Hitchcock appears at first in a shadowy silhouette from the corner of the screen, then stepping prominently into the outline, filling his place as the master of the evening’s suspenseful ceremonies. Bernard Herrmann had scored so many of Hitch’s feature films, as well as John Williams and Dimitri Tiompkin. The camera frame evolves into a most simplistic line drawing, a chubby caricature of Alfred Hitchcock’s endearing profile which then converges with Charles Gounod’s “Funeral March for a Marionette” as suggested by Bernard Herrmann. It’s the pictures that got small! – “Good Evening” Leading Ladies of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Part 4 It’s the pictures that got small! – “Good Evening” Leading Ladies of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Part 3 It’s the pictures that got small! – “Good Evening” Leading Ladies of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Part 2 It’s the pictures that got small! – “Good Evening” Leading Ladies of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Part 1 Postal stamps honoring early television pioneers only attests to the show’s staying power and classic status.“There are moments when even to the sober eye of reason, the world of our sad humanity may assume the semblance of hell”- Edgar Allan Poe The fact that Time magazine recognized the series in its list of “The 100 Best TV Shows Of All-TIME” and was included in a lineup of U.S. With consistently high ratings all throughout its original run, AHP soon became one of the most syndicated of the classic television shows, ranking amongst I Love Lucy and The Twilight Zone for its frequent amount of re-runs. The show’s last episode aired on June 26, 1962… but its legacy was far from over. Hitch didn’t make any cameos in the story segments of the episodes as was his habit for his films… the only time he makes an appearance is as a picture on a magazine’s front cover in Dip in the Pool. Pelham and Lamb to the Slaughter earned the Master of Suspense two Emmy nominations.īut it was director Robert Stevens who took home the award for season three’s first episode The Glass Eye. This aspect of the series no doubt contributed to the public’s fascination and constant viewership.Īlthough Hitchcock opened and closed each episode, he only actually directed 17 episodes. Some of the actors involved included Robert Duvall, Charles Bronson, Barbara Steele, Vera Miles, Bette Davis, Vincent Price, Fay Wray, Dick van Dyke, Cloris Leachman, Angie Dickinson, Steve McQueen, Burt Reynolds, Peter Lorre, and even Alfred’s own daughter Patricia. The show also had massive star power behind it, treasured veterans and rising stars alike appearing in Hitch’s tales of mystery and murder. Though the same creative team from Presents stayed with the Hour series and all of the combined 363 episodes (270 from Presents, 93 from Hour) were produced and shot at Universal Studios in California, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour is typically seen as being a separate entity from its former incarnation. In 1962 the series adopted a longer 50-minute format and changed its name to the more fitting The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. Who can forget the morbidly whimsical sound of Charles Gounod’s Funeral March for a Marionette, as Hitchcock’s shadow slowly fills the lines of his famous caricature? The opening sequence of the show itself has been imbedded within the consciousness of popular culture at large. Having already thrilled audiences with a good three decades of suspenseful filmmaking, Alfred Hitchcock turned his attentions to television and on OctoAlfred Hitchcock Presents premiered to home viewers everywhere.Ĭontaining individual stories concerned mostly with criminal acts and other dastardly goings-on, the show was a guaranteed means of fans getting their fix of Hitchcock’s trademark tension within a 25-minute time span in between sponsor commercials (which Hitch so brilliantly and balefully poked fun at during most of his opening monologues).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |