"The War of the Worlds"
by H. G. Wells
as performed by
Orson Welles & the
Mercury Theatre on the Air
and broadcast on the
Columbia Broadcasting System
on Sunday, October 30, 1938
from 8:00 to 9:00 P. M.
* * *
- ANNOUNCER
- The Columbia Broadcasting System and its affiliated stations
present Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air in "The War of
the Worlds" by H. G. Wells.
- (MUSIC: MERCURY THEATRE MUSICAL THEME)
- ANNOUNCER
- Ladies and gentlemen, the director of the Mercury Theatre and star of these broadcasts, Orson Welles.
- ORSON WELLES
- We know now that in the early years of the twentieth century
this world was being watched closely by intelligences greater than
man's, and yet as mortal as his own. We know now that as human beings
busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinized
and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope
might scrutinize the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a
drop of water.
- With infinite complacence people went to and fro over the
earth about their little affairs, serene in the assurance of their
dominion over this small, spinning fragment of solar driftwood which,
by chance or design, man has inherited out of the dark mystery of Time
and Space.
- Yet across an immense ethereal gulf, minds that are to our
minds as ours are to the beasts in the jungle, intellects vast, cool
and unsympathetic, regarded this earth with envious eyes and slowly and
surely drew their plans against us.
- In the thirty-ninth year of the twentieth century came the
great disillusionment. It was near the end of October. Business was
better. The war scare was over. More men were back at work. Sales were
picking up. On this particular evening, October 30th, the Crosley
service estimated that thirty-two million people were listening in on
radios.
- ANNOUNCER
- (FADE IN) ... for the next twenty-four hours not much change
in temperature. A slight atmospheric disturbance of undetermined origin
is reported over Nova Scotia, causing a low pressure area to move down
rather rapidly over the northeastern states, bringing a forecast of
rain, accompanied by winds of light gale force. Maximum temperature 66;
minimum 48.
- This weather report comes to you from the Government Weather Bureau.
- We take you now to the Meridian Room in the Hotel Park Plaza
in downtown New York, where you'll be entertained by the music of Ramón
Raquello and his orchestra.
- (MUSIC: SPANISH THEME SONG ["NO MORE," A TANGO]... FADES)
- ANNOUNCER THREE
- Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. From the Meridian Room in
the Park Plaza Hotel in New York City, we bring you the music of Ramón
Raquello and his orchestra. With a touch of the Spanish, Ramón Raquello
leads off with "La Cumparsita."
- ("LA CUMPARSITA" STARTS PLAYING, THEN QUICKLY FADES OUT)
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- Ladies and gentlemen, we interrupt our program of dance music
to bring you a special bulletin from the Intercontinental Radio News.
- At twenty minutes before eight, central time, Professor
Farrell of the Mount Jennings Observatory, Chicago, Illinois, reports
observing several explosions of incandescent gas, occurring at regular
intervals on the planet Mars. The spectroscope indicates the gas to be
hydrogen and moving towards the earth with enormous velocity.
- Professor Pierson of the Observatory at Princeton confirms
Farrell's observation, and describes the phenomenon as, quote, "like a
jet of blue flame shot from a gun," unquote.
- We now return you to the music of Ramón Raquello, playing for
you in the Meridian Room of the Park Plaza Hotel, situated in downtown
New York.
- (MUSIC PLAYS FOR A FEW MOMENTS UNTIL PIECE ENDS... SOUND OF APPLAUSE)
- ANNOUNCER THREE
- And now a tune that never loses favor, the ever-popular "Stardust." Ramón Raquello and his orchestra...
- (MUSIC: "STARDUST")
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- Ladies and gentlemen, following on the news given in our
bulletin a moment ago, the Government Meteorological Bureau has
requested the large observatories of the country to keep an
astronomical watch on any further disturbances occurring on the planet
Mars.
- Due to the unusual nature of this occurrence, we have
arranged an interview with a noted astronomer, Professor Pierson, who
will give us his views on this event. In a few moments we will take you
to the Princeton Observatory at Princeton, New Jersey.
- We return you until then to the music of Ramón Raquello and his orchestra.
- (MUSIC: "STARDUST" PLAYS FOR A WHILE, THEN QUICKLY FADES OUT )
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- We are ready now to take you to the Princeton Observatory at
Princeton where Carl Phillips, our commentator, will interview
Professor Richard Pierson, famous astronomer. We take you now to
Princeton, New Jersey.
- (ECHO CHAMBER. SOUND OF TICKING CLOCK.)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. This is Carl Phillips,
speaking to you from the observatory of Princeton. I am standing in a
large semi-circular room, pitch black except for an oblong split in the
ceiling. Through this opening I can see a sprinkling of stars that cast
a kind of frosty glow over the intricate mechanism of the huge
telescope. The ticking sound you hear is the vibration of the
clockwork.
- Professor Pierson stands directly above me on a small
platform, peering through the giant lens. I ask you to be patient,
ladies and gentlemen, during any delay that may arise during our
interview. Besides his ceaseless watch of the heavens, Professor
Pierson may be interrupted by telephone or other communications. During
this period he is in constant touch with the astronomical centers of
the world...
- Professor, may I begin our questions?
- PROF. PIERSON
- At any time, Mr. Phillips.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Professor, would you please tell our radio audience exactly what you see as you observe the planet Mars through your telescope?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Nothing unusual at the moment, Mr. Phillips. A red disk
swimming in a blue sea. Transverse stripes across the disk. Quite
distinct now because Mars happens to be the point nearest the earth...
in opposition, as we call it.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- In your opinion, what do these transverse stripes signify, Professor Pierson?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Not canals, I can assure you, Mr. Phillips —
- CARL PHILLIPS
- (OFF-MIC) I see.
- PROF. PIERSON
- — although that's the popular conjecture of those who imagine
Mars to be inhabited. From a scientific viewpoint the stripes are
merely the result of atmospheric conditions peculiar to the planet.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Then you're quite convinced as a scientist that living intelligence as we know it does not exist on Mars?
