Introduction

The Night That Panicked America is an American television film that was originally broadcast on the ABC network on 31 October 31 1975.

The telefilm dramatises events surrounding Orson Welles’ famous – and infamous – War of the Worlds radio broadcast (based on the novel of the same name by English author H.G. Wells) of 30 October 1938, which had led some Americans to believe that an invasion by Martians was occurring in the area near Grover’s Mill in West Windsor, New Jersey.

The Welles broadcast and the reaction to it had been earlier dramatised on television as The Night America Trembled, a live presentation that aired 09 September 1957, on Studio One.

Outline

The Night That Panicked America tells the story of the 1938 broadcast from the point of view of Welles and his associates as they create the broadcast live, as well as from the points of view of a number of different fictional American families, in a variety of locations and from a variety of social classes, who listened to the broadcast and believed the imaginary Martian invasion was actually occurring.

The War of the Worlds Film, TV Series & Documentaries

You can find a full index here.

Production & Filming Details

• Director: Joseph Sargent.
• Producers: Anthony Wilson and Joseph Sargent.
• Writers: Nicholas Meyer and Anthony Wilson.
• Music: Frank Comstock.
• Cinematography: Jules Brenner.
• Editors: Bud S. Isaacs, George Jay Nicholson, and Tony Radecki.
• Production: The Culzean Corporation and Paramount Television.
• Distributor: CBS Television Distribution.
• Network: ABC.
• Release Date: 31 October 1975.
• Running Time: 92 minutes.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.

YouTube Link