Hitchcock Chronology: Frenzy (1972)

Entries in the Hitchcock Chronology relating to Frenzy (1972)...

1970

December

• 10th - Hitchcock meets with Universal heads Lew Wasserman and Edd Henry to pitch Frenzy as his next project, based on Arthur La Bern's 1966 novel Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square. Wasserman and Henry agree, but with a budget cap of $2.8m.
• Hitchcock sends a copy of Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square to playwright Anthony Shaffer in New York, hoping to tempt him into writing the adaptation for Frenzy. Shaffer responds quickly to say that he "likes the story".
• 21st - Paving the way for pre-production on Frenzy to begin, Universal's Vice President Edd Henry succeeds in acquiring the film fights to Arthur La Bern's Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square for $25,000.
• 31st - Hitchcock telephones Anthony Shaffer on New Years Eve and the playwright agrees to write the screenplay for Frenzy.

1971

January

• Anthony Shaffer meets with the Hitchcocks in London to discuss Frenzy and to scout potential locations for the film.
• 21st - Anthony Shaffer arrives in California to begin regular Frenzy script meetings with Hitchcock.

February

• 27th - Pleased with the progress so far, Hitchcock allows Anthony Shaffer to return to New York in order to complete the first-draft screenplay with dialogue for Frenzy.
• By late February, Anthony Shaffer and Hitchcock have produced a 55 page treatment for Frenzy, which drops several parts of Arthur La Bern's novel to help streamline the plot.

March

• With Anthony Shaffer working on the Frenzy screenplay in New York, Hitchcock storyboards key sequences for the film during March.
• 15th - Hitchcock's friend Hume Cronyn writes to the director asking if he could be considered for a role in Frenzy. Hitchcock replies a few days later to Cronyn with a tactful letter saying that he doesn't think any of the bit-part roles would suit an actor of his stature.
• 17th - Hitchcock has a lunch meeting with actor Michael Caine to discuss the possibility of him playing the role of Bob Rusk, the serial killer in Frenzy. Caine will eventually decline the role.
• 31st - Hitchcock comes up with the "Mr. Rusk, you haven't got your tie on" ending for Frenzy.

April

• 9th - Hitchcock receives Anthony Shaffer's first draft of the Frenzy screenplay and spends the weekend reading it.
• 19th - Having flown in from New York, Anthony Shaffer meets with Hitchcock to discuss further revisions to the Frenzy screenplay. By now, the screenplay has become 160 pages long.
• 30th - Alma reads the Frenzy screenplay and provides a number of script and continuity issues for Anthony Shaffer to address.

May

• Preparations begin to move the Frenzy production to London.
• 9th - Peggy Robertson arrives in London and spends the following week setting up a Frenzy production office in London, ready for Hitchcock's arrival.
• 16th - Alma and Alfred Hitchcock arrive into London to begin production on Frenzy. As usual, they stay at Claridge's hotel in Mayfair.
• 16th - Hitchcock begins a series of meetings to gather together the cast and crew for Frenzy.
• 23rd - The Hitchcocks dine with Anthony Shaffer and his wife at their home on the Sunday evening. The following week will be spent discussing casting options for Frenzy.

June

• 3rd - Anthony Shaffer submits his first revision of the Frenzy screenplay.
• 9th - Alma Reville suffers a serious and debilitating stroke. Fortunately her husband's personal physician, Dr. Walter Flieg, is on hand and tends to her immediately. Rather than be admitted to hospital and be separated from her husband, she insists on being treated at the Claridge's hotel and she receives round-the-clock medical care for the next few weeks. She eventually makes an almost full recovery — although her speech will remain affected and she loses the movement in 3 of her fingers — and this allows her to make contributions to on-going the Frenzy production.
• 10th-16th - Following Alma's stroke, Hitchcock reschedules all his Frenzy cast and crew meetings to be held at Claridge's so that he can be close to his wife.

