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Unearthing Hitchcock's Lost films for New Book Details a FascinatingJames Bond Feature that Never Happened
SAN FRANCISCO, February 2, 2018: What might have happened had Alfred Hitchcock taken on the direction of the first James Bond film? According to a new book, The Lost Hitchcocks, it almost happened. A host of problems caused the 007 producers to head in another direction, but the story offers a fascinating glimpse behind a film that could have changed movie history.
The Lost Hitchcocks, by John William Law, looks back at the career of Alfred Hitchcock, but not through the lens of the countless motion pictures and TV shows that made him famous. He takes readers behind the scenes of a series of motion pictures that the Master of Suspense attempted to make, but ultimately dropped for one reason or another.
For the 007 franchise, Hitchcock's James Bond would have become the very first James Bond film. 'A lot of people don't know that Ian Fleming wanted Hitchcock as the director of the first Bond film. He created a unique screenplay, tentatively entitled Longitude 78 West, but the timing wasn't right and Fleming would end up reworking the idea into a book called Thunderball, which would become the fourth film in the franchise in 1965.
Law details the story behind the lost Bond picture and how Fleming approached the role of director. 'It's hard to imagine Hitchcock filming 007, but he was a fan of the books and reportedly wanted to film Casino Royal after reading the book in the 1950s.
Another surprising film Law writes about would have been a suspense film starring Audrey Hepburn. Had it come together, Psycho might never have been made. While many of Hitchcock's classic suspense films are well remembered, with every success came a failure or a film that got away. The new book takes a look back at those unfinished features.
With major stars assigned, budgets acquired, locations selected and scripts written, many of these films hold a lost promise of what might-have-been had the director been able to realize his vision. 'These films offer as fascinating a story as the many classics he left us with, says Law. 'But with these stories, we are left wondering what these films might have turned out like, had he been able to work out the issues he encountered.
While a number of the films would be made by other directors, some would be lost forever, never to be put to film. 'Of the films that were completed by others, you can imagine what they might have been like had Hitchcock directed them, says the author. 'For those that never were, we can only piece together his concepts to see where he wanted to go.
Films like Titanic, The Wreck of the Mary Deare, and The Bramble Bush represented features that were ultimately completed by other directors, while films like Flamingo Feather, The Blind Man and his final film, The Short Night, represent features that never found their way to the big screen.
Of the rarities chronicled in the book, Law writes in depth about two films that bookended Psycho No Bail for the Judge and The Blind Man. 'What's fascinating is that had either of these films come to fruition, Psycho might never have been made, says Law. 'No Bail for the Judge was intended to star Audrey Hepburn in her first Hitchcock picture, while The Blind Man intended to bring back Hitchcock favorite Jimmy Stewart, to the big screen.
Released in January 2018, The Lost Hitchcocks is available in bookstores and through on-line booksellers like Amazon.com, The Lost Hitchcocks is packed with photographs in a perfect-bound, 278-page paperback book, along with a standard ebook on Amazon.com and an enhanced ebook on Apple's iBookstore has been issued. To learn more, visit www.aplombpublishing.com.
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