Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Blondes’ Were a Part of His ‘Dark Obsessions’

It is no secret that Alfred Hitchcock loved to cast blonde, gorgeous women in his thrillers. Now, author Laurence Leamer has dived into the lives of eight leading ladies in the new book Hitchcock’s Blondes: The Unforgettable Women Behind the Legendary Director’s Dark Obsession. The famous Grace Kelly appears on the cover of the book because she was reportedly Hitchcock’s favorite blonde.

The women, while given a huge opportunity to star in some of the most iconic movies, were reportedly not always treated with respect on the set. He was often jealous of the men the women chose to date or sleep with and Leamer believes that Hitchcock was in love with Ingrid Bergman in particular.

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Leamer explained further, “He was in some ways a troubled man. He was a dark spirit. He admitted that he was impotent for most of his life. That doesn’t mean you’re not interested in sex. You may be even more interested in it looking at it from a distance. So for these women, he was a voyeur, basically looking at their lives. And he wanted to put them through hell in his films. He was putting them through hell, and the audience sat there and, for whatever reason, they liked watching this.”

'The Birds' Dangerous Obsession: Tippi Hedren Reveals the Darkest Side of Alfred Hitchcock

In celebration of the 60th anniversary of Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece 'The Birds,' we dug up an old interview we did with Tippi Hedren about the famous director.

Remind

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Another leading lady that he put through hell was Tippi Hedren. In 2016, she opened up about how Hitchcock sexually assaulted her and how he used live birds on the set of The Birds to punish her when she did not return his advances. Hitchcock also tortured Kim Novak, by placing a plucked chicken upside down in her dressing room.

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Leamer hopes that readers will see the women in a new light and appreciate them for the great artists they were. He added, “They’re immortal. [And] they’re immortal because of Hitchcock. And they’re immortal because of the magnificent performances they gave Hitchcock.”

Click here to order the book on Amazon.

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Hollywood Glamour

May 2020

Celebrate the most glamorous leading ladies from the Golden Age of Hollywood

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