This review is being published on the actual 82nd anniversary of the historic "War of the Worlds", which took place on October 30th, 1938, beginning at 7:00 PM Central Time. If you have access to the internet, I encourage you to celebrate this anniversary by finding one of the many audio copies of this show archived online and listen to it tonight, starting at 7:00 PM here in Lincoln, NE. Try to place yourself in the mindset of listeners back in 1938, when radio was the primary method of in-home entertainment!
Spooked!:How a Radio Broadcast and The War of the Worlds Sparked the 1938 Invasion ofAmerica
by Gail Jarrow (j 791.447 WarYj)
This marvelous volume from author Gail Jarrow does a terrific job of looking back at the October 30th, 1938 radio broadcast of “The War of the Worlds”, starring Orson Welles and the panic it is supposed to have caused in the listening public at the time. This radio play is an updated and relocated adaptation of H.G. Wells classic science fiction novel of invaders from Mars. In the radioplay, instead of landing in the English countryside, the aliens first land in Grover’s Mill, NJ. The radio play was done in “as it happens” style, combining fake news reports, interruptions to regular broadcasts, and a full cast of performers treating the alien invasion as a real event. Unfortunately, due to a variety of odd circumstances, many listeners tuned in late and the verisimilitude of the radio program led many to believe the events truly were happening. Jarrow’s book explores the history of the broadcast and also the repercussions in days and years after the “panic broadcast” let to such a misunderstanding. All the information is presented in quick, bite-size nuggets, and the book is filled with gorgeous photos and illustrations. Definitely a fun read for anyone who’s a fan of this classic Halloween broadcast, or of radio and pop culture history in general.
[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try listening to the original 1938 radio broadcast — available online from several sources, the original novel The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells, or Aliens Are Coming!: The True Account of the 1938 War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast by Meghan McCarthy.]
[
Wikipedia page for the 1938 War of the Worlds radio broadcast ] | [ official Gail Jarrow web site ]
Recommended
by Scott
C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service
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1 comment:
Also worth tracking down (since LCL, sadly, no longer owns a copy) is The Panic Broadcast by Howard Koch, who wrote the script for the radio play. The script is included in the book.
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