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Director Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) is widely regarded as the ultimate master of suspense. He directed more than 50 films over the course of six decades, and his command of both cinematic form and content, integrated into seamless motion picture entertainment, is virtually unrivaled. While Hitchcock’s hugely successful period of Technicolor spectaculars includes the classics VERTIGO, REAR WINDOW, NORTH BY NORTHWEST and THE BIRDS, many of his best films incorporate the elegant simplicity of black & white. From the early joys of THE 39 STEPS and THE LADY VANISHES, through taut mid-period suspense thrillers such as SPELLBOUND, SHADOW OF A DOUBT and STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, to the phenomenal success of the slasher classic PSYCHO, the Hitch proves that monochrome is a magnificent thing.

Please join us for a retrospective of Hitchcock’s black & white films, which also will include screenings of REBECCA, LIFEBOAT, STAGE FRIGHT and SABOTEUR.

Article on Hitchcock

Don’t miss the Ahmanson Theatre’s stage production of "The 39 Steps," which will coincide with our Hitchcock retrospective! "Escapist fun! The popular theatrical version of Alfred Hitchcock's masterful film. ... the show whizzes by to the audience's audible delight." - Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times There will be a drawing each night for a pair of tickets. "39 Steps" play Website

Friday, May 7 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature: THE 39 STEPS, 1935, MGM Repertory, 86 min. "What are the 39 Steps?" And why is a network of foreign spies so desperate to stop stalwart hero Robert Donat from uncovering the mystery of this most cryptic of director Alfred Hitchcock’s puzzles? Trailer

THE LADY VANISHES, 1938, MGM Repertory, 97 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Margaret Lockwood finds no one will believe her when she claims an old lady has mysteriously disappeared from a moving train - in fact, no one believes the elderly woman exists at all. Raffle between films for free tickets to the Ahmanson Theatre’s stage production of "The 39 Steps." Buy Tickets | Trailer

Saturday, May 8 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature: 50th Anniversary! PSYCHO, 1960, Universal, 109 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Lovely embezzler Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) takes refuge from a storm at the Bates Motel, presided over by Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), a seemingly innocuous fellow living with "Mother" in a nearby mansion. Trailer | Buy Tickets

SPELLBOUND, 1945, Walt Disney Co., 111 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. When bespectacled psychiatrist Ingrid Bergman discovers Gregory Peck is not a famous visiting shrink but in fact a traumatized amnesiac, she begins to fall in love with him. But is Peck a victim of circumstance or a missing doctor’s killer? Raffle between films for free tickets to the Ahmanson Theatre’s stage production of "The 39 Steps." Trailer | Buy Tickets

Sunday, May 9 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature: SHADOW OF A DOUBT, 1943, Universal, 108 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Teenager Teresa Wright’s romantic illusions about her beloved Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) are gradually shattered by the growing suspicion that he may be a diabolical serial killer. Trailer

STAGE FRIGHT, 1950, Warner Bros., 110 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Jane Wyman plays a struggling actress who helps hide fellow student Richard Todd when he's accused of killing his lover's husband. Marlene Dietrich co-stars in this murder mystery set in the world of the theater. Raffle between films for free tickets to the Ahmanson Theatre’s stage production of "The 39 Steps."

Trailer | Buy Tickets

Wednesday, May 12 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature: STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, 1951, Warner Bros., 101 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. A chance encounter on a train between tennis champion Guy (Farley Granger) and charming psychopath Bruno (Robert Walker) triggers an unstoppable race toward double murder. Trailer

LIFEBOAT, 1944, 20th Century Fox, 96 min. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Eight survivors of a German bombing, stuck in a lifeboat, pick up a stranded Nazi as the ninth passenger. Raffle between films for free tickets to the Ahmanson Theatre’s stage production of "The 39 Steps." Buy Tickets

Thursday, May 13 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature: SABOTEUR, 1942, Universal, 108 min. Alfred Hitchcock transfers the successful formula of his British films to Hollywood, telling yet another story of a falsely accused man on the run. This time it’s Robert Cummings as Barry Kane, an aircraft worker who is blamed for an explosion at his factory.

REBECCA, 1940, Walt Disney Co., 130 min. Director Alfred Hitchcock’s Gothic romance asks the question: Did guilt-ridden, rich widower Laurence Olivier do away with his notorious wife, Rebecca, or not? The widower’s second wife, a young Joan Fontaine attempts to unravel the mystery. Raffle between films for free tickets to the Ahmanson Theatre’s stage production of "The 39 Steps." Buy Tickets