July

• 1st - Hitchcock meets with actor Jon Finch to interview him for the lead role of Richard Blaney in Frenzy.
• 6th - Hitchcock puts together a preliminary cast list for Frenzy. Amongst the actors who don't end up being cast in the film are Lynn Redgrave (Babs), Glenda Jackson (Mrs. Blaney) and Max Bygraves (Inspector Oxford)
• With the start of principal photography looming, Hitchcock increases the frequency of meetings and interviews for casting Frenzy. By the time the cameras start rolling on the 26th, only the role of Mrs. Blaney's secretary, Monica Barling, remains uncast.
• 26th - Principal photography begins on Frenzy, which will last 13 weeks, with location scenes filmed at Covent Garden Market. Mid-afternoon, Hitchcock interviews actresses Patsy Byrne and Jean Marsh for the one remaining uncast role of Monica Barling — Marsh is selected. The first day of filming wraps at 6:15pm.
• 30th - The first week of filming on Frenzy concludes with the long continuous tracking shot (lasting 75 seconds) of Rusk leading Babs through Covent Garden Market and back to his flat. Nine takes are required before Hitchcock is satisfied.

August

• 2nd - The second week of filming on Frenzy begins with shooting the film's opening sequence — the 2 minute helicopter shot of the River Thames followed by the politician's speech, which was filmed at London County Hall. Much of the sequence was subsequently reshot after Hitchcock watched the dailies.
• 3rd - Attempts to reshoot the opening sequence of Frenzy are abandoned due to heavy rain. Instead, the crew returns to Pinewood and shoots "weather cover" studio based scenes of Chief Inspector Oxford discussing the case with his wife.
• 4th - The scene of Blaney telephoning Babs is filmed in Soho Square using a prop telephone box.
• 7th-8th - As Hitchcock is only able to film scenes at the Old Bailey at weekends, Richard Blaney's trail is rehearsed on the 7th and shot on the 8th.
• 9th-13th - The 3rd week of filming on Frenzy includes reshoots of the opening helicopter sequence, dialogue scenes between Chief Inspector Oxford and his wife, introductory scenes of Richard Blaney, and various pub scenes set in The Globe.
• 16th-20th - The 4th week of filming on Frenzy is centered around shooting Jon Finch's scenes, including the two pub scenes (The Globe and Nell of Old Drury) and his escape from the prison hospital ward.
• 23rd-27th - The 5th week of filming on Frenzy includes shooting the film's ending, along with various retakes of previously filmed scenes. On-set tensions rise between Hitchcock and Jon Finch. The shooting schedule also includes alternative takes for the television print of the film — for example, the final murder victim is filmed with breasts exposed for the theatrical release and then covered for the television print.
• 28th - A Monday bank holiday means that the following week is a 4 day shoot, so the Hitchcocks spend a long weekend holidaying in Scotland.
• 31st - The 6th week of filming on Frenzy includes various pick up shots and an alternative ending which wasn't used — after arresting Rush, Blaney is invited to dine with Chief Inspector Oxford and his wife. Scenes filmed towards the end of the week include Blaney visiting his wife at her matrimonial agency.

September

• 6th-10th - The 6th week of filming on Frenzy begins with the rape/murder of Mrs. Blaney and ends with the studio filmed sequence of Rusk leading Babs up the stairs to his flat, before she is killed off-screen. The weekend is spent filming sequences at the Coburg Hotel, along with various retakes.
• 13th-17th - The 7th week of filming on Frenzy includes shots of Blaney and Babs in the park, after escaping from the Coburg Hotel, the dinner scene between Blaney and his ex-wife, and several night-shoots, including a woman escaping from Rusk's flat (which was unused in the final cut) and exterior shots of Blaney's escape from the prison.
• 14th - The Hitchcocks spend the evening dining with Princess Grace of Monaco and her husband, who are visiting London.
• 17th - Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco visit Hitchcock during location filming on Frenzy in Covent Garden Market.
• 20th-24th - The 8th week of filming on Frenzy begins with Hitchcock feeling unwell, leading to some sequences to be shot by the assistant director, Colin M. Brewer. Sequences scheduled for the week include scenes at Scotland Yard, Chief Inspector Oxford pondering in the empty courtroom, Blaney's night at the Salvation Army and sequences at the Hilton Hotel. The week ends with Jon Finch being reprimanded for frequently arriving late on set each morning.
• 27th-30th - The 9th week of filming on Frenzy again sees Hitchcock suffering from a sore throat. More sequences are filmed at the Coburg Hotel, at the prison (Wormwood Scrubs), Rusk carrying the body of Babs to the potato truck, and for the opening sequence.

