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Alfred Hitchcock Appreciation Society

Craving a little psychological terror and mystery? Come on in...

Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (August 13, 1899 - April 29, 1980) was an iconic and highly influential British-born film director and producer who pioneered many techniques in the suspense and thriller genres. He directed more than fifty feature films in a career spanning six decades, from the silent film era, through the invention of talkies, to the colour era. Hitchcock was among the most consistently successful and publicly recognizable world directors during his lifetime, and remains one of the best known and most popular of all time.

Famous for his expert and largely unrivalled control of pace and suspense, Hitchcock's films draw heavily on both fear and fantasy, and are known for their droll humour and witticisms. They often portray innocent people caught up in circumstances beyond their control or understanding.

Hitchcock was born and raised in Leytonstone, London, England. He began his directing career in the United Kingdom in 1922, but from 1939 he worked primarily in the United States and applied for U.S. citizenship in 1956. Hitchcock and his family owned a mountaintop estate known as Cornwall Ranch or "Heart o' the Mountain" at the end of Canham Road, high above Scotts Valley, California, from 1940 to 1972. They bought a second home in late 1942 at 10957 Bellagio Road in Los Angeles, just across from the Bel Air Country Club. Hitchcock died of renal failure in 1980.

Rebecca was the only one of his films to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, although four others were nominated. However, Hitchcock never won an Academy Award for Best Director. He was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award for lifetime achievement in 1967, but never personally received an Academy Award of Merit.

created by jo

Psychos - see all 66

Lean Tales's Picture Arnaud's Picture storymatt's Picture Ricky Norris's Picture les écorches's Picture Cat's Picture Vanea's Picture lizuka's Picture Lauren's Picture Jeeves's Picture

Shoutbox - 31 comments

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heshta says:

Now watching the making of "North by Northwest" on TCM.

posted Nov 19

Michael says:

True story - Hitchcock was a notorious (heh) prankster, but sometimes his cruelty was excessive - on one of his shoots in the 30s, he offered a crew member a glass of brandy to relax him because the crew person had to babysit rented equipment overnight - while handcuffed to it. The drink was laced with a powerful laxative, and when everyone arrived the next day they found the visibly traumatized fellow very soiled, still cuffed to the rig.

posted Oct 29

Comment replies (2)

moo says:

heh indeed!
Prankster eh? Look out for my new group shortly...

posted Oct 29

jo says:

Oh my...that goes beyond prank...doesn't it? I had read somewhere that he had a rather wicked and twisted sense of humor.

posted Oct 29

Red-Handed Clover says:

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

posted Oct 27

alixi [vive la resistance] says:

"The Birds" scared the shizz out of me.

posted Oct 26

Comment replies (2)

jo says:

Yeah...I can;t help but think of that movie every time I see a huge flock of birds. Scarred for life...

posted Oct 26

Jeeves says:

I loved that movie, watched it with a friend not to long ago.

posted Apr 1

moo says:

I'm sorry but AH looks too much like Queen Victoria in that picture..
(off to bed now - 10 past 2!!! I need to get a grip, this is craziness..)

posted Oct 24

Comment replies (7)

Red-Handed Clover says:

now I won't get that outt my head! hahahaha

posted Oct 24

moo says:

separated at birth ... or was it just a cameo appearance in the British monachy...?

posted Oct 25

jo says:

ahahahaha! How about this group photo...any better?

posted Oct 25

moo says:

I didn't dislike the last one jo - just saying it reminded me of the above!

posted Oct 25

jo says:

Oh I know...but once I saw the resemblance...I HAD to change it!

:-)

posted Oct 25

Red-Handed Clover says:

oh, that is creepy, but funny, poor Alfred.

posted Oct 25

,, otnik ,, says:

i like the new pic!

although maybe it changed while i was away and therefore have no idea what you're talking about.

posted Oct 25

TEEN*IDOL says:

**sigh** who can say no to VERTIGO?

posted Oct 24

Comment replies (1)

jo says:

LOVE Vertigo!

posted Oct 24

theophilus says:

thanks for the ADD Jo! I have been away from virb for a bit. Nice to be back home. I am currently in San Francisco.

posted Oct 24

Comment replies (1)

jo says:

Welcome back!

posted Oct 24

Red-Handed Clover says:

Funeral March of the Marionette, was the song that was used for Alfred's show; I have it on a Halloween tape, and has been one of my favorite songs to get me in the mood for this time of year.

posted Oct 24

Comment replies (4)

jo says:

I never knew the title of his theme song...thanks for the info!

posted Oct 24

heather says:

I heard that piece of music on an episode of Little Einsteins the other day. They happened to have Marionettes in the episode. :-)

posted Oct 24

Red-Handed Clover says:

oh, I bet that was great. My daughter used to watch that. *pat pat pat pat*

posted Oct 25

heather says:

Gotta love Rocket. :-)

posted Oct 25

moo says:

I think the first Hitchcock film I watched was as a 9 or 10 year old - The Birds - and I remember being more fascinated than frightened by it.

I will have to have a good think as to my favourite, but I do think that one has a special part in my memory as my first exposure to his films. I also loved the fact that he was in all of them (he was, wasn't he?) and used to take great satisfaction in spotting that distinctive figure making a cameo appearance somewhere during the film.

posted Oct 24

Comment replies (2)

heather says:

I have yet to watch the whole movie. But it looks pretty cool.

Yes, I do believe that he made a cameo appearance in all of him movies.

Stephen King (in recent years) and Stan Lee do the same thing in movies about their books or comics.

posted Oct 24

jo says:

There was a Hitchcock marathon on AMC network this weekend. I was in heaven! Couldn't convince Caroline to watch Psycho with me though.

posted Oct 24

heshta says:

I also loved "Alfred Hitchcock Presents..."

posted Oct 24

Comment replies (1)

,, otnik ,, says:

yep yep. me too.

posted Oct 25

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