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"Ladies and gentlemen, here is the latest bulletin from the Intercontinental Radio News. Toronto, Canada: Professor Morse of McMillan University reports observing a total of three explosions on the planet Mars, between the hours of 7:45 p.m. and 9:20 p.m., eastern standard time. This confirms earlier reports received from American observatories.

"Now, nearer home, comes a special bulletin from Trenton, New Jersey. It is reported that at 8:50 p.m. a huge, flaming object, believed to be a meteorite, fell on a farm in the neighborhood of Grovers Mill, New Jersey, twenty-two miles from Trenton.

"The flash in the sky was visible within a radius of several hundred miles and the noise of the impact was heard as far north as Elizabeth.

"We have dispatched a special mobile unit to the scene, and will have our commentator, Carl Phillips, give you a word picture of the scene as soon as he can reach there from Princeton.

"In the meantime, we take you to the Hotel Martinet in Brooklyn, where Bobby Millette and his orchestra are offering a program of dance music..."

With these simple words, an entire nation was sent into a panic. The ever inventive Orson Welles, created such a realistic radio portrayal of the events that took place in sci-fi pioneer H.G. Wells' War of the World that listeners didn't even realize it was fiction.

Now, the granddaddy of all alien invasion tales will be adapted for a second big-screen treatment (the first was in 1953, starring Les Tremayne and Gene Barry). And who better than to put his name on a big-budget special effects extravaganza than the master himself, Steven Spielberg?

The eminent director of such modern classics as Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T., Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan and Minority Report will team with Really Big Star Tom Cruise to bring the film to the big screen. Currently, Spielberg is expected to join Cruise in producing the film. It is anticipated that Cruise will also take the starring role. The two will be expected to settle on a production start date once screenwriter David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Spider-Man, Secret Window) delivers an acceptable script.

Given the high profile of both the story and the talent involed, War of the Worlds will be a project that will merit a lot of attention as it proceeds through the development phase. It's an adaptation that has been tossed around for many years -- a quarter of a century ago, A Clockwork Orange novelist Anthony Burgess had been tapped to write a screenplay. Count on Spielberg to make sure it's done right rather than cheesy. (Kim Hollis/BOP)

Vital statistics for War of the Worlds Main Cast Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, Justin Chatwin Supporting Cast Tim Robbins, Miranda Otto Director Steven Spielberg Screenwriter David Koepp Distributor Paramount/DreamWorks Trailer Click Here for Trailer Official Site http://www.waroftheworlds.com/ Rating PG-13 Running Time 117 minutes Screen Count 3,908 Talent in red has entry in The Big Picture

Comparison films for War of the Worlds
Title	Date	Opening	Adjusted Opening	Screens	PSA	Adj PSA	Total BO	Adjusted Total	Mult
Lost World, The	5/23/97	72.13	94.75	3281	21984.00	27779.3	229.09	300.95	2.51
Independence Day	7/5/96	50.23	68.52	2882	17429.00	22870.6	306.17	417.70	3.47
Jurassic Park	6/12/93	50.16	73.05	2404	20865.00	29231.2	356.78	519.65	7.11
Deep Impact	5/8/98	41.15	52.90	3156	13039.00	16125.0	140.46	180.58	3.41
Minority Report	6/21/02	35.68	37.09	3001	11889.00	11889.0	132.01	137.25	3.70
Saving Private Ryan	7/24/98	30.58	39.31	2463	12416.00	15354.5	216.12	277.86	7.07
A.I. Artificial Intelligence	6/29/01	29.35	31.32	3242	9054.00	9294.4	78.56	83.84	2.68