HITCHCOCK BLONDE!

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEtEgfYq2pNx0IZiFCdJTM-_xPWq0LAw6RAbF47HqZVvWvRjhx72y2iIMHZ2j9xW7qwb5bg9zoVwdZ20YVz8rGDStrs8-nABizsXqw1opVk1Qgx_XCk__1DU1l4Np_llA3eZscx_Ysa3wv/s1600/grace+kelly+hitchcock+blonde+bordered.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEtEgfYq2pNx0IZiFCdJTM-_xPWq0LAw6RAbF47HqZVvWvRjhx72y2iIMHZ2j9xW7qwb5bg9zoVwdZ20YVz8rGDStrs8-nABizsXqw1opVk1Qgx_XCk__1DU1l4Np_llA3eZscx_Ysa3wv/s400/grace+kelly+hitchcock+blonde+bordered.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It began long ago, the succession of beautiful blonde actresses who combined feminine refinement and sex appeal in a way that director Alfred Hitchcock could not resist depicting onscreen many times. Over the course of his career, Hitchcock honed this character type to a fine point and his final blonde stars were scrupulously stylized to evoke a very specific image.<br /><br />Some of the most memorable:<br /><br /><a name='more'></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXEKS7m5UjmwozE87MNHEkjDVll65uY03oOMwyZEDxY8HjEstnVCs1r9TMFrHMv3_PUVImrJTtOaIKCa3LXwhLXiI4MQ7caY-8mOKsQ7rell48KAVDmcNMJFiCSiNuFdChdY_zTHg3_A6/s1600/joan+barry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXEKS7m5UjmwozE87MNHEkjDVll65uY03oOMwyZEDxY8HjEstnVCs1r9TMFrHMv3_PUVImrJTtOaIKCa3LXwhLXiI4MQ7caY-8mOKsQ7rell48KAVDmcNMJFiCSiNuFdChdY_zTHg3_A6/s1600/joan+barry.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Joan Barry</b> (Emily Hill in <i>Rich and Strange</i>, 1931) London-born Barry first worked with Hitchcock when she dubbed Anny Ondra's voice for the sound version of <i>Blackmail</i>. She later starred in another of the director's early sound films, <i>Rich and Strange</i>. In addition to being a blonde, Barry possessed a delicate beauty that Hitchcock would seek again and again. (Note: This British actress shouldn't be confused with the brunette American actress who was legally entangled with Charlie Chaplin)</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH5ktNVFUf-Hy7qJgDe9nxKDRw_5b-KzOuAIqKkdIEMCa8Z6y405xBzU_BsbMWayFk_InXtkmgJ6Nw7BFILz-9I-XbY1j_bhGMbaXcx8NZGxzRvLDtU350I4-RnBAL8QN4SiMBO4JM0Z4Z/s1600/madeleine_carroll3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH5ktNVFUf-Hy7qJgDe9nxKDRw_5b-KzOuAIqKkdIEMCa8Z6y405xBzU_BsbMWayFk_InXtkmgJ6Nw7BFILz-9I-XbY1j_bhGMbaXcx8NZGxzRvLDtU350I4-RnBAL8QN4SiMBO4JM0Z4Z/s1600/madeleine_carroll3.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Madeleine Carroll</b> (Pamela in <i>The 39 Steps</i>, 1935, and Elsa Carrington in <i>Secret Agent</i>, 1936) Often referred to as the first of Hitchcock's "ice cool" blondes, Carroll bore a physical resemblance to Joan Barry, but possessed an aloof quality with which Hitchcock was particularly taken.  Her career skyrocketed with the success of <i>The 39 Steps;</i> following <i>Secret Agent</i> she signed with Paramount and made several films in the U.S. