Alfred Hitchcock Biography

Alfred Hitchcock was a renowned filmmaker who was known for embedding an element of psychological suspense in a majority of his films. Alfred Hitchcock movies are known to elicit a distinct experience for the viewers. This engineer turned filmmaker and director entered the world of films in 1920. The English-born director, in 1939, left for Hollywood and witnessed success in Hollywood from his very first film onwards. His long career which was tremendously productive consists of several television programs and films that not only won him popularity but also critical acclaim. 

In the biography of this ‘Master of Suspense’, we will witness his early life, career, the Alfred Hitchcock movies and TV shows, some of the best Hitchcock movies and more. 

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Image: Alfred Hitchcock

Childhood and Early Life

Born on 13th August 1899 in London, England, Alfred was named - Alfred Joseph Hitchcock. His parents were strict Catholics. Hitchcock described his childhood as sheltered and lonely despite having two siblings. His father, described Alfred, was a strict disciplinarian. This was evident when Hitchcock was once sent with a note to a local police station. The note read that on account of misbehaviour on Alfred’s part, he was to be locked up for a few minutes by the sergeant on duty (as requested by Alfred’s father). 

As Hitchcock recalled, the amount of time being locked up was sufficient enough to instil in him a fear of closed spaces and also a grave concern for being imprisoned wrongfully, the reflection of both of which could be observed in Alfred Hitchcock films later. Alfred also said that his mother, as a form of punishment, would make him stand for several hours at the foot of the bed. In the instances where Alfred was not subjected to discipline, his mother would keep a close watch, cosseting him and using food as a balm. This was traced as the trademark paunch in Hitchcock films. 

Education and Alfred Hitchcock Writer

Alfred Hitchcock was a student of the St. Ignatius College, a Jesuit school and then, in 1913-14, went on to attend the London County Council School of Marine Engineering and Navigation. Having obtained his degree, he worked at the W.T. Henley’s Telegraph Works Company’s sales department until the year 1918. Then he moved on to the advertising department of the company from the sales department. He began writing while working as an advertising designer and draftsman for Henley’s where he submitted short articles to be published in-house. Since his very first writing piece, conflicted emotions and false accusations along with twisted endings were employed as themes. These writings displayed his impressive skills. 

Hitchcock eventually gave in to the artistic side in 1916 and enrolled to take up design and drawing classes at the University of London. He displayed remarkable facility in the field enough to earn him a spot for designing title cards for Famous Players–Lasky, an American film company that had started a branch in Islington. Title cards were a requirement of all the silent films that were popular at the time. Despite the closing of the British branch of Famous Players in 1922, Hitchcock stayed back at Islington. Then he started working on films by independent producers and was allotted more responsibilities. He worked in various areas - as production designer, assistant director, art director, writer and editor. 

Journey Into Filmmaking

As a director, Alfred Hitchcock’s first movie was Number 13 or Mrs Peabody in 1922, which, unfortunately, was not released owing to lack of funding. The first released film where Hitchcock worked as a co-director was 1923’s Always Tell Your Wife but he was not credited for it. Although he worked on two more films post this, 1925’s The Pleasure Garden and 1926’s The Mountain Eagle, he failed to receive solo credit. It was only with the release of 1927’s The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog was his “real” work recognised. He made what came to be later known as his ‘trademark cameo appearance’, first in this film. This film also became his first hit. 

Hitchcock Movies: Before Hollywood

• The Ring (1927), a boxing drama that was a critical success

• Champagne and The Farmer’s Wife (1928)

• The Manxman (1929)

• Blackmail (1929), a thriller and his first talking picture

• Juno and the Paycock (1929)

• Murder (1930)

• The Skin Game (1931)

• Rich and Strange (1931)

• Number Seventeen (1932)

• Waltzes from Vienna (1934, a musical)

• The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934, Hitchcock’s first international success)

• The 39 Steps (1935)

Moving to Hollywood

Alfred Hitchcock moved to Hollywood from England in 1939. His first Hollywood film Rebecca (1940) was awarded the prestigious Academy Award under the Best Picture category. Some of the best Hitchcock movies in Hollywood include  North by Northwest (1959), Psycho (1960), The Birds (1963), Marnie (1964), etc. among his other works. Hitchcock films became renowned for depicting violence although a majority of his plots were meant as a tool for comprehending characters that were psychologically complex. 

Psycho was undoubtedly among Hitchcock’s most popularised films. The long term effects of the film on cinema’s grammar as well as the compromise of the implicit trust that was developed between the director and the audience were enormous due to the film’s shocking plotline. This film went on to become the second-highest grosser of the year as well as earning him the Academy Award nomination in the category of Best Director. His final productions include Frenzy (1972) and Family Plot (1976). 

General Theme of Hitchcock’s Films

Espionage or murder is usually the central theme of the Alfred Hitchcock movies which are enlivened with plotlines of chase sequences, mistaken identities and deception. Other cinematic elements such as touches of humour wryly and the macabre intruding occasionally, are added to complete the mixture. One can notice three themes dominating the Hitchcock movies. Most commonly, it involves an innocent man being accused wrongly, who is then required to chase down the actual perpetrator in order to be able to clear his name. The second is that of the guilty woman who becomes involved with the male protagonist and in the course is either rescued by him or ends up destroying him. The third theme usually involves a murderer (frequently shown as psychopathic), whose identity is gradually revealed as the plot unravels. 

Perhaps, the greatest attribute of Alfred Hitchcock was that he mastered the technicalities in order to be able to develop and maintain suspense in his movies. Hitchcock’s grasp of human psychology was also profound. This was manifested both in his day-to-day personal life and also in the tense situations that the audience encountered in his spine-chilling films. He was able to evoke human fear, subterfuge and menace quite convincingly which had a profound impact on his psychological thrillers all the while making them subtle and believable. Hitchcock was also able to master what is known as ‘MacGuffin’ - it is the use of a person or an object employed for the purpose of storytelling, who/which although not central to the plot of the story helps it to keep moving. 

Awards

Hitchcock was admired by his peers and other directors who often referred to him as the most adroit. He received many notable honours which include the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Irving G. Thalberg Award in 1968 and the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award in 1979. Hitchcock was also knighted in the year 1980. 

Death

Alfred Hitchcock died on 29th April 1980, the same year he was knighted. He breathed his last in Bel Air, California where he was reported to have died peacefully in his sleep. 

In his career spanning across six decades, Alfred Hitchcock directed 50 and more feature films. His suspenseful movies and television series won him critical accolades which established his genius as a storyteller and a filmmaker. This is abundantly evident from his many classics that are acknowledged widely.