Growing up in the era in which I did, I’m often caught assuring readers that television of the bygone era doesn’t much resemble the broadcast universe of today.
Of course, there are dozens of notable distinctions, far too many for me to elucidate in a single think-piece or review. The biggest difference, perhaps, is the fact that most everything than transpired was truly episodic in nature: there were few attempts at any ‘long form format,’ and each 30 or 60-minute installment truly told its own story. While programs centered on regular cast members might reexamine some adventures that were cracked previously, the vast majority of what home audiences watched were individual stories with their own respective ideas, guest stars, messages, and morals. This wasn’t always the case but more often than not this was just the way programming operated, and the only real variety were the various genres TV producers mined along the way.
Even more strongly was that the case for anthologies shows. Rarely if ever did a character ever return to these unique universes. The mechanics of production being what they were, it wasn’t uncommon for the same actor or actress to turn up again; but their return engagement always meant that the familiar face would be playing some other smiler – good or bad – in that particular yarn. Studios were still kinda/sorta transitioning out of signing contract players to their stables, but because that old framework was still in place it wasn’t uncommon for known commodities to come back next season in some new adventure. Besides, these episodes were usually so far apart no one ever really knew much less cared. Viewers were here for the stories: the faces were always coming and going.
That said, one of the biggest achievements in the anthology category was Alfred Hitchcock Presents, a show that ran an incredible season sevens – in its half-hour format – only then to find itself retooled for another three seasons in a 60-minute incarnation. Though audiences back in the day may not have noticed the programming change (well, except for the length and the time when it switched from one popular network to another), the truth is that Presents became ‘appointment television’ for so many once they were introduced to the thrills, chills, and spills that went hand-in-hand with Hitchcock’s signature storytelling. The series was so popular that it spawned a small series of tie-in books, albums, and – gasp! – even a board game.
A phenomenon was born … and now it’s great to have the lion’s share of this entertainment available on DVD under the name of Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the show’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Stories of terror, horror and suspense presented by Alfred Hitchcock.”
Growing up in the 1970’s, I had the chance to enjoy Alfred Hitchcock Presents via television syndication. Because I was much more of a Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror fan, the anthology was not quite ever my first choice – not that I had much choice back in the dark days before home video and streaming – but it was still a 30-minute diversion I was happy to take when needing to be whisked away from the cares of grade school and/or junior high school. Mind you: I didn’t watch back then for the purposes of reviewing or learning. This was pure escapism. On that front, it was quality enjoyment.
Because I was slowly evolving into a fan of classic detective fiction (much of which was still descended from the pulps from decades earlier), Presents felt like a natural derivation of such storytelling. Often times, the stories were adapted from tales written by some of those favored authors; so the episodes had the basic ‘good versus evil’ structure with a heavy leaning on noir sensibilities wherein even the good guys might have to do something bad in order to bring the tale to closure. But all of the best installments had the kind of twist that populated anthologies – the kind of unexpected development that today’s M. Night Shymalan builds into practically everything he develops – and it was the great Alfred Hitchcock who worked magic with such a concept originally.
As I grew a bit older, I did branch out and explore some of Hitchcock’s biggest and most revered theatrical outings. Sure, there were a good number that didn’t mean much to me – as a young’un, I was more interested in stories with obvious and less subversive criminal elements – and even to this day I really don’t have much good to say about the auteur’s most critically accomplished outings. Though some of this is easily attributed to what I think works visually (especially when stretched over 90-minutes), I’d honestly confess more of it is owed to the fact that my first love – at least, so far as Hitchcock is concerned – were these shorter and vastly quicker excursions. Young minds being what they are, I grew to appreciate twists that arrived after sufficient set-up: two-hours, for me, seemed like a long time to get lost in the weeds. As a consequence, I loved his shorter works much more than his film entries.
