Anthony Perkins Dissects His Role As Norman Bates in Psycho | Carson Tonight Show

Original Airdate: 06/24/1986
#johnnycarson #thetonightshow #psycho

[@DurhamGooner]

The conversation between Norman and Detective Arbogast is wonderful. Not scary but tense and superbly acted.

[@brandonflorida1092]

Perkins' performance in "Psycho" is possibly the greatest acting job I've ever seen.

[@humphreygruntwhistle3946]

Right behind Kevin James in Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

[@brandonflorida1092]

@@humphreygruntwhistle3946 You must have very, very limited experience to make such a comparison. How old are you? Have you even seen "Psycho?"

[@humphreygruntwhistle3946]

@@brandonflorida1092 Seriously? It was a joke. Come on, man.

[@ataylor2112]

I agree- his mannerisms, speech pattern etc. seem way ahead of the time in the film……marvelous

[@brandonflorida1092]

@@ataylor2112 To me, it seems perfect - way above average.

[@rickw1100]

At the time Psycho was made, Anthony Perkins was very much the popular teenage heart throb both in films as well as on records, which makes his willingness to take Hitchcock up on accepting what was at that time a very controversial and risky film role, a very courageous thing to do. To their credit, both he and Hitchcock created an entirely new genre of film with Psycho. A wonderful actor, who though a bonified movie star, never lost either his humanity or charm.

[@amrita3000]

I just watched psycho again and then looked this interview up and then wikied him too. And I get it why he agreed to this role. Apparently his mother abused him as well. He probably understood better than most the effects over possessive, abusive mothers have on their children.

[@jeffsilverman6104]

A real pleasure watching this. Down to earth, entertaining, informative without any attitude or senseless hype.

[@grokeffer6226]

Even after sixty years, Psycho is still one of the best horror movies ever made. The shower scene is classic.

[@rerite2]

Yep. Made on a shoestring budget, too.

[@GhostOfJohnLennon]

Spoiler alert for anyone who hasn’t seen it. I remember my dad saying Norman Bates was the bad guy in the movie because we were on the universal back lot ride. Anyway when I watched the movie I was so confused about him being the bad guy…it was clearly his mom! When Vera Miles turns Normans mother around and sees she’s a skeleton and Norman Bates walks in dressed as his mom!! Wow. Goosebumps thinking about it.

[@josephambrose2852]

Respectfully, I think it's absolute rubbish

[@grokeffer6226]

@@josephambrose2852 Maybe you've been brainwashed by the cartoons you've been watching. That would explain a lot.

[@GhostOfJohnLennon]

@@grokeffer6226 probably too sophisticated of an ending to understand. The therapist was tacked on for people like him 🤣

[@karenleemallonee684]

Loved his performance in Friendly Persuasion. He was also great as a fill in on What's My Line!

[@Hank13665]

Very enjoyable interview. About 45 years ago when I was an usher in an Off-Broadway theater, I escorted Anthony Perkins to his seat. I was very nervous. LOL

[@roygbiv9038]

So handsome. There will never be another like him.

[@larrywakeman4371]

HE IS!!!! Kimberly

[@timsullivan4687]

Just listen to Perkins when he speaks...this is an absolute legend of "Old Hollywood" where actors and actresses HAD to be able to act and communicate WITHOUT script...sad that Tinseltown has degraded into what it now is

[@Gypsy1194]

Agreed! He was extremely talented and gifted. Superb!!

[@chrischeshire6528]

Couldn't agree with you more.

[@thetruthchannel349]

*Ya everything WOKE turns to crap and trust me this woke crap started way back there. It was just happening quietly behind the scenes until someone got cancelled from a show or something. The Trump era drew it out into the open.*

[@rocroca7459]

@@thetruthchannel349 what is *”woke crap”* ?????

[@thetruthchannel349]

@@rocroca7459 *Ask a dumb question...*

[@spactick]

I wish Johnny had asked Perkins questions about working with Hitchcock and Orson Welles. He was one of a handful of actors who worked with both

[@msaltzma]

Absolutely loved Tony Perkins. He was a hard worker too. I've heard stories about him on set.

[@user-bj2lu9qt3o]

Stories like what?

[@kirnpu]

Such a fantastic interview!

