The Director's Cut: Oliver Stone's Move From Silver Screen To Small Screen

The Nixon director's new American history series sees him follow in the footsteps of Alfred Hitchcock, David Lynch and Steven SpielbergThe title of Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States, the 10-part documentary series that starts its UK run this Friday (Sky Atlantic, 9pm), is carefully calculated to maximise on the celebrity of the film director, possibly surprising viewers at finding such a big-screen name in the small-screen listings.Stone's attempt to correct what he sees as US-centric teaching of 20th-century history in American schools is full of arresting connections – sauerkraut was renamed liberty cabbage in the US during the first world war and french fries became freedom fries during the "war on terror" – and the British screening of his series is subject to its own intriguing connection: this week's announcement that the American drama Bates Motel has been bought for broadcast in the UK by the Universal Channel.The A&E network series, a prequel to Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 horror movie Psycho, may look like TV cashing on a celluloid classic, but Hitchcock himself was a pioneer of easy traffic between the screen media – and Stone can be seen as following his example.Either side of making Psycho, Hitchcock was working in television, directing a half-hour drama and fronting the series Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955-61) and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1962).