Alfred Hitchcock was confused by a laxative commercial

[thearmyofgreatness]

Holy crap!!! Drew brees!!!!

[Guyverman01]

When is this from?

[poetyaright]

Alfred Hitchcock is the man!

[Paglia444]

Here's Camille Paglia on the scene from The Birds:

"Like Furies, the crows harass the children from behind, nipping their necks and cheeks, as we seem to slide helplessly backward downhill, with the mob about to trample us. There's a tremendous noise of mingled screams and raucous bird cries. After the first flash of real horror, I generally settle down to laughing and applauding the crows, whom I regard as Coleridgean emissaries vandalizing sentimental Wordsworthian notions of childhood."

[bobbygnosis]

I object to any lauding of Lucas & Spielberg.

It suggests that they might be artists.

[takemeamerica]

i love hitchcock :-) booo!

[stinabeib]

I totally share his opinion on actors, what a relieve to hear someone I respect say the same thing.

[casusbelli15]

'There are no lions in the Scottish Highlands',

should have been replied with, ' You see... It works.'

[JRodFilms]

a class act! 

[SpeedDemon3870]

@ConstantineRobbins maybe it's because he IS Hitchcock? herp derp...

[Clay3613]

Good thing he didn't live to see those "erectile dysfunction" commercials!

[ConstantineRobbins]

This dude does a great Hitchcock.

[aerialkate]

It's a shame his films were so universally popular. He might be more respected then!

[logmein84]

he should have made a horror film about cows....call it...moo

[sashylka333]

is there any chance you could tell me who this interview is with and what day it was aired?

[KenfromDublin]

His mother was Irish.

[The64v]

He's a genius and he's hilarious. I want to marry him.

[ConstantineRobbins]

@The64v Bomp, Kill, Marry... Hitchcock, Orson Welles, Elia Kazan?

[edweibe]

Thanks so much for posting these clips. DIck Cavet is who he is. He managed to get some good responses to the questions. You can tell Mr. Hitchcock enjoys revealing his little trade secrets. well done.

[STON3SL1VEMU5IC]

I love his voice!!!

[SonHouse245]

The interviewer talks to Hitchcock like if he's an idiot although he's one of the best filmmakers of all history. If i was interviewing Hitchcock I wouldn't ask him about they trained some freaking birds

[SonHouse245]

The interviewer talks to Hitchcock like if he's an idiot although he's one of the best filmmakers of all history

[SonHouse245]

He's the greatest director of all history and for some reason he's also hilarious. Everytime he talks I crack up, I'm not making fun of him... I'm just saying

[Sheldonwh]

Dick Cavett is about as funny as Conan O'Brien...which is to say, not at all.

[GhettoBlaster100]

i quoted "All breasts sag eventually" in an essay for school

[WWE09FAN]

"All breasts sag eventually!"

[jmlbloom]

great filmmaker, even greater jowls

[ScotlandMy]

@jmlbloom - Ha! 

[dgb751]

every guy movie has a mcgoffen, i just didnt know it had a name.

[MrPpavlouk]

his voice reminds me Winston Churchill

[invaderpink]

man i saw bird in 3D at Universal......scared the crap outta me lol

[dynasta34]

4 people were traumatized by Psycho

[racookster]

Man, that scene from "The Birds" still gives me the willies!

[ShananagansOnYou]

Alfred Hitchcock's real name Alfred Horowitz

[tbtbtor]

@ShananagansOnYou His last name was not Horowitz.

[ShananagansOnYou]

@tbtbtor

It was Alfred Rosenberg

[Aeschylus]

Seeing the clip, I think "my we certainly are spoiled for special effects nowadays!" ...But what I really wanted to see is the laxative commercial!

[strangersound]

What's the box of tissues for? Spontaneous weeping about the carpet? :)

[johnhamilton08]

to the 4 who disliked it... go to hell.

[QwertnotQuark]

I remember watching "The Birds" in Media class at school ,then later after I got of the bus at home there were about 30-40 crows sitting on the power lines.That freaked me out a bit.

[Nergaladdictchic]

It's impossible to watch this man with a strait face! I was laughing the whole time!

[riffbaama]

hitchcock never laugh at his jokes, only makes a slight smile

[greg5566]

What a fucking douchebag Dick Cavett is. I fucking hate it when the interviewer has utterly no sense of humor.