[@CIAoperative-e9i]

God, I miss you Johnny. I was born in 73 and grew up watching you every night. You informed me so much.

[@dee_dee_place]

The scariest scene in psycho was the last scene where Norman, dressed as his Mother, was sitting still in a chair with a fly flying around him. That scene unnerved me.

[@boborrahood]

The final scene was Norman Bates dressed as himself, not as his mother. The mother is heard in voice- over, beginning with "It's sad when a mother has to speak the words that condemn her own son..."

[@poetcomic1]

Its the second identical shot in the movie. When Marion is driving at night imagining what people will say about her she gets the exact same demented face and half smile as Norman at the end.

[@citrine65]

@@boborrahood I thought you were upset about film spoilers?

[@BobbyP5985]

@@citrine65yes I am very upset about film spoilers please don’t spoil films again thank you sir

[@frankieaddams3937]

Anthony Perkins seemed like such a sweet guy--as though he would have been a good friend. Loved him in "Pretty Poison."

[@travishaynes1180]

As iconic the shower scene is , his performance as Norman Bates is a piece of acting genius.

[@jillkjv3816]

My own *Psycho* story: I was a teenager in the 1970's and babysitting the two children across the street from my house while the parents went to a dinner party. After I put the children to bed I saw that *Psycho* was going to air that night on the Late Show, so I turned it on and watched it, to kill time. The shower scene came on and suddenly I heard someone crying behind me. It was the little girl, who had gotten out of bed and tried to find me, and she had been watching the film without my knowledge. Apparently she was traumatized and the little girl's mother was very angry with me and never used me to babysit again. Morale: when babysitting never watch a horror film! It could mean the end of your pocket money from babysitting! 😊

[@boborrahood]

One of my earliest memories is overhearing my baby sitter talking to my mom when I was six. She had just seen Psycho when it first came out and I was intrigued by her reaction. I didn't see it until about 8 years later, around the age of 14, when I became a Hitchcock fan and movie fan for life.

[@josephambrose2852]

Thanks for the bedtime story

[@ashleelarsen5002]

That's the movie that the chick wakes up in a bathtub, with her kidney out, right?!? I never saw it. I don't want to buy something on "prime" and have besos take it back too.

[@jillkjv3816]

@@ashleelarsen5002 No, she is in a shower and suddenly is stabbed by Anthony dressed as his mother, whom he had also killed. Though you don't know for sure it's Anthony till later in the film because all you see is a hand stabbing her.

[@ashleelarsen5002]

@@jillkjv3816 thanks for responding! Do you know the movie I am looking for? The bathtub girl, missing a kidney?

[@dizmation]

Thick yellow socks, runners & a sparkly tie is a truly psychotic combo 😂

[@cc1k435]

It's just how you know it was the 80s😉

[@Teri.Dactyl]

I love everything about it 🥳

[@AndrewLouWho]

It may have been the 80’s, but it was also a Perkins’ trademark characteristic for quirky/casual mixed with casual/cocktail attire.

[@droidpost]

Anthony Perkins a true Hollywood legend!

[@williamlynnroden]

Most actors at heart, just want to be remembered, Anthony Perkins is one that will be remembered for a long time to come.

[@andrealouisejackson5307]

Anthony Perkins is a legend

[@tperk]

I approve this message.

[@BMWMTEAM1]

2022 still realizing I have a lot to learn about this amazing era

[@EGarrett01]

His work in the first Psycho was the best acting performance I've ever seen. If you think about it, you have to be able to watch that movie twice, thinking totally different things about what you're seeing it, and have it work both ways. The first time you have to think he's just a somewhat awkward supporting character who is no big deal, the second time you have to see that he is a homocidal psychopath who is concealing it. And they nailed it. Hitchcock, Perkins, the editors, whoever played a hand in it, it works perfectly both times.

[@boborrahood]

Everett01 Well said, as another longtime fan.

[@DenkyManner]

Even if you don't realise he did it, he still cleaned up the murder scene, hid the body and the car (smiling as it sank) and then lied to the private detective, smiling again when alone. There's no 'innocent' version of Norman Bates.

[@EGarrett01]

@@DenkyManner He is innocent until you realize he's complicit in murder. The central gimmick of the movie is that at first you think it's a heist film about Marion stealing money.

[@jacobjones5269]

Yes, one of the things that make the performance great is you see new things on almost every viewing.. Mannerisms, even the gait changes when the personality changes.. It’s definitely a riser on the all time list for those reasons.. Every time I watch the movie I’m more impressed..

[@kayodephillips5435]

Legends may they all rest in peace

[@royswansborough5637]

I just rewatched all 4 films - Perkins was a legend.

[@WayDog001]

I don't think he is in the 4th movie

[@royswansborough5637]

@@WayDog001he is. E.T.'s Henry Thomas is the young Norman in flashbacks and Perkins plays the older Norman narrating his childhood to a phone-in radio show on people who commit matricide.

[@ManubibiWalsh]

My Psycho story is that I was always scared of taking showers as a kid even though i’d never seen the movie, but I’d seen the shower scene a bunch of times, and this was the 90s so there were gorier scenes around. But truly, the editing on that scene is incredible. Had me scared without even having any context. And now i’m a big fan of that movie and Psycho 2.

[@ManCave1972]

Tony Perkins was such a gifted actor. Not without his personal challenges, and he was such a professional it’s hard to know how he felt about his career direction, but he really was a pro and took the work seriously. A huge shame he was taken from us so early, he could’ve carried on forever. Sorely missed, a good family man and a true icon of cinema. God bless you Tony.

[@Charlesinfinite]

Psycho is definitely one of the best films ever made.

[@ballofwax9yards]

That movie sold a lot of popcorn. Some very classic lines in the movie.

[@bigwillietheb]

64 years later Psycho is still a classic

[@roxyabrooks864]

I adore Anthony! My favorite film he starred in was, "The Trial" by Orson Welles. What a marvelous performance! ✨

[@patrickdowling529]

Welles called it his best film. Surprising, since critics always rank “Citizen Kane” as his finest movie.

[@roxyabrooks864]

@@patrickdowling529 I saw an interview with Orson near the end of his life where he says that "Chimes At Midnight" was his "least flawed film" ...while I marvel over so many of his movies and performances, he thought of them as "flawed". Shocking.

[@Frankincensedjb123]

Man, I enjoyed this. I really miss talk shows. Today we have late night shows full of bufoons who just want the quick laugh. Johnny, still the king of late night.

[@davsny5]

Johnny was the best!

[@Apollo_Blaze]

I agree...these days "talk shows" are boring as hell...

[@alanmurray5963]

I would highly recommend Anthony Perkins in Pretty Poison (1968) What a legend

[@bencool5823]

What a Great interview 🍿

[@Ralphie_Boy]

*Dear God, how I miss Johnny very much...* 🤗

[@djdannyd816]

Anthony Perkins 👑

[@bramiwami]

Anthony exudes charisma

[@kirnpu]

He definitely has an energy and is refreshingly articulate.

[@VideoAmericanStyle]

And a very gay vibe, too.

[@jamesmiller4184]

And, with charm power through the ROOF!

[@Elena-gd5qu]

Incredibly charismatic!❤️

[@Dion_Mustard]

Such a lovely man/actor..so sad he died the way he did :(

[@dkelly26666]

AND, his wife died one day shy of the 9th anniversary of his death. He died Sept. 12, 1992, and she died in a plane that hit the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. :( What are the odds? I felt so bad for their two sons.

[@tomasmagarotti8862]

Genio total Anthony Perkins no hay otro igual!!!!

[@splinterbyrd]

Our mum went to see _Psycho_ with friends in 1961. She says some people left the cinema, some people puked up. Mum stuck it out. Mums were very resilient in those days.

[@maferarteaga166]

Indeed Moms are made very differently

[@maferarteaga166]

Indeed Moms are made very differently

[@bcmteacher]

Awesome film!

[@anothermonday5664]

Th omitted clip had to be the “No one ever does” line in the office. He had another great reaction on Letterman when they ran the bloody ice cubes bit 😂

[@Apollo_Blaze]

He was so damned gorgeous and sexy....so incredible to see him here...such a tragedy we lost him at only 60

[@zedwpd]

Sadly he only had 6 more years after this interview and even sadder was his wife died on 9/11.

