![]() Wells had the HMS Thunderchild, Welles used a B17 bomber in its stead. Welles added to the authenticity of his creation by including equipment in use by the US military at the time. The End of the World Dundee Evening Telegraph – Monday 31 October 1938 Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. The reporter is good enough to state that the contents of this article are ‘almost unbelievable’. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.Īs far as we’re aware, none of the above actually happened, particularly the ‘octopus-like men armed with death rays’. Pandemonium Reigns! Falkirk Herald – Wednesday 02 November 1938 Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. Horsell Common, Surrey because Grover’s Mill, New Jersey, for example. One of the details that lent credence to the tales of public panic was the fact that Welles edited Wells’ text to reflect place names in the US, rather than UK. Real names of towns used Derby Daily Telegraph – Monday 31 October 1938 Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. For more information on the myth and how it took shape, this excellent Telegraph article is the place to go.įor those of you interested in seeing how the newspapers reported on their made-up mayhem, read on! In fact, a lot of the reporting was the concoction of print journalists looking to rubbish this dangerous new broadcasting platform. The show carried a warning, it wasn’t even listened to by that many people and those who did listen to it didn’t believe it for a second. Sadly – for those who love a good story anyway – this reported panic was a fabrication. This broadcast has gone down in history as causing widespread chaos in the US, as naive audiences new to the medium of radio took the messages at face value, taking to the streets in fear of imminent extinction at the hands of aliens. ![]() Conducted as a drama broadcast via wireless, the program went out uninterrupted for more than an hour and portrayed the events of the novel as a series of newsflashes breaking across commercial radio networks, and featured ‘eyewitness accounts’ and statements from ‘local officials’. It’s unlikely that any of these adaptations has developed such an aura of myth and infamy as the Orson Welles radio adaptation of 1938, which was alleged to have caused mass panic across the United States. Post your comments on the Wellesnet Message Board.HG Wells’ novel The War of the Worlds, the story of a Martian invasion of Earth, has had many adaptations since being published in 1898. Ready to tune the dial to the Columbia Broadcasting System and hear the Octobroadcast? ‘Broadcast Hysteria’ book utilizes nearly 1,400 letters sent to Orson Welles after ‘War of the Worlds’ broadcast.Video: AT&T operators recalls ‘The War of the Worlds’.Wellesnet veteran Glenn Anders (aka Alex Fraser) remembers the ‘War’.National Archives: The FCC and ‘The War of the Worlds’. ![]() Radio great Norman Corwin on the ‘War of the Worlds’.Chris Welles Feder reflects on her father’s famed broadcast.Orson Welles’ Sketch Book 1955 on The Martian Invasion – transcript and BBC video.Welles’ Halloween press conference Radio Guide magazine, 1938.Transcript of the Mercury Theatre On the Air broadcast written by Howard Koch.Streaming audio of the CBS radio broadcast and other Welles radio shows.There is much to read and enjoy for fans of Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air. Over the years, Wellesnet has reported on and compiled recollections ranging from Welles’ oldest daughter, Chris, to AT&T operators to an actual listener. The Octobroadcast is available here on streaming audio, along with a transcript of the Howard Koch radio play and an account of the press conference following the CBS broadcast, as well as some of the letters to the FCC found in the National Archives. Rejoice – or tremble – the 85th anniversary of the War of the Worlds is upon us. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |