'The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog' on LRPA TV

LACONIA — Alfred Hitchcock is being celebrated on LRPA After Dark during his birthday month of August with a festival of some of his early works. Tune in to LRPA TV Friday and Saturday night, Aug. 30-31, at 10:30 p.m. The festival closes with a silent film from 1927, 'The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog,' starring Ivor Novello, June Tripp. 

As 'The Lodger' opens, London is in a panic over “The Avenger,” a Jack the Ripper-style serial killer preying on young, blonde women. Meet Daisy Bunting, portrayed by Tripp, a blonde fashion model dating a policeman named Joe. Daisy’s parents run a boarding house in the West End, and have been reading about the murders in the paper. At the same time, a handsome and mysterious man named Jonathan Drew, played by Novello, arrives looking to rent a room. Daisy is attracted to the new lodger, as is he to her. Daisy and Drew become closer, and Joe grows angry and resentful. Mrs. Bunting becomes suspicious of Drew’s late-night excursions, and searches his belongings and finds a locked cabinet. The next day, another blonde victim is found dead in the neighborhood of the boarding house. All signs point to Drew as The Avenger.

'The Lodger' was Hitchcock’s third feature-length film. Hitchcock himself told director Francois Truffault that he considered 'The Lodger' to be “his first true suspense film.” The film was a hit in Britain, so much so that it was remade three more times.

Coming next month is LRPA’s Second Annual Silent September film festival. For more information or to live stream, visit www.lrpa.org.