The Man Who Fell to Earth

In the 1960's sci-fi classic The Man Who Fell to Earth the visiting alien is asked: "Are you from this solar system?". He replies: "Yes. As far as I know, there aren't any others...only suns...no planets." Scientists now believe there could be as many as a billion earth-like planets in our galaxy alone. So it seems that Earth is just another planet, a pale blue dot of no importance except to us humans. - Walter Tevis, The Man Who Fell to Earth, Frederick Muller Limited UK 1963.