THIS DAY IN HISTORY: On October 30, Orson Welles broadcast a radio adaptation of H. G. Wells's The War of the Worlds, causing a massive panic in some of the audience in the United States. It was a Halloween episode of the radio series The Mercury Theatre on the Air directed and narrated by Orson Welles as an adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds (1898) that was performed and broadcast live at 8 pm ET on October 30, 1938, over the CBS Radio Network. The episode is famous for inciting a panic by convincing some members of the listening audience that a Martian invasion was taking place, though the scale of panic is disputed, as the program had relatively few listeners. You can listen to original broadcast below.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY: On October 30, 1945, Jackie Robinson of the Kansas City Monarchs broke the baseball color barrier by signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers. In the video below, Bob Kendrick shares how Jackie Robinson became a Kansas City Monarch.

October 30 is the birthday of English composer PETER WARLOCK (1894-1930). Born Philip Heseltine, he used the name Peter Warlock for all of his musical writing, drawing inspiration for his nom de plume from his enthusiasm for the occult. Warlock's first serious compositions date from around 1915. Following a period of inactivity, a positive and lasting influence on his work arose from his meeting in 1916 with the Dutch composer Bernard van Dieren; he also gained creative impetus from a year spent in Ireland, studying Celtic culture and language. On his return to England in 1918, Heseltine began composing songs in a distinctive, original style, while building a reputation as a combative and controversial music critic.

October 30 is the birthday of American actress RUTH GORDON (1896-1985). She had a long and distinguished career in both silent film and talkies, Her later career included roles in Harold and Maude (1971), Every Which Way But Loose (1978), Any Which Way You Can (1980), and My Bodyguard (1980). One of her most memorable performances was in "Rosemary's Baby," (1968) as the next-door witch.