Eccentric, ironic, genius with dark sides, Alfred Hitchcock was born in London’s East End on August 13, 1899 and will bring English black humor to Hollywood, along with thrills. “I’m shy and not very sociable,” he said. “And to relax I make films”. He has shot about fifty, almost all consigned to the history of cinema, with Cary Grant, James Stewart, Grace Kelly and Kim Novak. Loved by the public and snubbed by critics, Alfred Hitchcock never received an Oscar, until 1968 when he was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award for his artistic merits. Hitchcock made several cameos in his films
Part of Hitchcock’s fame is due to the often humorous cameos he made in 39 of his films. The director usually appeared in the background as a pedestrian passenger. His cameos became so popular that he eventually chose to place them at the beginning of the film to avoid distracting the audience. One of the most memorable cameos is that of the film “Lifeboat” (1944), which takes place entirely on a raft adrift in the sea. Here, the burly Hitchcock can be seen in the “before” and “after” photos of a newspaper ad for a weight loss product called “Reduco Obesity Slayer”. His wife was his most trusted collaborator
Hitchcock worked with many of Hollywood’s top talent, but his most trusted advisor was his wife Alma Reville. The two married in 1926 after working together in London. Later, Reville worked as a screenwriter, editor and assistant director on several Hitchcock films. As Hitchcock’s career progressed, Reville remained behind the scenes, despite having a decisive role until the 1960s. It is said that she was the one who chose Bernard Herrmann’s now famous soundtrack for the shower scene in the film “Psycho”. You have worked with famous artists and writers
Hitchcock has collaborated with legendary Hollywood actors such as Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman and Jimmy Stewart, but I also collaborate with talent outside the world of cinema. The director hired the likes of Dorothy Parker, Raymond Chandler, Thornton Wilder and John Steinbeck to move his scripts. I even try to get Ernest Hemingway and Vladimir Nabokov to write for him. For 1945’s “I Save You”, Hitchcock involved surrealist artist Salvador Dali in the construction of the film’s complex dream sequences. He fought against Hollywood censorship
Hitchcock has spent much of his career trying to get around the restrictions of the Hays Code. That is, the guidelines that governed the content of Hollywood films. During the making of “Psycho”, I intentionally send some scenes with violence and nudes to the censorship offices, to distract them from some minor details that the director was not willing to announce. He also convinced officials that a toilet shot – long forbidden by the Hays Code restrictions – was crucial to the film’s plot. He was a joker
Hitchcock enjoyed playing terrible tricks on his actors and collaborators. During the filming of “The Club of 39” (1935) I leave the two leading actors, Robert Donat and Madeleine Carroll, handcuffed for hours, pretending to have lost the key. Another time he made a bet with a member of his crew. If he had spent a night tied to a camera, he would have paid him a week’s wages. The man accepted, and before leaving Hitchcock offered him a glass of brandy. But the man did not know that the liquor was filled with laxative.
Via: History Channel
