War of the Worlds (1938)

[Norrington]

On October 30th, 1938, the now famour War of the Worlds broadcast was aired on CBS and it's affilates. It has now become famous in American society, sparking myths that people entered a state of mass-hysteria, even running to hide in the mountains, the reason being that as the show was one long, unbroken show, thus giving it realsim. The show was 'regular' boradcasting of "Raymond Rocello & his Orchestra," interspersed with reports of a cylinderical meteor landing in Grover's Mill, New Jersey, and a Martian invasion.

Even 70 years later, many stations re-broadcast it every Halloween in the US. This year I had the pleasure of sitting around an antique radio and listening to it.

The Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds_(radio)

And a place to download the broadcast for your listening pleasure: http://www.archive.org/details/WAROFTHEWORLDS2

Happy (belated) Halloween, every one!

Edited November 1, 2008 by Norrington

[meschepers]

My grandmother and her two brothers lived in New Jersey when the broadcast was made. She has told me stories about how there were a lot of people freaking out and running through the streets to get out of town. She said that her family (mother, father, brothers and her) were all down in their basement with blankets listening to the broadcast. She said it was very scary to her since she was just a young girl. It was a great production and despite the fact that the announcers broke in more than once to say that it was just a radio show and that there was no invasion people still panicked and ran around like they were all going to be annihilated.

I wish I could have been around then to hear it as it originally aired.

Edited November 1, 2008 by meschepers