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Old Time Radio > Science Fiction > War of the Worlds

War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast

On October 30, 1938 over 6 million listeners tuned in for Mercury Theater on the Air's adaptation of "The War of the Worlds" by H.G. Wells. Writers Howard Koch and John Houseman were tasked with creating the radio play in less then a week. With only a hasty rehearsal and a substantial rewrite just days before, the theater group was only hoping to get through the night without a major flop.

The breaking news format where a reporter interrupted the regular programming at intervals until taking over the airwaves with the panic and confusion of a Martian invasion proved to be incredibly realistic. So realistic, a reported 1 million listeners actually believed an invasion was occurring.
At the conclusion of the broadcast, the police stormed the broadcast booth, confiscated scripts and interviewed the players.

Orson Welles, already a Broadway theater favorite, had notched an incredible success and furthered his legendary status. He wanted to demonstrate to America through this Halloween hoax that you shouldn't take everything you hear as the truth. A message that, unfortunately, needs to be repeated from time to time.

War of the Worlds: Cassette Tape by H. G. Wells Starring Orson Welles in the most famous radio broadcast of all time that sent the country into a frenzy and a panic. Howard Kotch wrote the script for this dramatization of H.G. Wells's thrilling novel of the same name. Strange energies are seen emanating from ... read more

War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast by H. G. Wells Starring Orson Welles in the most famous radio broadcast of all time that sent the country into a frenzy and a panic. Howard Kotch wrote the script for this dramatization of H.G. Wells's thrilling novel of the same name. Strange energies are seen emanating from ... read more

The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells In the year 1898, critically acclaimed author H.G. Wells conceived of a tale so terrifying that it has captured the imagination of millions of readers for more than 100 years. Now for the first time ever, the true adaptation of the classic novel hits the screen with devastating e ... read more

War of the Worlds (easy-to-read adaptation) by Wells, H.G. Mars is the fourth planet from the sun. It is small, red and cold. No one believes anything lives there - until the first spaceship lands on Earth! At first, people are eager to welcome the alien visitors. But then they discover the horrible truth: The Martians have come to ... read more

Available in Audio Cassette Tape Set
• War of the Worlds: Cassette Tape by H. G. Wells

Available in Audio Compact Disc
• War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast by H. G. Wells

Available in DVD
• The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

Available in Paperback
• War of the Worlds (easy-to-read adaptation) by Wells, H.G.