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4qKB_2_34niC47SQXUb9SQZSbS9Z7hl2VjaOCzFD-ucKRA9Mu7mJn-54so-ghnFafntRodfW3Vq3_k1d7h3DUjB1wMuUE9MAL0559XnrXPMx3mCcPpphy0LwKeRNXdZiifS7b-7ZSEesJ/s1600/Carole+Lombard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4qKB_2_34niC47SQXUb9SQZSbS9Z7hl2VjaOCzFD-ucKRA9Mu7mJn-54so-ghnFafntRodfW3Vq3_k1d7h3DUjB1wMuUE9MAL0559XnrXPMx3mCcPpphy0LwKeRNXdZiifS7b-7ZSEesJ/s1600/Carole+Lombard.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Carole Lombard</b> (Ann Smith in <i>Mr. & Mrs. Smith</i>, 1941) Hitchcock's only screwball comedy, <i>Mr. & Mrs. Smith</i> starred one of Hollywood's great comediennes, the lovely Lombard. She sparkled as the beautiful,  well-heeled Mrs. Smith who, though more stubborn than aloof, was certainly intelligent and fashionable. Hitchcock said he directed at Lombard's request; it was the last of her films released during her lifetime.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Grace Kelly</b> (Margot Wendice in <i>Dial M for Murder</i>, 1954, Lisa Fremont in <i>Rear Window</i>, 1954, Frances Stevens in <i>To Catch a Thief</i>, 1955) The quintessential "snow covered volcano" that all others are measured against, Kelly was one of the definitive beauties of the 1950s. An icon of elegance and refinement, she effortlessly portrayed the haughty allure that so appealed to Hitchcock. Miss Kelly, at the height of her icy heat, appears in the photo at the top of the page as well as the video below...</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNudROVSnrEZz98TrTVo-YZIhWF5rGX4PBFxUef1kOPAinZ6ZgyjJXWI_OsH6P74_k5yafbe8xlfgNw9X9MbQKTEo_aJwK4p4Eg7T02HWKAykY4tfw7ggXWq_hC82_RAZosLgQBPs6TjWq/s1600/kim+novak.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNudROVSnrEZz98TrTVo-YZIhWF5rGX4PBFxUef1kOPAinZ6ZgyjJXWI_OsH6P74_k5yafbe8xlfgNw9X9MbQKTEo_aJwK4p4Eg7T02HWKAykY4tfw7ggXWq_hC82_RAZosLgQBPs6TjWq/s200/kim+novak.jpg" width="132" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Kim Novak</b> ("Madeleine Elster"/Judy Barton in <i>Vertigo</i>, 1958) Novak was a top movie star in the '50s and a departure from the type Hitchcock had previously cast as his blonde love objects. Among other things, Novak was more voluptuous than those before her. In <i>Vertigo</i>, her sultry appeal was toned down with a chic and often subdued wardrobe as well as quiet but very precise makeup. In a new "twist," Novak wore her hair in an up-do through most of the film - the memorable "French Twist" Hitchcock explored with his camera. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDBHT0lncG5D3hOnYwgv4ShZLx4FOa5lsPGiJQiCCEEEpC2ujPGN2kREV8Vtm-7BqCYPjraezg-RX9KUWtdVDMIGghnPMj20guqKkz5qzsrKDgn4R9e6jomZqhCY9kdCIRNf8iQFBKeZuA/s1600/eva.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDBHT0lncG5D3hOnYwgv4ShZLx4FOa5lsPGiJQiCCEEEpC2ujPGN2kREV8Vtm-7BqCYPjraezg-RX9KUWtdVDMIGghnPMj20guqKkz5qzsrKDgn4R9e6jomZqhCY9kdCIRNf8iQFBKeZuA/s1600/eva.