Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Summary

Airs Next:CBS at Sunday 9:30 PM (30 min.)
Status:Ended
Premiered:October 2, 1955
Last Aired:June 1, 1962
Show Categories:Drama

Alfred Hitchcock Presents was a mystery and suspense anthology hosted by the master of supsense Alfred Hitchcock. Each 30 minute episode included opening and closing vingettes featuring Hitchcock who would often explain some aspect of the day's show and would often offer subtle (or not so subtle) jabs at the shows sponsors.

The series premiered on CBS on Sunday, October 2, 1955 in the 9:30-10:00 PM timeslot opposite ABC's The Original Amateur Hour and NBC's Alcoa-Goodyear Playhouse. In its sixth season the show moved to NBC and was shown on Tuesday 8:30-9:00 PM. On NBC it served as the lead in for two other anthology shows Thriller and The Dick Powell Show.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents featured both original works produced directly for television and adaptations of existing source material. Some authors whose work was adapted for the series include: Alexander Woollcott, Ambrose Bierce, Cornell Woolrich, Frederic Brown, Henry Slesar, H.H. Munro (aka Saki), John Cheever, John Collier, John Wyndham, Ray Bradbury, Roald Dahl, and Robert Bloch. The show also featured work by famous (or later famous) directors Alfred Hitchcock and Robert Altman. It also served as a proving ground for stars and future stars: Charles Bronson, Robert Redford, Steve McQueen, Peter Lorre, Robert Duvall, and Vera Miles.

In 1962, Alfred Hitchcock Presents was expanded to one hour and was shown under the title the The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. In 1985, the these shows experienced a revival under the title Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Spinoff: The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

Revivals: Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1985)

Broadcast History

CBS: October 1955-September 1960----Sunday----9:30 p.m.

NBC: September 1960-June 1962----Tuesdays----8:30 p.m.

Nielsen Ratings:
(Top 30 or Better)

#6 in the 1956-1957 Season

#12 in the 1957-1958 Season

#24 in the 1958-1959 Season

#25 in the 1959-1960 Season

Emmy Awards and Nominations

1955

Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Action or Adventure Series
Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock Best MC or Program Hose (Male or Female)
Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock, "The Case of Mr. Pelham" Best Director (Film Series)
Winner: Edward W. Williams, "Breakdown" Best Editing of a Television Film

1956

Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Series (Half-Hour or Less)
Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock Best Male Personality (Continuing Performance)
Winner: James P. Cavanagh, "Fog Closes In" Best Teleplay Writing (Half-Hour or Less)

1957

Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Dramatic Anthology Series
Winner: Robert Stevens, "The Glass Eye" Best Direction (Half-Hour or Less)

1958

Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Dramatic Series (Less Than One Hour)
Nominated: Alfred Hitchcock, "Lamb to the Slaughter" Best Direction of a Single Program of a Dramatic Series (Less Than One Hour)
Nominated: Roald Dahl, "Lamb to the Slaughter" Best Writing of a Single Program of a Dramatic Series (Less Than One Hour)

1959

Nominated: John J. Lloyd Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction and Scenic Design
Nominated: Edward W. Williams, "Man from the South" Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing for Television

1960

Nominated: Edward W. Williams, "Incident in a Small Jail" Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing for Television

Other Awards or Nominations

The Golden Globe Awards (Voted each year since 1944 by members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association):

1957 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Television Program

Look Magazine's Annual Television Awards (Voted initially by poll of TV executives, producers, directors, advertising executives and TV columnists, then, in 1955, via polls taken of TV critics and editors. The Award was Presented annually from 1950 to 1959 by the editors of Look magazine):

1955 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Best Director
1956 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Dramatic Series (One-Half Hour)
1957 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Dramatic Series (One-Half Hour)

Television Champion Awards (Voted each year since 1949 by polls of the nation's TV critics taken by the publishers of Television Almanac. The awards ceased in 1972):

1955 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Mystery Program
1956 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Mystery Program
1960 Winner: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Best Mystery Program

First Telecast: October 2, 1955

Last Telecast: June 26, 1962

Unaired Episodes: 1

Episodes: 266 B&W Episodes

(266 half-hour episodes, 1 three-part episode)

The series premiered...

