Orson Welles

Who Was Orson Welles?

Orson Welles was a multifaceted artist who began his career as a stage actor and later transitioned to radio, most famously producing his groundbreaking adaptation of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds. In Hollywood, Welles left an indelible artistic legacy with iconic films such as Citizen Kane and The Magnificent Ambersons. He passed away from a heart attack in Los Angeles, California, on October 10, 1985.

Early Years

Born on May 6, 1915, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Orson Welles was the son of highly intelligent parents, Richard and Beatrice. His father, an inventor who had achieved success with a carbide lamp for bicycles, introduced Welles to a diverse array of influential figures, including actors and athletes. His mother, a concert pianist, nurtured his musical talents, teaching him to play both the piano and violin.

However, Welles’ childhood was marked by adversity. His parents separated when he was just four years old, and he faced further tragedy when his mother passed away from jaundice at the age of nine. The decline of his father’s business led to struggles with alcoholism, culminating in his father’s death when Orson was thirteen.

Welles found stability under the guardianship of Maurice Bernstein, who recognized the young talent’s potential and enrolled him in the Todd School in Woodstock, Illinois. It was here that Welles discovered his passion for theater.

After graduating from the Todd School, Welles traveled to Dublin, Ireland, using a modest inheritance to support himself. There, he captivated audiences with his performance in Jew Suss at the Gate Theatre. Proclaiming himself a Broadway star, he made his New York debut at the age of 19, portraying Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet. His exceptional talent caught the eye of director John Houseman, who subsequently cast Welles in the Federal Theatre Project.

War of the Worlds

The partnership between Orson Welles and John Houseman proved to be pivotal in the world of theater and radio. In 1937, at just 21 years old, Welles, who had recently directed an all-Black cast in a production of Macbeth, joined forces with Houseman to establish the Mercury Theatre. Their inaugural production, a contemporary adaptation of Julius Caesar infused with elements of Fascist Italy, achieved remarkable success. This was followed by several other acclaimed stage productions, leading the Mercury Theatre to transition into radio with the creation of The Mercury Theatre on the Air, a weekly program that aired on CBS from 1938 to 1940, and briefly again in 1946.

Despite early critical acclaim for the series, initial ratings were underwhelming. This changed dramatically on October 30, 1938, when Welles aired his adaptation of H.G. Wells’ novel The War of the Worlds. The program was crafted as a simulated news broadcast, narrated by Welles, which described an alien invasion in New Jersey with a level of detail that induced widespread panic among listeners who mistook it for a real event. The aftermath saw outrage from those who had been deceived, but the broadcast solidified Welles’s reputation as a genius in the field.

Movies: Citizen Kane

Following the broadcast, Welles’s talent quickly caught the attention of Hollywood. In 1940, he signed a groundbreaking $225,000 contract with RKO Pictures to write, direct, and produce two films, granting him total creative control and a share of the profits—an unprecedented deal for an unproven filmmaker at the time. Welles was merely 24 years old.

However, initial success was elusive. He began work on an adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, which ultimately remained uncompleted. Instead, Welles made his debut with Citizen Kane in 1941, a film inspired by the life of publishing mogul William Randolph Hearst. The film follows the rise and fall of Charles Foster Kane, played by Welles himself, and explores themes of power and corruption. Hearst was so incensed by the film that he prohibited any mention of it in his newspapers, contributing to its disappointing box-office performance.

Despite its initial reception, Citizen Kane became a revolutionary piece of cinema, nominated for nine Academy Awards and winning for Best Screenplay. Welles employed innovative techniques, such as deep-focus cinematography that maintained clarity across all elements in a scene, low-angle shots that enhanced the film’s visual storytelling, and a narrative structure that presented multiple perspectives. Over time, Citizen Kane gained recognition as one of the greatest films ever made.

Welles’s second project for RKO, The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), was a more conventional endeavor but ultimately contributed to his disillusionment with Hollywood. During its production, Welles traveled to Rio de Janeiro to create a documentary, only to return and find that RKO had altered the film’s ending without his consent. Welles disowned the project, leading to a public feud with RKO that tarnished his reputation as a filmmaker.

Later Years: The Stranger and Macbeth

For several years, Welles remained active in Hollywood. He married actress Rita Hayworth in 1943 and starred in an adaptation of Jane Eyre the following year. Welles then directed The Stranger (1946) and Macbeth (1948) before departing from Hollywood for a self-imposed exile that lasted nearly a decade.

Welles continued to work on various projects during this period, appearing in films such as The Third Man (1949) and directing adaptations like Othello (1952) and Mr. Arkadin (1955). He made a return to Hollywood in 1958 with Touch of Evil, which, despite its artistic merit, performed poorly at the box office. His adaptation of Franz Kafka’s The Trial (1962) met a similar fate.

The 1970s were challenging for Welles, marked by health issues exacerbated by his increasing weight, which peaked at over 400 pounds. Despite these struggles, Welles remained industrious. He served as a spokesman for Paul Masson wine, appeared on the television series Moonlighting, and produced the documentary Filming Othello (1979), which chronicled the making of his earlier film.

In the later years of his life, Welles and Hollywood began to reconcile. In 1975, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute, followed by the Directors Guild of America’s D.W. Griffith Award in 1985, the organization’s highest honor.

Death

Welles conducted his final interview on October 10, 1985, just hours before his passing, appearing on The Merv Griffin Show. Shortly after returning home to Los Angeles, he suffered a heart attack and died, leaving behind a complex legacy that continues to influence filmmakers and entertain audiences worldwide.