Hitchcock Chronology: Spellbound (1945)
Entries in the Hitchcock Chronology relating to Spellbound (1945)...
1944
March
- 2nd - Hitchcock flies back to America, having completed Bon Voyage and Aventure Malgache in England. He cables David O. Selznick from the Saint Regis Hotel to say he'd like to write the script for Spellbound with Ben Hecht.[1][2] Hitch had been scheduled to sail back to America from Greenock, Scotland aboard the RMS Aquitania which was due to depart on the 2nd.[3]
April
- By the end of April, Ben Hecht and Hitchcock have completed the script for Spellbound.[4]
May
- Ben Hecht and Hitchcock arrive back in Hollywood and begin meetings with David O. Selznick to discuss Spellbound.[5]
June
- Principal photography begins on Spellbound, starring Gregory Peck and Ingrid Bergman.[6][7]
August
- Hitchcock has his first meeting with Salvador Dalí to discuss the dream sequences for Spellbound.[8]
- 30th - Hitchcock begins filming the Spellbound dream sequences designed by Salvador Dalí. The sequences take nearly an entire month to film.[9][10]
October
- 13th - Filming on Spellbound is completed. An end-of-shooting party is held, with Romanoff's providing the catering.[11]
December
- Hitchcock returns from London in time for Christmas. David O. Selznick gives the go-ahead for Notorious to be Hitchcock's next film.[12] During Hitchcock's absence, Selznick hired William Cameron Menzies to reshoot some of the scenes in Spellbound's dream sequence — when Salvador Dalí finally saw the finished film, he was reportedly very disappointed with the changes made to his designs.[13]
1945
November
- Spellbound opens to positive reviews and recoups eight times it's production costs within weeks.[14]
1951
January
- 25th - The Screen Directors' Playhouse broadcasts a radio adaptation of Spellbound, starring Joseph Cotten and Mercedes McCambridge. Hitchcock provides an introduction and linking narration.[15]
1953
May
- 30th - Cinematographer George Barnes, who worked with Hitchcock on Rebecca and Spellbound, dies aged 60.
1962
April
- 22nd - Screenwriter Angus MacPhail, who worked with Hitchcock on Bon Voyage, Aventure Malgache, Spellbound, The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Wrong Man and briefly on Vertigo, dies aged 59.
1964
April
- 18th - Screenwriter Ben Hecht, who worked with Hitchcock on Foreign Correspondent, Lifeboat, Spellbound, Notorious, The Paradine Case, Rope and Strangers on a Train, dies aged 70.
1982
August
- 29th - Actress Ingrid Bergman, who starred in Spellbound, Notorious and Under Capricorn, dies aged 67.
2003
June
- 12th - Actor Gregory Peck, who starred in Spellbound and The Paradine Case, dies aged 87.
References
- ↑ Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light (2003) by Patrick McGilligan, page 348
- ↑ The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock (1983) by Donald Spoto, page 283
- ↑ Hitchcock is listed on the Aquitania passenger list, along with a handwritten note "R.A.F. allied forces under orders". The dangers of Atlantic travel meant that both Sidney Bernstein and Alma Reville were listed as people to be contacted in the event of Hitch's death if the Aquitania was sunk.
- ↑ The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock (1983) by Donald Spoto, page 273
- ↑ Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light (2003) by Patrick McGilligan, page 356
- ↑ Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light (2003) by Patrick McGilligan, page 359.
- ↑ Spoto gives a start date of July 10th.
- ↑ Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light (2003) by Patrick McGilligan, page 361.
- ↑ Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light (2003) by Patrick McGilligan, pages 361-63.
- ↑ Spoto gives different dates, claiming Dalí arrived in Hollywood in September and the sequences were filmed in October.
- ↑ The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock (1983) by Donald Spoto, pages 276 & 278
- ↑ The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock (1983) by Donald Spoto, page 279
- ↑ Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light (2003) by Patrick McGilligan, pages 363-64
- ↑ The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock (1983) by Donald Spoto, page 287
- ↑ Radio: Spellbound (Screen Directors' Playhouse, 25/Jan/1951)