- PROF. PIERSON
- I'd say the chances against it are a thousand to one.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- And yet, how do you account for these gas eruptions occurring on the surface of the planet at regular intervals?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Mr. Phillips, I cannot account for it.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- By the way, Professor, for the benefit of our listeners, how far is Mars from the earth?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Approximately forty million miles.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Well, that seems a safe enough distance.
- PROF. PIERSON
- (OFF-MIC) Thank you.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Just a moment, ladies and gentlemen, someone has just handed
Professor Pierson a message. While he reads it, let me remind you that
we are speaking to you from the observatory in Princeton, New Jersey,
where we are interviewing the world-famous astronomer, Professor
Pierson...
- Oh, one moment, please. Professor Pierson has passed me a
message which he has just received... Professor, may I read the message
to the listening audience?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Certainly, Mr. Phillips
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Ladies and gentlemen, I shall read you a wire addressed to
Professor Pierson from Dr. Gray of the National History Museum, New
York.
- Quote, "9:15 P. M. eastern standard time. Seismograph
registered shock of almost earthquake intensity occurring within a
radius of twenty miles of Princeton. Please investigate. Signed, Lloyd
Gray, Chief of Astronomical Division," unquote.
- Professor Pierson, could this occurrence possibly have something to do with the disturbances observed on the planet Mars?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Hardly, Mr. Phillips. This is probably a meteorite of unusual
size and its arrival at this particular time is merely a coincidence.
However, we shall conduct a search, as soon as daylight permits.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Thank you, Professor. Ladies and gentlemen, for the past ten
minutes we've been speaking to you from the observatory at Princeton,
bringing you a special interview with Professor Pierson, noted
astronomer.
- This is Carl Phillips speaking. We are returning you now to our New York studio.
- (FADE IN PIANO PLAYING)
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- Ladies and gentlemen, here is the latest bulletin from the
Intercontinental Radio News. Toronto, Canada: Professor Morse of
McMillan University reports observing a total of three explosions on
the planet Mars, between the hours of 7:45 P. M. and 9:20
P. M., eastern standard time. This confirms earlier reports
received from American observatories.
- Now, nearer home, comes a special bulletin from Trenton, New
Jersey. It is reported that at 8:50 P. M. a huge, flaming object,
believed to be a meteorite, fell on a farm in the neighborhood of
Grovers Mill, New Jersey, twenty-two miles from Trenton.
- The flash in the sky was visible within a radius of several
hundred miles and the noise of the impact was heard as far north as
Elizabeth.
- We have dispatched a special mobile unit to the scene, and
will have our commentator, Carl Phillips, give you a word picture of
the scene as soon as he can reach there from Princeton.
- In the meantime, we take you to the Hotel Martinet in
Brooklyn, where Bobby Millette and his orchestra are offering a program
of dance music.
- (SWING BAND FOR TWENTY SECONDS... THEN CUT)
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- We take you now to Grovers Mill, New Jersey.
- (PAUSE. THEN CROWD NOISES, POLICE SIRENS...)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Ladies and gentlemen, this is Carl Phillips again, out of the
Wilmuth farm, Grovers Mill, New Jersey. Professor Pierson and myself
made the eleven miles from Princeton in ten minutes.
- Well, I... hardly know where to begin, to paint for you a
word picture of the strange scene before my eyes, like something out of
a modern "Arabian Nights."
- Well, I just got here. I haven't had a chance to look around
yet. I guess that's it. Yes, I guess that's the thing, directly in
front of me, half buried in a vast pit. Must have struck with terrific
force. The ground is covered with splinters of a tree it must have
struck on its way down.
- What I can see of the object itself doesn't look very much
like a meteor, at least not the meteors I've seen. It looks more like a
huge cylinder. It has a diameter of... what would you say, Professor
Pierson?
- PROF. PIERSON
- (OFF-MIC) What's that?
- CARL PHILLIPS
- What would you say... what is the diameter of this?
- PROF. PIERSON
- About thirty yards.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- About thirty yards... The metal on the sheath is... well, I've
never seen anything like it. The color is sort of yellowish-white.
Curious spectators now are pressing close to the object in spite of the
efforts of the police to keep them back. They're getting in front of my
line of vision. Would you mind standing to one side, please?
- POLICEMAN
- One side, there, one side.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- While the policemen are pushing the crowd back, here's Mr.
Wilmuth, owner of the farm here. He may have some interesting facts to
add.
- Mr. Wilmuth, would you please tell the radio audience as much
as you remember of this rather unusual visitor that dropped in your
backyard? Step closer, please.
- Ladies and gentlemen, this is Mr. Wilmuth.
- MR. WILMUTH
- Well, I was listenin' to the radio.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Closer and louder please.
- MR. WILMUTH
- Pardon me!
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Louder, please, and closer.
- MR. WILMUTH
- Yes, sir — I was listening to the radio and kinda drowsin',
that Professor fellow was talkin' about Mars, so I was half dozin' and
half...
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Yes, yes, Mr. Wilmuth. And er... then what happened?
- MR. WILMUTH
- Well, as I was sayin', I was listenin' to the radio kinda halfways...
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Yes, Mr. Wilmuth, and then you saw something?
- MR. WILMUTH
- Not first off. I heard something.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- And what did you hear?
- MR. WILMUTH
- A hissing sound. Like this: (HISSES)
- Kinda like a fourth of July rocket.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Yes, then what?
- MR. WILMUTH
- I turned my head out the window and would have swore I was to sleep and dreamin'.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Yes?
- MR. WILMUTH
- I seen that kinda greenish streak and then zingo! Somethin' smacked the ground. Knocked me clear out of my chair!
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Well, were you frightened, Mr. Wilmuth?
- MR. WILMUTH
- Well, I — I ain't quite sure. I reckon I — I was kinda riled.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Thank you, Mr. Wilmuth. Thank you very much.
- MR. WILMUTH
- Want me to tell you some more?
