One year later, on April 29, 1980, Hitchcock died peacefully in his sleep in Bel Air, California. He received the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award in 1979. Hitchcock directed more than 50 feature films in a career spanning six decades. His cameo appearances in his own films, as well as his interviews, film trailers and the television program Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955-1965), made him a cultural icon. His works became renowned for their depictions of violence, although many of his plots merely function as decoys meant to serve as a tool for understanding complex psychological characters. Find bio, credits and filmography information for Alfred Hitchcock on AllMovie - Alfred Hitchcock was the most well-known director to the general public. Some of his most famous films include Psycho (1960), The Birds (1963) and Marnie (1964). The first film he made in the United States, Rebecca (1940), won an Academy Award for best picture. Alfred Hitchcock was born on August 13, 1899, in Leytonstone, Essex (now London), the second son and youngest of the three children of William Hitchcock, a. In 1939, Hitchcock left England for Hollywood. Movies: 'Rebecca,' 'Psycho' and 'The Birds' His 1929 film Blackmail is said to be the first British "talkie." In the 1930s, he directed such classic suspense films as The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) and The 39 Steps (1935). In 1925, Hitchcock directed his first film and began making the "thrillers" for which he became known the world over.