Classic Radio and Movies

Orson Welles

War of the Worlds 1938 Radio Broadcast by Orson Welles

The War of the Worlds is an episode of the American radio drama anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was performed as a Halloween episode of the series on October 30, 1938, and aired over the Columbia Broadcasting System radio network. Directed and narrated by actor and future filmmaker Orson Welles, the episode was an adaptation of H. G. Wells’s novel The War of the Worlds (1898).

The first two thirds of the 60-minute broadcast were presented as a series of simulated news bulletins, which suggested to many listeners that an actual alien invasion by Martians was currently in progress. Compounding the issue was the fact that the Mercury Theatre on the Air was a sustaining show (it ran without commercial breaks), adding to the program’s realism. Although there were sensationalist accounts in the press about a supposed panic in response to the broadcast, the precise extent of listener response has been debated.

In the days following the adaptation, however, there was widespread outrage and panic by certain listeners, who had believed the events described in the program were real. The program’s news-bulletin format was described as cruelly deceptive by some newspapers and public figures, leading to an outcry against the perpetrators of the broadcast. Despite these complaints, the episode secured Welles’ fame as a dramatist.

Classic Radio and Movies

The Mercury Theatre, hosted by Orson Welles on CBS Radio ran for only 19 weekly broadcasts, and eight of them survive. This is the first of those: There’s a Full Moon Tonight. Music by Bernard Herrmann and starring Orson Welles, Brenda Forbes, Blanch Yurka and Delores Del Rio. Cliff Edwards played the voice of Jimeny Cricket. Sponsored by Lady Esther Cosmetics. This aired on Oct. 6, 1941. Huggins Point Media. Credit: CBS Radio, Creative Commons and the Library of Congress.

The Mercury Theatre presents THE HAPPY PRINCE on Christmas Day 1941 produced by Orson Welles

The THIN MAN

– based on the novels by Dashiell Hammett
with the characters Nick & Nora Charles as the stars….

Ken Rossignol’s new series is off to a great start with Chesapeake 1850, the tale of Ethan Douglas from his days as a 10 year old cabin boy on his grandfather’s Chesapeake Bay steamship before the Civil War, through his rise to become a wealthy ship owner. The young boy witnesses everything from a hanging to hurricanes, to bloody Oyster Wars, and meets the love of his life and later marries her. The author does an excellent job of bringing history to life in an entertaining and captivating way that keeps you reading from start to finish. Good work — New York Times best-selling author Nick Russell

“A clever way of telling a historical story, it is well told and uses the gentle language of its time to tell of the violence of the civil war. ” – Peter Jones

The Shadow of Fu Manchu

Fu Manchu 39-05-08 (001) Insidious Dr Fu Manchu.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-10 (002) The Red Hand of Death.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-12 (003) The Death List.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-15 (004) In the Clutches of Fu Manchu.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-17 (005) An Ally of Love.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-19 (006) The Creature in the Night.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-22 (007) Terror at Greymoat.mp3

Fu Manchu 39-05-24 (008) Green Mist of Death.mp3

KLAN: Killing America

While the KKK had as much right as any group to demonstrate and articulate their cause, the deceits and criminal actions employed by them separated their group from the legal actions of others.
For readers in the 21st Century who know little of the life and death of the KKK, the admonition to understand and know history to avoid repeating it should be considered. Therefore, it is in that hope that this book has been prepared. WARNING: Authentic descriptions are vivid and brutal, and the racially charged language of these historic news reports and commentary has not been modified. This material is for adults, and parental guidance is appropriate.

The Chesapeake: Tales & Scales

This is a presentation of Chapter 8 entitled “Our Shore” by Fred McCoy, narrated by Paul McSorley.
This is but one of many great tales in The Chesapeake Tales & Scales. Join us as we listen to The Chesapeake for action, fun and adventure in The Chesapeake region. Murder, mayhem and mystery along with blues, rockfish, and serendipity serenades to convince fish to jump onto the hook.

From Jack Rue, Fred McCoy and Pepper Langley listen to great stories about the Twentieth Century in Southern Maryland, from the Potomac to the Patuxent. Learn about the early days of the Patuxent River Naval Air Station and the boomtown of Lexington Park, called Sin City. From Vi Englund, Lenny Rudow, Frank the Beachcomber, to Ken Rossignol, to Stephen Gore Uhler, our collection of short stories is sure to keep you entertained.

Cap’n Larry Jarboe’s expertise in fish stories knows no equal! Cap’n Larry Jarboe knows the ins and outs of diving, trolling, gigging, boating and snorkeling for fish and getting fish to jump in your boat and on your line at a shore location. If you fail to catch fish after listening to Cap’n Larry’s advice, buy a hamburger! Join us as we explore the adventures of St. George’s Island as it breaks away from the mainland and drifts into the Potomac.

The adventures of sailing are brought to life by Mark Robbins. If you boat on The Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, you will find familiar scenes and hot fishing spots and gain advice on cheap boating, hunting and even how to make your own laundry soap by Joey Greenwell. Rich Johnson helps you gain the advantage over the critters when hunting and the time to take to make your days in the woods more productive.

The lives of a few wonderful folks in Southern Maryland are reviewed as well, patriots all. This first volume of the best of The Chesapeake won’t leave you hanging and will have you running to your Kindle to learn when we will pull together the next round of prose and baloney. For those who thought Ocean City was the only destination in the summer, Alan Brylawski brings to life the glory days of the Point Lookout Hotel.

Ken Rossignol tells the stories of the heroes of the Titanic including Maj. Archibald Butt, Capt. Arthur Henry Rostron, the Unsinkable Molly Brown and Rigel the dog.