{"id":7748,"date":"2013-10-30T23:35:56","date_gmt":"2013-10-31T03:35:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=7748"},"modified":"2013-10-31T06:35:46","modified_gmt":"2013-10-31T10:35:46","slug":"whether-fearsome-or-forgettable-the-war-of-the-worlds-left-us-with-a-gift","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/10\/whether-fearsome-or-forgettable-the-war-of-the-worlds-left-us-with-a-gift\/","title":{"rendered":"Whether fearsome or forgettable, The War of the Worlds left us with a gift"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"orson_welles\"Without a doubt, one of the most famous broadcasts in radio history\u2013\u2013indeed, in American<\/em> history\u2013\u2013was Orson Welles’ radio production of the\u00a0H. G. Wells’ classic sci-fi novel,\u00a0The War of the Worlds.\u00a0 <\/em>A Halloween radio drama from the\u00a0The Mercury Theatre on the Air<\/em>\u00a0series from the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS)<\/em>,\u00a0The War of the Worlds<\/em> aired on October 30, 1938–exactly 75 years ago, today<\/strong>. And it’s still creating a stir…
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Memorable legend?<\/h2>\n

The Welles’ production of\u00a0The War of the Worlds<\/em> invariably receives a side note or breakout in US history texts because of the unprecedented panic it incited in unsuspecting radio listeners during the tense period just prior to World War II, when radio was truly king of mass media and information.\u00a0 Listeners reportedly took to the streets upon hearing the Mercury Theatre’s seemingly credible “accounts” of monsters from Mars invading New Jersey.<\/p>\n

\"dailynews-WOTW-Panic\"<\/a>Because many listeners tuned in the production without hearing the Welles’ introduction to the drama, they heard what sounded like a live news report of Martians attacking our planet.\u00a0 While it seems dubious today, what made Welles’ production so convincing was his innovative use of mock news breaks, and what listeners described as a “deafening” silence after a supposed “eyewitness report.” It sounded, in short, terribly authentic, and therefore convincing.<\/p>\n

Few believe Welles was intentionally trying to trick his audience; rather, sources suggest he was attempting to treat<\/em> his listening audience by infusing what would have otherwise been a fairly staid radio drama with imagination, creating a captivating thriller.<\/p>\n

The result? By most accounts, Welles’ succeeded. Without doubt, The War of the Worlds<\/em> propelled this young theatrical director into the public spotlight, onto the big screen, and made his name known the world over.<\/p>\n

Last night I had the pleasure of viewing a brilliant documentary about The War of the Worlds<\/em> on PBS’s American Experience<\/em>. It told, in detail, of the events leading up to the production, the very convincing reasons why it had the impact it did, and offered entertaining listener accounts from letters sent to CBS. If you missed it,\u00a0 you can watch it, too, by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

NPR’s RadioLab <\/a>also devoted their most recent show to Welles’ production of The War of the Worlds<\/em>. You can listen to their broadcast on their website<\/a>, or via the embedded player below:
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