The War of the Worlds and Mass Hysteria

By: karl donald

It seems hard to believe today, but a radio drama that aired in the 1930s caused a mass panic by making its listeners believe that aliens had invaded our planet. The show was The War of the Worlds, inspired by H.G. Wells' classic novel. It was produced by, and starred, theatrical wunderkind Orson Welles as an episode of his anthology show Mercury Theater on the Air and aired on Halloween 1938.

Wells' novel concerned a Martian invasion of our planet, and was taking place in a small village in England. In adopting the novel for radio, Welles shifted the setting to Grover's Mill, a village in New Jersey to make it more relevant for an American radio audience. He also conceived the device of telling the first part of the drama as a series of news bulletins interrupting a seemingly genuine live broadcast, to give the story some verisimilitude. Further enhancing the show's air of reality was the fact that the one-hour drama aired without commercial breaks.

Although the precise extent of the mass hysteria that resulted from the airing of the radio show has long been debated, it is clear that thousands of listeners took The War of the Worlds too seriously, genuinely believing that a Martian invasion of the Earth was happening. While the program repeatedly professed its fictional nature, many may have merely heard part of the show while they were switching programmes, leading them to believe that what they heard was really going on. The panic may also have been fueled by the atmosphere of uncertainty prevailing at the time, as the world was on the brink of World War II.

Thousands of people reportedly left of their homes, terrified of the alien invaders. Others prepared their weapons to prepare to meet the Martians. Others hid in their cellars. There were even reports, which may have been of false nature, of people committing suicide.

Welles later expressed 'profound regret' at the widespread panic that his drama had caused. Ironically enough, he also claimed that he had first hesitated doing the program, as he feared people would find it too unbelievable. But he failed to reckon with the profound power radio held over its audience, as well as his own dramatic prowess. His powerful radio drama helped conjure images of alien war machines striding across the American landscape in many listeners' imaginations. Media critics also said that Welles had expertly blurred the line between fiction and reality by effectively mimicking how radio genuinely worked in an emergency situation.

Although we will probably never know exactly how widespread the panic fueled by The War of the Worlds was, it is clear this incidence of mass hysteria continues to fascinate us, and it serves as a testament to how radio once intensely engaged the imaginations of its audience.

Article Source: https://www.collectibles-articles.com

George Brown is an expert when it comes to old time radio. To take a trip down the memory lane, visit his website at www.rusc.com and find out more about old time American radio.

Related Items on eBay:

Paul Harvey The Rest Of The Story Old Time Radio OTR MP3 On CD 663 Episodes
$10.95

Dr. Who Old Time Radio Show MP3 On CD-R 112 Episodes OTR OTRS
$10.95

Sherlock Holmes Radio Mysteries, 755 Old Time Radio Shows, Detective mp3 DVD G79
$10.95

JEAN SHEPHERD COLLECTION Old Time Radio Shows- 431 MP3s on USB +FREE OFFER OTR
$14.89

OLD TIME RADIO WESTERN SERIES MP3 4 DVDS 3,000+ SHOWS
$19.99

Old Time Radio Shows - Sherlock Holmes Autio Book- 10 CDs, 20 Shows
$12.88

Print This Article

Comments Closed

Add To Favorites

Email to Friends

Publisher Ready