Presenting: "Orson Welles and the Blind Soldier" from Radio Diaries

About this episode

The episode recounts Orson Welles' investigation into a brutal crime against a Black soldier in South Carolina, which became significant for the civil rights movement.

In 1946, Orson Welles, the director of Citizen Kane, was at the height of his fame. At the time, he had a national radio show called Orson Welles Commentaries on ABC . After a year on the radio, discussing politics and Hollywood, Welles heard of a shocking crime. It was the end of World War Two. A Black soldier, heading home, was brutally beaten by a white police officer in South Carolina. No one knew the identity of the police officer. No one even knew the town where it happened.  Welles pledged to solve the mystery… on the air... Today, we’re bringing you a special episode from the Radio Diaries Podcast and their new series,  Orson Welles and the Blind Soldier . It’s the story of a crime in a small, southern town…that became a spark for the budding civil rights movement. To find out more, go to radiodiaries.org See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Topics covered

• society
• culture
• history
• true crime

Keywords

• Orson Welles
• Blind Soldier
• Radio Diaries
• civil rights movement
• South Carolina

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Orson Welles Commentaries

Books & works: Orson Welles and the Blind Soldier, Radio Diaries, Citizen Kane, Orson Welles Commentaries

Places: Hollywood, South Carolina

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