Ceiling Unlimited began as a series of informative dramas by Orson Welles, who had just returned from a well-publicized air trip to Latin America with film in the can for an ill-fated movie and a yen to be back on radio. He leaped into two CBS series, Hello, Americans (extolling the achievements of South American countries) and Ceiling Unlimited (describing aviation's role in the war). Welles's tenure was brief: a blowup with an agency man just before air time one night resulted in a Welles walkout. After a hasty reorganization and a summer series with author James Hilton, the show returned as a half-hour Hollywood variety series.