Alfred Hitchcock Directs the MGM Lion

Photograph by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1958.

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Thank you to 9teen87

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August 10, 2011 at 10:05 am · Reply

Is it just me or is this a bad Photoshop job? It looks completely fake, especially around the lion’s platform. Why on earth would they dangle a boom mic above the lion. Surely they could obtain the audio separately.

Mads

August 10, 2011 at 12:41 pm · Reply

@GP This was the 50′s. If they recorded it and used an overlay track they would have lost some of the resonance and maybe bass of the lion’s roar, the clapping of the jowls and smack of tongue against sharp teeth, the huff of air as he noses for his prey. As for the rest of the pic, isn’t it fantastic? A true artist at work. Look at the dedication, the fearlessness! How man and beast interact, feeding off each other’s vibrant energy! Gosh, I wish I could have been there.

Radioface

August 10, 2011 at 5:45 pm · Reply

Actually, there was a series of publicity photos like this with Hitch and the MGM lion. He was making NORTH BY NORTHWEST, which was his first and only film for MGM. There was another where he was sitting down at a table with the lion, pouring a cup of tea.