Hello, my friends. Two nights ago; the CBC (Canadian Bradcasting Corporation) aired on their seminal radio show Ideas the iconic Orson Welles broadcast of The War Of The Worlds - that night; the 30th. of October, was the seventy-fifth anniversary of that spectacular broadcast - easily one of the greatest radio programmes ever made.
History records the result; an entire country thrown into terror and uncertainty; wondering if they were really being invaded by Martians. It's probably the greatest Hallowe'en prank ever constructed.
I've heard the complete broadcast a few times; Hallowe'en is a special time for me - it is my birthday, after all - though until I heard the Ideas broadcast Monday night I hadn't realized I hadn't heard the entire broadcast.
The entire broadcast includes a few lines when Orson Welles steps out of character and announces it was all a Hallowe'en prank.
I must say that disappointed me a bit; far better to leave the majestic joke unexplained, in my opinion. But my opinion is 75 years out of date; I can imagine what radio listeners experienced in those days: the world was uncertain; war was brewing; the populace of the United States were being encouraged - through pulps and radio shows and cheap novels - to think of the potential threat of a Martian enemy.
Mr. Welles' performance was astounding. It hit Americans right in their basest fears. Thus the October 30th, 1938 radio classic War Of The Worlds must go down as the greatest Hallowe'en prank of all time - and by a wide margin, one of the very greatest radio plays ever presented.
Enjoy - and be thrilled. Turn down the lights and listen. Just...don't look behind you...did something move? No...I'm sure it didn't. Really.
What was that noise?
History records the result; an entire country thrown into terror and uncertainty; wondering if they were really being invaded by Martians. It's probably the greatest Hallowe'en prank ever constructed.
I've heard the complete broadcast a few times; Hallowe'en is a special time for me - it is my birthday, after all - though until I heard the Ideas broadcast Monday night I hadn't realized I hadn't heard the entire broadcast.
The entire broadcast includes a few lines when Orson Welles steps out of character and announces it was all a Hallowe'en prank.
I must say that disappointed me a bit; far better to leave the majestic joke unexplained, in my opinion. But my opinion is 75 years out of date; I can imagine what radio listeners experienced in those days: the world was uncertain; war was brewing; the populace of the United States were being encouraged - through pulps and radio shows and cheap novels - to think of the potential threat of a Martian enemy.
Mr. Welles' performance was astounding. It hit Americans right in their basest fears. Thus the October 30th, 1938 radio classic War Of The Worlds must go down as the greatest Hallowe'en prank of all time - and by a wide margin, one of the very greatest radio plays ever presented.
Enjoy - and be thrilled. Turn down the lights and listen. Just...don't look behind you...did something move? No...I'm sure it didn't. Really.
What was that noise?
When did you get here? You never said - or you DID say and I missed it completely. Well, however long you've been in Canada enjoy it - you'll love it here. Try the smoked meat; it's kinda signatory. (LOL!) Don't bother with the Maple Syrup; it's commercial - unless you can get to either the Niagara Escarpment region of Southern Ontario or the Eastern Townships of Quebec. Those places are some of the last on Earth to make real maple sugar so seek them out this winter.