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Eva Marie Saint</b> (Eve Kendall in <i>North by Northwest</i>, 1959) Though not a sex symbol like Novak, Saint was also different from the women Hitchcock had cast before her. A method actress, she was known for starring in films like <i>On the Waterfront</i> and <i>A Hatful of Rain</i> as well as live TV dramas - what Hitchcock called "kitchen sink" roles. However, she got the full treatment once chosen to play Eve and was coiffed, gowned and made up to seductive, slightly brittle perfection. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrVz8gazRCZoNfUgSX5nycfvsVdNeHUMwdMAbeIVCMVLTuwyr5983mbyRmr8kc7fBh4j4_D-Kvl_qGC1Cb5t3ay_c4A8wElxUNQ3ob1tXA5Iprj50bXO7Vj6Ku6d4tTnOUWyaGjdeayTPa/s1600/tippi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrVz8gazRCZoNfUgSX5nycfvsVdNeHUMwdMAbeIVCMVLTuwyr5983mbyRmr8kc7fBh4j4_D-Kvl_qGC1Cb5t3ay_c4A8wElxUNQ3ob1tXA5Iprj50bXO7Vj6Ku6d4tTnOUWyaGjdeayTPa/s200/tippi.jpg" width="181" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Tippi Hedren</b> (Melanie Daniels in <i>The Birds</i>, 1963, and Marnie Edgar in <i>Marnie</i>, 1964) Hitchcock's final pale-haired icon, Hedren's was the most controlled expression of the archetype. More model than actress, Hedren's mannequin-like qualities seem emphasized by heavily sprayed bouffant hairstyles, a sophisticated and strictly coordinated wardrobe and fastidious makeup. Hitchcock coached Hedren closely and constantly, intensely involved in her every move. Her career faltered when she bought out her contract with Hitchcock following <i>Marnie</i>. <b><br /></b><br /><b></b><br /><b></b><br /><b><br /> <i>Francois Truffaut and Alfred Hitchcock discuss "the Hitchcock Blonde"</i></b></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b><i>Hitchcock</i></b>:You know why I favor sophisticated blondes in my films? We're after the drawing-room type, the real ladies, who become whores once they're in the bedroom.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b><i>Truffaut</i></b>: What intrigues you is the paradox between the inner fire and the cool surface.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b><i>Hitchcock</i></b>: Definitely...Do you know why? Because sex should not be advertised...because without the element of <i>surprise</i> the scenes become meaningless. There's no possibility to <i>discover </i>sex. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pEnNyXPKAUQ" width="560"></iframe></div><br /><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">For more Hitchcock leading ladies, <a href="http://evesreellife.wordpress.com/2011/08/13/more-hitchcock-heroines-blonde-and-not-so-blonde/" style="color: #990000;">Click here</a>...</div>

Alfred Hitchcock Carole Lombard Eva Marie Saint Grace Kelly Joan Barry Kim Novak Madeleine Carroll Roar Foundation HITCHCOCK BLONDE!

It began long ago, the succession of beautiful blonde actresses who combined feminine refinement and sex appeal in a way that director Alfred Hitchcock could not resist depicting onscreen many times. Over the course of his career, Hitchcock honed thi…

Read more »

North by Northwest - free to the public...