[@anthonyperkins3527]

I don't think many people can say this but, my name is Anthony Perkins. Yes, the same as this fine actor. So, as you might imagine going through life with a famous person's name would be fun and for me it was fun. Naturally, since Anthony Perkins was so well known for his performance in Psycho, comments I would hear from people were always associated with that movie. I guess your wife doesn't take many showers and so on. It always resulted in a good laugh.......Ever see "Fear Strikes Out".

[@sooz9433]

I always adored Anthony Perkins and after seeing Psycho I never showered or bathed without a locked door and a giveaway. (Something that would fall and make noise if the door was unlocked from the outside☺️) Seriously 74 years old and still uneasy in the shower.😳

[@NancySanders-om4ic]

"Fear Strikes Out" was also a very well acted film about baseball player, Jim Piersall.

[@janyd9441]

It would have been nice if these talk shows could have talked about his playing piano and his talent to speak French in addition to all these movies. He was multi-talented.

[@TheNothing6]

Anthony Perkins has an interesting story. And I actually like Psycho 2 more than the original! 😱😆

[@samsmith4216]

Psycho 2 is well known as one of the best sequels ever made.

[@boborrahood]

@@samsmith4216 To long time Hitchcock fans- the Vera Miles character of Lila 'Crane in Psycho 2. is a disappoointment. She is made deliberately coarse, unlikeable- in order to satisfy fans of this later horror genre who like her grisly demise to satisfy their slasher movie appreciation. Her character in Hitchcock's original was someone the audience cared about - as the concerned sister investigating the disappearance of her sister. The director of the sequel , as well as the writer seemed to forget that, or didn't care, and were willing to pander to fans of the resulting slasher movies coming out by that time.

[@rnw2739]

​​​@@boborrahoodThat's a very short sighted view of it. In 'Psycho II', Lila has been eaten away by grief and resentment at losing her sister so horrifically and she naturally has vindictive feelings towards Norman Bates. Outraged at his release, she acts on those feelings in an attempt to get him incarcerated again. That is not a script writer or director 'pandering' to gore fans at all, rather a true characterisation and depiction of how the violent death of someone can affect their loved ones. Vera Miles herself said in the interviews that she loves the motivation of her character in 'Psycho II', adding: "If somebody had killed, so brutally, a member of my family and they were about to get out, I think I would feel just as angry..."

[@boborrahood]

@@rnw2739 I do get that Lila Crane would have taken on a more vigilant, aggressive attitude after what happened to her own sister. But when I saw that in a theater when it came out in 1983, there were audible laughs and noisy reactions from some 18- 20's guys in the audience over Lila's grisly manner of killing. They got the excessive violence and gore they wanted. If you were fortunate enough to see the original Hitchcock version in a theater, you may remember there were no audible laughs about Marion Crane or even detective Arbogast.There were screams from some, though, especially when Lila turned back around to enter that fruit cellar with Mother. That was an example of Hitchcock's suspense working on the audience. As Hitchcock would say "There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it." Even the director of the sequel, Richard Franklin, had enough integrity to say "How can you top the original murder in the shower? A hatchet in a hot tub?"

[@josephclark4186]

Thank you very much for this wonderful upload.

[@screamrad218]

Psycho paved the way for the horror genre!

[@kathleentyson6727]

I watched Legally Blonde fur the 10th or 11th time again a few months ago ,I decided to look at the full cast ,omg I didn’t realize his son was in the movie ,I loved Psycho ,i heard that Janet Leigh was never able to shower after that movie .

[@WilliamNast-v1g]

GREAT INTERVIEW!!!

[@gura_dura]

just realize "NorMAN BATEs" is a bit "Patrick BATEMAN"

[@jackies56tbird]

I still can not take a shower if no one else is home. Scared the HELL outta me

[@rambo4war]

Some how in the age of Freddy K, Jason, Michael Myers. Pinhead, Jigsaw etc Norman Bates was one of the original horror franchises.

[@psw4763]

Great actor for sure. And sadly his wife died years later in 9/11 plane attack.

[@KevyNova]

How horrible! I never knew that.

[@Dion_Mustard]

i thought he was gay?

[@cc1k435]

@@Dion_Mustard He was, but caught up in a "conversion" attempt by a soon-to-be famous psychologist, he got married and had a couple of kids.

