Trivia / Shadow of a Doubt

• Acclaimed Flop: The movie was a Box Office failure when it was released, only ranking at #81 for the year. As noted below, it was acclaimed by critics and considered Hitchcock's best film at the time — and still is by some to this day.
• Awesome, Dear Boy: Teresa Wright loved the plot outline Alfred Hitchcock gave her so much that she signed on without reading the script.
• Creator's Favorite Episode: Alfred Hitchcock named this as his favourite of all his films.
• Dawson Casting:
  • Teresa Wright, 25 at the time, as a recent high school graduate.
  • Henry Travers was 69, around two decades or so older than Mr. Newton is supposed to be. It also meant that Travers was 18 years older than his onscreen wife Patricia Collinge.
• Fake American: Both Mr. and Mrs. Newton, played by Henry Travers (from England) and Patricia Collinge (from Ireland).
• Inspiration for the Work: The project began when the head of David O Selznick's story department, Margaret McDonell, told Alfred Hitchcock that her husband Gordon had an interesting idea for a novel that she thought would make a good movie. His idea, called "Uncle Charlie," was based on the true story of Earle Leonard Nelson, a mass murderer of the 1920s known as "the Gorilla Man".
• Magnum Opus Dissonance: Other Hitchcock films are better remembered today—Psycho, North By Northwest, Vertigo, Rear Window—but, as noted above and on the main page, Hitchcock considered this his favorite of his own works. It should be noted during Hitchcock's lifetime, Shadow of a Doubt was considered by critics to be his best film too; the later 50s films were seen as glossier productions at the time. Teresa Wright also said this was her favourite film.
• Reality Subtext: Alfred Hitchcock put a lot of personal references into the film. His mother's name was Emma, like Charles's sister. Young Charlie's father is called Joseph, which was his middle name. He had a bicycle accident when he was young, like Charles. Ann is reading Ivanhoe near the beginning, which was his favourite book as a child. Herbie has an obsession with murder, just like the director. And finally, the car Charlie drives is the same as the one Alma Reville loved driving.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The first choice for Charles was William Powell, but MGM refused to loan him out. Cary Grant was also considered for the role.
  • Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland were the first choices for Charlie, but both were unavailable.
• Written by Cast Member: Patricia Collinge (Emma) wrote the garage scene between Charlie and Jack.

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