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Alfred Hitchcock Presents: My Favorites in Suspense

US hardback

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: My Favorites in Suspense

Acknowledgements

  • The editor gratefully acknowledges the invaluable assistance of Patricia O'Connell in the preparation of this volume.

Contents

  1. Introduction by Alfred Hitchcock (ghost written)
  2. The Birds by Daphne du Maurier
  3. Man with a Problem by Donald Honig
  4. They Bite by Anthony Boucher
  5. The Enemy by Charlotte Armstrong
  6. The Inexperienced Ghost by H.G. Wells
  7. Sentence of Death by Thomas Walsh
  8. Spring Fever by Dorothy Salisbury Davis
  9. The Crate at Outpost 1 by Matthew Gant
  10. My Unfair Lady by Guy Cullingford
  11. New Murders for Old by Carter Dickson
  12. Terrified by C.B. Gilford
  13. The Duel by Joan Vatsek
  14. Four O'Clock by Price Day
  15. Too Many Coincidences by Paul Eiden
  16. Of Missing Persons by Jack Finney
  17. Island of Fear by William Sambrot
  18. Getting Rid of George by Robert Arthur
  19. Treasure Trove by F. Tennyson Jesse
  20. The Body of the Crime by Wilbur Daniel Steele
  21. A Nice Touch by Mann Rubin
  22. Composition for Four Hands by Hilda Lawrence
  23. The Blank Wall by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding

Introduction

After spending a week end in the country, a friend of mine invariably sends his host a book. Recently it occurred to me that through television I have spent many Sunday evenings in your homes yet I have never thanked you properly. Ergo, this book. Of course I don't believe my friend charges for the books he sends, but no matter. It's the thought that counts.

Most prefaces soon become defensive, disintegrate into lengthy explanations of why certain stories have been chosen, and the anthologists quickly become apologists. The stories in this volume have only one reason for being here and that is explained in the title. I can only say that I like them. I very much hope that you will too.

A suspense story is not simply a Who-done-it. It might better be called a When's-he-gonna-do-it. I don't think I'm giving away any secrets when I tell you that in most of these stories somebody does do it. So don't say you haven't been warned.

There are those who say that the reading of a mystery or suspense story has a therapeutic value; cleansing one of his homicidal tendencies and allowing him to enjoy those crimes he has always wanted to commit but didn't because he lacked the get-up-and-go. If this is true, I think we have crimes to relieve every possible suppressed desire — or at least all the normal ones. You will find mentioned herein: a knifing or two, suffocation, cremation, bludgeoning, one or two stranglings, a few drownings and some shootings. Furthermore there are a number of cases which defy classification since the characters meet their ends in highly original ways, having little or no known precedent. I am confident that several of these cheerful little stories will put an end to the loose talk about truth being stranger than fiction.

I don't wish to spend too much time introducing these tales. I believe it was Henry James who observed, when speaking of prefatory pieces such as this, that when a work of creative literature is introduced to the reader at great length, when fiction is too carefully interpreted, explained and annotated, it is like having a dinner guest brought to the house by a policeman. This is the last thing I wish to do. I much prefer that you feel that this dinner guest to whom you are opening your home is a complete stranger and that there is no policeman within screaming distance.

And now, if you are anxious to curl up with a good book, perhaps we should be getting on. (My final parenthetical remark: the only things I know of that actually like to curl up with a good book are the silverfish in my basement.) When you begin reading, may I suggest you choose a time when you are alone in the house. If there are people there, get rid of them. The book is full of suggestions of how this can be accomplished. Now turn out all the lights you possibly can, look over the stories and take one before retiring. If you want to sample another, help yourself, but be careful. An overdose could be fatal. After all, this is a highly toxic book.

Alfred J. Hitchcock

US paperback

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: 14 of My Favorites in Suspense

  • published in December 1960 in the USA by Dell Publishing (paperback)
  • 286 pages

Contents

  1. The Birds by Daphne du Maurier
  2. Man with a Problem by Donald Honig
  3. They Bite by Anthony Boucher
  4. The Enemy by Charlotte Armstrong
  5. The Inexperienced Ghost by H.G. Wells
  6. Sentence of Death by Thomas Walsh
  7. Spring Fever by Dorothy Salisbury Davis
  8. The Crate at Outpost 1 by Matthew Gant
  9. My Unfair Lady by Guy Cullingford
  10. New Murders for Old by Carter Dickson
  11. Terrified by C.B. Gilford
  12. The Duel by Joan Vatsek
  13. Four O'Clock by Price Day
  14. Too Many Coincidences by Paul Eiden

Inner Page

Sardonic Shockers Selected by Alfred Hitchcock...

The not so gentle man who knows all the angles (especially the sharp ones) and all the ropes (the hanging kind).

From his deep-freeze of ingenious chillers — incredible only to the unimaginative and horrifyingly real to the shrewd and daring — the following fourteen tales of intrigue were cunningly chosen to startle as well as satisfy, while above all holding you in the clammy grasp of...

