Orson Welles was a person.
George Orson Welles ( [ ˈwɛlz ] May 6 , 1915 -- October 10 , 1985 ) was an American actor , director , writer , and producer who worked in theatre , radio , and film . Welles found national and international fame as the director and narrator of a 1938 radio adaptation of H. G. Wells ' novel The War of the Worlds performed for his radio anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air . Other works of his , such as The Lady from Shanghai ( 1947 ) and F for Fake ( 1973 ) , are also well-regarded .