Andrew London was the editor on Psycho II in 1983. I managed to make contact with him through Director Richard Franklin during the last week of June 2005. Mr. London was quite helpful in locating rare stills and giving Psycho fans a rare look behind the last phase of Psycho II's production process before it hit theaters June 3rd, 1983. The stills to the left were provided by Mr. London, including the extremely rare cast/crew still.

How and when were you first approached to edit Psycho II?
I had known Richard Franklin since 1967, when we were both at USC Film School , and had edited his first film The True Story of Eskimo Nell in Melbourne , Australia in 1974. So, when he called me in the Spring of 1982 to say he was coming to do his first film in Hollywood and that he wanted me to edit it, I was thrilled. (We were both Hitchcock aficionados.) I was in the midst of designing the post-production sound on Wim Wenders Hammett at the time. Needless to say, Universal made him interview quite a few of their better-known editors, until I had a meeting with VP and former editor Verna Fields (Jaws), who said to me “I think the director should have the editor he wants, and, besides, I think sound editors make the best editors” (having been one herself).

What did you do on the film, besides the editing?
I had been promised by producer Bernard Schwartz, whom I had worked with previously as sound editor on both Coal Miner's Daughter and Richard's Road Games, that, no matter whether or not I got to edit Psycho II, I would design the sound. When I got to edit the film, the buzz around the studio was: “Did you hear, a sound editor is editing the picture?” When I got to design the sound it was: “Did you hear, the picture editor is editing the sound?” I also directed some second unit- specifically, a number of key inserts.

How many miles of film footage came into your cutting room and where did you edit the film?
Psycho II had less film shot than any other one I worked on in my entire career: a mere 94,000 feet (a little over 17 hours, as well as 17 miles). The film was edited on the Universal Studios lot, in an editorial building adjacent to the Alfred Hitchcock Theater. I edited the film on a upright Moviola. In addition, we had an 8-plate KEM flat-bed for when we had the cut assembled. It belonged to Verna, and liked to eat film, so I spent an inordinate amount of time repairing sprocket holes! Otherwise, it was a fairly standard operation for the time, but only minimally staffed.

How long did the editing process take you?
It was a short post for the time. We started shooting June 30, 1982, finished the first week of August, had the first cut 2 weeks later. Then another 5 or 6 weeks to director's cut and previewed publicly (in Seattle ) in mid December. The final answer print was out the first week after the New Year, and we had our cast and crew screening in the Hitchcock Theater on January 31, 1983.

Tell us about your experience in your own words
It was my first studio film as well, but since we were so low budget, the studio pretty much left us alone. It was much like being back in film school: we operated on our own good instincts to make creative decisions. I was very excited by the experience of making a sequel to a Hitchcock classic, with a friend who was so knowledgeable about him, and who was ready to listen to what I had to say.

Did any actors or other crew, aside from director Franklin come to the cutting room?
Tony Perkins must have, at one time or another, been to the cutting room- though I don't specifically remember. Other than him, both Hilton Green and, occasionally, Bernie Schwartz would visit. No executives were allowed. In fact, they were completely ignorant of the ending of the film, as the last few pages - containing the reveal of Mrs. Spool as mother, and her murder- were missing from all but our copies of the script!

Do you have any anecdotes to share regarding the movie?
As the ending of the film was a big secret (we had to actively keep Psycho fanatics out of the loop), we managed to create our own word-of-mouth about the picture. When we heard around town: “I hear the picture is good!”, we knew the source was our own buzz. Because of the secretive nature of the plot line, I had to edit wearing headphones, so that no one else in the building could over hear any of the dialogue! One particularly amusing story, for me, was listening one afternoon to Susan Stamberg's All Things Considered on NPR while surrounded with film on the floor. She was interviewing “Myrna, the mean waitress from Psycho II (actress Lee Garlington, who had worked at NPR, and whom I had spoken to at our wrap party), and asked her: “Are you worried about winding up on the cutting room floor?” As I stared at the mess around me Lee replied “No. Our editor is a big fan of All Things Considered , and he would never do that!”

Do you remember any scenes that were shot but omitted from the film?
The only complete scene I remember we deleted was the cemetery scene, where mother's corpse was exhumed by Dr. Raymond to show Norman that his mother was really dead. In it Norman talks about being recommitted. The scene fell between the scene in the hotel bar where we see Mary and Lila Crane arguing, and the scene in the kitchen where Mary is cooking.

Did you attend the premiere screening of the film?
Absolutely. I attended and coordinated the sound presentation on the New York premiere at the Rivoli Theater on Broadway. Also the Los Angeles premiere at the Plitt ( Century City ), which was a benefit for USC Cinema (at least a half-dozen USC grads worked on the film).

The music was amazing in Psycho II: what did you think of Jerry Goldsmith's contribution?
Jerry was Richard's and my first choice to score the film, but we never in our right minds thought we would get him. When we screened our cut for Verna Fields (she was the first executive to see the completed cut), she suggested that Jerry might be interested. Working with him was a dream come true (I consequently worked with him on Link and Rambo III). His contribution to humanizing Norman 's character is incalculable.

In the main title, we see the Psycho House in 1960 and then it dissolves to 1983.  How was that shot accomplished?
Al Whitlock was responsible for that. He created a matte that took us from the existing Psycho footage ( as we pan out of the motel room window) to a new shot of the house which he transitioned from black-and-white night to color dawn.

How was it seeing your work up on the big screen and what did you think of the completed film?
Nothing compares to seeing audiences react to your work for the first time. When they screamed and covered their faces at all the right places, you knew you had done your job well. I am very proud of the work we did on Psycho II. We managed to pay homage to the original, while setting up the entire sequel series.

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