Where Beauty Lies

Aired: June 26, 1962

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Silent Witness

A man murders his lover when she threatens to expose him, but there is a witness to the crime.

Posted: 12/11/08
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Alfred HitchcockHost (photos)

9.8
00
woundedwindow
member since: Apr 9, 2008
The Bottom Line: "Ahead of its time"
Alfred Hitchcock had an amazing gift. ...Continue »
He had amazing power, and not only with his movies, which had the power to have the nation quit showering for years. This show was just as good, with in one hour, he had a well thought out plot, that would creep you out so badly, and he didn't need gore to get you there. He was so good he would let your imagination run wild, to the point some of us weren't able to sleep. Alfred Hitchcock had an amazing gift that I have yet to see repeated, let alone surpassed. Alfred Hitchcock Presents was definitely one of a kind.
04/16/08 09:38pm | report abuse
9.1
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LemonTwistScout
member since: Apr 4, 2008
The Bottom Line: "Classic"
Master of suspense condensed onto a 30 minute format. ...Continue »
Not only could Hitchcock direct time-warping, ahead of his time, and unique films but he also could turn it into a cult hit television show. Hitchcock was the master of spinning tall-tales and spooky coincidences for our 30 minute pleasure. I have considered him one of my heroes and he will always have a place for me in my viewing pleasure. He had a way to hold my attention and keep it held through those many, many stories he directed on my television screen. How he came up wth these ideas and thoughts? We may never know but I will always watch his show, always.
04/03/08 07:40pm | report abuse
9.9
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savellexsse
member since: May 18, 2006
The Bottom Line: "Classic"
Great television drama presented by the big screen's Master of Suspense. ...Continue »
"Alfred Hitchcock Presents" is one of the staples of television drama, second only to the original version of "The Twilight Zone" in the category of anthology series. While the twist ending more associated with the latter of these series was also a key component of the Hitchcock series, it was the great director's own personality in presenting each story with his unique wit, his priceless delivery and his comedic knocking of the commercial sponsors each week that gave the show its own special style. An attempted remake of the series in the eighties by colorizing Hitch's same introductions to the original episodes only demonstrated how well they did it the first time. They also hit the jackpot on guest stars, many who were just starting out including Steve McQueen, Lee Majors, William Shatner, Burt Reynolds, Bill Mumy, Robert Vaughn and Walter Matthau, and many established movie legends many of whom otherwise didn't do television, such as Claude Rains, Joseph Cotten, Christopher Lee, Vincent Price, Raymond Massey, Peter Lorre, Robert Morley and Cedric Hardwicke. This is one show that will get you hooked after the first few episodes.
10/22/07 09:51am | report abuse
9.6
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JPPT1974
member since: Nov 2, 2005
The Bottom Line: "Bring it back!"
Hitchcock the true star! ...Continue »
Alfred Hitchcock was and is the true star of this
Show and despite the shows being good and bad in
Between, still, you can't deny Hitchcock's intimidating but in a good kind of way presence as well as that British classy accent. Who can ever forget "Good Evening" knowing that you were in for a ride. Great show and a true classic like Hitchcock himself.
04/19/07 04:32pm | report abuse
8.4
01
alienfreaks04
member since: Dec 3, 2004
The Bottom Line: "Mildly interesting"
It's good but Hitchcock could've done better. ...Continue »
If you like or love Hitchcock, then you'll like or love this.
It's pretty much a worse version of the Twilight Zone.
I'm not saying it's bad. It's worth seeing if you like older suspense shows/movies.
Each episode is a 30 minute suspense story. The characters change in each episode, so no episode ties into each other.
Each 30 minute episode included opening and closing vingettes featuring Hitchcock who would often explain some aspect of the day's show and would often offer subtle (or not so subtle) jabs at the shows sponsors.
This show doesn't air anymore which is too bad. But the first season has 39 EPISODES, and it's only $30 to buy on DVD, so if you're interested at all, go buy it.
09/11/06 08:01am | report abuse