[ptboat67]

@greg5566 To me, he's absolutely represents the fashionable behavior of his generation at the time.

[greg5566]

@ptboat67 Yeah but what generation are we talking about? I think that's the problem. There was an enormous generation gap problem during that time. There were squares and hip people. The kids were all hip. The old people were all square. The problem was for people like him, I think, who _wanted_ to be hip, but couldn't do it, or worse, and this is what I think, they wanted to be hip but were AFRAID TO because they were too scared: Mike Douglas, Dick Cavett. (cont'd)

[ptboat67]

@greg5566 Cavett is something here and trying to maintain a line between erudition and the casual establishment wariness that shows he's still hip and young, which is pretty typical at that age. The show format was sophisticated, even in this period, and he wants to maintain that level even though he's of an age where he appreciates and is even star struck by his guests. This is obvious with Betty Davis, but he tries to maintain a sang froid in order to mask it and shift the focus.

[ptboat67]

@ptboat67 *30-something

[greg5566]

@ptboat67 Maybe, or maybe he just sucks. It's such a fine line between being completely unentertaining, and being brilliant but masking it.

[greg5566]

@ptboat67 Compare him to Dan Rowan and Dick Martin. Those two were cool through and through, even though they were 20 years older than the cast of the show. I think Rowan and Martin were fashionable cool-but-square for their time. Cavett I'm not so sure about.

[ptboat67]

@greg5566 Rowan and Martin were working in a completely different genre, plus they're 12 years older than Cavett which gives them a whole different perspective on life. It also gives them a daddy like appearance when dealing with the "kids" on the show. The format, here, is that they are part of the older set, but let the cool, hip kids take over to let the silliness ensue. Honestly, though, I think Laugh In was completely safe and gives us far less now than the Cavett interviews.

[greg5566]

@ptboat67 Where did "safe" come from? Laugh-in was on national TV, just like this show (and Mike Douglas). It gives them a daddy-like appearance, yes--you're saying things that are true as though they are relevant, but they're not. The much simpler point is that Rown and Martin, e.g., were ENTERTAINING while this guy is unbearable.

[ptboat67]

@greg5566 That's where you and I are of opposite opinion. I find Laugh in to be unbearably jejune and juvenile. Cavett used an interview style that, especially in the longer format, allowed the subject to reveal themselves in a casual conversation that removed the person from the persona. It's a rare talent and these are the best interviews that we have of some of these "golden age" celebrities. Certainly, Cavett has some annoying traits, which I outlined, but I cannot deny his contribution

[greg5566]

@ptboat67 If that's what Cavett did, I accept that. I've never seen the show, I only know that every clip I've ever seen, like this one, is utterly humorless even when he's talking to a comedian. I would also question the validity of praising his because these are the "best" interviews we have of these people. They are the ONLY interviews. (I mean there were not more than a handful of talk shows then--"best" is very faint praise.)

Laugh in is hilarious. Jejune and juvenile are not criticisms.

[ptboat67]

@greg5566 Respectfully, they are not the only interviews of these people. Many lived into the seventies, 80s, and 90s. They were interviewed during the fifties and sixties, according to the style, and the ones who survived were interviewed later. Cavett's style was ground breaking and brilliant. One reason that we cannot get more of this kind of commentary from our more intelligent or modern veteran celebrities is that either the style has changed or he interviewer is too self absorbed.

[anniechristien]

The greatest of them all! 

[globe255]

Most of the children who were running away from the birds were laughing (not a very good thing when they are supposed to be afraid).

[DessertDivaFL]

Is it me or does Alfred Hitchcock'c hands look ghostly white?

[Banatterie]

Warning: probably bad English: What year is this from?

[sky0725]

@Banatterie

June 8 1972

[andreasjacke]

Mac Guffin is a trick . . . the think is very important for the people in the film... its an element only for the story in the film...

[vittoriostoraro]

Hitchcock never fails to amuse me. A very clever man and a one of a kind filmmaker.

[MadCircle01]

just realised that the birds had a big influence on the zombie genre

[calalilygirl]

Hitch liked blondes and used them in his movies; heard he thought blondes made the best victims.

[damone77]

It's akin to a magician's misdirection(uranium was one of them in Hitch's macguffins) LOL!

[LucyLizard87]

Has he ever done an audiobook? It would make me very happy.

