The War of the Worlds (radio drama) are listening to a CBS presentation of Orson Welles and the "Mercury Theatre of the Air", in an original dramatization of "The War of the Worlds" by H. G. Wells. The performance will continue after a brief intermission. The last third of the program is a monologue and dialogue. Professor Pierson, having survived the attack on Grover's Mill, attempts to make contact with other humans. In Newark, he encounters an opportunistic militiaman who holds fascist ideals in regards to man's relationship with the Martians, and intends to use Martian weaponry to take control of both species. Declaring that he wants
The Orson Welles Almanac Welles brought together for the show were an important force in the revival of traditional New Orleans jazz in the 1940s. ""The Orson Welles Almanac" was a format that intrigued Welles throughout the early 1940s," wrote radio historian John Dunning. "It consisted of everything from odd facts to jazz." The idea of doing such a variety show occurred to Welles after his success as substitute host of "The Jack Benny Program", radio's most popular show. When Jack Benny contracted pneumonia on a performance tour of military bases, Welles hosted four consecutive programs (March 14–April 4, 1943) and was Benny's first