ANTEBELLUM BLOG: 29.09.13

10/5/13

PSYCHO HOUSE THROUGHOUT THE YEARS

Alfred Hitchock's 1960 cinematic masterpiece Psycho, although originally distributed by Paramount, was financed by Hitchcock himself, and filmed at Universal Studios using the Revue Studios television crew from Alfred Hitchcock Presents. It was filmed on a tight budget, and accordingly, the exterior sets built for the film...the Bates Motel and home...were partly constructed from studio "stock units," including in the case of the Bates home, a tower and front wall portion borrowed from an existing house set on the backlot's Colonial Street. The Bates home, or "Psycho House" as it has come be known, was built as a two-walled exterior facade, as it would be filmed only from a vantage point within a 90 degree span.

The "Psycho House" became an iconic symbol of eerieness, and has appeared in countless films (including two Psycho sequels), television shows and advertisements. The set still stands on the Universal backlot fifty years later, although modified and twice relocated over the years. The original Bates Motel set no longer exists, but a reconstructed version of the motel has accompanied the home on the backlot and as a part of the studio tour for decades.

Bates home as seen in <i>Psycho</i> (1960)

The Bates home from Psycho
The Bates home as seen in the film.

The set for Psycho's Bates home in the early 1960's
Psycho's Bates home set is seen here as originally constructed, with no right-side or rear wall.
courtesy Bison Archives

The "Harvey" House on Universal's "Colonial Street"
The tower section of the Harvey/Allison House on the backlot's "Colonial Street" was
removed in 1959 and used in the construction of the Bates home set for Psycho.
courtesy Bison Archives

More images from the original Psycho
Bates Motel and home	Bates home (with "Mother" in window)
Alfred Hitchcock and Bates home set - from the film's trailer	Alfred Hitchcock and Bates Motel - from the film's trailer

Psycho House Set and Laramie Street mid-1960's
The Psycho house is seen here in the mid-1960's, now with a right-side wall which was
constructed specifically for the set's appearance in the 1964 film Invitation to a Gunfighter.
courtesy Bison Archives
(thanks to Dennis Dickens for Invitation to a Gunfighter details)

The Psycho House in the 1965-66 television series Laredo
scan courtesy Francesco Nigro

rear view of <i>Psycho</i> House in 1971

Rear view of Psycho House in 1971
This photograph of the rear of the Psycho house set was shot in 1971
courtesy of and Copyright © Nguyen Ngoc Chinh from his Flickr photostream- used with permission

The Psycho House in the early 1970's
courtesy Francesco Nigro

Psycho House (with animated bat) in <i>Night Gallery</i> in 1971

Psycho House Set in the Night Gallery installment "A Question of Fear" (1971)
The Psycho house, including a bat added by animation, is seen here in 1971 in the
TV series Night Gallery.
(this image has been heavily brightened from its original appearance, which was essentially a silhouette...hence its grainy appearance)

Psycho House Set in Emergency! episode "Brushfire" (1972)
The Psycho house, including the road which ran between the Bates Motel and the house,
is seen here in 1972 in the TV series Emergency!.

Psycho House Set in the mid-1970's
The Psycho house is seen here in the mid-1970's, still in its original location on
the backlot, above Laramie Street.
courtesy Bison Archives

Psycho House in Captains and the Kings (1976)

A restored Psycho House in the 1976 mini-series Captains and the Kings
The Psycho house is seen here after a restoration and the addition of a larger,
wrap-around porch, both for the 1976 mini-series "Captains and the Kings"
scan courtesy Francesco Nigro

Psycho House in May, 1979
This photograph of the Psycho house set in its original location was shot on May 26, 1979
courtesy of and Copyright © Piet Schreuders from his Flickr photostream - used with permission
(see a similar photo on Flickr shot by Joseph Butindari two years later)

Psycho House in 1980
courtesy Bison Archives

Psycho House being dismantled in December, 1980
After occupying the ridge above "Laramie Street" for over twenty years, the Psycho House
was dismantled in December of 1980, and later reassembled elsewhere on the lot for
the filming of Pyscho II (1983).
courtesy of and Copyright © Mark Brindle - used with permission

Psycho House Replica in Modern Problems (1981)

For the 1981 Chevy Chase comedy Modern Problems, a somewhat convincing replica of the Pyscho House was constructed along a beach. Many, including the author of this web site, have initially believed this to be the original set transported to a beach and reassembled for the film, but detailed comparison of house features and proportions reveals that this is in fact a replica. (thanks to John Trimble and Francesco Nigro for their observations on this subject)

