Alfred Hitchcock, best known for his television and film work as a director of suspense and psychological thrillers, was also involved in the written area of the genre. He was born in the United Kingdom, later becoming a success in both silent films and talkies while he still lived there. He moved to Hollywood where he became one of the most popular filmmakers of all time.

What many fans do not know is that Hitchcock became a character in a popular juvenile detective book series called Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators. The three investigators were amateur detectives about the age of the Hardy Boys. The Hitchcock ghostwriter would introduce each story, and after the boys solved the crime, they reported the results to him at the end of the book.

His name was also instrumental in a collection of short stories written by popular writers of the time. The stories were combined into a series of anthologies with Alfred Hitchcock’s name attached to each volume. A few of the writers included in the anthologies were Robert Bloch, H.G. Wells, Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Mark Twain.

Created in 1956, the Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine (AHMM) is still published eleven times a year. Each issue includes at least seven new mystery short stories varying in length from short-shorts to novellas. The magazine runs a double issue in July-August. A classic mystery from a past issue is also included each month.

Many of the magazine’s stories have won important awards over the years, including the Edgar and the Shamus awards. The magazine not only publishes stories by well-known mystery writers, but encourages new writers as well. In fact, a number of beginning writers have won the Robert L. Fish award for Best First Mystery Short Story of the year.

Each issue includes a mysterious photo contest where readers may submit their own 250-word mystery story inspired by a photograph, with the winning story published in a future issue. Also included in each issue are mystery-themed acrostic or logic puzzles and book reviews.

The Mystery Place website provides a link to subscribe to the AHMM, and includes a readers’ forum, reviews, and excerpts of recent books in the mystery thriller genre. Most of the magazine’s contents range from whodunits to hard-boiled detective stories, although readers can enjoy a variety of mystery styles in each issue.

Although Alfred Hitchcock passed away in 1980, his imprint is still seen in his many movies, anthologies, and the fabulous mystery magazine that bears his name.