Product Description

An anthology series features murder and crime stories with an ironic twist.
Genre: Mystery
Rating: NR
Release Date: 4-OCT-2005
Media Type: DVD

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4256 in DVD
• Brand: HITCHCOCK,ALFRED
• Released on: 2005-10-04
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 3
• Dimensions: .60 pounds
• Running time: 1003 minutes

Amazon.com
When it premiered on CBS on October 2, 1955, Alfred Hitchcock Presents was an instant hit destined for long-term popularity. The series' original half-hour anthology format provided a perfect showcase for stories of mystery, suspense, and the macabre that reflected Hitchcock's established persona. Every Sunday at 9:30 p.m., the series began with the familiar theme of Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette" (which would thereafter be inextricably linked with Hitchcock), and as Hitchcock's trademark profile sketch was overshadowed by the familiar silhouette of Hitchcock himself, the weekly "play" opened and closed with the series' most popular feature: As a good-natured host whose inimitable presence made him a global celebrity, Hitchcock delivered droll, dryly sardonic introductions and epilogues to each week's episode, flawlessly written by James Allardyce and frequently taking polite pot-shots at CBS sponsors, or skirting around broadcast standards (which demanded that no crime could go unpunished) by humorously explaining how the show's killers and criminals were always brought to justice... though always with a nod and a wink to the viewer.

This knowing complicity was Hitchcock's pact with his audience, and the secret to his (and the series') long-term success. It's also what attracted a stable of talented writers whose teleplays, both original and adapted, maintained a high standard of excellence. Hitchcock directed four of the first season's 39 episodes, including the premiere episode "Revenge" (a fan favorite, with future Psycho costar Vera Miles) and the season highlight "Breakdown," with Joseph Cotten as a car-accident victim, paralyzed and motionless, who's nearly left for dead; it's a perfect example of visual and narrative economy, executed with a master's touch. (The fourth episode, "Don't Come Back Alive," is also a popular favorite, with the kind of sinister twist that became a series trademark.) Robert Stevenson directed the majority of the remaining episodes with similar skill, serving tightly plotted tales (selected by associate producers Joan Harrison and Norman Lloyd) by such literary greats as Ray Bradbury, Robert Bloch, Cornell Woolrich, Dorothy L. Sayers, and John Collier. Adding to the series' prestige was a weekly roster of new and seasoned stars, with first-season appearances by Cloris Leachman, Darren McGavin, Everett Sloane, Peter Lawford, Charles Bronson, Barry Fitzgerald, John Cassavetes, Joanne Woodward, Thelma Ritter, and a host of Hollywood's best-known character players. With such stellar talent on weekly display, Alfred Hitchcock Presents paved the way for Thriller, The Twilight Zone, and other series that maximized the anthology format's storytelling potential.

Packed onto three double-sided DVDs, these 39 episodes hold up remarkably well, and while some prints show the wear and tear of syndication, they look and sound surprisingly good (although audio compression will cause many viewers to turn up the volume). The 15-minute bonus featurette, "Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Look Back" is perfunctory at best, but it's nice to see new anecdotal interviews with Norman Lloyd, assistant director Hilton Green, and Hitchcock's daughter Pat (a frequent performer on these episodes), who survived to see their popular series benefit from the archival convenience of DVD. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

At last!
After releasing only selected episodes in volumes (4 episodes in 1 DVD), it is good to see that Universal Home Entertainment is finally releasing this show in season box sets (and hope that they continue to release the remaining seasons in the future).