[@dora1980]

@@Dion_Mustard he was married 20 years until he died.

[@65motowngirl]

@@cc1k435 his son looks just like him. Handsome young man .

[@Michael_Scott_Howard]

All Hitchcock films are amazing. ZERO POINT ZERO CGI..

[@J-ZIM]

love his tie

[@carmenroffa]

❤what a lovely and handsome man he was ❤

[@انت-صلي-عالنبي-بس]

That shiny tie 😀💙👍🏻

[@ModMokkaMatti]

I need it. Still have my skinny ties from when I was in high school in the late '80s, but never had anything like that.

[@Dion_Mustard]

Liberace :p

[@dora1980]

It was the '80s, the shiny decade!

[@johnwhite4810]

Wonderful, modest performer!

[@yvonnemurray5537]

I was so traumatized from the original Psycho…that even now at age 74 I never want to shower alone in the house. Never watched the rest of the movies. No way!

[@kirnpu]

I have to agree. For about 20 years if I was in the shower and thought of the scene I HAD to stop and get out. Like Jaws and the ocean.

[@ericwalters5382]

That tie, Doc Severson must've had a Garage Sale.

[@commanderkeen3787]

Sad how his ex-partner Tab Hunter kind of drifted off into obscurity while Anthony's star continued to rise, and the two men never really spoke again. I highly recommend the documentary Tab Hunter Confidential

[@beparr3081]

It wasn't "sad". Tab Hunter was very content with his life. He had had enough of the Hollywood bs, loved his ranch and horses. Perkins said before he died “I have learned more about love, selflessness and human understanding from the people I have met in this great adventure in the world of AIDS than I ever did in the cutthroat, competitive world in which I spent my life.” So, being a "star" wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

[@christineleblond7777]

He was a good actor in other things too.

[@jillkjv3816]

I think he made the best Inspector Javert in a film version of Les Miserables that I have ever seen. Chilling, yet sympathetic too, in a very odd way.

[@christineleblond7777]

@@jillkjv3816 I'll have to check out that version!

[@jillkjv3816]

@@christineleblond7777 Great. It may be hard to find, though, it was from 1978. I was a teenager then and watched it when it aired on TV.

[@patbest7057]

Sad AP gone 30yrs and his wife over 20yrs rip both

[@darthroden]

I liked Perkins in Disney's "The Black Hole" also.

[@judyprebell7223]

Miss him and Johnny and Ed

[@anneroy4560]

He was married to Berry Berenson ... the sister of Marisa Berenson who was in Caberet with Liza Minnelli ...

[@sjtom57]

Good stuff. Rest in peace fellas.

[@drefrazier4266]

"I think that we're all in our private traps, clamped in them, and none of us can ever get out. We scratch and claw but only at the air, only at each other. And for all of it, we never budge an inch."

[@zmani4379]

From 3:00 to 4:00 - spoiler alert for Psycho 2 - Tony Perkins spends a minute revealing everything about the Psycho 2 murders - the whole video is a spoiler for Psycho 1, of course - but the sequels are less well remembered nowadays, tho they're decent

[@JCStorm76]

Part 4 is almost completely forgotten especially

[@hadassah179]

Nobody ever mentions this franchise. They only praise Hitchcock's Psycho for some reason. It's a fun watch despite having certain favorites.

[@EdRushing-te3sc]

Perkins and Charles Bronson made a great mystery film. Unsual pairing but it worked. Bronson liked perkins a great deal.

[@ericlopez9107]

Johnny says it's unbelievable it's been 26 years ago!! Now try "it's been 62 years ago"!!!....Perkins was such an eloquent, elegant artist and a charming queer gentleman, loved both men & women!!!

[@scottrose220]

**Spoiler** Surprisingly, Perkins gets it wrong here about Psycho II. The Vera Miles character, Lila Loomis is not the k!ller. Neither is the Meg Tilly character Mary. It’s Mrs Spool. She clearly states it at the end of the film. Then Norman grabs the shovel as Perkins describes.

[@randycunningham7318]

I noticed that, too.

[@ToiletClogger1945]

" that does not seem possible that it was 26 years ago " now it's 64 years ago and it's still revered !

