith back with them to Earth.
Charlie (no last name)
[mentioned in passing] Federation
High Minister for Health, opposed in an election by a Fosterite
candidate.
Religion founded by Valentine
Michael Smith. It involved acquiring new philosophical and psychological
concepts, as well as certain psychic powers, through learning the Martian
language and customs.
[mentioned in passing] Unauthorized biography of the
founder of the Church
of the New Revelation. Within one day after it appeared in the United
States, all copies were confiscated and burned, and the printing plates were
destroyed (presumably by Fosterites).
Rev. Dr. Daniel Digby
Supreme Bishop of the Church of the New Revelation (a.k.a. Fosterite
Church). He tried to convert Valentine
Michael Smith, but Mike caused him to disappear after "sensing the
wrongness" in him. Officially, he had been translated bodily to heaven and
promoted to Archangel.
He is later portrayed in this role, though not happy about it.
The wife of Joseph
Douglas. A firm believer in astrology, she also fancied herself to be the
"power behind the throne" for her husband.
Alice Douglas
An error for Agnes Douglas. She was described as a heavenly field
operative assigned to be a goad to Joseph Douglas. She died upon completing
her "mission".
Joseph Edgerton Douglas
Secretary General of the Federation
High Council. Jubal
Harshaw maneuvered him into accepting power-of-attorney for all of Valentine
Michael Smith's wealth, thus preventing any desperate moves against Mike
by parties who wanted to get control for themselves. Jubal called him
"Courthouse Joe."
Cynthia Duchess
[mentioned in passing] The "Richest Girl in the World,"
whose exploits were frequently reported in most news media.
Prize rose growing in Jubal
Harshaw's garden. He complained loudly that the invading S.S. officers
had landed on it.
Ely on Inheritance and Bequest
[mentioned in passing] Book that Valentine
Michael Smith quoted at length in response to a press conference question
about his knowledge of inheritance laws.
[mentioned in passing] Jubal
Harshaw stated that he was convicted of receiving a bribe that his
codefendant was acquitted of paying.
family
In Stranger in a Strange Land and later novels, Heinlein envisions
alternatives to the traditional nuclear family. Although characters in
Stranger have heterosexual pair-marriages, members of the Church
of All Worlds live in "nests" where they share domestic chores and
presumably child-rearing. Unmarried women bear children apparently without
being concerned about societal disapproval.
Founder of the Church of the New Revelation, usually called the Fosterite
Church. The "Archangel"
title was bestowed posthumously. No details are given of his life.
Fosterites
Members of the Church of the New Revelation. Their services had the
atmosphere of a sales convention or football rally, their theology was a mix
of conventional wisdom and pop psychology, and their membership was large
enough and active enough to be extremely influential in politics.
[mentioned in passing] Boy-meets-girl story dictated by Jubal
Harshaw.
God's Joy
Fosterite
term for their religious service, or possibly for the service's effects on
participants.
"Gossip Gone Wild"
Title chosen by Jubal
Harshaw for a prospective article on the dangers of following the news.
His original suggestion was "Gossip Unlimited."
Augustus Greaves
[mentioned in passing] Well-known news commentator.
grok
The human transliteration of a Martian
concept that has no exact translation. It roughly means "to be identically
equal", i.e. to completely understand and "cherish" a thing or experience. One
literal but misleading translation is "to drink".
Hagworth's Law of Contracts
[mentioned in passing] Valentine
Michael Smith cited the fifth edition for proper usage of the masculine
pronoun including the feminine.
Millionaire lawyer, physician, and writer to whose Poconos retreat Jill
Boardman brought Valentine
Michael Smith. He was a self-described bon vivant, sybarite, neo-pessimist
philosopher, professional clown, amateur subversive, and parasite by choice.
The missing Ben
Caxton was returned at his instigation, and he orchestrated Mike's
acceptance as a representative of the entire planet Mars as well
as protection for him from those who coveted his wealth. After some
reluctance, he joined the Church
of All Worlds, and witnessed Mike's martyrdom.
Member of the Federation
High Council who supported Willem
van Tromp's decision to quarantine Valentine
Michael Smith to protect him from physical stress and culture shock. (He
was called "David", but his full name was not given.)
High Minister for Science
Member of the Federation
High Council who demanded that scientists be allowed to interrogate Valentine
Michael Smith immediately upon his arrival on Earth. (He was called "Pete"
or "Pierre", but his full name was not given.)
Judge Holland (no first name)
[mentioned in passing] Name invoked by Jubal
Harshaw during his dispute with Heinrich
over Heinrich's right to invade Jubal's property.
[mentioned in passing] Winner of the Kentucky Derby.
Institute for Social Studies
[mentioned in passing] Organization that subcontracted with
the University of Edinburgh to choose the crew-four married couples- for the
first human expedition to Mars.
[mentioned in passing] Food technician first class with the
Mars
Expedition settlement. He died of "homesickness" and was "cherished" by
the MartianOld
Ones.
Member of the Federation,
ruled by blacks and frequently censured for mistreating the white minority.
Kung (no other name)
Leader of the Eastern coalition within the Federation
government, Joseph
Douglas' chief political enemy.
Lacus Soli
Mars
locale just north of the planned landing site of the first human expedition.
The second expedition, the Champion,
also landed there. [Latin, "lake of the sun"]
Federation
Court ruling that a corporation could not own a planet; only real people
maintaining occupation could. The decision was the basis for rules governing
colonization of planets.
