How much do you know about Hitchcock's thriller Psycho?

By: J. Reinoehl
Estimated Completion Time
4 min
How much do you know about Hitchcock's thriller Psycho?
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About This Quiz

Alfred Hitchcock's original Psycho is one of the first slasher horror films. Filmed in black-and-white despite the availability of color, it did extraordinarily well at the box office. How well do you remember Psycho? Find out by taking the quiz below.
In what year was Psycho selected for National Film Registry preservation?
1997.
1992.
Started in 1988 by an Act of Congress, The National Film Preservation Board selected Psycho in 1992 for preservation because of its value as part of the American film heritage.
1989.
1965.
Psycho did not get nominated for which of the following Oscar Awards?
Best Supporting Actress.
Best Director.
Best Cinematography (Black and white).
Best Special Effects.
Although Psycho was initially nominated for Best Director, Best Supporting Actress, Best Cinematography (Black and white), and Best Art Direction (Black and white), it did not win any Academy Awards. It did win three other awards, including a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.
Which character was portrayed by Janet Leigh?
Lila Crane.
Marion Crane.
Janet Leigh (July 6, 1927—October 3, 2004) was a popular actress at the time and for her to be killed off at the beginning of the movie was unusual. Other things, such as showing a toilet being flushed, were also first-time events for a movie.
Mother.
Mrs. Chambers.

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Which actor portrayed Norman Bates?
Christopher Lee.
Anthony Perkins.
Anthony Perkins (April 4, 1932—September 12, 1992) was typecast after playing Norman Bates, but his career was given a huge boost. He never regretted taking the role and reprised it in Psycho II and Psycho III after Hitchcock was dead.
Peter Lorre.
Anthony Hopkins.
In which city did Psycho begin?
San Francisco, CA
Seattle, WA
Reno, NV
Phoenix, AZ
The movie began in Phoenix, AZ.
Finish the quote "A boy's best friend is ___________."
"His wife."
"His mother."
"A boy's best friend is his mother."
"His dog."
"His knife."

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The screenplay was based on a novel of the same name written by whom?
Raymond A. Palmer.
H. P. Lovecraft.
Otis Adelbert Kline.
Robert Bloch.
Hitchcock paid Robert Bloch (April 5, 1917 – September 23, 1994) $9,000 for rights to his book. However, to keep the ending secret, Hitchcock then bought as many copies of the book as he could find to prevent others from reading it.
With whom was Marion in love?
Dr. Fred Richman.
Norman Bates.
Sam Loomis.
The character name "Sam Loomis" reappeared in the Halloween series. In Psycho, Sam was divorced and didn't have enough money to marry Marion.
Tom Cassidy.
What day was it when the movie started?
October 30th.
June 16th.
March 5th.
December 11th.
The movie began on Friday, December 11th at 2:43 P. M. They included the date because they filmed Phoenix streets with Christmas decorations on them.

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What color bra was Marion wearing in the opening scene?
Black.
White.
In the opening scene, she wore a white bra. After she had stolen the money, she wore a black bra to symbolize her descent into sin.
Gray.
She isn't wearing a bra.
What was Hitchcock doing in his signature cameo appearance?
He was leaning against a car reading a newspaper.
He was standing outside the office window.
When Marion enters her place of work, Hitchcock can be seen through the front window wearing a Stetson cowboy hat.
He was entering the hotel as Marion exited.
He was winding a clock in the office.
How much did the used car cost Marion in addition to trading in her vehicle?
It was an even trade.
$500.
$1000.
$700.
The $700 extra she paid did not get her much of a change other than color. Only Fords were used in the film because the company was a Hitchcock sponsor. Even the police car, which should have been a Dodge if Hitchcock were going for accuracy, was a Ford.

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How much money did Marion steal from her boss?
$1000.
$10,000.
$40,000.
Forty thousand dollars then was about the equivalent of $300,000 today. In comparison, to construct the house on the hill for Psycho, it only cost $15,000. The house was the most expensive set piece to build.
$100,000.
In which other Hitchcock film was Vera Miles slated to perform but didn't?
The Birds.
North by Northwest.
To Catch a Thief.
Vertigo.
Vera June Miles (born August 23, 1929) was supposed to be in Vertigo but became pregnant with her son, Michael Scott. Although Hitchcock had been upset with her, he still used her for the role of Lila in Psycho because she owed him one more film under her contract.
While Marion was driving, what was going on in the background?
Silence.
She imagined what would happen when others discovered her theft.
As she was driving on the highway, she constantly imagined different people discovering her crime and their reactions to it.
Easy listening music was playing.
Cars constantly rushed past her as their drivers laid on the horn.

