The War of the Worlds Murder

Disaster Series

By: Max Allan Collins

Narrated by: Dan John Miller

On October 30, 1938, rising radio star Orson Welles boondoggles the American public into believing that Martians have attacked Earth. With his clever adaptation of The War of the Worlds, the great showman proves he can get away with anything - maybe even murder.

Minutes before the fictitious invasion goes live on the air, a dead body is found in the studio and the polarizing Welles is the obvious suspect. Convinced that the star has been framed, Walter Gibson - creator of pulp superhero the Shadow - has exactly one hour, the length of the radio show, to solve the murder. But in show business, appearances are deceptive, and the facts of this case are not what they seem.

The sixth in the series of Max Allan Collins’s disaster thrillers, The War of the Worlds Murder offers up historical high jinks of Welles-ian proportions.

©2005 Max Allan Collins (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Unique style

I love the Max Alan Collins Disaster series. This one is really good but just a bit different than the others. I will now have to listen to the actual broadcast of Orson Welles.

Best One Yet

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of this series but this one is the best. I love that the author changes his style to match that of the featured author that is the protagonist. And the narration has been excellent throughout. But this narrator truly became the characters. I kept forgetting that Orson Welles and John Houseman are deceased and couldn't be actually participating. I'm really going to be sad when I finish the series and have no more to enjoy.

Entertaining & Fun!

For anyone who enjoys or is fascinated by the era of early 20th Century radio and the 1938 broadcast of "War of the Worlds", this is a must listen.


Max Allan Collins flawlessly blends personal experience, actual historical events and creative imagination for an attention-grabbing, fantastic story. Starting with his attendance at a writers conference, Collins connects with Walter Gibson, best known for his work on The Shadow, it then segues into Gibson relaying a story of when he met Orson Welles & the Mercury Theater players. Gibson tells "a story within a story" on how he was privy to behind the scenes drama & murder of the famous CBS Radio Halloween broadcast. The reader/listener feels like they are there as Collins includes several excerpts from the broadcast as it unfolds.


Dan John Miller is the perfect narrator for this setting. He does rather well with providing a variety of voices for all the characters & has a firm grasp on capturing the nuances of Welles' & Hausman's voices.


An audio version of a story set during one of the most famous radio broadcasts of all time is the perfect pairing. I wouldn't hesitate listening again. Highly entertaining!

Brilliant!

Experiencing the real circumstances and factual events that occurred when the iconic “War of the Worlds” piece presented by the Orson Wells’ Mercury Theatre hit the airways in 1938... is priceless. Having such an extraordinary front row seat to this astounding event is amazing. And... being presented this astonishing piece of history through the Max Allan Collins style ...is just brilliant!

We loved every minute of this story. The murder, the players, the timeframe in the 20th century, and the “War of the Worlds” event. Wow!

Narrated superbly. Written sublimely. And atmospherically gripping. And excellent work!

Great historical mystery

This is really a love letter from Max Allan Collins to Orson Welles and his crew of actors, writers, producers who put on the infamous "War of the Worlds" radio show in 1938. It's dressed up in a bit of a shaggy dog story, but its still fun. It's not the best of this series, but for those interested in pulp writers and radio, it's wonderfully engaging.