Patricia Hitchcock was born on July 7 1928 in London. In 1939 the family moved to Los Angeles so her father could work in Hollywood. She was still a child when she decided that she wanted to act. She made her Broadway debut in 1942 in Solitaire. In 1944 she played the title role in Violet on Broadway. She graduated from Marymount High School in 1947. In 1949 she attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She also appeared in plays on the West End and made her television debut in the TV movie The Case of Thomas Pyke on the BBC. She made her film debut in her father's movie Stage Fright in 1950. She also appeared in the movie The Mudlark (1950).
In the Fifties Miss Hitchcock appeared in her father's film Strangers on a Train (1951) as Barbara Morton, the younger sister of Anne Morton (Ruth Roman). She appeared in a bit part in The Ten Commandments (1956) and a role in her father's classic Psycho (1960). In the Fifties she made several appearances on Alfred Hitchcock Presents as well as her father's other series Suspicion. She also guest starred on the show Suspense, My Little Margie, Front Row Center, Screen Directors Playhouse, Matinee Theatre, The Life of Riley, and Playhouse 90. She appeared on Broadway in The High Ground in 1951.
Pat Hitchcock retired from acting to raise her children, but she appeared in the TV movies feature film Skateboard (1978) and in the TV movies Ladies of the Corridor and Six Characters in Search of an Author.
Following her retirement from acting, Pat Hitchcock continued to contribute to Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. She served as an executive producer on the documentary The Man on Lincoln's Nose (2000), which centred on art director Robert F. Boyle. She co-wrote a biography on her mother, Alma Hitchcock: The Woman Behind the Man, with Laurent Bouzereau.
I have always thought Pat Hitchcock was underrated as an actress. She only appeared in Stage Fright briefly, but she was memorable as an enthusiastic acting student. In Strangers on a Train Miss Hitchcock stole every scene she was in as the slightly morbid, plain spoken Barbara Morton. Beyond her appearances in films, there was also her many appearances on television. She shined in her many appearances on Alfred Hitchcock Presents, whether as a daughter seeking her missing mother in "Into Thin Air" or a rural schoolteacher in The Belfry. I always wished Pat Hitchcock had appeared in more movies and TV shows.
Of course, Pat Hitchcock also did a wonderful job of keeping her parents' legacies alive. She regularly appeared in documentaries about her parents and gave many interviews about them over the years. And while a good deal of attention was always paid to her father, Alfred Hitchcock, Pat Hitchcock made sure her mother Alma always got attention too. As both an actress and a living tie to film history, she was wonderful.
3 comments:
I confess that I don't know much about the Hitchcock family, so this is a loving tribute and an educational experience.
It's sad that they didn't include her in the Hitchcock biopic with Anthony Hopkins. But you've written a lovely tribute to her now and adding her appearances to my to watch pile.
I'm like John here--I didn't know that much about Pat Hitchcock--but this is very interesting. Thanks, Terence.
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