George Orson Welles  (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985)

“The War of the Worlds”—Orson Welles’s realistic radio dramatization of a
Martian invasion of Earth—is broadcast on the radio on October 30, 1938.

Welles was only 23 years old when his Mercury Theater company decided
to update H.G. Wells’ 19th-century science fiction novel The War of the
Worlds for national radio. Despite his age, Welles had been in radio for
several years, most notably as the voice of “The Shadow” in the hit
mystery program of the same name. “War of the Worlds” was not planned
as a radio hoax, and Welles had little idea of the havoc it would cause.

The show began on Sunday, October 30, at 8 p.m. A voice announced:
“The Columbia Broadcasting System and its affiliated stations present
Orson Welles and the Mercury Theater on the air in ‘War of the Worlds’
by H.G. Wells.”

Sunday evening in 1938 was prime-time in the golden age of radio, and
millions of Americans had their radios turned on. But most of these
Americans were listening to ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and his dummy
“Charlie McCarthy” on NBC and only turned to CBS at 8:12 p.m. after the
comedy sketch ended and a little-known singer went on. By then, the
story of the Martian invasion was well underway.