The Hitchcock Of The Walk: A Tribute To My Father

When you finish watching a guilty pleasure show like Gossip Girl, it's only right that you watch something with substantially brilliant writing and content to regain your sense of what is good and what is...well, a guilty pleasure. This last week I really needed something with substance and class. So many movies today are what I call "multi-tasking movies." You know the ones. You can watch the first five minutes of them to learn the characters voices and then clean your apartment or write an essay or talk on the phone and still understand the entire premise without missing a thing. That's how a lot of movies are these days, and I really resent it. Ahem, excuse me, my movie snob is showing.


Lucky for me, my dad is a movie buff. He's just a movie buff from a few generations back. It takes me, my brother, and my mother convincing him these days to go see a movie, except on Christmas Day, and then it's our tradition, so he knows he has to go. But at home, he's always watching some black and white flick or some cowboy movie. From time to time he'll call me into the room and ask me to look at someone on screen. Then he'll say with a big grin on his face, "You know who's mother that is?" or "You know who that guy is on TV today?" I usually stare for a minute, and sometimes the answer is obvious, but more than not, I come up blank. Then he traces the connection for me, and I am always amazed that his 60+ brain still has room for these kinds of things. I hope I inherit this trait.

A Flock of Fear.

In most ways, I am just like my mother. But I pretty much owe my love for scary movies to my dad. At a pretty early age, he introduced me to what we refer to as "disaster" movies. Tower Inferno, Earthquake, and pretty much any movie where an animal multiplies and infiltrates/attacks an area. Frogs, Ants, Jaws...and of course...The Birds. 

The Birds is my second favorite Alfred Hitchcock film. Rear Window is my favorite. Psycho is surprisingly far down the list, but of course still a classic. At some point during the rainy Sunday afternoons of my childhood, when my younger brother and my mom were napping, I fell in love with old "scary" movies. My dad sat in a recliner next to me, making sure to pull me back into the movie with his storytelling voice, "Uh oh, what's gonna happen!?" if my attention wavered. I would look up from my popcorn just in time to see that Tippi Hedren was just inches in front of playground equipment that was covered in birds. Terrifying, and exhilarating. It wasn't just Hitchcock movies though, it was his TV show that drew me in also. I loved his introductions and conclusions, his little props and antics that were so uniquely his, and no one has been able to pull off since. 


These times with my dad taught me to appreciate the way movies, whether long or short, are made. I began to recognize the elements of writing and props and scenery, subtle movements, camera angles, facial expressions, and the tension of silence. I learned that usually dialogue is of secondary importance in a really good movie, and that too much talking is almost always a bad thing. 

Director of Doom.

Of course, my dad taught me that last lesson in real life too; his eyes busy watching every scene in our house, but only choosing to speak when it would further the plot rather than simply create more drama. Letting his stillness usher us into whatever lesson needed to be recognized at any given moment, and then finally, just like Hitchcock, summarizing the scene, offering a little sarcasm, a little humor, a lot of comfort by reminding us that no matter how bad things seem, none of it is real enough to spend time fretting over.

The Dad Awards

In a world where TV dads are often dead (6 Feet Under, Dexter, Brothers and Sisters, Game of Thrones) or portrayed as out of touch for comedic relief (almost every other show), it's important to take some time to recognize the good ones. In honor of Father's Day, here are the First Annual Weekend Fat Dad Awards!

I would follow that hair down the highway to heaven.

Beauty King: Michael Landon as Charles Ingalls in The Little House on the Prairie
Sure, it's an older show, but seriously...what other dad in history has possessed this kind of rugged handsome goodness while still looking like a father? I dare you to find one. As a hard worker on the prairie, Charles always has the perfect tan, and he might be the only dad in TV history to have better hair than his wife. Seriously, he is a good looking man.

If you crack a Brokeback Mountain joke Phil, I'll bury you over there.

Most Improved: Ed O'Neill as Jay Pritchett on Modern Family
Ed O'Neill is most famous for his character Al Bundy on Married With Children, maybe one of the worst dads of all time. But in Modern Family, he's been given a second chance as the patriarch of this wacky pack. He's gruff at times, and we have enough context to know that maybe he wasn't the greatest dad when Mitchell and Claire were growing up. But throughout the seasons we have seen him learn to go with the flow, becoming a source of stability and tough love. Plus, he's kind of the normal one in the family, except when it comes to his French Bulldog, Stella...then all bets are off.

Laugh Out Loud: Ty Burrell as Phil Dunphy on Modern Family
Is there anything that comes out of Phil's mouth that doesn't make you laugh out loud? His complete adoration for his wife along with the energy he puts into trying to relate and appear cool to his kids make us love him in spite of his moments of cluelessness. He serves up suburban slapstick at its finest.

Plaid makes you smarter.

TIE for Wisest Words: Andy Griffith as Andy Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show 
                                                                             AND 
                                      Matthew Settle as Rufus Humphrey on Gossip Girl
Everyone knows that growing up is hard, and without the words of wisdom bestowed on us by our fathers, how would we make it through adolescence at all! Ok, let's get real, kids don't listen to their parents. But if they did, it would look like it does in these two shows. It's no wonder Opie grew up to be the successful Ron Howard with a dad like Andy around. His patience to let Opie learn hard lessons and face consequences never tire. His guidance is perfectly timed and always welcomed. And former rock star Rufus is practically a modern day sage from Brooklyn gone UES, offering up the best advice to his own kids and pretty much every other character on Gossip Girl. When he's around, confessions just tumble from the lips of otherwise reckless troublemakers. Rufus and Andy know that a little sadness in the eyes and the words, "I'm disappointed in you" go farther than any over the top lecture ever could.

This. Man.

Grand Supreme (That's a thing, right?): Sam Jaeger as Joel Graham on Parenthood
There are a lot of things we could say about the dads on Parenthood. But in the midst of Zeke's extreme behavior, Adam's borderline judgment, and Crosby's attempt at growing up, Joel emerges as the hero. He is supportive of his working wife, stays at home with their daughter, and he works with his hands. That entire sentence is almost too good to be true. He knows when to stay silent, but is no pushover, and can stand up to Zeke or Julia in their moments of irrationality. He pays attention to his daughter enough to know when she's in need of a hug or a spanking. He doesn't get a lot of screen time, but when he does we always remember that he's maybe one of the greatest characters on the show. And aside from being a great dad, he's the kind of man every girl wants to marry!

What Dads Do You Want To Add To The List? 

What Awards Do They Deserve?