Psycho House Replica in Modern Problems (1981)

Psycho House Replica in 1981 in <i>Modern Problems</i>

For the 1981 Chevy Chase comedy Modern Problems, a somewhat convincing replica of the
Pyscho House was constructed along a beach. Many, including the author of this web site,
have initially believed this to be the original set transported to a beach and reassembled for
the film, but detailed comparison of house features and proportions reveals that this is in fact a replica.
(thanks to John Trimble and Francesco Nigro for their observations on this subject)

<i>Psycho</i> House during repairs - July 9, 1982

Psycho House during repairs in July, 1982
This photograph of the Psycho house was shot on July 9, 1982 while the set was partially assembled outside the backlot's carpentry shop for repairs.
courtesy of and Copyright © Douglas Hill - www.douglashillphotography.com - used with permission

Universal Studios Florida <i>Psycho IV</i> Set in July, 1993

Universal Studios Florida Bates Mansion set for Psycho IV (1990) - July, 1993
This photograph of a duplicate Bates Mansion set at Universal Studios Florida was shot on July 12, 1993. The set was demolished in 1998.
courtesy of and Copyright © John Burke from his Flickr photostream - used with permission

More Photos of the Psycho House and Bates Motel (scans courtesy Bison Archives) (after clicking on a thumbnail, you may use the left & right arrow keys to navigate from one enlarged image to another)
Psycho House set circa 1960	Psycho House in 1980	1983 publicity photo for Psycho II
Actress Vera Miles in 1983 photo from Psycho II	Psycho House in 1985 - Psycho III production	Psycho House in 1985
Psycho House in 1987	Psycho House in 1992	Psycho House in 1994
Psycho House and Bates Motel in 1994

July 1966 Inventory Proof Photos (photos circa 1964)
Psycho House and Bates Motel
courtesy Bison Archives
(click any image for an enlargement)

The Psycho House on November 7, 1983
The Psycho House is seen here as photographed by Gregory Melle on November 7, 1983.
Click here to view this photo in CanadaGood's Flickr photostream.
courtesy of and Copyright © Gregory Melle - used with permission

HOLLYWOOD BLACK FRIDAY RIOT~ 1945

Hollywood Black Friday is the name given, in the history of organized labor in the United States, to October 5, 1945. On that date, a six-month strike by the set decorators represented by the Conference of Studio Unions (CSU) boiled over into a bloody riot at the gates of Warner Brothers' studios in Burbank, California. The strikes helped the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947 and led to the eventual break up of the CSU and reorganization of the then rival International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes (IATSE) leadership.

Background

The Conference of Studio Unions was, at the time, an International union belonging to the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and represented the Carpenters, Painters, Cartoonists and several other crafts working for the Studios in Hollywood.

Seventy-seven set decorators broke away from IATSE to form the Society of Motion Picture Interior Decorators (SMPID) and negotiated an independent contract with the producers in 1937. The SMPID joined the CSU in 1943 and the CSU represented the SMPID in their contract negotiations. After the producers stalled the negotiations for nine months, IATSE questioned CSU jurisdiction over the Set Decorators which led to a further five month delay as the CSU and IATSE fought over jurisdiction. When the Producers refused to acknowledge an independent arbitrator appointed by the War Labor Board's assessment that the CSU had jurisdiction over the Set Decorators in February 1945, it set the stage for the strike.

Strike

An estimate 10,500 CSU workers went on strike in March 1945 and began picketing all the studios resulting in delays of several films including Selznick's epic Duel in the Sun and the Cole Porter story Night and Day. Unfortunately for CSU, the studios had some 130 films on the shelves at the time and were able to comfortably sit out a strike for the time being. Regardless, Disney, Monogram and several independents bargained with CSU while Columbia, Fox, MGM, Paramount, RKO, Universal, and Warner did not.

Despite orders from their leadership and threatened with fines and revocation of their cards, many members of IATSE refused to cross the picket lines or do work normally filled by members of the CSU.

Black Friday

By October, money and patience were running low as some 300 strikers gathered at Warner Brothers' main gate on October 5, 1945. Temperatures were abnormally warm for the already hot LA autumn. When non-strikers attempted to report for work at 6:00 in the morning, the barricades went up and tensions flared. As replacement workers attempted to drive through the crowd, their cars were stopped and overturned.

