Orson Welles Welles had not been drafted. "The Mercury Wonder Show" ran August 3 – September 9, 1943, in an 80-by-120-foot tent located at 9000 Cahuenga Boulevard, in the heart of Hollywood. At intermission September 7, 1943, KMPC radio interviewed audience and cast members of "The Mercury Wonder Show"—including Welles and Rita Hayworth, who were married earlier that day. Welles remarked that "The Mercury Wonder Show" had been performed for approximately 48,000 members of the U.S. armed forces. The idea of doing a radio variety show occurred to Welles after his success as substitute host of four consecutive episodes (March 14 –
Orson Welles longer than any of the other men in her life." In 1955, Welles married actress Paola Mori (née Countess Paola di Girifalco), an Italian aristocrat who starred as Raina Arkadin in his 1955 film, "Mr. Arkadin". The couple began a passionate affair, and they were married at her parents' insistence. They were wed in London May 8, 1955, and never divorced. Croatian-born artist and actress Oja Kodar became Welles's longtime companion both personally and professionally from 1966 onward, and they lived together for some of the last 20 years of his life. Welles had three daughters from his marriages: Christopher