On Halloween evening, Sat. Oct. 31, WKSU will broadcast live a recreation of the 1938 Orson Welles-Mercury Theatre drama "War of the Worlds." Beginning at 8 p.m., actors using the original script will mount an authentic radio broadcast, complete with costumes and sound effects men, on the stage of Akron's historic Highland Theatre. Audiences across Northeast Ohio can gather around their radios and experience the same imagination building fear-fest that traumatized America on the brink of the Second World War.
Local director Libby Jacobs takes the helm for this 60th anniversary celebration that features the Roland Paolucci Orchestra alongside a talented core of local actors, including announcers from WKSU. The station will be represented by News Reporter/Producers Mark Urycki and Kevin Niedermier, Music Director David Roden, and production staff and sound effects crew headed by Producer Joe Gunderman.
On Oct. 30, 1938 Orson Welles and his radio drama company, the Mercury Theatre, set out to present something special for Halloween. Based on an H. G. Wells novella written in 1898, Howard Koch (who later went on to write the script for "Casablanca") created an updated adaptation of "The War of the Worlds." Koch set the scene in Grovers Mill, New Jersey after a random selection from a map during a trip up the Hudson. The script's structure, involving a fictitious newscast of a Martian invasion, was Welles' idea, designed to add realism. The broadcast was so convincing that panic ensued across the country.
Although it was announced at the top of the program that "War of the Worlds" was a dramatic work by the Mercury Theatre, many people were tuned into the popular "Charlie McCarthy Show" and missed the announcement. It was during the song-styling of Nelson Eddy that millions switched their radios, while the broadcast of "War of the Worlds" was already well underway. By the time Welles returned to the air to close his "Halloween Prank" the damage was done, and he had made a name for himself.
WKSU's live broadcast will be available to listeners around the world via the WKSU web-site, www.wksu.org. The WKSU web-site features information on up-coming events, real audio of local news broadcasts and music programming, the "WKSU Community" discussion pages, links to NPR, and much more.
The Highland Theatre is located at 826 W. Market St. in the historic Highland Square district of Akron. The art deco styled theatre opened in 1939 as a movie palace. Tickets for the Halloween broadcast and an additional performance on Oct. 30 are $12.50 each. Members of WKSU can purchase tickets for the discount price of $10.00. Tickets are available through WKSU or at the Highland Theatre Box Office.
WKSU broadcasts NPR News & Classical Music at 89.7 FM, and is a service of Kent State University. WKSU programming is also heard on WKRW 89.3 FM in Wooster, WKRJ 91.5 FM in Dover/New Philadelphia, and WKSV 89.1 FM in Thompson.
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10-26-98
WKSU Voices Featured in "War of the Worlds"
Classic Radio Drama Restaged on 60th Anniversary
Contact: Robert J. Burford
WKSU
burford@wksu.org
WKSU will be represented on stage and behind the scenes on Halloween, Sat., Oct. 31 at 8:00 p.m., with a live broadcast of the radio drama "War of the Worlds" to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the original event. Members of the WKSU news staff will use their skills as reporters to recreate the roles of newsmen covering the invasion of Grovers Mill, NJ by "machines" from Mars. WKSU announcers will lend their voices to a collection of characters faced with Martian world domination.
The original Howard Koch adaptation of the H.G. Wells novella used for the 1938 Mercury Theatre broadcast will be the basis of the production on the stage of Akron's Highland Theatre. WKSU will produce the live broadcast, including sound effects personnel. The program will be available live on the WKSU stations (WKSU and its repeater stations, WKSV, WKRJ, and WKRW) or over the world wide web at http://www.wksu.org. Libby Jacobs directs and live music will be provided by Akron's own Roland Paolucci Orchestra.
WKSU participants include:
An underlying unease from the lingering effects of the Great Depression and rumblings about Hitler and a possible war in Europe contributed to the emotional response. In his book "A Pictorial History of Radio's First 75 Years," B. Eric Rhoads says about the original broadcast, "The event took a thrid-rate program into the top ratings slot and elevated the young Welles to major star status. It also demonstrated the power of radio. After all, Mercury Theater was not a highly rated program, yet with the listeners it had, the broadcast caused a severe panic."
The FCC and CBS, the network that broadcast Mercury Theater programs, received hundreds of calls of complaint. Federal authorities issued an advisory against using simulated newscasts as part of any dramatic radio production.
The Highland Theatre is located at 826 W. Market St. in the historic Highland Square district of Akron. The art deco styled theatre opened in 1939 as a movie palace. Tickets for the Halloween broadcast and an additional performance on Oct. 30 are $12.50 each. Members of WKSU can purchase tickets for the discount price of $10.00. Tickets are available through WKSU or at the Highland Theatre Box Office.
WKSU broadcasts NPR News & Classical Music at 89.7 FM, and is a service of Kent State University. WKSU programming is also heard on WKRW 89.3 FM in Wooster, WKRJ 91.5 FM in Dover/New Philadelphia, and WKSV 89.1 FM in Thompson.
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10-26-98