Reinforcements arrived on both sides as the picket increased to some 1,000 people and Glendale and Los Angeles Police came to aid the Burbank Police and Warner Security attempting to maintain the peace. When more replacement workers attempted to break through to the gate, a general melee ensued as strikers mobbed them and strikebreakers responded by attacking the strikers with chains, hammers, pipes, tear gas, and night sticks. Warner security rained more tear gas down from the roofs of the buildings adjoining the entrance. Warner firefighters sprayed the strikers with fire hoses. By the end of the day, some 300 police and sheriffs had been called to the scene and over 40 injuries were reported.

The picketers returned the following Monday with an injunction barring the police from interfering with the strike while Warner retaliated with its own injunction limiting the number of pickets at the gate. Although the violence would continue through the week, national exposure forced the parties back to the bargaining table and resulted in an end to the strike one month later but the CSU victory was a Pyrrhic one, where contentions over wording dictated by an AFL arbitration team would lead to further questioning as to CSU and IATSE jurisdiction on the set.

Aftermath

After meetings between IATSE and representatives of the studios in early September 1946 guaranteed IATSE workers to fill the positions of existing CSU employees, the studios came up with a plan to force CSU out of the studios once and for all. On September 23, the studios reassigned all the CSU members from construction supervisors, foremen and maintenance men to work as journeymen carpenters on "hot set", a position many of these men hadn't worked in many years and a violation of their job descriptions and cause for a union grievance.

These men protested and refused at which point they were given preprepared paychecks for their time and effectively sent home and subsequently locked out. Naturally, the pickets went back up, and the CSU was forced to assume the crushing burden of another strike.

Despite a walk-out by members of IATSE 683 film laboratory technicians in solidarity with CSU, open fighting between CSU members and studio security forces and a vote by the Screen Actors Guild to effectively turn their back on CSU hampered the CSU's efforts. This was a strike that the CSU would never recover from, lasting some 13 months before it voted to permit long-unemployed, impoverished members and supporters to cross the picket line and return to work. The CIO also came to the aid of the struggling CSU members and assisted them in finding jobs in other CIO industries.

The disorder in Hollywood helped prompt the Taft-Hartley bill which was passed in part with the studios' lobby and accusations of Herb Sorrell's (the leader of the CSU during the time of the strike) alleged Communist Party membership which prompted Sorrell and CSU's slow descent into obscurity.

I PUT A SPELL ON YOU

The handwritten spell advises anyone dogged by the ill-thoughts of enemies to fill a jug with urine and nails and keep it warm for a week.

An 18th century spell which is to go on show at the Cornish Studies Library in Redruth

Joyce Froome, of the Museum of Witchcraft, said: "This is a classic example of traditional folk magic and it is wonderful to have the name, time and place included. This really gives it an immediacy which brings home to you how important this type of magic was in people's daily lives."

The 18th century document was discovered in the archives of Cornwall Record Office and will go on public display next week.

The well-preserved spell will form the centrepiece of an exhibition opening in Redruth on October 11. Bewitching History, at the Cornish Studies Library, features a variety of original documents from Cornish archives and collections, along with objects from the Saveock Water witch pit excavation.
The exhibition's themes cover witches on trial, Cornish witch Tammy Blee, charms, spells, witch bottles and witch pits.

Experts at the Museum of Witchcraft in Boscastle said it is extremely unusual to find charms or spells written down and even rarer to discover a surviving example.

It will be launched with a talk by Cornish author and witchcraft researcher Jason Semmens on October 10.

The full text of the newly-discovered spell reads as follows, with uncorrected 18th century spellings:

Charm for Thamson Leverton.
That your private enemies will never after have any power upon you.

For Thamson Leverton on Saterday next being the 17th of this instant September any time that day take about a pint of your owne urine and make it almost scalding hot then emtie it into a stone jugg with a narrow mouth then put into it so much white salt as you can take up with the thumb and two forefingers of your lift hand and three new nails with their points downwards their points being first made very sharp then stop the mouth of the jugg very close with a piece of tough cley and bind a piece of leather firm over the stop then put the jugg into warm embers and keep him there 9 or 10 days and nights following so that it go not stark cold all that meantime day nor night and your private enemies will never after have any power upon you either in body or goods so be it.

Bewitching History is at the Cornish Studies Library in Redruth from October 11 until November 2. It runs during library opening hours and admission is free. For more information call 01209-216760.