It was inhabited by intelligent natives possessed of supernatural powers.
The first Earth expedition died except for one infant, Valentine
Michael Smith, who was raised by the natives and was brought to Earth by
the second expedition. In spite of the native inhabitants, a legal wrangle
arose on Earth over whether Smith "owned" Mars by right of habitation and
inheritance.
Adults were huge, reminding humans of "boats under sail", while juveniles
(nymphs) were fat, furry spheres, all bounce and mindless energy. Adults led
contemplative lives, and maintained contact with the physical world after
"discorporation". Their language contained many concepts inaccessible to
humans, and they possessed a wide range of apparently "supernatural"
powers.
Martian
community. On Earth, the term was applied to Valentine
Michael Smith's household of people who strove for enlightenment through
studying the Martian language.
Patty Paiwonski's late husband, a tattoo artist. (See next entry.)
(Stranger in a Strange Land)
Patricia (Patty) Paiwonski
Tattooed Lady in the carnival that Valentine
Michael Smith and Jill
Boardman joined. She performed with a boa constrictor. A member of the Fosterite
church (converted by Foster himself), she had his life story tattooed on her.
She joined the Church
of All Worlds. Jill and Mike called her Aunt Patty.
(Stranger in a Strange Land)
(Mentioned in passing in To Sail Beyond the Sunset.)
Fosterites
who, it was announced by the church, would soon be going to Heaven.
Eleanora Alvarez Rimsky
Member of the first Mars
expedition. A geologist, selenologist, and ship's hydroponicist, she was 32
years old when the expedition began. She died during the expedition.
Sergei Rimsky
Member of the first Mars
expedition. An electronics engineer, chemical engineer, practical machinist,
instrumentation man, and cryologist, he was 35 years old when the expedition
began. He died during the expedition.
[mentioned in passing] An old friend of Jubal
Harshaw; it was mentioned that he was fully tattooed.
Sam (no last name)
a. A roustabout with the carnival for
which Valentine
Michael Smith briefly performed. b. A
member of the Church
of All Worlds inner circle (no indication whether this is the roustabout).
He managed to speak Martian
with a Bronx accent.
Establishment owned by Valentine
Michael Smith through dummy ownerships. He took refuge there after his
last arrest. [French, "without concern", i.e. carefree]
Organization that controlled the rights to and interim income from the Lyle
Drive, from a trust started by its designer, Mary
Jane Lyle Smith.
Francis X. Seeney
Executive officer of the first Mars
expedition, 28 years old when the expedition began. He was also a practical
nurse, copilot, astrogator, astrophysicist, and photographer. He died during
the expedition.
Olga Kovalic Seeney
Member of the first Mars
expedition, 29 years old when the expedition began. She was a cook,
biochemist, and hydroponicist. She died during the expedition.
Valentine
Michael Smith's mother and designer of the Lyle spacedrive. A member of
the first Mars
expedition, 26 years old when the expedition began, she was an atomics
engineer and the ship's electronics and power technician. She died during the
expedition.
Valentine Michael Smith
Human found on Mars, the
sole survivor of the first Mars expedition and the son of two crew members, Mary
Jane Lyle Smith and Michael
Brant (their adultery caused a crisis that led to the deaths of the entire
crew). He possessed supernatural powers taught to him by the Martians who
raised him, but was completely naive about other humans. Mike was brought to
Earth by the second expedition. By the Larkin
Decision, he was sole [human] owner of Mars. Kept in "protective custody"
by the Federation,
he was rescued by Jill
Boardman and with Jubal
Harshaw's aid was protected from political opportunism and recognized as
the representative of the Martian
race. After spending several years learning to be human, he founded the Church
of All Worlds, based on Martian language and philosophy. He was stoned to
death as a heretic by a mob probably made up mostly of Fosterites.
During his travels, he used several aliases, including Dr. Apollo as a stage
magician, and Private Jones while in the Army. The suggestion is made that he
was also the Archangel
Michael.
Dr. Ward Smith
Member of the first Mars
expedition, 45 years old when the expedition began. He was a surgeon and the
expedition's biologist. Married to Mary
Jane Lyle Smith, he was Valentine
Michael Smith's legal but not biological father. He died during the
expedition.
Sponsor of the drone probe Zombie, sent to Mars orbit
and back to Earth six years after the Envoy's
disappearance. [French, "International Astronautical Society"]
Mrs. Percy B. S. Souchek
[mentioned in passing] Woman who sued the Los Angeles
City-County Commissioners over the death of her poodle during a stationary
inversion.
Institution that expelled Valentine
Michael Smith shortly after he enrolled. Some of the theologians were
angry with him because they believed in God, other because they did not.
Those who have "shared water", that is, affirmed mutual complete trust,
understanding, and acceptance. A Martian
ritual, adopted by Earth friends of Valentine
Michael Smith.
Fosterite
Sunday School class taught by Dawn
Ardent, only for the truly "saved".
Zombie
Drone probe launched six years after the Envoy
disappeared; recorded the harshness (to humans) of Martian climate but also
the existence of engineered ruins.
The Heinlein
Society was founded by Virginia Heinlein on behalf of her husband, science
fiction author Robert Anson Heinlein, to "pay forward" the legacy of Robert A. Heinlein to future generations of "Heinlein's Children."