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Author Donald Spoto (above) returns to Hitchcock with another fascinating book delving into the director's tortured psyche
Hitchcock Historian:
Spellbound by Beauty-The Dark Side of Genius
11-12-08 "Knight Thoughts" web exclusive
By Richard Knight, Jr.
Although I'm always to be found reading books about film (mostly biographies and autobiographies) I rarely if ever write about them
myself.  That's because most of them aren't particularly well written and only true lovers of the genre, I think, would be interested in
reading my recommendations.  But every once in a while, a writer really captures my imagination when it comes to film writing.  
Foster Hirsch is one and Donald Spoto is another.

I first encountered Spoto's writing with his marvelous biography of Alfred Hitchcock,
The Dark Side of Genius, which he wrote in
the mid 1990s.  Now he's followed up that fascinating tome (well worth seeking out) with another look at Hitch and his obsession with
his leading ladies.  Titled
Spellbound by Beauty the book doesn't offer many new information to what Spoto wrote in his first
book on Hitchcock but it's nevertheless a wonderfully entertaining read and for the uninitiated, a good starting point into the mind of
the well known film director.  Lovely
Tippi Hedren, the last of Hitch's cool blondes, who he discovered in a diet drink commercial and
made a star with The Birds and Marnie before casting her aside (when she refused his advances, she claims) is featured on the cover
of the book, seated alongside the master who had chosen her wardrobe for the occasion!

That's just one of the many tidbits you'll discover when delving into Spoto's fabu-lush book.  Enjoy!