- CARL PHILLIPS
- No... That's quite all right, that's plenty.
- Ladies and gentlemen, you've just heard Mr. Wilmuth, owner of
the farm where this thing has fallen. I wish I could convey the
atmosphere... the background of this... fantastic scene.
- Hundreds of cars are parked in a field in back of us and the
police are trying to rope off the roadway leading into the farm but
it's no use. They're breaking right through. Cars' headlights throw an
enormous spotlight on the pit where the object's half buried.
- Now some of the more daring souls are now venturing near the edge. Their silhouettes stand out against the metal sheen.
- (FAINT HUMMING SOUND)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- One man wants to touch the thing... he's having an argument
with a policeman. The policeman wins... Now, ladies and gentlemen,
there's something I haven't mentioned in all this excitement, but now
it's becoming more distinct. Perhaps you've caught it already on your
radio. Listen, please...
- (FAINT SCRAPING NOISE)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Do you hear it? It's a curious humming sound that seems to come from inside the object. I'll move the microphone nearer. Now...
- (PAUSE)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Now we're not more than twenty-five feet away. Can you hear it now? Oh, Professor Pierson!
- PROF. PIERSON
- Yes, Mr. Phillips?
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Can you tell us the meaning of that scraping noise inside the thing?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Possibly the unequal cooling of its surface.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- I see, do you still think it's a meteor, Professor?
- PROF. PIERSON
- I don't know what to think. The metal casing is definitely
extraterrestrial... not found on this earth. Friction with the earth's
atmosphere usually tears holes in a meteorite. This thing is smooth
and, as you can see, of cylindrical shape.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Just a minute! Something's happening! Ladies and gentlemen,
this is terrific! This end of the thing is beginning to flake off! The
top is beginning to rotate like a screw and the thing must be hollow!
- VOICES
- She's movin'! Look, the darn thing's unscrewing! Stand back,
there! Keep those men back, I tell you! Maybe there's men in it trying
to escape! It's red hot, they'll burn to a cinder! Keep back there.
Keep those idiots back!
- (SUDDENLY THE CLANKING SOUND OF A HUGE PIECE OF FALLING METAL)
- VOICES
- She's off! The top's loose! Look out there! Stand back!
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Ladies and gentlemen, this is the most terrifying thing I have
ever witnessed... Wait a minute! Someone's crawling out of the hollow
top. Someone or... something. I can see peering out of that black hole
two luminous disks . . are they eyes? It might be a face. It might
be...
- (SHOUT OF AWE FROM THE CROWD)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Good heavens, something's wriggling out of the shadow like a
gray snake. Now it's another one, and another one, and another one!
They look like tentacles to me. I can see the thing's body now. It's
large, large as a bear and it glistens like wet leather. But that face,
it... Ladies and gentlemen, it's indescribable. I can hardly force
myself to keep looking at it, so awful. The eyes are black and gleam
like a serpent. The mouth is V-shaped with saliva dripping from its
rimless lips that seem to quiver and pulsate. The monster or whatever
it is can hardly move. It seems weighed down by... possibly gravity or
something. The thing's... rising up now, and the crowd falls back now.
They've seen plenty. This is the most extraordinary experience, ladies
and gentlemen. I can't find words... I'll pull this microphone with me
as I talk. I'll have to stop the description until I can take a new
position. Hold on, will you please, I'll be right back in a minute...
- (FADE INTO PIANO)
- ANNOUNCER
- We are bringing you an eyewitness account of what's happening on the Wilmuth farm, Grovers Mill, New Jersey.
- (MORE PIANO)
- ANNOUNCER
- We now return you to Carl Phillips at Grovers Mill.
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Ladies and gent... Am I on? Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and
gentlemen, here I am, back of a stone wall that adjoins Mr. Wilmuth's
garden. From here I get a sweep of the whole scene. I'll give you every
detail as long as I can talk and as long as I can see.
- More state police have arrived They're drawing up a cordon in
front of the pit, about thirty of them. No need to push the crowd back
now. They're willing to keep their distance.
- The captain is conferring with someone. We can't quite see
who. Oh yes, I believe it's Professor Pierson. Yes, it is. Now they've
parted and the Professor moves around one side, studying the object,
while the captain and two policemen advance with something in their
hands.
- I can see it now. It's a white handkerchief tied to a pole...
a flag of truce. If those creatures know what that means... what
ANYTHING means...
- Wait a minute! Something's happening...
- (HISSING SOUND FOLLOWED BY A HUMMING THAT INCREASES IN INTENSITY)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- A humped shape is rising out of the pit. I can make out a
small beam of light against a mirror. What's that? There's a jet of
flame springing from that mirror, and it leaps right at the advancing
men. It strikes them head on! Good Lord, they're turning into flame!
- (SCREAMS AND UNEARTHLY SHRIEKS)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- Now the whole field's caught fire.
- (EXPLOSION)
- CARL PHILLIPS
- The woods... the barns... the gas tanks of automobiles... it's
spreading everywhere. It's coming this way. About twenty yards to my
right...
- (ABRUPT DEAD SILENCE)
- ANNOUNCER
- Ladies and gentlemen, due to circumstances beyond our control,
we are unable to continue the broadcast from Grovers Mill. Evidently
there's some difficulty with our field transmission. However, we will
return to that point at the earliest opportunity.
- In the meantime, we have a late bulletin from San Diego, California.
- Professor Indellkoffer, speaking at a dinner of the California
Astronomical Society, expressed the opinion that the explosions on Mars
are undoubtedly nothing more than severe volcanic disturbances on the
surface of the planet.
- We continue now with our piano interlude.
- (PIANO... THEN CUT)
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- Ladies and gentlemen, I have just been handed a message that came in from Grovers Mill by telephone. Just one moment please.
- At least forty people, including six state troopers lie dead
in a field east of the village of Grovers Mill, their bodies burned and
distorted beyond all possible recognition.
- The next voice you hear will be that of Brigadier General
Montgomery Smith, commander of the state militia at Trenton, New
Jersey.
