The "Master of Suspense" is back

The American Cinematheque shares "Hitchcock's Confessions" at the Aero Theatre this week, while the Egyptian Theatre celebrates the "New Hollywood" of the late 1960s and '70s.

The Alfred Hitchcock festival opens tonight with the 50th anniversary screening of his sexy romantic thriller "North by Northwest," starring Cary Grant as a confirmed bachelor and mama's boy who is mistaken for a covert government spy. Eva Marie Saint is the cool blond, with James Mason and Martin Landau as the villains. The Mt. Rushmore chase sequence is among the director's best. Friday's programs are devoted to the late screenwriter John Michael Hayes, who penned several of Hitchcock's films in the 1950s, including the 1956 remake of "The Man Who Knew Too Much" and the frothy 1955 romance "To Catch a Thief," pairing Grant with Grace Kelly.

On tap for Saturday are two classics from his first decade in Hollywood: 1940's "Rebecca," which won the Oscar for best film, and 1946's highly charged "Notorious."

A couple of his blockbusters from 1954 -- "Rear Window" and "Dial M for Murder" -- are set for Sunday. His 1960 shocker "Psycho" and the 1963 chiller "The Birds" will have audiences cringing on Wednesday.

Shown above is Joan Fontaine and Judith Anderson in 'Rebecca'

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