The Orson Welles Show (radio series) debut of "The Hitch-Hiker", an original radio play by Lucille Fletcher (wife of Bernard Herrmann) that has become a classic of suspense. On the broadcast of December 29, 1941, Rita Hayworth was the guest player; this was the first meeting between Welles and Hayworth, who were married in September 1943. Welles concluded the final broadcast of "The Orson Welles Show" February 2, 1942, with a statement: "Tomorrow night the Mercury Theatre starts for South America. The reason, put more or less officially, is that I've been asked by the Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs to do a motion
Orson Welles Paul Masson advertisements "Welles found it "barbaric" not to begin a meal with soup", and noted of Welles's lunchtime drinking, "Orson liked Paul Masson’s cabernet. He often called the ad agency and instructed, “Send more red.” The agency sent more red." It has been speculated that this is what may have led to his state during the recording session. The final advert aired managed to avoid embarrassment about Welles's state, by using a combination of retakes (a close-up of Welles holding a champagne flute), cuts away from Welles to close-ups of the wine bottle, and some (not entirely synchronised) dubbing made by Welles