- GENERAL MONTGOMERY SMITH
- I have been requested by the governor of New Jersey to place
the counties of Mercer and Middlesex as far west as Princeton, and east
to Jamesburg, under martial law. No one will be permitted to enter this
area except by special pass issued by state or military authorities.
- Four companies of state militia are proceeding from Trenton
to Grovers Mill, and will aid in the evacuation of homes within the
range of military operations.
- Thank you.
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- You have just been listening to General Montgomery Smith commanding the state militia at Trenton.
- In the meantime, further details of the catastrophe at Grovers
Mill are coming in. The strange creatures, after unleashing their
deadly assault, crawled back in their pit and made no attempt to
prevent the efforts of the firemen to recover the bodies and extinguish
the fire. The combined fire departments of Mercer County are fighting
the flames which menace the entire countryside.
- We have been unable to establish any contact with our mobile
unit at Grovers Mill, but we hope to be able to return you there at the
earliest possible moment. In the meantime we take you to... just one
moment please!
- (LONG PAUSE)
- (WHISPER)
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- Ladies and gentlemen, I have just been informed that we have
finally established communication with an eyewitness of the tragedy.
- Professor Pierson has been located at a farmhouse near
Grovers Mill where he has established an emergency observation post. As
a scientist, he will give you his explanation of the calamity. The next
voice you hear will be that of Professor Pierson, brought to you by
direct wire.
- Professor Pierson.
- (FEEDBACK, THEN FILTERED VOICE)
- PROF. PIERSON
- Of the creatures in the rocket cylinder at Grovers Mill, I can
give you no authoritative information — either to their nature, their
origin, or their purposes here on earth. Of their destructive
instrument I might venture some conjectural explanation.
- For want of a better term, I shall refer to the mysterious
weapon as a heat ray. It's all too evident that these creatures have
scientific knowledge far in advance of our own. It's my guess that in
some way they are able to generate an intense heat in a chamber of
practically absolute no conductivity. This intense heat they project in
a parallel beam against any object they choose, by means of a polished
parabolic mirror of unknown composition, much as the mirror of a
lighthouse projects a beam of light. That is my conjecture of the
origin of the heat ray...
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- Thank you, Professor Pierson.
- Ladies and gentlemen, here is a bulletin from Trenton. It is a
brief statement informing us that the charred body of Carl Phillips has
been identified in a Trenton hospital.
- Now here's another bulletin from Washington, D.C. The office
of the director of the National Red Cross reports ten units of Red
Cross emergency workers have been assigned to the headquarters of the
state militia stationed outside Grovers Mill, New Jersey.
- Here's a bulletin from state police, Princeton Junction: The
fires at Grovers Mill and vicinity are now under control. Scouts report
all quiet in the pit, and there is no sign of life appearing from the
mouth of the cylinder...
- And now, ladies and gentlemen, we have a special statement from Mr. Harry McDonald, vice-president in charge of operations.
- HARRY MC DONALD
- We have received a request from the state militia at Trenton
to place at their disposal our entire broadcasting facilities. In view
of the gravity of the situation, and believing that radio has a
responsibility to serve in the public interest at all times, we are
turning over our facilities to the state militia at Trenton.
- ANNOUNCER TWO
- We take you now to the field headquarters of the state militia near Grovers Mill, New Jersey.
- CAPTAIN LANSING
- This is Captain Lansing of the signal corps, attached to the
state militia, now engaged in military operations in the vicinity of
Grovers Mill. Situation arising from the reported presence of certain
individuals of unidentified nature is now under complete control.
- The cylindrical object which lies in a pit directly below our
position is surrounded on all sides by eight battalions of infantry.
Without heavy field pieces, but adequately armed with rifles and
machine guns. All cause for alarm, if such cause ever existed, is now
entirely unjustified.
- The things, whatever they are, do not even venture to poke
their heads above the pit. I can see their hiding place plainly in the
glare of the searchlights here. With all their reported resources,
these creatures can scarcely stand up against heavy machine-gun fire.
- Anyway, it's an interesting outing for the troops. I can make
out their khaki uniforms, crossing back and forth in front of the
lights. It looks almost like a real war.
- There appears to be some slight smoke in the woods bordering the Millstone River. Probably fire started by campers.
- Well, we ought to see some action soon. One of the companies
is deploying on the left flank. A quick thrust and it will all be over.
- Now wait a minute! I see something on top of the cylinder.
No, it's nothing but a shadow. Now the troops are on the edge of the
Wilmuth farm. Seven thousand armed men closing in on an old metal tube.
A tub rather.
- Wait, that wasn't a shadow! It's something moving... solid
metal... kind of a shield like affair rising up out of the cylinder...
It's going higher and higher. Why, it's standing on legs... actually
rearing up on a sort of metal framework. Now it's reaching above the
trees and the searchlights are on it. Hold on!
- ANNOUNCER
- Ladies and gentlemen, I have a grave announcement to make.
- Incredible as it may seem, both the observations of science
and the evidence of our eyes lead to the inescapable assumption that
those strange beings who landed in the Jersey farmlands tonight are the
vanguard of an invading army from the planet Mars.
- The battle which took place tonight at Grovers Mill has ended
in one of the most startling defeats ever suffered by an army in modern
times; seven thousand men armed with rifles and machine guns pitted
against a single fighting machine of the invaders from Mars. One
hundred and twenty known survivors. The rest strewn over the battle
area from Grovers Mill to Plainsboro, crushed and trampled to death
under the metal feet of the monster, or burned to cinders by its heat
ray.
- The monster is now in control of the middle section of New
Jersey and has effectively cut the state through its center.
Communication lines are down from Pennsylvania to the Atlantic Ocean.
- Railroad tracks are torn and service from New York to
Philadelphia discontinued except routing some of the trains through
Allentown and Phoenixville.
- Highways to the north, south, and west are clogged with
frantic human traffic. Police and army reserves are unable to control
the mad flight. By morning the fugitives will have swelled
Philadelphia, Camden, and Trenton, it is estimated, to twice their
normal population.
