The War of the Worlds
October 31, 2018
Eighty years ago last night, on Oct. 30, 1938, a radio depiction of H. G. Wells’ science fiction classic, The War of the Worlds, was broadcast throughout the United States. The 1898 novel describes a cataclysmic invasion of Earth by extraterrestrial creatures from Mars—the first of many Martian invasions in book and movie form. To coincide with Halloween (Boo!), the young director-actor Orson Welles (he was only 23 years old) dramatized the novel for his “Mercury Theatre on the Air” weekly radio program. At that time, radio was the medium through which Americans got the vast majority of their news and entertainment. Despite warnings before and after the show, the realism of the hour-long broadcast caused many listeners to think the Martian invasion was actually happening, resulting in panic and mass hysteria.
H. G. Wells described the Martian invasion in the United Kingdom (an allegory of the colonizers being colonized), but Orson Welles relocated the story’s setting to the eastern U.S. state of New Jersey. The broadcast took the form of on-the-spot news reports describing the landing of Martian spaceships. As violence ensued in the CBS radio show—which did not break for usual commercials—a number of alarmed listeners made anxious phone calls to police, newspaper offices, and radio stations.
The number of “fooled” people was relatively small, but newspapers—the other great medium of the era—painted a picture of national panic, forcing Welles to apologize to the public on Halloween morning. The real panic occurred among Hollywood producers, who scrambled to sign the talented Welles to a lengthy contract. RKO studios won the bidding war, and in 1941, Welles rewarded them with Citizen Kane, his sensational first feature film and a movie largely regarded as the greatest of all time.
Over the years, Welles denied (with a wink) any intention of purposely frightening radio listeners. In fact, no one involved with The War of the Worlds expected to deceive listeners. They all found the story too silly and improbable to be taken seriously. Nonetheless, the excellent production was somewhat believable. Listen to it here, with many thanks to the Smithsonian Institution. Remember, though, it is make-believe…