Anymore Alfred Hitchcock Presents? (1 Viewer)

[JohnOPR]

Will we get a few more season sets of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"? I realize the first season was, to a certain degree, pretty dismal, especially with the disc problems (defects), but I'm still hoping that Universal will release a season 2. Anyone else want this to happen? Anyone know if it's even in the planning stage?

 

[Kenneth V]

I too would like to see more Alfred Hitchcock Presents. This show is a classic. Come on Universal.....release more Hitch!

 

[Michael Alden]

Universal moves like an 80 year old woman so it's still too soon to tell if this show is abandoned yet or not.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

My Mom would like the next set, she went thru the oriinal quickly. I hope this and Night Gallery continues

 

[michael_ks]

Universal has a tendency to dig their own grave when it comes to releases like AHP and NG. Of the major studios they alone have the poorest grasp of customer expectations. They insist the market will only bear minimal restoration, inclusion of extras and barely serviceable packaging and then lament the lower than expected sales figures.

What gets me is Universal is clueless on how word spreads like wildfire across the net over grumbling about issues with discs freezing up, edits made to episodes, spoilers presented on menus, etc. and it's potential impact on sales. Makes my head hurt on how oblivious a company can be...

 

[julienUK]

I didn't dare buying this and I'm a huge fan. used to watch it with my mum when I was a little kid.

I know it's been released here in the Uk but i have no idea if the set is ok or identical to the American release....

Might try to find out!

 

[Jeff#]

I'm in no hurry to buy the next season of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and not just because I've seen them all before in 1980s reruns.

The first season DVDs I have don't contain any video or audio defects whatsoever. Technically they look great! The muddled audio track on some of the 1955-1956 season episodes I suspect were due to them being produced that way.

However...Universal editing out most of the sketches of Hitchcock / music inserts in between Act 1 and 2 of most episodes and also SOME of his introductions and closing remarks is inexcusable! That doesn't mean that the 1956-57 season won't be duplicated and released.

As far as the theme goes, the 1961-62 season (the last as a half hour) was the best because they're true classical music compositions, and at least we got a brief sampling of that in the first season set from the documentary extra.

 

[michael_ks]

I think you mean that the episodes featured original background music scoring from the likes of composers Bernard Herrmann and Lyn Murray...? Classical music it certainly is not.

 

[Jeff#]

Michael, you misunderstood what I said again.

When I say I'm in no hurry to buy the next season of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, I mean that it's not a top priority among the shows that I collect. And yes, I would like to get the entire 10 years of the show. The last 3 as The Alfred Hitchcock Hour were the best overall. In terms of writing, character development, and overall production values, the hour shows are much higher on my my list of episodes that I want to see again than the half-hours, although there are a number of entertaining 1/2 hours from the 6th and 7th season as well.

And regarding that 7th season, the rich orchestration sounds like classical music and that's the most appropriate way to describe it! The same can be said for the 8th season as well. My only complaint about the hour shows is that the 9th and 10th seasons (1963-1965) recycle (and slightly expand) the theme heard during in rerun airings of 1955 shows during just a few of the very earliest episodes. Oddly enough, in the DVD release of the first year, that particular version is missing and instead the bland version heard from 1955 to around 1958 is in every episode.

Also in the syndicated versions, the 1959-1960 oboe version (which I like a lot) was thrown into the ends of a few of the pre-1959 episodes. Does anyone know why that was done?

Don't forget that all versions of the frequently changed Hitchcock theme were based on Charles Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette", which in itself was a classical composition.

 

[michael_ks]

Yes, I would like to have the AHH shows most of all since these, as you say feature greater character depth. That and the original 17 exceptional Bernard Herrmann scores for episodes like "The Jar", "The McGreggor Affair" and "The Life Work of Juan Diaz" makes the hour episodes truly shine. Unfortunately with Universal operating at their usual snail's pace, I doubt whether they'll release anything beyond season 2 or 3 of the half hour shows.