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But who shall dwell in these worlds if
they be inhabited? Herbert George Well's classic novel, The War of the Worlds, was
first published in 1898. Set "early in the twentieth century", in and around the London, England,
it tells the first person account of a journalist/philosopher who witnesses how the normal activities of his countrymen are thrown into total chaos by an invasion of Martian beings.
The journalist personally witnesses the landing of an alien cylinder
from which Martians emerge, spewing death with a Heat-Ray. He
glimpses the first-seen alien, a tentacled thing the size of a bear and
barely escapes to tell his tale. As more Martians emerge, they
begin building fantastic machines that they use to rampage through the
countryside. Foremost of these are large tripod vehicles that
overwhelm England's military defenses. All of England is overwhelmed
by the invaders. Refugees, including the journalists brother,
attempt to flee the island nation but are blockaded by two tripod "Fighting Machines"
who are held off by the British Ironclad 'Thunder Child". The
refugees escape but not before the warship is destroyed. Like his previous novel, The Time Machine, Wells viewed this book as
a commentary of the society of his time. It contains his hopes for
a better social order and identifies the flaws he saw in government and
the attitudes of his fellow man. The book might have faded into relative obscurity if not for the 31
October 1938 radio adaptation produced by Orson Welles. Orson and the players of the Mercury Theatre
presented the Halloween thriller as a news narrative, interrupting
contemporary music selections with the fantastic new reports of the
drama. Despite disclaimers, many listeners thought the radio drama
was a real event. The listening population of New York went into a
panic. Citizens packed the roads, hid in cellars with loaded guns,
and made precautions to defend themselves against the aliens.
Hours later, everyone realized their mistake. Through this event, Orson Welles
proved the power of the media. In 1953, movie mogul George Pal brought The War of the Worlds to the big screen. The movie modernized the tale, lifting elements from the book and relying heavily on the Mercury Theatre radio adaptation. The film followed the turmoil that affected two main characters, Dr. Clayton Forrester and Sylvia Van Buren. Like the original novel, the military is ineffective against the Martians, even
using atomic bombs against them to no effect. Scientists prove
equally unable to stop the invasion. Ultimately, the Martians are
again destroyed through bacteria, although the film portrays their death
as divine retribution for their having attacked a church containing
praying refugees, including the main characters. In 1978, Jeff Wayne released a
rock opera of The War of the Worlds that brought an old story to a new
audience. Since its release, it has held a strong cult following.
The opera gleefully mixes synthesizers and seventies pop-rock beats with orchestral string arrangements. Narrated by Richard Burton,
it follows H. G. Wells' tale fairly accurately, taking some liberties with the plot
for flow and ease of story.
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