 Alfred Hitchcock (I) (qv) tried to hire Joseph Stefano (I) (qv)  (writer of _Psycho (1960)_ (qv)) to write the script, but he wasnt  interested in the story. The final screenplay (from a  Daphne Du Maurier (qv) story) was written by Evan Hunter (qv),  best known to detective story fans under his pen name "Ed McBain".