Orson Welles Sketchbook

Le Chiffre · Post by **Le Chiffre** » Sat Feb 23, 2002 12:32 pm

Jeff,
Great work on the Orson Welles' Sketchbook transcriptions. That must be a great little series. The episodes really cover many of the high points and main themes of Welles' early career. Hope you are able to find the first episode. What was that one about, anyway...do you know?

Jeff Wilson · Post by **Jeff Wilson** » Sat Feb 23, 2002 12:36 pm

According to This is Orson Welles, it was about his early theater experiences. I'm not sure if it even exists or not, after all, the tape I got of them has the other five, why not six?

Le Chiffre · Post by **Le Chiffre** » Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:06 am

RayKelly · Post by **RayKelly** » Tue Sep 25, 2012 8:06 pm

Hey wellesnetters,
After Mike discovered the episodes on YouTube, we decided to locate them on a special page here at Wellesnet.
Visit http://www.wellesnet.com/?page_id=1784
We hope to do more of this in the near future.

MacLiammoir · Post by **MacLiammoir** » Sat May 09, 2015 12:18 pm

The BBC have just put up a new webpage this week in honour of Welles 100th birthday.

On the webpage there are 4 of the 6 Sketchbook episodes plus a 5th episode I've never seen before. The episode features him in front of a bookshelf? In which he extemporizes for 15 minutes straight on the nature of London theatre audiences. He points out that this sketchbook episode is different from the others because it is shot live on television rather than on film as the previous episodes were.

You can check it out here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/article ... etch-books

It's listed as 'Orson Welles' Sketch Book: Episode six'

RayKelly · Post by **RayKelly** » Sat May 09, 2015 5:30 pm

This is not one of the six Sketch Book episodes. There is no sketching but it sounds like it is airing the week after the six concluded. will do some digging.

Dark Horse 77 · Post by **Dark Horse 77** » Wed Oct 28, 2015 8:08 am

Has Orson's Sketch Book ever gotten a Region 1 release? After watching Around the World again I'd very much like to see this one.

Post by **Wellesnet** » Sat Jan 16, 2016 8:59 am

Dangerous Minds on the Sketchbook series:
http://dangerousminds.net/comments/orso ... _from_1955

Post by **Wellesnet** » Wed Jan 20, 2016 6:13 pm

Simon Callow's new "One Man Band" book makes the strange mistake of calling this the sixth and final episode of the series.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =3&theater

Here are the real six, according to Wiki:

1. "The Early Days" — Welles discusses a timely earthquake, first-night audiences at the Gate Theatre in Dublin, and how he came to be an actor. (First broadcast 24 April 1955.)

2. "Critics" — Welles talks about a Boston performance of Five Kings, the consequences of Percy Hammond's negative review of the Voodoo Macbeth, and a curse placed on the film It's All True. (First broadcast 8 May 1955.)

3. "The Police" — Welles relates the story of Isaac Woodard, a decorated black World War II veteran who was blinded in a brutal 1946 beating by South Carolina police. Welles first told the story in July 1946 on his radio show, Orson Welles Commentaries (ABC), and made the case a focus of his weekly broadcasts throughout September 1946. Welles's comments on his BBC-TV series foreshadow a speech made in Touch of Evil (1958): "I'm willing to admit that the policeman has a difficult job, a very hard job. But it's the essence of our society that a policeman's job should be hard. He's there to protect the free citizen, not to chase criminals — that's an incidental part of the job." (First broadcast 22 May 1955.)

4. "People I Miss" — Prompts used by actors and others; remembering Harry Houdini; observations on gender differences in the appreciation of magic tricks; John Barrymore. (First broadcast 5 June 1955.)

5. "The War of the Worlds" — The famous 1938 Mercury Theatre broadcast mistaken by many listeners for a real Martian invasion, and the consequent skepticism during the presentation of Norman Corwin's Between Americans on December 7, 1941; and the opening night of the Mercury stage flop, Danton's Death. (First broadcast 19 June 1955.)

6. "Bullfighting" — Welles tells the true story of Bonito the bull. Robert Flaherty's story was partially filmed in 1942 for Welles's unfinished film, It's All True. (First broadcast 3 July 1955.)

As Ray Kelly puts it on Facebook: "In the odd "found" video, Welles said he has done five Sketch Books. In total, there were six. Either he made a slip of the tongue or this was taped between Episodes 5 and 6. I suspect this is why Simon Callow erred."

Post by **Wellesnet** » Tue Dec 27, 2016 10:49 pm

Film School Rejects on the Sketchbook series:
https://filmschoolrejects.com/a-look-in ... .kt538quao

Alas, the Sketchbook episodes are no longer at the above Youtube links, but they can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEbZ_0X ... pDRibaZTD4

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Orson Welles Sketchbook

Orson Welles Sketchbook

Five episodes of OW Sketchbook on Youtube

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Re: Five episodes of OW Sketchbook on Youtube

Re: New Sketchbook episode?

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