Rich Phoenix, president of the New Jersey Radio Museum, will discuss “The War of the Worlds” radio broadcast at the Wyckoff Free Public Library in New Jersey next week.
“The Radio Broadcast That Terrorized America,” Orson Welles’ radio dramatization of H. G. Wells’ science fiction novel “War of the Worlds,” will be the subject of his March 27 evening presentation. The October 1938 broadcast converted Wells’ book into a series of breaking news bulletins, leading many listeners throughout the Northeast to believe aliens had landed.
“At the beginning of the broadcast it was announced that it was a work of fiction but the many people tuned into the program after the announcement and just panicked,” Library Director Mary Witherell told the Wycoff Suburban News. “People ran around the streets of Newark with wet towels on their hands to protect them from Martian rays.”
The event is free but the public is asked to register in advance. For reservations, call (201) 891-4866, ext. 2.
The presentation is part of the first “Radio Days” celebration at the Wyckoff Free Public Library.
To listen to “The War of the Worlds” and other Welles radio performances, visit the Wellesnet radio pages.
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