8. He Made A Crew Member Crap Himself And Sleep Overnight In The Mess
Verdict: Uncertain Hitchcock was fond of his sadistic pranks, and one of the most humiliating for the victim - and hilarious for everyone else - involved the director making a bet with a crew member. Hitchcock allegedly convinced a props man to chain himself to a set overnight, with his salary on the line if he balked. The crew member accepted the challenge, and - as what seemed like a sign of respect - Hitchcock offered the man a brandy to keep him warm. Only Hitchcock had laced the brandy with laxatives; when the cast and crew found the valiant crew member the next day, still chained to the set, he'd unleashed a sea of unintentional turds, much to his director's amusement. Whether this persistent story is really true is still up for debate, and will likely never be definitively confirmed or denied. The story's been reported by everyone from The Telegraph to The New York Review of Books, but the tale keeps changing according to who tells it - in one version, Hitchcock wasn't involved in the prank at all, and it was his Psycho crew instead messing with a gullible floor manager.
Lover of film, writer of words, pretentious beyond belief. Thinks Scorsese and Kubrick are the kings of cinema, but PT Anderson and David Fincher are the dashing young princes. Follow Brogan on twitter if you can take shameless self-promotion: @BroganMorris1
