Orson Welles
Born:
Kenosha, Wisconsin, May 6, 1915
Died:
Hollywood, California, October 10, 1985.
Occupation:
Occupation:
Actor (stage, radio, and film), writer, director
Best known for his film Citizen Kane, which was written, directed, and starred in by Welles. The film is considered by many film critics to be the greatest American movie ever filmed.
Politics:
Orson Welles spoke out against Hitler's Nazi party in at least one public meeting with other prominent actors of the time, including Raymond Massey and Bert Lytell (1) in November of 1938. He also spoke to Congress to establish a Federal Bureau of Fine Arts, sponsoring a bill with fellow famous entertainer Burgress Meredith in March of 1938 (2). Overall, politics held little interest to Welles unless they directly involved the fine arts. A personal passion of Welles' was adapting Shakespeare to appeal to contemporary audiences, particularly among younger crowds who had become deadened to Shakespeare's works (3).
Major Activities of the 1930's:
Welles was a constant theater and radio persona starting in 1936, where, under the funding of the Federal Theatre Project, he directed a version of MacBeth with with an all-black cast at age 20 (4). He co-founded the Mercury Theater in New York City in 1937, which launched with a production of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar (5). Welles would star in and direct the majority of Mercury Theater productions for the next two years.
In 1938, Welles gained instant infamy after a radio broadcast of H.G. Wells' classic sci-fi novel The War of the Worlds. The production was so convincing, it caused thousands across the United States to panic for fear that Martians were actually invading the planet (6).
Major Works:
Macbeth (Stage): 1936, New York, USA.
Julius Caesar (Stage): 1937, New York, USA.
The Cradle Will Rock (Stage): 1937, New York, USA.
Adaptation of H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds (Radio): 1938, New York, USA.
Danton's Death (Stage): 1938, New York, USA.
Five Kings (Stage): 1939, New York, USA.
Organizations:
Federal Theatre Project, Mercury Theater
Sound bites:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egudvdwtDIg (War of the World broadcast, circa 1938)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V14PfDDwxlE (Orson Welles infamous "Frozen Peas" recording, sometime between late 1960's and 1985)
"At twenty-one, so many things appear solid, permanent, untenable." (8)
"I passionately hate the idea of being with it; I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time." (8)
"Now we sit through Shakespeare in order to recognize the quotations. " (8)
"Race hate isn't human nature; race hate is the abandonment of human nature. " (8)
"They teach anything in universities today. You can major in mud pies. " (8)
Critical and popular success:
Welles was extremely successful on the radio and stage, and was set for an extremely healthy career in films at the end of the decade. His unwillingness to compromise with his films and general distaste for Hollywood politics unfortunately lead to many of his works being unfinished, and to ambitions that were never fully realized.
Gossip:
William Randolph Hearst, the millionaire whose life Welles based his magnum opus Citizen Kane upon, was instrumental in smearing the film's reputation in its year of release and ensuring that the film would not win Best Picture, and Welles would not win Best Director.
1. Julius Caesar (stage)
2. The Cradle Will Rock (stage)
3. War of the Worlds (radio)
Connections with other parlor figures:
b. political or artistic allies: Zora Neale Hurston was a well-known playwright who also came into the spotlight from the Federal Works Projects Administration via the Federal Writers' Project, a sister program to the Federal Theatre Project that Welles emerged from.
d. other connections: Woody Guthrie and Orson Welles were both briefly suspects in the infamous Black Dahlia murders. (9)
d. other connections: Woody Guthrie and Orson Welles were both briefly suspects in the infamous Black Dahlia murders. (9)
Primary Resarch done:
* JSTOR search
* Search of The Nation Digital Archive
* Search of New York Times Historical Archive
Works Cited
1. "Theatre Protests Nazi Actions". New York Times (1923-Current file); Nov 19, 1938;
ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851-2007)
pg. 8
2. "FEDERAL ARTS BILL URGED AT HEARING: Burgess Meredith, Jane Cowl, Orson Welles and Special to THE NEW YORK TIMES". New York Times (1923-Current file); Mar 1, 1938; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851-2007) pg. 18
3. Welles, Orson, Hill, Roger. "On the Teaching of Shakespeare and Other Great Literature". The English Journal, Vol. 27, No. 6 (Jun., 1938), pp. 464-468. National Council of Teachers of English.
4. McKloskey, Susan. "Shakespeare, Orson Welles, And the "Voodoo" Macbeth". Shakespeare Quarterly, Vol. 36, No. 4 (Winter, 1985), pp. 406-416. Folger Shakespeare Library in association with George Washington University.
5. O'Connor, John S. "But Was It "Shakespeare?": Welles's "Macbeth" and "Julius Caesar"". Theatre Journal, Vol. 32, No. 3 (Oct., 1980), pp. 336-348. Johns Hopkins University Press.
6. "FCC TO SCAN SCRIPT OF 'WAR' BROADCAST: Radio System, Expressing Its Regret at Panic". New York Times (1923-Current file); Nov 1, 1938;
ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851-2007) pg. 1, pg 26.
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