The Michael Caine movie Cary Grant loved: “He never ever gave me any advice”
The relationship between Old Hollywood and New Hollywood was, by definition, uneasy. When the studio system collapsed and the public began clamouring for stories and characters that reflected the real world rather than glamorous fantasy, stars like Cary Grant, Elizabeth Taylor, and Katharine Hepburn were forced into retirement, evolution, or denial. Meanwhile, a new cohort was storming into town, led by hard-living rabble-rousers like Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson.
In the 1960s, another wave of cultural change was washing up on American shores – the British Invasion. Music might have been the driving force behind the phenomenon, but there were plenty of actors from London’s Swinging Sixties who were making their Hollywood debuts and taking over the town. Michael Caine was at the forefront of the movement. 1965’s The Ipcress File and 1966’s Alfie made him a star on both sides of the pond, and the latter even earned him an Oscar nomination.
Although he got his start in the business playing the stereotype of the angry young working-class Londoner, Caine had nothing but respect for classical Hollywood actors. He worshipped Marlon Brando, Spencer Tracy, Cary Grant, and Clark Gable and had a special soft spot for Humphrey Bogart. When he finally met Grant, he was so in awe that he could hardly speak. Hollywood being what it is, however, Caine had plenty more opportunities to rub shoulders with the North by Northwest star in the coming years, and the two eventually became friends.
Caine remembered the star being good natured and full of humour, and had a particularly fond memory of an interaction they had at an Oscars after party. Caine had just lost the ‘Best Actor’ award for his performance in Educating Rita in 1984, but when he made his way to the crowded party, Grant walked over to him, embraced him, and whispered in his ear, “You’re a winner here, Michael,” bringing the actor to blubbering tears.
It wasn’t pure showbiz hyperbole, either. Grant, it turned out, was a great admirer of Caine and especially loved his film Alfie. This is surprising considering that the character Caine plays is about as far away from the humorous, honourable, self-deprecating men that Grant played throughout his career. Alfie is a cynical womaniser who lacks purpose or self-awareness, carelessly wrecking the lives of others without so much as a whisper of guilt. It was a film that could only have been made in the 1960s, but it’s indicative of Grant’s evolution as an actor and, presumably, as a person that he was able to admire the film rather than feel threatened by it.
The respect was mutual, of course. Despite the profound changes that Hollywood underwent between the time Grant was a top box office draw and Caine was a top box office draw, the two men had a lot in common. They both grew up in poverty in England and made the seemingly impossible leap to Hollywood stardom. Their affinity for each other was natural.
Caine revealed that he got to know Grant well when he began working regularly in America in the 1970s, and the older actor always made him feel like an equal. “Even though he was a veteran of Hollywood and the movies, he never ever gave me any advice,” Caine revealed. “He wasn’t that kind of guy.”
Never Miss A Tale
The Far Out Michael Caine Newsletter
All the latest stories about Michael Caine from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.