- Martial law prevails throughout New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania.
- At this time we take you to Washington for a special broadcast on the National Emergency... the Secretary of the Interior...
- SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
- Citizens of the nation: I shall not try to conceal the gravity
of the situation that confronts the country, nor the concern of your
government in protecting the lives and property of its people. However,
I wish to impress upon you — private citizens and public officials, all
of you — the urgent need of calm and resourceful action.
- Fortunately, this formidable enemy is still confined to a
comparatively small area, and we may place our faith in the military
forces to keep them there.
- In the meantime placing our faith in God we must continue the
performance of our duties each and every one of us, so that we may
confront this destructive adversary with a nation united, courageous,
and consecrated to the preservation of human supremacy on this earth.
- I thank you.
- ANNOUNCER
- You have just heard the secretary of the Interior speaking from Washington.
- Bulletins too numerous to read are piling up in the studio here.
- We are informed the central portion of New Jersey is blacked
out from radio communication due to the effect of the heat ray upon
power lines and electrical equipment.
- Here is a special bulletin New York. Cables have been
received from English, French, and German scientific bodies offering
assistance.
- Astronomers report continued gas outbursts at regular
intervals on the planet Mars. The majority voice the opinion that the
enemy will be reinforced by additional rocket machines.
- There have been several attempts made to locate Professor
Pierson of Princeton, who has observed Martians at close range. It is
feared he was lost in the recent battle.
- Langham Field, Virginia: Scouting planes report three Martian
machines visible above treetops, moving north towards Somerville with
population fleeing ahead of them. The heat ray is not in use; although
advancing at express-train speed, invaders pick their way carefully.
They seem to be making a conscious effort to avoid destruction of
cities and countryside. However, they stop to uproot power lines,
bridges, and railroad tracks. Their apparent objective is to crush
resistance, paralyze communication, and disorganize human society.
- Here is a bulletin from Basking Ridge, New Jersey: Coon
hunters have stumbled on a second cylinder similar to the first
embedded in the great swamp twenty miles south of Morristown.
- Army fieldpieces are proceeding from Newark to blow up second
invading unit before cylinder can be opened and the fighting machine
rigged. They are taking up a position in the foothills of Watchung
Mountains.
- Another bulletin from Langham Field, Virginia: Scouting
planes report enemy machines, now three in number, increasing speed
northward kicking over houses and trees in their evident haste to form
a conjunction with their allies south of Morristown.
- Machines also sighted by telephone operator east of Middlesex within ten miles of Plainfield.
- Here's a bulletin from Winston Field, Long Island: A fleet of
army bombers carrying heavy explosives flying north in pursuit of
enemy. Scouting planes act as guides. They keep the speeding enemy in
sight.
- Just a moment please, ladies and gentlemen. We've er... We've
run special wires to the artillery line in adjacent villages to give
you direct reports in the zone of the advancing enemy. First we take
you to the battery of the 22nd Field Artillery, located in the
Watchtung Mountains.
- OFFICER
- Range, thirty-two meters.
- GUNNER
- Thirty-two meters.
- OFFICER
- Projection, thirty-nine degrees.
- GUNNER
- Thirty-nine degrees.
- OFFICER
- Fire!
- (BOOM OF HEAVY GUN... PAUSE)
- OBSERVER
- One hundred and forty yards to the right, sir.
- OFFICER
- Shift range... thirty-one meters.
- GUNNER
- Thirty-one meters
- OFFICER
- Projection... thirty-seven degrees.
- GUNNER
- Thirty-seven degrees.
- OFFICER
- Fire!
- (BOOM OF HEAVY GUN... PAUSE)
- OBSERVER
- A hit, sir! We got the tripod of one of them. They've stopped. The others are trying to repair it.
- OFFICER
- Quick, get the range! Shift thirty meters.
- GUNNER
- Thirty meters.
- OFFICER
- Projection... twenty-seven degrees.
- GUNNER
- Twenty-seven degrees.
- OFFICER
- Fire!
- (BOOM OF HEAVY GUN... PAUSE)
- OBSERVER
- Can't see the shell land, sir. They're letting off a smoke.
- OFFICER
- What is it?
- OBSERVER
- A black smoke, sir. Moving this way. Lying close to the ground. It's moving fast.
- OFFICER
- Put on gas masks.
- (PAUSE. VOICES NOW MUFFLED)
- OFFICER
- Get ready to fire. Shift to twenty-four meters.
- GUNNER
- Twenty-four meters.
- OFFICER
- Projection, twenty-four degrees.
- GUNNER
- Twenty-four degrees.
- OFFICER
- Fire!
- (BOOM)
- OBSERVER
- Still can't see, sir. The smoke's coming nearer.
- OFFICER
- Get the range. (COUGHS)
- OBSERVER
- Twenty-three meters. (COUGHS)
- OFFICER
- Twenty-three meters. (COUGHS)
- GUNNER
- Twenty-three meters (COUGHS)
- OBSERVER
- Projection, twenty-two degrees. (COUGHING)
- OFFICER
- Twenty-two degrees. (FADE-IN COUGHING)
- (CUT TO SOUND OF AIRPLANE MOTOR)
- COMMANDER
- Army bombing plane, V-8-43, off Bayonne, New Jersey,
Lieutenant Voght, commanding eight bombers. Reporting to Commander
Fairfax, Langham Field... This is Voght, reporting to Commander
Fairfax, Langham Field... Enemy tripod machines now in sight.
Reinforced by three machines from the Morristown cylinder... Six
altogether. One machine partially crippled. Believed hit by a shell
from army gun in Watchung Mountains. Guns now appear silent.
- A heavy black fog hanging close to the earth... of extreme
density, nature unknown. No sign of heat ray. Enemy now turns east,
crossing Passaic River into the Jersey marshes. Another straddles the
Pulaski Skyway. Evident objective is New York City.
- They're pushing down a high tension power station. The machines are close together now, and we're ready to attack.