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What made Marion nervous at the car dealership?
A police officer was watching her.
The police officer that questioned her for sleeping on the side of the road watches her as she purchases the car.
She couldn't find the envelope with the cash.
She saw her boss crossing the street.
She realized she forgot to bring her luggage with her.
In which cabin did Marion stay?
3.
10.
1.
There was a peephole between Cabin 1 and the office, so Bates placed Marion there.
11.
Why did Marion decide to get a motel room?
A police officer was following her.
It was raining heavily.
The rain was coming down so heavily that Marion was having difficulty seeing anything. That was when the Bates Motel sign came into view.
She needed a place to hide for a few days.
She wanted to establish an alibi.

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What was Norman Bates' hobby?
He did taxidermy.
"My hobby is stuffing things. You know—taxidermy."
He collected insects
He knit sweaters.
He collected medical antiques.
Why were all the rooms vacant at the Bates?
The hotel was built on ancient burial grounds.
There had been a string of serial killings in the area.
They moved the highway.
"They moved away the highway." "Oh, I thought I had gotten off the main road." "I knew you must have. Nobody ever stops here anymore unless they've done that."
They closed the road due to flash flooding.
How did Marion sign the hotel register?
Marnie Edgar.
Marion Crane.
Mary Loomis.
Marie Samuels.
She used the false name of Marie Samuels and listed her hometown as Los Angeles. We got a glimpse of this when she initially wrote it and when the private investigator asked to see the register.

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Where was Marion headed when she first arrived at the Bates Motel?
Phoenix, AZ.
Seattle, WA.
Fairvale, CA.
Bates Motel was only about 15 miles away from her final destination of Fairvale in Northern California. After speaking with Norman, she seemed to regret what she had done and planned to return home with the money the next morning. Fairvale, CA, was a fictional town borrowed from the book.
Salem, OR.
Where did Marion hide the money once she got to Bates Motel?
In the drawer.
In the bottom of her suitcase.
In the glove box of her new car.
In the newspaper.
Marion decided to put the money in the center of the newspaper and refold it.
How did Norman Bates get rid of Marion's body?
He put it in her car and sunk it in a pond.
Bates first wrapped Marion's body in the shower curtain and then placed it in the trunk of her car. After cleaning out all the evidence (including the money) from the hotel room and also placing that in the car, he sank the car in the swamp behind the motel.
He left it in the room and locked the door.
He buried her in the cellar.
He put it in her car and drove it off a cliff.

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What did Norman Bates frequently munch on throughout the movie?
Peanuts.
Popcorn.
Chips.
Candy corn.
Perkins felt munching on the candy corn added a connection to the stuffed birds.
Norman Bates' character was based on which real-life serial killer?
John Wayne Gacy.
Ed Gein.
Edward Theodore Gein (August 27, 1906—July 26, 1984) was a grave robber who fashioned items from dead bodies and also a murderer who admitted to killing at least two women. Several horror movies were based on his crimes including Psycho, Silence of the Lambs, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
John Christie.
John George Haigh.
The Bates house was designed to look like the house in a painting by which artist?
Everett Shinn.
Ilya Repin.
William Bliss Baker.
Edward Hopper.
Edward Hopper's (July 22, 1882—May 15, 1967) "The House by the Railroad" was used to create the outside look of the Bates' home.

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What was the license plate on Marion's new car?
FAN333
2GAT123
NFB 418
The NFB 418 license plate was seen clearly as the car was sinking in the swamp.
SAM321
Who wrote the soundtrack for Psycho?
Bernard Herrmann.
Bernard Herrmann (June 29, 2911—December 24, 1975) did such a great job on the soundtrack that Hitchcock gave him double the salary ($34,501). Herrmann also offered suggestions about how music could improve the mood of certain scenes.
Lyn Murray.
John Addison.
Frank Skinner.
Which record was on the record player in Norman's room?
"O Sanctissima."
"Fidelio."
"Eroica."
Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major (Eroica or the Heroic Symphony) was frequently played at funerals in the mid-1800s. Beethoven dedicated it to Napoleon Buonaparte while the ruler was First Consul.
"Leonore."

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"And I say… Death should always be _________."
"Easy."
"Quick."
"Painless."
"And I say… Death should always be painless."
"Celebrated."
What event first pushed Norman Bates over the edge to murder?
His mother took a lover.
"Well, a son is a poor substitute for a lover."
His father died.
Marion wanted him to put his mother in an institution.
The sheriff came questioning him about his mother's death.
What was the name of the private investigator?
Harper.
Church.
Spade.
Arbogast.
Milton Arbogast, portrayed by Martin Balsam (November 4, 1919—February 13, 1996), only had about 20 minutes of screen time before meeting Mrs. Bates. He was hired by Mr. Cassidy to find Marion.

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Who was Al Chambers?
Sam's neighbor.
The Deputy Sheriff.
Deputy Sheriff Al Chambers let Sam and Lila know Norman's mother had passed away. He did not believe them when they told him Norman was acting suspiciously.
Lila's boyfriend.
Sam's shop boy.
Where did Norman hide his mother so the sheriff would not find her?
Cabin 13.
A shack in the swamp.
The fruit cellar.
"No, I will not hide in the fruit cellar."
The attic.
You Got:
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