Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955–1962)

Master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock presents several short stories. The stories are invariably surprising, often containing elements of horror, comedy, suspense, and the supernatural.

Stars:

Alfred Hitchcock, Harry Tyler, John Williams

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 4 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Alfred Hitchcock	...	Himself - Host (268 episodes, 1955-1962)

Storyline

Master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock presents several short stories. The stories are invariably surprising, often containing elements of horror, comedy, suspense, and the supernatural.

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Plot Keywords:

tongue in cheek | cult tv | talking to the camera | joking about program's sponsor | performer name in title | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 October 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

Alfred Hitchcock presenta

Filming Locations:

Colonial Street, Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Revue Studios, Shamley Productions, Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

25 min 25 min (266 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

Most people who have seen this series remember Alfred Hitchcock's opening and closing narratives for the series. However, for each episode more than one opening and closing was filmed, as Hitchcock's famous jibes at the sponsors were unappreciated in the European markets. So for each episode, Hitchcock filmed two openings and two closings: one would be for American viewings (jokes about sponsors) and the second would be for European showings (jokes about Americans and not about sponsors). For most of the third season, Hitchcock even did the opening and closings in French and German, as he spoke both languages fluently.

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Quotes

[Hitchcock arrives for his introduction dressed in a safari outfit and pith helmet]
Himself - Host: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to darkest Hollywood. Night brings a stillness to the jungle. It is so quiet, you can hear a name drop. The savage beasts have already begun gathering at the water holes to quench their thirst. Now one should be especially alert. The vicious table-hopper is on the prowl, and the spotted back-biter may lurk behind a potted palm. To take me through this most savage of...
[...]

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Connections

Spoofed in Animaniacs: Hitchcock Opening/Hearts of Twilight/The Boids (1993)

User Reviews

even if you've only seen a few episodes, it's still great

I've only seen a few episodes of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", but just those few identify it as a great show. The opening with his shadow approaching his outline gives a hint of suspense, but when we see the Master of Suspense offering a slight explanation of what's about to happen, there's no turning back.

One can see that Hitch - who would have turned 108 yesterday - occasionally used the show to introduce his movies, and did a really clever job with it: one episode featured a woman stealing money (remember in which movie that happened?). Another episode was set on a train (now where did we see a train?) All in all, I would call this the perfect way that any director could get involved in TV, and who else could do it except Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock? You just gotta see it to really get a feel for it. But when you do watch it, just be prepared for what sorts of things you're about to see.