- Planes circling, ready to strike. A thousand yards and we'll
be over the first — eight hundred yards... six hundred... four
hundred... two hundred... There they go! The giant arm raised...
- (SOUND OF HEAT RAY)
- COMMANDER
- Green flash! They're spraying us with flame! Two thousand
feet. Engines are giving out. No chance to release bombs. Only one
thing left... drop on them, plane and all. We're diving on the first
one. Now the engine's gone! Eight... (PLANE GOES DOWN)
- OPERATOR ONE
- This is Bayonne, New Jersey, calling Langham Field... This is Bayonne, New Jersey, calling Langham Field... Come in, please...
- OPERATOR TWO
- This is Langham Field... Go ahead...
- OPERATOR ONE
- Eight army bombers in engagement with enemy tripod machines
over Jersey flats. Engines incapacitated by heat ray. All crashed. One
enemy machine destroyed. Enemy now discharging heavy black smoke in
direction of...
- OPERATOR THREE
- This is Newark, New Jersey... This is Newark, New Jersey...
Warning! Poisonous black smoke pouring in from Jersey marshes. Reaches
South Street. Gas masks useless. Urge population to move into open
spaces... automobiles use Routes 7, 23, 24... Avoid congested areas.
Smoke now spreading over Raymond Boulevard...
- OPERATOR FOUR
- 2X2L... calling CQ... 2X2L... calling CQ... 2X2L... calling 8X3R... Come in, please...
- OPERATOR FIVE
- This is 8X3R... coming back at 2X2L.
- OPERATOR FOUR
- How's reception? How's reception? K, please (PAUSE)
- Where are you, 8X3R? What's the matter? Where are you?
- (BELLS RINGING OVER CITY GRADUALLY DIMINISHING)
- ANNOUNCER
- I'm speaking from the roof of Broadcasting Building, New York City...
- I'm speaking from the roof of Broadcasting Building, New York
City. The bells you hear are ringing to warn the people to evacuate the
city as the Martians approach. Estimated in last two hours three
million people have moved out along the roads to the north...
- Hutchison River Parkway still kept open for motor traffic.
Avoid bridges to Long Island... hopelessly jammed. All communication
with Jersey shore closed ten minutes ago.
- No more defenses. Our army is... wiped out... artillery, air force, everything wiped out.
- This may be the last broadcast. We'll stay here to the end...
- (VOICES SINGING HYMN)
- ANNOUNCER
- People are holding service here below us... in the cathedral.
- (SOUND OF BOAT WHISTLES)
- ANNOUNCER
- Now I look down the harbor. All manner of boats, overloaded with fleeing population, pulling out from docks.
- Streets are all jammed. Noise in crowds like New Year's Eve in
city. Wait a minute... The... the enemy is now in sight above the
Palisades. Five — five great machines. First one is crossing the river.
I can see it from here, wading... wading the Hudson like a man wading
through a brook...
- A bulletin is handed me...
- Martian cylinders are falling all over the country. One
outside of Buffalo, one in Chicago... St. Louis... seem to be timed and
spaced...
- Now the first machine reaches the shore. He stands watching,
looking over the city. His steel, cowlish head is even with the
skyscrapers. He waits for the others. They rise like a line of new
towers on the city's west side...
- Now they're lifting their metal hands. This is the end now.
Smoke comes out... black smoke, drifting over the city. People in the
streets see it now. They're running towards the East River... thousands
of them, dropping in like rats.
- Now the smoke's spreading faster. It's reached Times Square.
People are trying to run away from it, but it's no use. They're falling
like flies.
- Now the smoke's crossing Sixth Avenue... Fifth Avenue... a... a hundred yards away... it's fifty feet...
- (BODY FALLS)
- (SOUNDS OF CITY IN TURMOIL, FOGHORNS, WHISTLES... )
- OPERATOR FOUR
- 2X2L calling CQ... 2X2L calling CQ... 2X2L calling CQ... New
York. Isn't there anyone on the air? Isn't there anyone on the air?
Isn't there anyone... 2X2L...
- CBS ANNOUNCER (INTERRUPTS THE ACTUAL RADIO PLAY)
- You are listening to a CBS presentation of Orson Welles and
the Mercury Theatre on the Air in an original dramatization of "The War
of the Worlds" by H. G. Wells. The performance will continue after a
brief intermission. This is the Columbia Broadcasting System.
- (MUSIC)
- PROF. PIERSON
- As I set down these notes on paper, I'm obsessed by the
thought that I may be the last living man on Earth. I have been hiding
in this empty house near Grovers Mill — a small island of daylight cut
off by the black smoke from the rest of the world.
- All that happened before the arrival of these monstrous
creatures in the world now seems part of another life... a life that
has no continuity with the present, furtive existence of the lonely
derelict who pencils these words on the back of some astronomical notes
bearing the signature of Richard Pierson.
- I look down at my blackened hands, my torn shoes, my tattered
clothes, and I... try to connect them with a professor who lives at
Princeton, and who on the night of October 30th, glimpsed through his
telescope an orange splash of light on a distant planet.
- My wife, my colleagues, my students, my books, my
observatory, my... my world... where are they? Did they ever exist? Am
I Richard Pierson? What day is it? Do days exist without calendars?
Does time pass when there are no human hands left to wind the
clocks?...
- In writing down my daily life I tell myself I shall preserve
human history between the dark covers of this little book that was
meant to record the movements of the stars, but... to write I must
live, and to live, I must eat... I find moldy bread in the kitchen, and
an orange not too spoiled to swallow.
- I keep watch at the window. From time to time I catch sight
of a... Martian above the black smoke. The smoke still holds the house
in its black coil, but... at length there is a hissing sound and
suddenly I see a Martian mounted on his machine, spraying the air with
a jet of steam, as if to dissipate the smoke. I watch in a corner as
his huge metal legs nearly brush against the house. Exhausted by
terror, I fall asleep... it's morning...
- (QUIETLY)
- Morning! Sun streams in the window. The black cloud of gas has
lifted, and the scorched meadows to the north look as though a black
snowstorm has passed over them.
- I venture from the house. I make my way to a road. No
traffic. Here and there a wrecked car, baggage overturned, a blackened
skeleton. I push on north.
- For some reason I feel safer trailing these monsters than
running away from them. And I keep a careful watch. I have seen the
Martians... feed. Should one of their machines appear over the top of
trees, I am ready to fling myself flat on the earth.
- I come to a chestnut tree. October... chestnuts are ripe. I fill my pockets. I must keep alive.
- Two days I wander in a vague northerly direction through a desolate world.
- Finally I notice a living creature... a small red squirrel in
a beech tree. I stare at him, and wonder. He stares back at me. I
believe at that moment the animal and I shared the same emotion. . .the
joy of finding another living being.
- I push on north. I... find dead cows in a brackish field, and
beyond the charred ruins of a dairy, the silo remains standing guard
over the waste land like a lighthouse deserted by the sea. Astride the
silo perches a weathercock. The arrow points north.
- Next day I come to a city... a city vaguely familiar in its
contours, yet its buildings strangely dwarfed and leveled off, as if a
giant had sliced off its highest towers with a capricious sweep of his
hand. I reached the outskirts. I found Newark, undemolished, but
humbled by some whim of the advancing Martians.
- Presently, with an odd feeling of being watched, I caught
sight of something crouching in a doorway. I made a step towards it...
it rose up and became a man! — a man, armed with a large knife.
- STRANGER
- (OFF-MIC) Stop!
- (CLOSER) Where do you come from?
- PROF. PIERSON
- I come from... from many places! A long time ago from Princeton.
- STRANGER
- Princeton, huh? That's near Grovers Mill!
- PROF. PIERSON
- Yes.
- STRANGER
- Grovers Mill... (LAUGHS AS AT A GREAT JOKE, THEN SOUNDS ANGRY)
- There's no food here! This is my country... all this end of town down to the river. There's only food for one...
- Which way are you going?
- PROF. PIERSON
- I don't know. I guess I'm looking for — for people.
- STRANGER
- (NERVOUSLY) What was that? Did you hear something just then?
- PROF. PIERSON
- No... only a bird... (AMAZED) A live bird!
- STRANGER
- Yeah... You get to know that birds have shadows these days...
Hey, we're in the open here. Let's crawl in this doorway here and talk.
- PROF. PIERSON
- Have you seen any... Martians?
- STRANGER
- Naah. They've gone over to New York. At night the sky is alive
with their lights. Just as if people were still livin' in it. By
daylight you can't see them. Five days ago a couple of them carried
somethin' big across the flats from the airport. I think they're
learning how to fly.
- PROF. PIERSON
- Fly?
- STRANGER
- Yeah, fly.
- PROF. PIERSON
- Then it's all over with humanity.
- Stranger, there's still you and I. Two of us left.
- STRANGER
- Yeah... They got themselves in solid; they wrecked the
greatest country in the world. Those green stars, they're probably
falling somewhere every night. They've only lost one machine. There
isn't anything to do. We're done. We're licked.
- PROF. PIERSON
- Where were you? You're in a uniform.
- STRANGER
- Yeah, what's left of it. I was in the militia — National
Guard?... Heh! That's good! There wasn't any war... any more than
there's war between men and ants!
- PROF. PIERSON
- Yes, but we're... eatable ants! I found that out... What'll they do with us?
- STRANGER
- I've thought it all out. Right now we're caught as we're
wanted. The Martian only has to go a few miles to get a crowd on the
run. But they won't keep on doing that. They'll begin catching us
systematic-like — keeping the best and storing us in cages and things.
They haven't begun on us yet!
- PROF. PIERSON
- Not begun?
- STRANGER
- Not begun! All that's happened so far is because we don't have
sense enough to keep quiet... botherin' them with guns and such stuff
and losing our heads and rushing off in crowds. Now instead of our
rushing around blind we've got to fix ourselves up — fix ourselves up
according to the way things are NOW. Cities, nations, civilization,
progress... done.
- PROF. PIERSON
- Yes, but if that's so... what is there to live for?
- STRANGER
- Well, there won't be any more concerts for a million years or
so, and no nice little dinners at restaurants. If it's amusement you're
after, I guess the game's up.
- PROF. PIERSON
- What is there left?
- STRANGER
- Life! That's what! I want to live. Yeah, and so do you. We're
not going to be exterminated. And I don't mean to be caught, either!
Tamed, and fattened, and bred, like an ox!
- PROF. PIERSON
- What are you going to do?
- STRANGER
- I'm going on... right under their feet. I got a plan. We men
as men are finished. We don't know enough. We gotta learn plenty before
we've got a chance. And we've got to live and keep free while we learn,
see? I've thought it all out, see.
- PROF. PIERSON
- Tell me the rest.
- STRANGER
- Well, it isn't all of us that are made for wild beasts, and that's what it's got to be! That's why I watched you... watched YOU.
- All these little office workers that used to live in these houses — they'd be no good. They haven't any stuff in 'em.
- They used to run... run off to work. I've seen hundreds of
'em, running to catch their commuter's train in the morning afraid
they'd be canned if they didn't; running back at night afraid they
won't be in time for dinner. Lives insured and a little invested in
case of accidents.
- Yeah, and on Sundays, worried about the hereafter. The
Martians will be a godsend for those guys. Nice roomy cages, good food,
careful breeding, no worries.
- Yeah, after a week or so chasing about the fields on empty stomachs they'll come and be glad to be caught.
- PROF. PIERSON
- You've thought it all out, haven't you?
- STRANGER
- Sure... you bet I have! That isn't all. These Martians,
they're going to make pets of some of 'em, train 'em to do tricks. Who
knows? Get sentimental over the pet boy who grew up and had to be
killed... Yeah... and some, maybe, they'll train to hunt us!
- PROF. PIERSON
- No, that's impossible. No human being...