SUSPENSE

Preface

After spending a week end in the country, a friend of mine invariably sends his host a book. Recently it occurred to me that through television I have spent many Sunday evenings in your homes yet I have never thanked you properly. Ergo, this book. Of course I don't believe my friend charges for the books he sends, but no matter. It's the thought that counts.

Most prefaces soon become defensive, disintegrate into lengthy explanations of why certain stories have been chosen, and the anthologists quickly become apologists. The stories in this volume have only one reason for being here and that is explained in the title. I can only say that I like them. I very much hope that you will too.

A suspense story is not simply a Who-done-it. It might better be called a When's-he-gonna-do-it. I don't think I'm giving away any secrets when I tell you that in most of these stories somebody does do it So don't say you haven't been warned.

There are those who say that the reading of a mystery or suspense story has a therapeutic value; cleansing one of his homicidal tendencies and allowing him to enjoy those crimes he has always wanted to commit but didn't because he lacked the get-up-and-go. If this is true, I think we have crimes to relieve every possible suppressed desire—or at least all the normal ones. I am confident that several of these cheerful little stories will put an end to the loose talk about truth being stranger than fiction.

I don't wish to spend too much time introducing these tales. I believe it was Henry James who observed, when speaking of prefatory pieces such as this, that when a work of creative literature is introduced to the reader at great length, when fiction is too carefully interpreted, explained and annotated, it is like having a dinner guest brought to the house by a policeman. This is the last thing I wish to do. I much prefer that you feel that this dinner guest to whom you are opening your home is a complete stranger and that there is no policeman within screaming distance.

And now, if you are anxious to curl up with a good book, perhaps we should be getting on, (My final parenthetical remark: the only things I know of that actually like to curl up with a good book are the silverfish in my basement.) When you begin reading, may I suggest you choose a time when you are alone in the house. If there are people there, get rid of them. The book is full of suggestions of how this can be accomplished. Now turn out all the lights you possibly can, look over the stories and take one before retiring. If you want to sample another, help yourself, but be careful. An overdose could be fatal. After all, this is a highly toxic book.

ALFRED J. HITCHCOCK

Back Page

14 chilled potions of horror with a wry twist of Hitchcock... concocted by masters of the macabre

US paperback

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: More of My Favorites in Suspense

Tagline

  • Six ingenious stories and an exceptional novelette in the inimitable Hitchcock manner.

Contents

  1. Of Missing Persons by Jack Finney
  2. Island of Fear by William Sambrot
  3. Getting Rid of George by Robert Arthur
  4. Treasure Trove by F. Tennyson Jesse
  5. The Body of the Crime by Wilbur Daniel Steele
  6. A Nice Touch by Mann Rubin
  7. Composition for Four Hands by Hilda Lawrence
  8. The Blank Wall by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding

Notes

UK paperback

Alfred Hitchcock: My Favourites in Suspense - Part One

Tagline

  • A clutch of startling tales specially chosen by the master of the macabre

Contents

  1. The Birds by Daphne du Maurier
  2. Man With a Problem by Donald Honig
  3. They Bite by Anthony Boucher
  4. The Enemy by Charlotte Armstrong
  5. The Inexperienced Ghost by H. G. Wells
  6. Sentence of Death by Thomas Walsh
  7. Spring Fever by Dorothy Salisbury Davis
  8. The Crate at Outpost 1 by Matthew Gant
  9. My Unfair Lady by Guy Cullingford
  10. New Murders for Old by Carter Dickson
  11. Terrified by C. B. Gilford
  12. Composition for Four Hands novelette by Hilda Lawrence
UK paperback

Alfred Hitchcock: My Favourites in Suspense - Part Two

Tagline

  • Another assortment of tales selected by a master in the fine art of terror

Contents

Dutch paperback

Nieuwe Verhalen Die Hitchcock Koos

  • published in 1961 in Holland by Prisma-Boeken (paperback)[1]

Contents

  1. The Birds by Daphne du Maurier
  2. Man with a Problem by Donald Honig
  3. Sentence of Death by Thomas Walsh
  4. New Murders for Old by Carter Dickson
  5. Terrified by C.B. Gilford
  6. Too Many Coincidences by Paul Eiden
  7. Of Missing Persons by Jack Finney
  8. Getting Rid of George by Robert Arthur
  9. Treasure Trove by F. Tennyson Jesse
  10. My Unfair Lady by Guy Cullingford
  11. The Dumb Wife by Thomas Burke

Notes

Links

  • Open Library - available to borrow as an eBook (Alfred Hitchcock Presents: My Favorites in Suspense)
  • Open Library - available to borrow as an eBook (Alfred Hitchcock Presents: 14 of My Favorites in Suspense)
  • Vault of Evil
  • Casual Debris - An Alfred Hitchcock Anthology Bibliography

Image Gallery

Images from the Hitchcock Gallery (click to view larger versions or search for all relevant images)...

Notes & References

  1. ↑ http://www.deboekenplank.nl/naslag/antho/hitchcock_2.htm
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