[garciare1]

Mr. Hitchcock could recite the alphabet and have everyone in attendance wondering how it's going to end.

[tomandsuehunter1]

@garciare1 ... Great quote!

[looloorex]

@garciare1 perfectly put!!!

[RatGirl1987]

@garciare1 LOL I love that! and its true!!!!

[creepyfreak88]

@garciare1 lol

[Havhestur]

Guess I stand corrected in my comment. Times were different then and obviously I was unaware of Dick's way of interviewing :-) Having said that, I don't believe that a similar interview could be repeated today with much success...

[johnsmdm]

Cavett's a genius...

[anton1990]

His voice. Unmisstakable.

[Havhestur]

who is this host? He is clearly not in Alfred's league. Saw his interview with Orson and there, too, the host is so inferior to the brilliant guest.

[ledZeppelin7680]

he's interviewed George Harrison, John lennon and Jimi hendrix. He was one of the only talk show host at that time who was even remotely politically involved,

[infinitefathom]

Really? It's Dick Cavett, and he feigns inferiority in order to give his guests room to maneuver.

[Averyofthemain]

That's dick cavett and I never really liked him either, he's kind of annoying, but he plays milktoast to make his guests look good which is why guests liked to go on his show.

[pant1979]

I hate the way he shuts them off and goes 'We'll be back after the break'.

Well thats a stupid thing to hate really.

I really mean that I would rather the interviewer didnt speak, and just let both Welles and Hitchcock speak , but then of course, there would be no interview....

[SNKTHX2000]

He fell out with Tippi after Marnie, which is why he refers to her scornfully here as "the girl".

[dargay]

this dick cavett is a rubbish talk show host.

[trosman5]

He is such a cutie lol

[markmustb1]

Tippi was my fav Alfred girl ~

[taleofrevenge]

if the link is on your petition, where the hell do i find the petition to click on the link?

[GEVMM]

I meant to say 'profile', sorry. The link is on my profile, not 'petition'.

[MartinsRulez]

Hitchcock truly was a brilliant man.

[jksonny]

This demonstrates Hitchcock's influence on directors like Lucas, Spielberg and Tarantino.

[bettypro]

I think Hitchcock was a superb expert when it came to dealing with talk show hosts and everything else for that matter...I really LOVED his daughters acting and wish she had done more acting...I wonder what she is doing or if she is still around...seems like I remember when he died reading some comments from her that she is living in her home country of Britian?

correct me please if I am wrong....

[Arod006enforcer]

the host always seemed to me like a smartass haha

[GozerGozarian]

Irony: being an asshole as you show your ignorance by generalizing an ENTIRE NATION for being assholes.

[sjpc33]

it's funny cause it's true

[goodtaxidriver]

Well, we can almost certainly say it is a majority.

[METROGNOME57]

Got your dig in, didn't you?

Way to generalize about a multi-million population to one example...which is false anyway.

You are mistaking wit for manners.

[fck2342]

Rear window, a wonderful movie which can make me fall asleep like a baby... he has a gift of making a film personal, although many today can create an exciting movie, he has a way of making them personal.

[billheartyface]

Cavett is the worst.

[speechpessi]

he's the father of cinema

[Alkhir69]

He's the father of storytelling, not cinema.

[gnamp]

Hitchcock must have thought that interviewer was such an arse.

[iamqqqqqqq]

"What psychology do you use on a seagull?"

"...birdseed."

[ausendundeinenacht]

Loads of thumpsups I mean

for yr comment

Rightfully so

[looloorex]

@iamqqqqqqq lmfao

[80stimeagain]

all breasts sag, aww hitch.

[sks409]

long live the master of suspense!!!

[donstuie]

We can only wonder the sorts of films Hitch would've been able to produce with today's technology. Like Kubrick, we'll sadly never know.

(And Tippi Hedren was smokin' in The Birds)

[OmegaGraham]

too true

[donstuie]

"It's like wishing Shakespeare was alive today so he could write for Sex in the City", um, that's a bit of a stretch. The difference between the two is writing talent, not technology.

When used in the hands of a competent and visionary director, modern film techniques can greatly enhance the experience. There's no doubt to me that Hitchcock would've embraced it in a big way. Don't forget that Hitch always made the most of the 'technology' available to him at the time and tried to push it.