Premiered on October 1st, 1955, this wonderful series ran for seven seasons, and afterwards for another 3 seasons as "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour". This set contains the first 39 episodes of Season 1, told by the `Master of Suspense', Alfred Hitchcock. The episodes include:

01. Revenge
02. Premonition
03. Triggers in Leash
04. Don't Come Back Alive
05. Into Thin Air (aka The Vanishing Lady)
06. Salvage
07. Breakdown
08. Our Cook's a Treasure
09. The Long Shot
10. The Case of Mr. Pelham
11. Guilty Witness
12. Santa Claus and the 10th Avenue Kid
13. The Cheney Vase
14. A Bullet for Baldwin
15. The Big Switch
16. You Got to Have Luck
17. The Older Sister
18. Shopping for Death
19. The Derelicts
20. And So Died Riabouchinska
21. Safe Conduct
22. Place of Shadows
23. Back for Christmas
24. The Perfect Murder
25. There Was an Old Woman
26. Whodunit?
27. Help Wanted
28. Portrait of Jocelyn
29. The Orderly World of Mr. Appleby
30. Never Again
31. The Gentleman from America
32. The Babysitter
33. The Belfry
34. The Hidden Thing
35. The Legacy
36. Mink
37. The Decoy
38. The Creeper
39. Momentum

Along with the above episodes, this DVD also contains a featurette called "Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Look Back" on the show. Compared to the Season Sets of "The Twilight Zone" (which ranges from $75-100), I feel the price for this DVD is very decent and is worth buying.

All in all, this is a great release and I hope Universal will continue releasing more seasons of this show in the future.

Good Evening, Mr. Hitchcock!
I haven't seen "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" since it was last shown on TV Land quite a few years back. This show is one of the best anthology series ever and deserves to be shown and enjoyed. Thankfully Universal has seen fit to release season one on DVD. All 39 episodes (yes, 39!) of this incredible show.

The one constant element throughout the series is the presence of Alfred Hitchcock with his dry, macabre sense of humor. This show made the well-respected film director a huge TV personality of the 50s and 60s. It was part of his deal with CBS that he would direct many of the episodes but as it turned out he directed only 17 segments during the series entire run.

Many well-known actors from film and television made appearances on the show during it's run. In this season one set you can expect to see Aunt Bea (Frances Bavier), John Forsythe, Cloris Leachman, Joseph Cotten, Peter Lawford, Barry Fitzgerald, Carolyn Jones, John Cassavetes, Charles Bronson, Claude Rains and many others. There was also a bit of nepotism afoot as Pat Hichcock made numerous appearances on her dad's show. Fortunately, she was a pretty good actress.

The episodes are based on great short stories by writers such as Alexander Woollcott, Ambrose Bierce, Cornell Woolrich, Frederic Brown, Henry Slesar, H.H. Munro (aka Saki), John Cheever, John Collier, John Wyndham, Ray Bradbury, Robert Bloch and Roald Dahl. Yes, that's the same Roald Dahl who wrote those entertaining children's stories (you've heard of Willy Wonka, I presume). He wrote one of the series most famous episodes "Lamb to the Slaughter."

I have read that Hitchcock actually filmed two openings and closings for each episode. The ones Americans are familiar with feature Hitch sarcastically commenting on the show's sponsors and TV in general. The other openings and closings were created for the European market and featured Hitch poking fun at Americans. I don't know if any of these alternate scenes are included but they would be fun to watch.

A price tag of under $30 for 39 episodes of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" is a great bargain compared to the ridiculously overpriced "The Twilight Zone" seasons. As much as I like "The Twilight Zone" I refuse to pay those prices. As for "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," I'll be the first in line to drop my $30 for these great shows.

Beware! Some episodes are edited
It's very hard for me to type this, because I thought this was going to be a stellar set -- but alas some episodes are indeed edited.

Example: "Salvage" ends with Gene Barry shooting Nancy Gates. After he pulls the trigger, the next scene on the DVD is Hitchcock saying (after the usual comedy), "We'll be back next week." Then the end credits roll. I knew something was missing, so I went back to my 10-year-old VHS recording (syndicated TV version) of this episode and played it. There, Hitch does indeed come back BETWEEN the end of the show and the farewell till next week outro. It's about 30 seconds of footage with Hitch explaining, "He would have gotten away with murder, but ..." This is CRUCIAL footage! And since it's included in the syndicated TV version, Universal can't say it isn't included on the DVD because the footage is "lost."

Sigh. Why can't Universal get it right? Double-sided discs are one thing; releasing edited shows is another. What, exactly, is the problem?