![]() ![]() To this end, Hitchcock's assistants and trusted collaborators combed through more than 2,000 submissions looking for his next project - and that turned out to be Psycho. However, he had always been very careful not to fall into a creative rut and, for his 47th feature film, he was ready to try something new. He had enjoyed a recent string of successes with projects like Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, and The Man Who Knew Too Much. Hitchcock was at the height of his career in the late 1950s. After netting only $5,000 (without any bonus or profit participation), Bloch learned that the rights to his novel had been bought by none other than Alfred Hitchcock, Hollywood's "Master of Suspense." ![]() New to the movie business, Bloch agreed to sell the rights for $10,000, out of which large percentages went to his agent and to Simon and Schuster. Bloch's agent, who had sent out advance copies to various movie studios, received an offer from MCA for the film rights. ![]() Simon and Schuster published Bloch's novel in 1959, and while some readers and critics denounced Bloch's graphic depiction of violence, the shocking mystery sold well. In 1957, mystery novelist Robert Bloch was inspired to write Psycho after studying the grisly details of the crimes committed by serial killer Ed Gein, who notoriously slaughtered nearly 40 women over 10 years. ![]()
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