[@Whosthis761]

Talk show hosts were way better back then

[@garrison6863]

Diabolique is a classic that has been done four times. Hitchcock tried to buy the book, but Clouzot beat him to it.

[@stevendaniel8126]

I can see why Tab Hunter wanted to be his lover......

[@amrita3000]

I just watched psycho again and then looked this interview up and then wikied him too. And I get it why he agreed to this role. Apparently his mother abused him as well. He probably understood better than most the effects over possessive, abusive mothers have on their children.

[@bibleredpill7225]

The scariest movie I’ve ever seen was the Ring. What a freak show frightening experience that was.

[@TheReal1953]

I agree, but the boy was a freak show in real life. In one of the movies I watched the extras where he was interviewed. He had the personality of a dark mortician. I wonder what happened to him.......

[@CynthiaFeagin-bt1vi]

So sad that his widow died on 9/11/2001 on the first plane that crashed into one of the towers in New York.

[@CyanideSublime]

Amazing how the audience starts clapping at 5:48 when they don't show the clip.

[@kurtjk01]

My folks used to tell a great Psycho story: the morning after they had seen the film, my dad was in the bathroom, shaving. My mom, thinking she had a great prank to scare him with, grabbed a kitchen knife and came running into the bathroom. My dad, screaming, kicked her so hard in the stomach that she fell back on the floor outside the bedroom and puked. Last time she played a prank on him like that . . .

[@jamesmiller4184]

Gosh! A well-intended prank gone-wrong. I sure do hope Mom was OK -- w. no permanent after effects?

[@donaldscott1309]

What movie did Johny say at 5.09?

[@brunoantony3218]

Diabolique, 1955. French movie that inspired Hitchcock to make Psycho.

[@fia.-wk9gh]

Anthony perkins was a handsome man sexy. ❤❤❤❤

[@Czechbound]

" ... well over a generation ... " ... Wild that in 1981 in America, one in every 3 (!) first time births was to a girl 19 years old or younger. Wild ....

[@thierrymarcellus9082]

After watching this interview, I’m now convinced that he did kill all these people. Great actor.

[@egglady]

Interesting that Perkins said the crimes in Psycho 2 were committed by Vera Miles and Meg Tilly, which isn’t the case.

[@Gypsy1194]

He also said his alleged real mother, Miss Spool, that he hit in the head with a shovel for killing the girl he was falling in love with.

[@rickw1100]

I think he was referring to the plot that Vera Miles and Meg Tilly's characters were carrying out ...trying to drive him insane with voices and mysterious "Mother" notes. The actual murders on the other hand, were committed by Mrs. Spool, who in trying to defend Norman, carried them out.

[@enriquetheprofessor]

I caught that as well. In Part 2, the murderer is Mrs. Spool. Mary and her mother didn't kill anyone.

[@rogerdalrymple422]

Yes indeed!

[@silasvandellen1371]

Can u post more videos a day

[@matthewmcneill5320]

No idea there were psycho sequels

[@vickiemckay4259]

Was that Mr. Ed McMahon that shook his hand...

[@pikemeredith5604]

Watch his movie Five Miles To Midnight with Sophia Loren. I thought he was awfully good in that pretending to be dead to defraud the airline insurance company. He was a bit sinister in that too but without the knife. Sad he died so young.

[@ceciliamatheney7197]

What year was this

[@susanb2015]

6/24/86.

[@LordHeath1972]

3:12 "... the Vera Miles character and her daughter..." Probably nothing in that statement, but it's interesting he mentions Vera and does not name Meg Tilly. Perkins did not like Tilly (for real) during the filming of Psycho II.

[@bossdeman]

Why did i think Anthony Perkins was British !

[@jillkjv3816]

Because he was classy. ;)

[@snowdog03]

Confused him with Anthony Hopkins perhaps.

[@tikkunsoulam]

Because he speaks English very well

[@TruthSurge]

Well, apparently "Johnny Carson"' 's YT channel can't afford to get copyright approval to play a clip that they played on his own show 37 years ago! Now, I'll run look up that clip on ANOTHER YT video and see Normal interviewing this grifter.

[@JamesSchubert-xz9iy]

Perkins wasn't even in the shower scene. Didn't really need to be.