On the countdown to Halloween, there is some strange stuff, indeed. And all of it is real.
Today, October 30, is the anniversary of Orson Welles’ famous 1938 radio broadcast of The War Of The Worlds*. He updated the story and made it sound like a contemporary news report, with on-site interviews and sound effects. Unfortunately, many people tuning into the middle of the broadcast and not realizing it was theatre panicked, thinking that real Martians were invading the eastern United States.
In the aftermath of the broadcast, the newspapers called the broadcast irresponsible and despicable. Many listeners tried to sue the radio station for mental anguish and personal injury, but all suits were dismissed.
Orson Welles’ fame, however, was a lock.
And hot damn, wasn’t Welles intense, when he was young?
___________
[*the link takes you to a free copy of War of the Worlds on Amazon. 🙂 ]