Alfred Hitchcock

British film director, born in 1899. The "Master of Suspense," he began directing in Britain in the 1920s, where his early sound films included Blackmail (1929), Murder! (1930), and The 39 Steps (1935). He moved to Hollywood in 1939 and made Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), Psycho (1960), and The Birds (1963). Known for his mastery of tension, his droll public persona, and his trademark cameo appearances in his own films. He died in 1980.