George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American filmmaker and actor. Remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre, he is considered among the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time.Aged 21, Welles directed high-profile stage productions for the Federal Theatre Project in New York City—starting with a celebrated 1936 adaptation of Macbeth with an African-American cast, and ending with the political musical The Cradle Will Rock in 1937. He and John Houseman founded the Mercury Theatre, an independent repertory theatre company that presented productions on Broadway through 1941, including a modern, politically charged Caesar (1937). In 1938, his radio anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air gave Welles the platform to find international fame as the director and narrator of a radio adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds, which caused some listeners to believe a Martian invasion was occurring. The event rocketed the 23-year-old to notoriety.
His first film was Citizen Kane (1941), which he co-wrote, produced, directed and starred in as the title character, Charles Foster Kane. Cecelia Ager, reviewing it in PM Magazine, wrote: "Seeing it, it's as if you never really saw a movie before." It has been consistently ranked as one of the greatest films ever made. He directed twelve other features, the most acclaimed of which include The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), Othello (1951), Touch of Evil (1958), The Trial (1962), and Chimes at Midnight (1966). Welles also acted in other directors' films, playing Rochester in Jane Eyre (1943), Harry Lime in The Third Man(1949), and Cardinal Wolsey in A Man for All Seasons (1966).
Links to Peel[]
On his 14th July 1998 show, Peel mentioned buying an Orson Welles record from the Rough Trade shop in London W11 and found out that it included a cigar with it. He would play a track from that record on his shows in the 90's and 00's, which featured a dialogue from Orson Welles', F For Fake, documentary, that was released in 1973.
Although Orson Welles was acclaimed as a genius on the basis of his early work, in particular Citizen Kane, his later career was marked by unsuccessful or incomplete projects and financial problems, which meant that he sometimes had to accept work in TV commercials. On one show Peel played a recording of Orson Welles doing a voice-over for an advertisement and becoming very angry with the producers of the ad. As someone who did voice-over work himself, JP said he understood Welles's annoyance.
The DJ may have seen Welles' 1968 film, The Immortal Story[1], originally made for French TV and then released in cinemas and shown on BBC TV. The soundtrack of the film included Erik Satie's piano pieces Gymnopedie No. 1, some of which were played on Peel's Night Ride. In his International Times: Perfumed Garden Column of 23 August 1968 he recommended the same recording (by Aldo Ciccolini) which Welles had used in The Immortal Story.
In 1971 Peel favourites Judy Henske and Jerry Yester followed up their Farewell Aldebaran LP, which Peel had played regularly, by forming a band called Rosebud, named after the childhood sled which plays an important role in the narrative of Citizen Kane. Their eponymous album has been reissued [2]but wasn't well-received at the time. It seems that despite his admiration for Henske and Yester's previous LP, Peel may have ignored it, but not all show playlists for 1971 are currently available.
Shows Played[]
- 24 March 1998: A Touch Of Orson (7") Siesta
- 14 July 1998: A Touch Of Orson (7") Siesta
- 2003
- 27 February 2003: A Touch Of Orson (7") Siesta