Orson Welles with an entirely African American cast, and the political musical "The Cradle Will Rock". In 1937 he and John Houseman founded the Mercury Theatre, an independent repertory theatre company that presented a series of productions on Broadway through 1941. Welles found national and international fame as the director and narrator of a 1938 radio adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel "The War of the Worlds" performed for his radio anthology series "The Mercury Theatre on the Air". It reportedly caused widespread panic when listeners thought that an invasion by extraterrestrial beings was actually occurring. Although some contemporary sources say these
Orson Welles Cinema Restaurant closed, the two-level space became Chi-Chi's, part of the Mexican restaurant chain. The Orson Welles Cinema came to an end with fire caused by a popcorn maker at 2 pm on Saturday, May 24, 1986. The last three films shown were Henry Jaglom’s "Always", Dick Clement’s "Water" and Dennis Potter’s "Dreamchild". The Orson Welles Cinema’s advertising and promotion were under the direction of John Fogle, with ad and poster copy written by Fogle and Larry Jackson. The Welles Cinema’s posters were designed by Jean Fogle. Extra runs of these posters were sold in the lobby. Among Fogle’s outstanding creations