[donstuie]

Also, I'm not just referring to cgi. I'm referring also to modern cameras, HD, non-linear editing, as well as new lighting and sound techniques. Hitch would've tried any technique to get his canvas perfect. The industry's come a long way not just for cgi, but the entire medium.

Few of us are in any doubt that he would've been able to create some absolute masterworks if he had the benefits filmmakers enjoy today because of himself and people like Kubrick, John Ford, Kurosawa and others.

[OrphanSeasun]

The Shakespeare comment was about an artist's placement in time; the arrogant notion that our time is somehow more advanced is ridiculous. Hitch and Shakespeare were of their time and thank goodness for it. And please don't make fallacious remarks like, "few of us are in doubt", as if to marginalize my opinion. HD lowers cost, but it wasn't responsible for the avant- in "Inland Empire". Advanced editing techniques are not new and Hitch employed them. Ideas are the crux not a claim to modernity.

[OrphanSeasun]

My mistake - I meant digital video not HD. Anyway, you're certainly allowed your opinion and believe it or not I share some of it. Peace.

[findjustin]

The fact that there was not very much technology is what makes it so great.

With todays movies, everything is fake and lacking imagination because we can have a computer do it for us.

[patch5129]

He was Knighted?

[bnoon]

the birds is my least favorite hitch film.. its sadly become too dated in my opinion : (

[grtdthmetal]

i love that movie cause its funny of how low tech it is!

[maxpower789z]

Respectfully disagree about The Birds being a dated film...I watched it at the Fox Theater in Fullerton, CA with a full crowd and the suspense and tension is just as poignant as it was then. At the point when Mrs. Brenner discovers the farmer, you can feel/hear the crowd gasp at the split second image on the screen...just one of many good moments and a good movie to watch for any era.

[bnoon]

haha wow i live in la mirada CA : )... but anyways youre probably right. I normally have no problems getting into old film, but i just couldnt get over some of the elements of this film. Although I will say so of the special effects are mind blowing!

[ausendundeinenacht]

Birds kinda CHANGES i n Yr perception over the YEARS actually

i intuiyively DISliked it as A Child

Like Van Gogh staring at me fr Reproductions in my CHILDhood

HOWEVER things that IMPACT on you stay LONGER in your mind

Anyone AGREES wiyh me here by any Chance?

[SHRINA17]

I so agree with you! What a great film. Just re-watched it a few weeks back on TCM! I never tire of it!

[blinkzone1]

"all breasts sag eventually" HAHA Hitchcock homie 4 life! :D

[MozTS]

hitchcock was a total pimp. Out takes from his earlier films shows he's got a really perverted sense of humour

[Sergionewyork]

SEEDS!

[giardia2]

thanks for posting.

when was this recorded?

[jpsartreny]

Dick looks like a polite version of willem defore : )

[CrazyShortsCrew]

willam dafoe.

[densomtarhanhar]

Willem Dafoe

[Ethaniel82]

"All breasts sag eventually" ROFL

[ruloaas]

Que tipo grosso. El mas grosso despues de Orson Welles. La persona dig :P

[NGS712]

The Master.

[meddetect10]

Yeah, but he had more money than you! HAHA

[CrazyShortsCrew]

nice.

[HaystackCaldoon]

Hitchcock was fabulously intelligent and had a wonderful sense of dry humor... it's a joy to get to hear more examples of that humor. :)

[LTopomcFly]

at one part, he mentions having a dinner party and dying all of the food blue. and then not acknowledging it at all. he really is one of the few people ever filmed who can intentionally make me laugh.

[illusivep]

BRILLIANT.

[magget16]

shame he couldnt be alive today , what with the unrestrictive boundries and cgi.

[ThatsGoodTellivision]

but he could do it without cgi

[ausendundeinenacht]

wtf

[bleachynaruto1]

It's such a shame Hitchcock died, he is hilarious despite how he talks and this pwns today's midnight talk shows.

[MRCAB]

"considering the weather over there, I'm surprised" LOL

[xravenscroftx]

"-or i did 'til you said that..." LOL!

i love this interview!

[paradeaddict]

cant believe he was creammated after death

[RespectDiCaprio]

Listening to him talk is endlessly fascinating.

[bashthebandello]

genuis

[noirnoticvibe]

man alfreds hands are HUGE!!!!! but so is his genius

[DeanLeonard1]

You know what they say: Big hands, big...talent!

[pertou]

Please....

[djpancake]

hah excellent - good retort by cavett too