Michael from Muckrock writes, "Like almost everyone else in the J. Edgar Hoover era, Alfred Hitchcock managed to catch the attention of the FBI, leading to a 16-page file. Did it investigate the rumored murders the Master of Suspense committed? Secretive ties to foreign states? Nope, mostly just the fact that, in one episode of Hitchcock Presents, a bad guy was briefly referenced to be a 'former FBI agent,' a plot point that the Bureau worked surprisingly hard to change … perhaps worth of a Hitchcock treatment all its own. Read on for the full story."
It's a great story: after strong-arming the Hitchcock writer into killing the reference to an FBI agent, the Bureau continued to micro-manage him until he got so pissed, he put the character back in.
Perhaps sensing that the FBI playing a pivotal role in a double-cross would not go over well in Washington, Nye contacted the Los Angeles field office, who then contacted the Director. The response was pretty clear – the part must be cut.
At Nye's suggestion, the writer of the episode, George Hesler, contacted the FBI's field office to discuss their objections. After what must have been a very enlightening discussion of the Little Lindberg Law, Hesler agreed to eliminate all mention of the Bureau in rewrites.
Not the types to take Hesler at his word, however, the FBI – through Nye – continued to inquire about the exact nature of those rewrites.
"The show will be monitored" Alfred Hitchcock's FBI file [JPat Brown/Muckrock]
