Helpful Score: 2
fun book about the airing of the radio show and a (of course!) a murder.
author does a good job taking us to the time and place!
author does a good job taking us to the time and place!
Helpful Score: 1
From the Prologue to the very end, you keep wondering. You are right there with the writer seeing it all happen. Collin's research makes this book so real that you have to remind yourself it's just fiction. Great writing and great research. A great read.
Frank H. (perryfran) reviewed The War of the Worlds Murder (Disaster, Bk 6) on + 1223 more book reviews
On October 30, 1938, Orson Welles, the actor and director, presented an adaptation of the classic novel War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells on his Halloween episode of the CBS radio series The Mercury Theatre on the Air. The episode is famous for inciting a panic by convincing some members of the listening audience that a Martian invasion was taking place. The broadcast was changed from the original story and set in New Jersey using a "breaking news" style of storytelling where a music program was interrupted by bogus news alerts about a Martian invasion. Because many listeners didn't tune in at the start of the program, they were convinced this was an actual live broadcast and that we were being invaded by Martians!
Max Allan Collins used this as his basis for his novel THE WAR OF THE WORLDS MURDER. This is the sixth in his series of books that use actual historical events which interweave a murder into the story using an historical character involved in the story. I've read two of his other books in this series, THE LUSITANIA MURDERS and THE PEARL HARBOR MURDERS which I enjoyed very much. Collins is excellent at combining a good murder mystery with actual historical events that he spends a lot of time researching.
In War of the Worlds Murder, Collins starts the story with his meeting with Walter Gibson, the author of The Shadow pulp novels from the 1930s and 40s that were the basis for The Shadow radio program that originally featured Orson Welles as The Shadow. Gibson goes on to tell Collins that he was present with Welles during the infamous War of the Worlds broadcast in 1938 and that there was also a murder involved in the story. The book goes on to tell the story of the days before and during the War of the Worlds broadcast. Collins did a great job as usual in his research and tells of the collaboration between Welles and his team at CBS including John Houseman and others. And then he goes on to describe the broadcast and the panic it created in different locales, especially in rural New Jersey where the attack was supposedly taking place. And while this was all going on, Gibson was on the trail of murderer at the studio.
I really enjoyed this one. I first heard about Welles broadcast and the panic it created from reading an article about it in the back of an old War of the Worlds comic book. I am also a fan of pulp novels including The Shadow and I have actually listened to a few of the old radio broadcasts of the show with Orson Welles.
I'm also a fan of Welles and his movies. Many consider his Citizen Kane as the best movie of all time. His collaborator, John Houseman went on to star in later life in the movie and TV series, The Paper Chase, another favorite of mine. So overall, this one really hit on a lot of my likes. After reading this, I also found and listened to the original radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds on Youtube. It was good fun and I could see how this could cause a panic if you listened to it without knowing the context. I'll be looking forward to reading more of Collins disaster series.
Max Allan Collins used this as his basis for his novel THE WAR OF THE WORLDS MURDER. This is the sixth in his series of books that use actual historical events which interweave a murder into the story using an historical character involved in the story. I've read two of his other books in this series, THE LUSITANIA MURDERS and THE PEARL HARBOR MURDERS which I enjoyed very much. Collins is excellent at combining a good murder mystery with actual historical events that he spends a lot of time researching.
In War of the Worlds Murder, Collins starts the story with his meeting with Walter Gibson, the author of The Shadow pulp novels from the 1930s and 40s that were the basis for The Shadow radio program that originally featured Orson Welles as The Shadow. Gibson goes on to tell Collins that he was present with Welles during the infamous War of the Worlds broadcast in 1938 and that there was also a murder involved in the story. The book goes on to tell the story of the days before and during the War of the Worlds broadcast. Collins did a great job as usual in his research and tells of the collaboration between Welles and his team at CBS including John Houseman and others. And then he goes on to describe the broadcast and the panic it created in different locales, especially in rural New Jersey where the attack was supposedly taking place. And while this was all going on, Gibson was on the trail of murderer at the studio.
I really enjoyed this one. I first heard about Welles broadcast and the panic it created from reading an article about it in the back of an old War of the Worlds comic book. I am also a fan of pulp novels including The Shadow and I have actually listened to a few of the old radio broadcasts of the show with Orson Welles.
I'm also a fan of Welles and his movies. Many consider his Citizen Kane as the best movie of all time. His collaborator, John Houseman went on to star in later life in the movie and TV series, The Paper Chase, another favorite of mine. So overall, this one really hit on a lot of my likes. After reading this, I also found and listened to the original radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds on Youtube. It was good fun and I could see how this could cause a panic if you listened to it without knowing the context. I'll be looking forward to reading more of Collins disaster series.
Jeanne G. (IlliniAlum83) -
An interesting take on the "War of the Worlds' radio broadcast of 1938 produced by and starring Orson Welles as a young man before his "Citizen Kane" fame. Collins added this 'fake' disaster tale to his murder mystery series set in a variety of real disasters worldwide like the sinking of the Titanic, the attack at Pearl Harbor, the London Blitz, etc.
Will be of special interest to any fans of early radio or vaudeville.....story includes thorough explanation of how the radio shows were produced. A side story also shows how plays made their way to Times Square theaters. Plus, includes details of how many mystery writers of the day were also fans of magic or magicians themselves.
The murder mystery is almost a side note in the novel, with the focus being on Welles and his career.