- STRANGER
- Yes they will. There's men who'll do it gladly. If one of them ever comes after me, why...
- PROF. PIERSON
- In the meantime... you and I and others like us... where are we to live when the Martians own the earth?
- STRANGER
- I've got it all figured out.
- We'll live underground. I've been thinking about the sewers.
Under New York there are miles and miles of 'em. The main ones are big
enough for anybody. And there's cellars, vaults, underground
storerooms, railway tunnels, subways...
- You begin to see, eh? We'll get a bunch of strong men together. No weak ones; that rubbish — out!
- PROF. PIERSON
- As you meant me to go?
- STRANGER
- Well, I... gave you a chance, didn't I?
- PROF. PIERSON
- We won't quarrel about that. Go on.
- STRANGER
- Well... we've got to make safe places for us to stay in, see?
Get all the books we can... science books. That's where men like you
come in, see? We'll raid the museums, we'll even spy on the Martians.
- It may not be so much we have to learn before — listen, just imagine this
- four or five of their own fighting machines suddenly start off
— heat rays right and left and not a Martian in 'em. Not a Martian in
'em, see? But MEN — men who've learned the way how. It may even be in
our time.
- Gee! Imagine having one of them lovely things with a heat ray
wide and free! We'd turn it on Martians, we'd turn it on men. We'd
bring everybody down on their knees!
- PROF. PIERSON
- That's your plan?
- STRANGER
- Yeah!
- You, me, and a few more of us... we'd own the world!
- PROF. PIERSON
- I see...
- STRANGER
- (FADING OUT) Hey... hey, what's the matter?... Where are you going?
- PROF. PIERSON
- Not to your world!
- Bye, stranger...
- (PAUSE)
- PROF. PIERSON
- Well, after parting with the artilleryman, I came at last to
the Holland Tunnel. I entered that silent tube anxious to know the fate
of the great city on the other side of the Hudson. Cautiously I came
out of the tunnel and made my way up Canal Street.
- I reached Fourteenth Street, and there again were black
powder and several bodies, and an evil ominous smell from the gratings
of the cellars of some of the houses.
- I wandered up through the Thirties and Forties; I stood alone
on Times Square. I caught sight of a lean dog running down Seventh
Avenue with a piece of dark brown meat in his jaws, and a pack of
starving mongrels at his heels. He made a wide circle around me, as
though he feared I might prove a fresh competitor.
- I walked up Broadway in the direction of that strange powder
— past silent shop windows, displaying their mute wares to empty
sidewalks — past the Capitol Theatre, silent, dark — past a shooting
gallery, where a row of empty guns faced an arrested line of wooden
ducks.
- Near Columbus Circle I noticed models of 1939 motorcars in
the showrooms facing empty streets. From over the top of the General
Motors Building, I watched a flock of black birds circling in the sky.
I hurried on.
- Suddenly I caught sight of the hood of a Martian machine,
standing somewhere in Central Park, gleaming in the late afternoon sun.
An insane idea! I rushed recklessly across Columbus Circle and into the
Park. I climbed a small hill above the pond at Sixtieth Street and from
there I could see, standing in a silent row along the mall, nineteen of
those great metal Titans, their cowls empty, their steel arms hanging
listlessly by their sides. I looked in vain for the monsters that
inhabit those machines.
- Suddenly, my eyes were attracted to the immense flock of
black birds that hovered directly below me. They circled to the ground,
and there before my eyes, stark and silent, lay the Martians, with the
hungry birds pecking and tearing brown shreds of flesh from their dead
bodies.
- Later when their bodies were examined in the laboratories, it
was found that they were killed by the putrefactive and disease
bacteria against which their systems were unprepared... slain, after
all man's defenses had failed, by the humblest thing that God in His
wisdom has put upon this earth.
- Before the cylinder fell there was a general persuasion that
through all the deep of space no life existed beyond the petty surface
of our minute sphere. Now we see further. Dim and wonderful is the
vision I have conjured up in my mind of life spreading slowly from this
little seedbed of the solar system throughout the inanimate vastnesses
of sidereal space, but... that's a remote dream. It may be that the
destruction of the Martians is only a reprieve. To them, and not to us,
is the future ordained perhaps.
- Strange it now seems to sit in my peaceful study at Princeton
writing down this last chapter of the record begun at a deserted farm
in Grovers Mill. Strange to watch children... playing in the streets.
Strange to see young people strolling on the green, where the new
spring grass heals the last black scars of a bruised earth. Strange to
watch the sightseers enter the museum where the dissembled parts of a
Martian machine are kept on public view. Strange when I recall the time
when I first saw it, bright and clean-cut, hard, and silent, under the
dawn of that last great day...
- (MUSIC SWELLS UP AND OUT)
- ORSON WELLES
- This is Orson Welles, ladies and gentlemen, out of character
to assure you that "The War of The Worlds" has no further significance
than as the holiday offering it was intended to be. The Mercury
Theatre's own radio version of dressing up in a sheet and jumping out
of a bush and saying Boo!
- Starting now, we couldn't soap all your windows and steal all
your garden gates by tomorrow night... so we did the best next thing.
We annihilated the world before your very ears, and utterly destroyed
the C. B. S. You will be relieved, I hope, to learn that we
didn't mean it, and that both institutions are still open for business.
- So goodbye everybody, and remember please, for the next day
or so, the terrible lesson you learned tonight. That grinning, glowing,
globular invader of your living room is an inhabitant of the pumpkin
patch, and if your doorbell rings and nobody's there, that was no
Martian... it's Halloween.
- (MERCURY THEATRE THEME UP FULL, THEN DOWN)
- ANNOUNCER
- Tonight the Columbia Broadcasting System and its affiliated
stations coast-to-coast have brought you "The War of the Worlds," by H.
G. Wells, the seventeenth in its weekly series of dramatic broadcasts
featuring Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air.
- Next week we present a dramatization of three famous short stories.
- This is the Columbia Broadcasting System.
* * *
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