October

• 4th-21st - The remainder of the filming on Frenzy is mostly taken up with shooting the sequences on the potato truck, although Hitchcock is again unwell on Monday 4th.
• 26th - Hitchcock leaves London to return to America aboard TWA flight #761.
• 29th - Now back in America and reunited with Alma, Hitchcock sends the following memo to Universal Studios: "Principal photography has been completed on FRENZY"

November

• 5th - Composer Henry Mancini is sent a copy of the Frenzy script and he begins working on his score for the film.
• 10th - Hitchcock's trusted assistant Peggy Robertson leaves London to fly back to Los Angeles. Also safely stowed on the plane are the camera negatives of Frenzy.
• 11th - Hitchcock begins work with editor John Jympson to create a work print of Frenzy that can be sent to composer Henry Mancini. Whilst overseeing the editing, Hitchcock begins conducts several interviews with journalists and film critics.

December

• 12th - Henry Mancini's score for Frenzy is recorded in London over four days.
• 14th - Hitchcock arrives in London, accompanied by Alma, to attend the remainder of Henry Mancini's Frenzy recording sessions. After hearing the completed score, Hitchcock decides to reject it and subsequently hires Ron Goodwin to compose a new one. As usual, Hitchcock, who hated confrontations of any kind, asks a studio executive to convey the news to Mancini.

1972

January

• 1st - The Hitchcocks return to London from their Christmas holidays in Marrakesh to continue post-production work on Frenzy.
• 3rd - Hitchcock films portions of the trailer for Frenzy at London County Hall. Stuntwoman Roberta Gibbs plays the role of the corpse in the River Thames.
• 31st - Studio recordings begin for Ron Goodwin's replacement Frenzy score, with evening sessions on January 31st and February 1st, followed by an all-day session on February 4th.

February

• Post-production on Frenzy is completed by the end of February.

April

• 27th - Hitchcock attends a film class at the University of South California, held by Professor Arthur Knight. The director screens Frenzy for the students.

May

• 6th - The Hitchcocks leave Los Angeles for the Cannes Film Festival in France. They board the cruise liner Michelangelo in New York. During the voyage, several Hitchcock films are screened for the passengers, including Frenzy.
• 19th - Frenzy is shown at the Cannes Film Festival and Hitchcock receives a standing ovation from the audience.
• 21st - The Hitchcocks arrive in London, ahead of the UK press screenings and London premier of Frenzy.
• 22nd - Frenzy is screened for the press in London.
• 25th - Frenzy is premiered in London. Before the screening, he was interviewed by Robert Robinson on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
• 29th - In a letter to the editor published in The Times, author Arthur La Bern voices his disapproval of how his 1966 novel Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square was adapted into Frenzy by Hitchcock and Anthony Shaffer.

June

• 20th - Frenzy is premiered in Boston. The day is officially declared "Alfred Hitchcock Day" by the mayor.
• 21st - Frenzy is premiered in New York.

September

• The Hitchcocks spend September and October touring Europe to promote Frenzy.

1975

November

• Universal's music executive Harry Garfield recommends composer John Williams to Hitchcock after the director rejects the studios suggestion of Henry Mancini, who had written the rejected score to Frenzy (1972). Williams first seeks approval from his friend Bernard Herrman and then spends several weeks meeting with Hitchcock over lunch to discuss the score and classical music in general.

1999

December

• 26th - BBC Radio broadcasts an adaptation of Noël Coward's play "Easy Virtue". Among the cast are Anna Massey and Jimmy Gardner, who both appeared in Frenzy (1972).

2001

November

• 6th - Dramatist Anthony Shaffer, who wrote the screenplay for Frenzy, dies aged 75.

2002

February

• 11th - Actor Barry Foster, who starred in Frenzy, dies aged 74.

2003

January

• 8th - Composer Ron Goodwin, who worked on Frenzy, dies aged 77.

June

• 3rd - Film editor John Jympson, who edited Frenzy, dies aged 72.

2007

November

• 6th - Sound recordist Peter Handford, who worked with Hitchcock on Under Capricorn and Frenzy, dies aged 88.

2011

July

• 2nd - Actress Anna Massey, who starred in Frenzy, dies aged 73.

2012

December

• 28th - Actor Jon Finch, who starred in Frenzy, is found dead in his flat in Hastings, East Sussex. He was aged 71.

2013

August

• 23rd - Cinematographer Gilbert Taylor, who worked with Hitchcock on Number Seventeen and Frenzy, dies aged 99.