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr637xG2iyQ_sRktVwa9aEU8Zvq6KuG0SUPERY3uaNJYOQWJP5tDcVNJhZuNEB8d7XMX8uxPQjtczN1SEX8dJsiZlajboQ7Jeg7y0gOswjWpQ0xTvHld3ON4JkaKk91gn6ElX0UtTckIAO/s1600/NxNW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr637xG2iyQ_sRktVwa9aEU8Zvq6KuG0SUPERY3uaNJYOQWJP5tDcVNJhZuNEB8d7XMX8uxPQjtczN1SEX8dJsiZlajboQ7Jeg7y0gOswjWpQ0xTvHld3ON4JkaKk91gn6ElX0UtTckIAO/s320/NxNW.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83aD-6R-rdZTEsPdUtZICQS45Vc1oWGtSvEEZOXg9q-_VzGytTEii0RAMSWQTTT-Wy5ilXYHrCrAQcD4Gu5O_0xILq0jDF1-b2sBfjVLnmedqK1IagbcGezl684kMwhe2A-Kn7xyR-MnK/s1600/nxnw+audience.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi83aD-6R-rdZTEsPdUtZICQS45Vc1oWGtSvEEZOXg9q-_VzGytTEii0RAMSWQTTT-Wy5ilXYHrCrAQcD4Gu5O_0xILq0jDF1-b2sBfjVLnmedqK1IagbcGezl684kMwhe2A-Kn7xyR-MnK/s320/nxnw+audience.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">When I was a little girl, the only director whose name I knew was Alfred Hitchcock. Though I didn't see any of his signature films of the era in a theater - <i>Rear Window</i> (1954), <i>To Catch a Thief</i> (1955), <i>Vertigo</i> (1958), <i>North by Northwest</i> (1959) - I must've seen the trailers, because I was well aware that he made exciting, colorful and glamorous movies.</span><br /><br /><a name='more'></a><br /><i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Psycho</span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"> (1960) was the first Hitchcock film I watched on in a theater. I saw <i>Psycho </i>(a far cry from his elaborate VistaVision/Technicolor creations of the 1950s) second-run (I was <i>finally</i> old enough) at the local movie house, the Ritz Theater, with a friend who'd already seen it. Pal that she was, she nudged me just as Arbogast, the detective, reached the staircase landing of the Bates home and a figure with a knife darted toward him...naturally, I shrieked long and loud...</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I was fortunate enough to see <i>Rear Window</i> when it was re-released into theaters in 1984, but have seen most of Hitchcock's films on television. There's no question that his work comes through powerfully on TV, but his films were made – carefully - to be seen on full-size theater screens.</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgjDVlIn6pkex3gmKtAHxtjk1_8AYLjZY_3SmPVd3gyMMbsloLcphtilF64YL6aneiN_gBBTLXtoAEmcjqQfRWAbUGpo0cuXTF_zDgJ8E0zmNJNnFK-1O1pAWOQ-X4_M0vBuJ9OIlEozJo/s1600/Rafaelatnight-300x225%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgjDVlIn6pkex3gmKtAHxtjk1_8AYLjZY_3SmPVd3gyMMbsloLcphtilF64YL6aneiN_gBBTLXtoAEmcjqQfRWAbUGpo0cuXTF_zDgJ8E0zmNJNnFK-1O1pAWOQ-X4_M0vBuJ9OIlEozJo/s1600/Rafaelatnight-300x225%255B1%255D.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Rafael Theatre, San Rafael, California</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Last July the nearby <a href="http://eves-reel-life.blogspot.com/search/label/Rafael%20Theater"><span style="color: #990000;">Rafael Theatre</span> </a>screened the silent version of Hitchcock’s <i style="color: #cc0000;"><a href="http://classic-film-tv.blogspot.com/search/label/blackmail" style="color: #990000;">Blackmail</a> </i>(1929). The film exceeded my expectations in just about every way possible. I was surprised that it as well-crafted and fluid as it was and that it contained so many elements that were to become Hitchcock trademarks. Live accompaniment by the Alloy Orchestra underscored the action and added dimension. And it was thrilling to be surrounded by an appreciative SRO audience.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Six weeks later, at noon on Sunday, September 5, the Rafael presented <i>North by Northwest</i>, free to the public, as part of its quarterly "Everybody's Classics" series. At 11:40 a.m. the line was long, but good seats were still to be had. By show time Theater 1 was packed and anticipation ran high.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Then Bernard Herrmann's pulsing score began and the crisscrossing lines of Saul Bass's title sequence filled the screen. <i>North by Northwest</i> was upon us and in just a few exhilarating moments I was whisked into the adventure.