To the program’s credit, Presents was up for Primetime Emmy consideration (across all categories) an incredible thirteen times, three times of which nominees took home top honors. The show was honored with the 1958 Golden Globe award in the category of ‘Television Achievement.’ And even decades later there are episodes of the show that resonate so strongly with those who study entertainment that they’re included as considerations for the best that’s ever been told on television. Those facts alone mean that there’s no way any individual review can be fair to everything that Hitchcock and his cast and crew accomplished in those days; so I’ll be penning some individual episode reviews in the days ahead to try to highlight some of what I think deserves a bit of extra attention.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection (1955-1962) was produced by Alfred J Hitchcock Productions, Shamley Productions, Revue Studios, and (eventually when it was retooled) Universal Television (from 1963-1965 as the Alfred Hitchcock Hour). DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I can still assure readers that the provided sights and sounds are pretty solid – they’re probably not as crisp as what’s been delivered on sets of The Twilight Zone, and yet they are all still very good. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? The Legacy collection set includes a retrospective documentary titled Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Look Back along with a featurette exploring the art of Hitchcock productions. While they’re nice, there’s certainly room for much, much more considering this set is a whopping thirty-four discs.
Highest recommendation possible.
Frankly, there’s no possible way to be fair to Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection in a single review, mostly because there’s just vastly too much material to cover. Regardless, the series remains a benchmark from the Golden Age of Television, deservedly standing shoulder-to-shoulder with anthologies equally as influential as The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. The comparisons don’t stop there – one could easily insist that these stories with some of storytelling’s biggest narrative twists should occupy the same universe (or, at least, adjoining ones) – as many intellectuals insist that it was this show that truly paved the way for the legendary director to grow into the industry juggernaut he became. Naturally, not every single installment is a winner; and it’s safe to suggest that a good deal of thrillers do kinda/sorta repeat some of what was explored before. But there’s far more love in here than there is to hate; and I heartily encourage those who celebrate mysteries with a hint of the macabre to give this set a whirl. You will not be disappointed.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Universal Studios (via Allied Vaughn) provided me with a complimentary set of Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
Of course, there are dozens of notable distinctions, far too many for me to elucidate in a single think-piece or review. The biggest difference, perhaps, is the fact that most everything than transpired was truly episodic in nature: there were few attempts at any ‘long form format,’ and each 30 or 60-minute installment truly told its own story. While programs centered on regular cast members might reexamine some adventures that were cracked previously, the vast majority of what home audiences watched were individual stories with their own respective ideas, guest stars, messages, and morals. This wasn’t always the case but more often than not this was just the way programming operated, and the only real variety were the various genres TV producers mined along the way.
Even more strongly was that the case for anthologies shows. Rarely if ever did a character ever return to these unique universes. The mechanics of production being what they were, it wasn’t uncommon for the same actor or actress to turn up again; but their return engagement always meant that the familiar face would be playing some other smiler – good or bad – in that particular yarn. Studios were still kinda/sorta transitioning out of signing contract players to their stables, but because that old framework was still in place it wasn’t uncommon for known commodities to come back next season in some new adventure. Besides, these episodes were usually so far apart no one ever really knew much less cared. Viewers were here for the stories: the faces were always coming and going.
That said, one of the biggest achievements in the anthology category was Alfred Hitchcock Presents, a show that ran an incredible season sevens – in its half-hour format – only then to find itself retooled for another three seasons in a 60-minute incarnation. Though audiences back in the day may not have noticed the programming change (well, except for the length and the time when it switched from one popular network to another), the truth is that Presents became ‘appointment television’ for so many once they were introduced to the thrills, chills, and spills that went hand-in-hand with Hitchcock’s signature storytelling. The series was so popular that it spawned a small series of tie-in books, albums, and – gasp! – even a board game.
A phenomenon was born … and now it’s great to have the lion’s share of this entertainment available on DVD under the name of Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the show’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Stories of terror, horror and suspense presented by Alfred Hitchcock.”
