By RAY KELLY
Some engaged in the Martin Scorsese-led debate about the merit of Marvel superhero films have wondered what Orson Welles would have thought. Here is a more relevant question: How would Welles have felt about being a comic book hero?
The premise of the forthcoming graphic novel Orson Welles: Warrior of the Worlds is that the famed War of the Worlds radio broadcast was not a prank. After Welles’s first interaction with the Martians, he joined an organization that defends Earth from extraterrestrial threats and lives a double life as a film director by day, alien-hunter by night.
The graphic novel is the brainchild of Houston-based writer Milton Lawson (Four Texans in Europe, Roger Ebert & Me), and funded through Kickstarter crowdfunding. (He has set a $12,210 goal for the first of the two-volume set.)
“This comic was inspired by a longtime admiration for Orson Welles, his maverick spirit, and the fact that the comic medium allows for the existence of stories with a crazy premise like ‘What if Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds really happened?,” Lawson said. “This project’s been in development for about a year and a half.”
He described Orson Welles: Warrior of the Worlds as a “total indie production.”
“We have assembled a team of fantastic artists. Each chapter in the story will be drawn by a different artist, one whose style fits the theme of that chapter. Almost every chapter takes inspiration from aspects of Welles’ life and filmography,” Lawson said. “The artists include Erik Whalen, Rem Broo, Renton Hawkey, Jorge Santiago Jr., and Martyn B. Lorbiecki. Some members of the art team are well-recognized talents in the comic industry, some are hidden gems and newcomers. Erik Whalen will be creating the main introduction to the story, as well as a noir-themed chapter. The lettering for Orson Welles: Warrior of the Worlds will be by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou.”
The print edition of the 85-page graphic novel will be priced at $20 plus shipping, while the digital edition will cost $10. Lawson expects to deliver the print editions by November 2020.
The Kickstarter campaign allows the public to preorder the book and receive various perks. More details can be found at orsonwellescomic.com or kickstarter.com/projects/citizenmilton/orson-welles-warrior-of-the-worlds-vol-1
Lawson said he first heard a recording of the 1938 radio broadcast when he was just 12 or 13 years old.
“I was fascinated by the idea of what it would have been like to be listening to that broadcast live. The combination of terror and wonder. I didn’t realize it at the time, but it was also a lesson in the power of imagination,” Lawson said. “After listening to the Mercury Theatre radio version, I rushed out to rent the 1953 movie version, and was terribly disappointed. I was confused by why an old-time radio play — which seemed like an ancient artifact by then — could somehow feel more exciting than a full-color movie. It was only later that I learned about the power of the ‘theater of the mind’.”
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