</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjncfTwxhlJ2LRmR7Js0ElvhCP0rydU3WwiZlcaNajjCjteH2h-thupKtdDIKMMWhqDVOae1u3vYpADTARrMJn1gVzZ1b2WssACPfp3TBJfeR46TrNQl3knU-mnnua1ISQmQn54Akoy3td6/s1600/North%252520by%252520Northwest%252520movie%252520image%252520%25283%2529%255B1%255D+b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjncfTwxhlJ2LRmR7Js0ElvhCP0rydU3WwiZlcaNajjCjteH2h-thupKtdDIKMMWhqDVOae1u3vYpADTARrMJn1gVzZ1b2WssACPfp3TBJfeR46TrNQl3knU-mnnua1ISQmQn54Akoy3td6/s320/North%252520by%252520Northwest%252520movie%252520image%252520%25283%2529%255B1%255D+b.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cary Grant - the adventure begins</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Possibly Hitchcock's quintessential thrill-ride, <i>North by Northwest</i> incorporates many familiar themes and plot devices - an innocent man accused, a romance complicated by mistrust and betrayal, a double chase (the police after the innocent man and the innocent man after the true villain), a backdrop of international espionage...</span><br /><br /><i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">North by Northwest</span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"> has been linked to two of Hitchcock's earlier classics, <i>The 39 Steps</i><b> </b>(1935) and <i>Notorious</i> (1946), but by 1959 the director, at the height of his powers, was in a position to control just about every aspect of his films, much more so than he had been 10 and 20+ years earlier.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">He was able to cast his favorite actor/star, Cary Grant, in the lead. And though he was unsuccessful in enticing Princess Grace back to the screen as his leading lady, he transformed Academy Award-winning method actress Eva Marie Saint into a stunning and complex femme fatale. James Mason, Martin Landau, Leo G. Carroll and Jessie Royce Landis rounded out his first-rate cast.</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMLm5_dVQc_8P3zWLK5BEr_R1Tz5jlUh_VZVlsnINBG7Gqa80U-UgV_u3ix8BcNzpWIigkkar68CB7NvSlGN5uEDSMGZqZXGUUByPgOnNvbnc9v3toGPGV8MBOS6OOwSWbTTL1oVSftLfi/s1600/nxnw+hands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMLm5_dVQc_8P3zWLK5BEr_R1Tz5jlUh_VZVlsnINBG7Gqa80U-UgV_u3ix8BcNzpWIigkkar68CB7NvSlGN5uEDSMGZqZXGUUByPgOnNvbnc9v3toGPGV8MBOS6OOwSWbTTL1oVSftLfi/s320/nxnw+hands.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint, hands on </td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Bernard Herrmann, who by now had worked with Hitchcock on several films, was just completing the score for the pilot of "The Twilight Zone" when he began <i>North by Northwest</i>. Ernest Lehman wrote the sophisticated and clever script that earned an Oscar nomination. Academy Award winning cinematographer Robert Burks, production designer Robert F. Boyle (also Oscar-nominated for this film) and other Hitchcock stalwarts joined in the collaboration.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">All of these ingredients plus glorious VistaVision and Technicolor added up to produce one of Hitchcock's most successful and exciting films.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I'd seen <i>North by Northwest</i><b> </b>countless times and felt I knew the film well, but to finally see it on a movie screen was akin to seeing it for the first time.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">To begin with, Cary Grant's starpower was almost overpowering - his screen presence was that commanding. What grace, what confidence…and how impossibly handsome he was. It's not surprising that Bernard Herrmann adjusted his score to match what he described as Grant's "Astaire-like agility."