Handling machine (The War of the Worlds) Handling machine (The War of the Worlds) The Handling machine is one of the fictional machines used by the Martians in H. G. Wells' science fiction novel "The War of the Worlds". It is a crawling device used by the Martians to lift and manipulate other objects. It is one of the four types of heavy machine the Martians bring with them when they invade Earth, along with the fighting machine, the flying machine, and the embankment machine. The handling machine is depicted making, moving, and assembling machinery under control of a single Martian. Handling machines are described as having
The War of the Worlds (radio drama) fell to Paul Stewart, the person Welles would later credit as being largely responsible for the quality of "The War of the Worlds" broadcast. Welles wanted the music to play for unbearably long stretches of time. The studio's emergency fill-in, a solo piano playing Debussy and Chopin, was heard several times. "As it played on and on," Houseman wrote, "its effect became increasingly sinister—a thin band of suspense stretched almost beyond endurance. That piano was the neatest trick of the show." Dress rehearsal was scheduled for 6 pm. "Our actual broadcasting time, from the first mention of the meteorites to