David Bianculli

But it's a moment that feels not only fresh and natural, but unabashedly tender and sweet.

65 years ago, director Alfred Hitchcock shocked audiences and changed cinema forever with the release of his 1960 thriller movie, Psycho.

It was a slasher film before that term existed and was based on a book by Robert Bloch.

Hitchcock was attracted to the film because of the unexpected sudden murder of a central character early on.

Joe Stefano, who wrote the screenplay, preserved that central surprise, and so did Hitchcock.

He cast movie star Janet Leigh in the role of a criminal on the run, then had her character stabbed to death in the shower after checking into a remote motel run by Norman Bates, played by Anthony Perkins.

Most of Psycho was photographed quickly and cheaply by the same crew Hitchcock used for his still-running TV anthology series, Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

The budget for Psycho was $800,000, making it one of the most profitable films in Hollywood history.

And one of the most influential, too.

Psycho elevated the suspense and murder genre to a higher level and has been copied, saluted, even remade by generations of subsequent movie makers.

Today, we're going to hear from actress Janet Leigh, the star of Psycho.

Well, the star for the first third of the movie, anyway.

Terry spoke with her in 1999.

Leigh wrote a memoir in 1995 about the making of Psycho.

They started with a clip from the film.

Janet Leigh plays Marion Crane, who has stolen some money, is on the run, and has checked into the Bates Motel run by Anthony Perkins as a mild-mannered Norman Bates.

He offers her a sandwich, they sit in the parlor eating, and he tells her about living with and caring for his invalid, mentally unstable mother.

Marion suggests he put his mother in an institution.

Janet Leigh speaking with Terry Gross in 1999.

Janet Leigh died in 2004 at age 77.