<P> Alfred Hitchcock's cameo is a signature occurrence in most of his films . In Psycho, he can be seen through a window--wearing a Stetson hat--standing outside Marion Crane's office . Wardrobe mistress Rita Riggs has said that Hitchcock chose this scene for his cameo so that he could be in a scene with his daughter (who played one of Marion's colleagues). Others have suggested that he chose this early appearance in the film in order to avoid distracting the audience . </P> <P> The murder of Leigh's character in the shower is the film's pivotal scene and one of the best - known in all of cinema . As such, it spawned numerous myths and legends . It was shot from December 17--23, 1959, with 77 different camera angles . The finished scene runs three minutes and includes 50 cuts . Most of the shots are extreme close - ups, except for medium shots in the shower directly before and directly after the murder . The combination of the close shots with their short duration makes the sequence feel more subjective than it would have been if the images were presented alone or in a wider angle, an example of the technique Hitchcock described as "transferring the menace from the screen into the mind of the audience". </P> <P> To capture the straight - on shot of the shower head, the camera had to be equipped with a long lens . The inner holes on the shower head were blocked and the camera placed a sufficient distance away so that the water, while appearing to be aimed directly at the lens, actually went around and past it . </P> <P> The soundtrack of screeching violins, violas, and cellos was an original all - strings piece by composer Bernard Herrmann titled "The Murder". Hitchcock originally intended to have no music for the sequence (and all motel scenes), but Herrmann insisted he try his composition . Afterward, Hitchcock agreed it vastly intensified the scene, and nearly doubled Herrmann's salary . The blood in the scene is reputed to have been Bosco chocolate syrup, which shows up better on black - and - white film, and has more realistic density than stage blood . The sound of the knife entering flesh was created by plunging a knife into a casaba melon . </P>

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