Growing up in the 1970’s, I had the chance to enjoy Alfred Hitchcock Presents via television syndication. Because I was much more of a Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror fan, the anthology was not quite ever my first choice – not that I had much choice back in the dark days before home video and streaming – but it was still a 30-minute diversion I was happy to take when needing to be whisked away from the cares of grade school and/or junior high school. Mind you: I didn’t watch back then for the purposes of reviewing or learning. This was pure escapism. On that front, it was quality enjoyment.
Because I was slowly evolving into a fan of classic detective fiction (much of which was still descended from the pulps from decades earlier), Presents felt like a natural derivation of such storytelling. Often times, the stories were adapted from tales written by some of those favored authors; so the episodes had the basic ‘good versus evil’ structure with a heavy leaning on noir sensibilities wherein even the good guys might have to do something bad in order to bring the tale to closure. But all of the best installments had the kind of twist that populated anthologies – the kind of unexpected development that today’s M. Night Shymalan builds into practically everything he develops – and it was the great Alfred Hitchcock who worked magic with such a concept originally.
As I grew a bit older, I did branch out and explore some of Hitchcock’s biggest and most revered theatrical outings. Sure, there were a good number that didn’t mean much to me – as a young’un, I was more interested in stories with obvious and less subversive criminal elements – and even to this day I really don’t have much good to say about the auteur’s most critically accomplished outings. Though some of this is easily attributed to what I think works visually (especially when stretched over 90-minutes), I’d honestly confess more of it is owed to the fact that my first love – at least, so far as Hitchcock is concerned – were these shorter and vastly quicker excursions. Young minds being what they are, I grew to appreciate twists that arrived after sufficient set-up: two-hours, for me, seemed like a long time to get lost in the weeds. As a consequence, I loved his shorter works much more than his film entries.
To the program’s credit, Presents was up for Primetime Emmy consideration (across all categories) an incredible thirteen times, three times of which nominees took home top honors. The show was honored with the 1958 Golden Globe award in the category of ‘Television Achievement.’ And even decades later there are episodes of the show that resonate so strongly with those who study entertainment that they’re included as considerations for the best that’s ever been told on television. Those facts alone mean that there’s no way any individual review can be fair to everything that Hitchcock and his cast and crew accomplished in those days; so I’ll be penning some individual episode reviews in the days ahead to try to highlight some of what I think deserves a bit of extra attention.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection (1955-1962) was produced by Alfred J Hitchcock Productions, Shamley Productions, Revue Studios, and (eventually when it was retooled) Universal Television (from 1963-1965 as the Alfred Hitchcock Hour). DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I can still assure readers that the provided sights and sounds are pretty solid – they’re probably not as crisp as what’s been delivered on sets of The Twilight Zone, and yet they are all still very good. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? The Legacy collection set includes a retrospective documentary titled Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Look Back along with a featurette exploring the art of Hitchcock productions. While they’re nice, there’s certainly room for much, much more considering this set is a whopping thirty-four discs.
Highest recommendation possible.
Frankly, there’s no possible way to be fair to Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection in a single review, mostly because there’s just vastly too much material to cover. Regardless, the series remains a benchmark from the Golden Age of Television, deservedly standing shoulder-to-shoulder with anthologies equally as influential as The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. The comparisons don’t stop there – one could easily insist that these stories with some of storytelling’s biggest narrative twists should occupy the same universe (or, at least, adjoining ones) – as many intellectuals insist that it was this show that truly paved the way for the legendary director to grow into the industry juggernaut he became. Naturally, not every single installment is a winner; and it’s safe to suggest that a good deal of thrillers do kinda/sorta repeat some of what was explored before. But there’s far more love in here than there is to hate; and I heartily encourage those who celebrate mysteries with a hint of the macabre to give this set a whirl. You will not be disappointed.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Universal Studios (via Allied Vaughn) provided me with a complimentary set of Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
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