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Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Season Three CDN$ 37.56

Night Gallery: The Complete First Season  (22)  CDN$ 49.99

Shadow of a Doubt DVD ~ Alfred Hitchcock  (48)  CDN$ 19.96

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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

On the DVD
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Look Back
Interviews with Pat Hitchcock (daughter of Alfred Hitchcock/actress),
Norman Lloyd (producer/director/actor) and Hilton Green (assistant director)

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Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Season Three CDN$ 37.56

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5 Reviews 5 star:  (3) 4 star:    (0) 3 star:  (2) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review (5 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most helpful customer reviews   5 of 6 people found the following review helpful: Warning to viewers - Beware Of Spoilers!, Oct 17 2005 By  Jeff (Ontario, CA) - See all my reviews I'm enjoying this DVD despite Universal's efforts to live down to their usual standards. I could compare the handling of this series disfavourably against the work done on preparing other classic series (Twilight Zone leaps to mind) but other reviews have and will mention this. I wish only to warn AGAINST reading the Episode Summaries!!! Perhaps some studio exec - possibly the one who decided to do the show "on the cheap" - thought it would be wise to give away much of the story prior to viewing. Maybe they'd be TOO suspenseful otherwise? Five stars for the show itself. Minus two stars for the botched audio/video job, a lack of features worthy of the studio's Marx Brothers dvd release and a generally lacklustre effort on this dvd. Poor Hitch must be rolling in his grave.... Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)   2 of 2 people found the following review helpful: One problem..., Oct 7 2005 By  nv - See all my reviews There is no episode guide booklet that comes with this DVD, which in my opinion is a MAJOR minus! Not that I wouldn't have purchased it anyway, but how cheap can you be not to include a leaflet, something! It didn't even have to be glossy. I'm so disappointed. Other than that, the sound seems to be of decent quality. But I'm not that hardcore and am just glad to have Hitchcock Presents on DVD. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)   3 of 4 people found the following review helpful: Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Season 1, Oct 9 2005 By  GUY JR THUOT "Vertigo" (Kingston, ON Canada) - See all my reviews    I gave 5 stars not for the quality of the dvd set, but, because of the series itself. Hitchcock was a genius. I know he was not involve with the series on a regular bases, but, you can see that the people in charge were close to him. I think Universal should have restored the episodes, the series started 50 years ago. The quality of the episodes are not always great. The extras are very limited. His movies were restored by Universal, they should have done the same thing with the Alfred Hitchcock Presents series. Universal is very lucky that I am a Hitchcock buff. The series lasted many years, maybe, there is still time to restore some episodes. I just hope Universal reads the reviews Was this review helpful to you?