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">As might be expected, the suspense seemed magnified on a theater screen, and so did everything else - the humor was more direct and the seduction scenes more intense in their intimacy and erotic implications. The film’s pacing is acutely precise – with suspense building to an exquisite pitch, then, at just the right moment, relief - via wit or romance. Then, once more, the suspense begins to build…</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqdsZttYxl-0L4WHyQTs4Fcc1DhOSajvG0gixaqFzmqLNqD1Xs_a0dNjO1k2VV8YgGAVhg8MvaFLMm42kTbYlpNKJ9t4F6SuWzbsqpTOlEFbO764Ez5_RCDRgBe-FwZwfX9vK6tAaW0eX4/s1600/NorthBrand%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqdsZttYxl-0L4WHyQTs4Fcc1DhOSajvG0gixaqFzmqLNqD1Xs_a0dNjO1k2VV8YgGAVhg8MvaFLMm42kTbYlpNKJ9t4F6SuWzbsqpTOlEFbO764Ez5_RCDRgBe-FwZwfX9vK6tAaW0eX4/s320/NorthBrand%255B1%255D.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climax of a classic chase scene</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">The crop-dusting sequence with its truck-in-flames finale and the moonlit chase across the face of Mount Rushmore are striking set-pieces on a screen of any size. Via the big screen I could almost feel the heat of the truck’s explosion and smell South Dakota’s night air. These scenes are legendary and, for obvious reasons, much imitated. The early James Bond films emulate the crop-dusting scene... Steven Spielberg's <i>Close Encounters</i> (1977) includes a well-known homage with its replication of Hitchcock's night-time Black Hills.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Afterward, I couldn't help wishing I'd been able to see <i>North by Northwest</i> back in 1959 at the Ritz. The kid I was then would've come out of that theater exhausted and elated, convinced she'd just been on the greatest rollercoaster ride of her life.</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoihabE6skbsSXUgz8BYBgbrbge-kESZRwqe64NIDi9ldGw2fQW-buTDBrsvEbl9I4TgdIA2BIK_Hl_BIJjkR7xKt3P_x7xfjsrenzHciIQ6fqQS-bow7sC_uSAkm6_j25btSHHNVQiIoY/s1600/nxnw_great_cast%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoihabE6skbsSXUgz8BYBgbrbge-kESZRwqe64NIDi9ldGw2fQW-buTDBrsvEbl9I4TgdIA2BIK_Hl_BIJjkR7xKt3P_x7xfjsrenzHciIQ6fqQS-bow7sC_uSAkm6_j25btSHHNVQiIoY/s320/nxnw_great_cast%255B1%255D.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eva Marie Saint, James Mason and Martin Landau</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Alfred Hitchcock has been widely acknowledged for his matchless ability to maneuver an audience's emotions and point of view with ease, and it's hard to maintain much distance from Hitchcock's best films. This could be why I enjoy the <i>experience</i> of his films as much as I enjoy the exercise of <i>studying</i> them.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">As with all Hitchcock films, <i>North by Northwest</i><b> </b>has a few things going on beneath its slick surface. But last Labor Day weekend, inside a darkened theater filled with laughing, sighing, cheering people, I was a child again for a while. Happily immersed in a suspenseful, clever, sexy adventure, I didn't really notice that, from the first note of Herrmann's score to the final shot of a darkened railroad tunnel, I was being swept along as if aboard a sleek 20th Century Limited under the command of a very crafty locomotive engineer.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc_eDVg712jVxSH8zKidSYldd3z-4A5O1JdxsUl31TOYTc-3O9sXaHvQtaQOdcWJm3q_kVu0p4IgQVbTrYkGlx0LhM2qJUKEH11HBXDrTQ75ICTRO6McAx9MGwcjc8yfgQGPDdWtN-u6Oz/s1600/nxnw+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc_eDVg712jVxSH8zKidSYldd3z-4A5O1JdxsUl31TOYTc-3O9sXaHvQtaQOdcWJm3q_kVu0p4IgQVbTrYkGlx0LhM2qJUKEH11HBXDrTQ75ICTRO6McAx9MGwcjc8yfgQGPDdWtN-u6Oz/s400/nxnw+poster.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></i></div>

Alfred Hitchcock Bernard Herrmann Cary Grant Ernest Lehman Eva Marie Saint James Mason Jessie Royce Landis Martin Landau North by Northwest Rafael Theatre The Lady Eve (author) North by Northwest - free to the public...

When I was a little girl, the only director whose name I knew was Alfred Hitchcock. Though I didn't see any of his signature films of the era in a theater - Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959) - I mu…

Read more »