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Audiobooks > Biography & Autobiography >  Entertainment & Performing Arts > The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock

Download The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock Audiobook

Extended Audio Sample The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock Audiobook, by Donald Spoto Click for printable size audiobook cover
3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5 3.00 (434 ratings) (rate this audio book) Author: Donald Spoto Narrator: Jeff Riggenbach Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Format: Unabridged Audiobook Delivery: Instant Download Audio Length: Release Date: August 2012 ISBN: 9781455175499
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The story of the man who changed people’s relationships with their showers forever, thanks to Psycho, this is the classic, Edgar Award–winning biography of the enigmatic and intensely private Alfred Hitchcock. One of America’s greatest film directors, his suspenseful subject matter ranged from the dark drama of a man possibly trying to kill his wife, to the humorous problem of disposing of a body, to the ecological underpinnings of an attack by fowl fiends in a sleepy harbor town. Acclaimed biographer Donald Spoto explores the roots of Hitchcock’s obsessions—with food, murder, and idealized love, among others—and traces the origins of his incomparable, bizarre genius, from his childhood and education to the golden years of his career. Based on interviews with his writers, actors, and longtime associates, and on exhaustive research, The Dark Side of Genius is the definitive biography of Alfred Hitchcock.

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Quotes & Awards

  • “The finest book about a filmmaker yet. Sensational in its revelations; at the same time, a biography of unassailable integrity. I could not put it down.”

    Gregory Peck 

  • “Absolutely compulsory reading.”

    New York Times Book Review

  • “A vivid and perceptive portrait…Knowledgeable and revealing.”

    Time

  • “With unblinking objectivity and insight, Spoto sets a balanced account of a man who shaped his fears and repressions into a powerful and popular art.”

    Newsweek

  • “Ranks with the best literary and political lives.”

    Observer (London)

  •  “An exemplary piece of cinema scholarship.”

    Washington Post

  • “A real page-turner, and as complete a picture as we are likely to get.”

    Variety
  • Winner of the 1984 Edgar Allan Poe Award for best critical or biographical work.

Listener Opinions

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Vania Melamed | 2/19/2014

    " The original M. Night Shayamalan. "

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Mark | 2/15/2014

    " As engrossing as one of Hitchcock's movies, I loved this book. Not only is it an illuminating pyschological portait, but also an in depth look at this technique, his obsessions, his art and his world. I not only learned about his films but about film in general, film as art and film in a historical and cultural context. Those juicy enough to be thought speculative, its as well documented and researched as it possiibly can be. I'd heard this was a contreversial take on Hitchcock but I would imagine that's because it's at odds with the image of the reticent gentlemen he so often presented. Loved it! "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Bea | 2/8/2014

    " Audiobook. How much can you really extrapololate from the films to the man? I found a lot of the prose in this biography unnecessarily mean-spirited. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 L | 2/6/2014

    " Very interesting, especially if you have just recently seen some of his films. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Elena | 1/21/2014

    " This book is very indepth, filmmaker reading material; about the greatest and most complex director. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Adam Philips | 1/20/2014

    " I last read this book when I was in college. Getting a lot more out of it now. "

  • 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5 Nicholas Kobach | 1/10/2014

    " has some facts since found out to be fictitious, but still a pretty good bio. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 HankinsonHolmes | 1/9/2014

    " If you think Steve Jobs was a some odd genius, you must read this griping account of Hitchcock. Hitch was another immensely talented but complicated and strange individual that could be both disarming with his charm and then shockingly odd in his actions and manners. You will not be disappointed. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Linda | 12/20/2013

    " Engrossing read-didn't know Hitchcock had such a fear of his own mortality. Lots of dirt about various stars. "

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 TMJ Jennings | 12/16/2013

    " Fascinating insight into the life of directing genius Alfred Hitchcock. Find out the back stories behind his successes and what drove him. Psychologically revealing. "

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Elana | 11/20/2013

    " What a complex mind the Master of Suspense possessed! Spoto does his best to make sense of Hitchcock as a man and the greatest auteur filmmaker of all time. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Kristina | 10/29/2013

    " I took a Hitchcock class in undergrad - what a f*%#ked up individual but strangely alluring artist/auteur. Funnily enough, I wrote a screenplay as a final project, which provoked Tippi Hedren to mastermind his murder. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Marvin | 10/15/2013

    " A powerful biography on the master director and showman. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Thurston | 8/28/2013

    " MADMAN! read the book, then watch all of his movies. "

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Laura | 8/7/2013

    " super research and full of details. loved it! "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 David | 6/12/2013

    " Savory for Hitchcock fans. "

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Bruce | 5/13/2013

    " Wonderful film by film explanation of why Hitchcock was Hitchcock. "

  • 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5 Whitaker | 5/2/2013

    " A really great book shows us how everything is great and worth to die for "

  • 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Miyo | 4/10/2013

    " spellbinding biography on master filmmaker. He was one sick puppy. "

  • 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Jane Mettee | 12/3/2012

    " I have been a big Hitchcok fan since I was a kid in the 1950s. I knew nothing about him as a person so this was interesting. The book provides an analysis of many of his movies and I have seen most of them. For some people this may be more than you want to know but I liked it alot. "

  • 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5 Kevin | 9/4/2012

    " Whatever you wanted to know about Hitchcock and/or his movies can be found here. "

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About the Author
Author Donald Spoto

Donald Spoto is the author of more than twenty books, including bestselling biographies of Alfred Hitchcock, Tennessee Williams, Laurence Olivier, Marlene Dietrich, Ingrid Bergman, and Audrey Hepburn. He lives with his husband, Danish artist and school administrator Ole Flemming Larsen, near Copenhagen, Denmark.

About the Narrator

Jeff Riggenbach has narrated numerous titles for Blackstone Audio and won an AudioFile Earphones Award. An author, contributing editor, and producer, he has worked in radio in San Francisco for the last thirty years, earning a Golden Mike Award for journalistic excellence.

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