Orson Welles "First Person Singular", with the formula that Welles would play the lead in each show. Some months later the show was called "The Mercury Theatre on the Air". The weekly hour-long show presented radio plays based on classic literary works, with original music composed and conducted by Bernard Herrmann. The Mercury Theatre's radio adaptation of "The War of the Worlds" by H. G. Wells October 30, 1938, brought Welles instant fame. The combination of the news bulletin form of the performance with the between-breaks dial spinning habits of listeners was later reported to have created widespread confusion among listeners who
The Orson Welles Show (radio series) crew, "The Orson Welles Show" featured music by Bernard Herrmann and a regular cast that included Conrad Binyon, Hans Conried, Dolores del Río, Brenda Forbes and Blanche Yurka. On many of the shows, Cliff Edwards recreated the voice of Jiminy Cricket and bantered with Welles between segments. Most of the series was produced while Welles was shooting his second feature film, "The Magnificent Ambersons" (October 28, 1941 – January 31, 1942), and many of the cast participated in "The Orson Welles Show". On January 6, 1942, Welles also began filming "Journey into Fear". The November 17, 1941, broadcast marked the