Orson Welles' Sketch Book

7.0

1955•15m

Orson Welles' Sketch Book is a series of six short television commentaries by Orson Welles for the BBC in 1955. Written and directed by Welles, the 15-minute episodes present the filmmaker's commentaries on a range of subjects. Welles frequently draws from his own experiences and often illustrates the episodes with his own sketches.

Seasons

7 Episodes • Premiered 1955

1. The Early Days

Welles discusses a timely earthquake, first-night audiences at the Gate Theatre in Dublin, and how he came to be an actor.

2. Critics

Welles talks about a Boston performance of Five Kings, the consequences of Percy Hammond's negative review of the Voodoo Macbeth, and a curse placed on the film It's All True.

3. The Police

Welles relates the story of Isaac Woodard, a decorated black World War II veteran who was blinded in a brutal 1946 beating by South Carolina police.

4. Houdini/John Barrymore/Voodoo Story/The People I Missed

Prompts used by actors and others; remembering Harry Houdini; observations on gender differences in the appreciation of magic tricks; John Barrymore.

5. The War Of The Worlds

The famous 1938 Mercury Theatre broadcast mistaken by many listeners for a real Martian invasion, and the consequent skepticism during the presentation of Norman Corwin's Between Americans on December 7, 1941; and the opening night of the Mercury stage flop, Danton's Death.