Browse by:

Our Picks

Collections

Magazine

Alfred Hitchcock

The Master of Suspense - Alfred Hitchcock

He was born Alfred Joseph Hitchcock on the 13th of August 1899 in Leytonstone, London, UK. The third son to greengrocers William Hitchcock (1862-1914) and Emma Jane Whelan (1863-1942), his older brother was called William Hitchcock JR (Born 18900 and his sister was called Eileen (Born 1892). They were all strict Roman Catholics.
It is a popular (and true) story that when Alfred Hitchcock was around 5 years old (His exact age when the incident took place varies in different accounts) his father sent him down to the local police station with a note telling an officer to put him in a cell for 5 minutes, when they released young Alfred Hitchcock the officer reportedly said "This is what we do to naughty little boys."
Hitchcock attended a College in Stamford Hill until the age of 14 when his father died and then he attended a school of Engineering and Navigation. After graduating he became a draftsman and an advertising designer with a cable company and a telegraph company.

In 1920, Hitchcock heard that Lasky were opening a studio in London, he was quickly assigned as a title designer, he was then moved up the ranks. In 1922, when the director of the film Always Tell Your Wife (Hugh Croise) fell ill, Hitchcock completed the film. The studio were impressed by his work and they assigned him as director on a film called “Number 13” but the studio closed its British Operation and the project was scrapped during the production and all that was shot has now been lost. Afterwards, Michael Balcon as assistant director in Gainsborough Studios, there he met his future wife Alma Reville who was only a day younger than he was. In 1925 Balcon gave the chance to direct “The Pleasure Garden” and until 1939, Hitchcock made British films which are regarded as some of the greatest films ever made, including the first British talkie called “Blackmail, “The Man Who Knew Too Much” in 1934 starring Peter Lorre in his first English language film (He remade it in 1956 starring James Stewart and Doris Day) and “The 39 Steps” in 1935 starring Robert Donat.

In 1940 he signed a 7 year contract with David O. Sleznick, there he made “Rebecca” with Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine and George Sanders, he was loaned out several times and made classics like “Foreign Correspondent” with Joel McCrea and George Sanders, “Shadow of a Doubt” starring Joseph Cotton and Teresa Wright. Towards the end of the 40’s he made with Selznick as producer “Spellbound” starring Gregory Peck and Ingrid Bergman, “Notorious” with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman and then “The Paradine Case” with Gregory Peck.

The 1950’s is regarded as the heyday not only for Hollywood but for Hitchcock as well, he made classics such as “Strangers on a Train,” “Murder.html">Dial M for Murder,” “Rear Window,” “To Catch A Thief,” “The Wrong Man,” “Vertigo,” and in 1959, “North by Northwest. Also in the 50’s Hitchcock started his highly successful television series “Alfred Hitchcock Presents.”

In 1960, Hitchcock made his most famous film, “Psycho” starring Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles and John Gavin. Then in 1963 he made “The Birds” starring Rod Taylor his new star Tippi Hedren. Hitchcock slowed down his film making speed and made only five more film over the course of the next 13 years. In 1979 he was awarded the Life Time Achievement Award and a knighthood. He was planning to make another film but died during pre-production due to renal failure peacefully in his sleep at 9:17 AM 29th April 1980

News | What members say | Filmography