Will be of special interest to any fans of early radio or vaudeville.....story includes thorough explanation of how the radio shows were produced. A side story also shows how plays made their way to Times Square theaters. Plus, includes details of how many mystery writers of the day were also fans of magic or magicians themselves.
The murder mystery is almost a side note in the novel, with the focus being on Welles and his career.
Andrew K. (kuligowskiandrewt) -
The War of the Worlds Murder provided an interesting story-telling technique. Author Max Allan Collins talks about spending an evening with author Walter B. Gibson, creator and chronicler of âThe Shadowâ. Collins relates a tale told to him by Mr. Gibson over adult beverages, about hanging around with Orson Welles to discuss a possible âShadowâ movie, while the actor / director / man about town was busy with his âMercury Theatre On the Airâ as they prepared to air a (now-infamous) dramatization of H.G. Wells (no relation) âWar of the Worldsâ. Much of this is common knowledge decades later â but not the discovery of a dead body shortly before air time â¦
Did Gibson originally tell a true story? Did Collins embellish it? Or, did Collins make the whole thing up? Truth is, it doesn't matter. The story as related to us, the reading (or in my case, listening, as I had the audio version) public, was entertaining and kept my interest. The story talked about the famed Orson Welles and his numerous excesses â some towards his art, some towards his personal wants â and his relationship with his theater company, and its economic manager, John Houseman (who at the time was NOT known for his curmudgeonly characterizations on the big and small screens). The discovery of the missing company member and her subsequent re-discovery in the locked room was almost a distraction towards the tale of War of the Worlds, which itself was almost a distraction towards the story of a short portion of the life of the legendary Welles.
This book was definitely with the read â or, in my case, listen â and I would recommend it to those looking for a more offbeat murder mystery, or to those interested in the early days of radio, or in the sociology of that famed Halloween night when many Americans thought that the Martians HAD arrived.
RATING: 5 stars. Bonus points to the narrator for his John Houseman impersonation.
Did Gibson originally tell a true story? Did Collins embellish it? Or, did Collins make the whole thing up? Truth is, it doesn't matter. The story as related to us, the reading (or in my case, listening, as I had the audio version) public, was entertaining and kept my interest. The story talked about the famed Orson Welles and his numerous excesses â some towards his art, some towards his personal wants â and his relationship with his theater company, and its economic manager, John Houseman (who at the time was NOT known for his curmudgeonly characterizations on the big and small screens). The discovery of the missing company member and her subsequent re-discovery in the locked room was almost a distraction towards the tale of War of the Worlds, which itself was almost a distraction towards the story of a short portion of the life of the legendary Welles.
This book was definitely with the read â or, in my case, listen â and I would recommend it to those looking for a more offbeat murder mystery, or to those interested in the early days of radio, or in the sociology of that famed Halloween night when many Americans thought that the Martians HAD arrived.
RATING: 5 stars. Bonus points to the narrator for his John Houseman impersonation.
I could see the people running and trying to get away in my mind. A great read!
Andrew K. (kuligowskiandrewt) -
The War of the Worlds Murder provided an interesting story-telling technique. Author Max Allan Collins talks about spending an evening with author Walter B. Gibson, creator and chronicler of âThe Shadowâ. Collins relates a tale told to him by Mr. Gibson over adult beverages, about hanging around with Orson Welles to discuss a possible âShadowâ movie, while the actor / director / man about town was busy with his âMercury Theatre On the Airâ as they prepared to air a (now-infamous) dramatization of H.G. Wells (no relation) âWar of the Worldsâ. Much of this is common knowledge decades later â but not the discovery of a dead body shortly before air time â¦
Did Gibson originally tell a true story? Did Collins embellish it? Or, did Collins make the whole thing up? Truth is, it doesn't matter. The story as related to us, the reading (or in my case, listening, as I had the audio version) public, was entertaining and kept my interest. The story talked about the famed Orson Welles and his numerous excesses â some towards his art, some towards his personal wants â and his relationship with his theater company, and its economic manager, John Houseman (who at the time was NOT known for his curmudgeonly characterizations on the big and small screens). The discovery of the missing company member and her subsequent re-discovery in the locked room was almost a distraction towards the tale of War of the Worlds, which itself was almost a distraction towards the story of a short portion of the life of the legendary Welles.
This book was definitely with the read â or, in my case, listen â and I would recommend it to those looking for a more offbeat murder mystery, or to those interested in the early days of radio, or in the sociology of that famed Halloween night when many Americans thought that the Martians HAD arrived.
RATING: 5 stars. Bonus points to the narrator for his John Houseman impersonation.
Did Gibson originally tell a true story? Did Collins embellish it? Or, did Collins make the whole thing up? Truth is, it doesn't matter. The story as related to us, the reading (or in my case, listening, as I had the audio version) public, was entertaining and kept my interest. The story talked about the famed Orson Welles and his numerous excesses â some towards his art, some towards his personal wants â and his relationship with his theater company, and its economic manager, John Houseman (who at the time was NOT known for his curmudgeonly characterizations on the big and small screens). The discovery of the missing company member and her subsequent re-discovery in the locked room was almost a distraction towards the tale of War of the Worlds, which itself was almost a distraction towards the story of a short portion of the life of the legendary Welles.
This book was definitely with the read â or, in my case, listen â and I would recommend it to those looking for a more offbeat murder mystery, or to those interested in the early days of radio, or in the sociology of that famed Halloween night when many Americans thought that the Martians HAD arrived.
RATING: 5 stars. Bonus points to the narrator for his John Houseman impersonation.
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