A particularly realistic radio play adaptation of HG Wells' sci-fi novel The War of the Worlds caused mass panic when it was broadcast on October 30, 1938 .

Or at least, that's how the story goes.

The broadcast by young auteur Orson Welles was reported to have triggered hysteria among the millions of listeners who believed what was happening was real.

The radio drama was presented as a breaking news report, talking of a Martian invasion of planet Earth.

And as newspapers reported the following day, listeners were terrified at what they believed was a real news broadcast.

The Washington Post reported a man died of a heart attack during the show.

Other newspapers wrote of riots, panicked people crowding the streets, and National Guardsmen assembling.

But in spite of

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