Michael Caine feared debut would sink his career

With a degree of honesty and forthrightness a full legion of his contemporaries would do well to share, Sir Michael Caine has told the British press he feared his first major film would also be his last;

Sir Michael, now 76, tells the UK’s Daily Telegraph he was convinced his big-screen debut in Paramount’s 1964 action-drama, ‘Zulu’  would be the death of his career as an actor, because he looked ‘ugly and strange’ on the screen.

“I thought, ‘I’ll go and see the rushes because I’m gonna be a big star.’” he recalls. But it didn’t go well, “I threw up all over the floor, and ran out. I didn’t like the voice, I didn’t like the look, I didn’t like anything!” he told the scribes.

The film tells the story of a blood-spattered battle which took place on January 22nd 1879. A unit of just 139 soldiers guarding a tiny African outpost were attacked by 4,000 Zulu warriors. Twelve unbroken hours of hand-to-hand fighting later, more than 100 were dead. But their gallantry, bravery and devotion to duty earned eleven of these soldiers the ‘Victoria Cross’ — Britain’s highest military honor.

Sir Michael, however, was not quite so brave, “I’d never seen myself that big before. I’d seen myself on black-and-white TV, but this was in color – on a great big screen! I thought, ‘My career’s over, they’re going to fire me!”

He need not have worried – the movie was an instant critical and box-office success, and won the 31-year old novice the lead as ‘Harry Palmer’ in The Ipcress File, the seminal role which established his name and thus made his career.

…And not a lot of people know that.