The Best Alfred Hitchcock Movies Ever

He was educated at St. Ignatius College, but left school at 16 to study engineering and navigation at the University of London.

Hitchcock's interest in cinema helped him with a job opening at Paramount studios in London. By the age of 22, he had progressed to assistant director.

With The Pleasure Garden (1925), Hitchcock debuted as a director. His next film, The Lodger (1926), was a success and launched his career. He soon became the most successful director in England.

As World War II loomed over Europe, Hitchcock emigrated to the U.S. to direct Rebecca (1940). While the film won an Oscar, Hitchcock did not win for Best Director.

The 1950s was a richly productive decade for Hitchcock. He made several films that would become minor classics (Dial M for Murder, To Catch a Thief, Strangers on a Train) and four masterpieces: Rear Window, Vertigo, North by Northwest, and Psycho.

In 1955 Hitchcock became a US citizen and began Alfred Hitchcock Presents, the TV show that became a regular feature in the television schedule. His visibility was increased by the uproar over Psycho, which upon its initial release sparked endless debate about the film's onscreen violence.

Hitchcock wrote, produced and directed films up until 1979. His best-known later works include The Birds, Marnie, and Family Plot. In the final year of his life, Hitchcock received the American Film Institute's lifetime achievement award and was knighted in England. He died in 1980 in Los Angeles.