Phantom Lady: Hollywood Producer Joan Harrison, the Forgotten Woman Behind Hitchcock

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Winner of the Mystery Writers of America's 2021 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Critical/Biographical

In 1933, JoanHarrison was a twenty-six-year-old former salesgirl with a dream of escaping both her stodgy London suburb and the dreadful prospect of settling down with one of the local boys. A few short years later, she was Alfred Hitchcocks confidante and one of the Oscar-nominated screenwriters of his first American film, Rebecca. Harrison had quickly grown from being the worst secretary Hitchcock ever had to one of his closest collaborators, critically shaping his brand as the Master of Suspense.

Harrison went on to produce numerous Hollywood features before becoming a television pioneer as the producer of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. A respected powerhouse, she acquired a singular reputation for running amazingly smooth productions and defying anyone who posed an obstacle. She built most of her films and series from the ground up. She waged rough-and-tumble battles against executives and censors, and even helped to break the Hollywood blacklist. She teamed up with many of the most respected, well-known directors, writers, and actors of the twentieth century. And she did it all on her own terms.

Author Christina Lane shows how this stylish, stunning woman became Hollywoods most powerful female writer-producerone whom history has since overlooked.

Author Bio

Christina Laneis an Edgar-Award winning author and professor of film studies in the Cinematic Arts Department at the University of Miami. She makes frequent speaking appearances and has provided commentaryfor such outlets as the Daily Mail, CrimeReads and AirMail, and has been a featured guest speaker at the Film Forum, and on NPR and Turner Classic Movies.