RIP: Paul Newman (1925-2008)
Actor Paul Newman has died of lung cancer, aged 83. (Newman and Hitchcock, on the set of “Torn Curtain“)
Archive for September 2008
new film about the young Hitchcock
Just spotted today that the The McGuffin Film Society is producing a film about Hitchcock’s early years… Work is currently underway on the McGuffins third film… an in-depth documentary about director Alfred Hitchcock’s early days – and particularly his origins in East London. The film will explore the lesser known facts about his early life and work, while identifying the key sites from his youth which still exist today. Initial filming has already taken place… (read more)
“Spielberg ripped off Hitchcock”
I think it’s a given that any Hitchcock fan who’s seen the 2007 film “Disturbia” (co-produced by Steven Spielberg) will know that it owes more than a little to “Rear Window“… Well, the current owners of the rights to Cornell Woolrich‘s original short story (“It Had to be Murder” or “Murder from a Fixed Viewpoint”) aren’t happy about that and filed a lawsuit in a Manhattan federal court yesterday… What the defendants have been unwilling… (read more)
Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio Play
Many thanks to playwright Joe Landry for sending me details of “Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio Play“, which premieres at the Legacy Theatre, Atlanta, GA on October 17th. “Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio Play” is an evening of radio play adaptations of three early films directed by Alfred Hitchcock. In “The Lodger,” a landlady suspects her mysterious new tenant may be a serial killer. In “The Lady Vanishes,” a young woman on vacation triggers an… (read more)
Vertigo – the stage play
I’m sure most people are aware that “The 39 Steps” was recently turned into a highly successful stage play by playwright Patrick Barlow. Well, it looks like the same has now been done for “Vertigo“. The Derby Evening Telegraph has a write up of the adaptation by Jonathan Holloway: Holloway returns the psychological thriller to wartime Paris and, in supremely theatrical style, frames the tale of the tortured hero as a public demonstration of hypnosis…. (read more)
free Hitchcock DVDs with The Times
The UK Times newspaper is giving away 7 Hitchcock DVDs, starting on Sunday September 7th: The 39 Steps (Sunday) The Man Who Knew Too Much (Monday) Sabotage (Tuesday) Secret Agent (Wednesday) Young and Innocent (Thursday) Jamaica Inn (Friday) The Lady Vanishes (Saturday) Presumably these will be licensed transfers from Granada International?