The Elephant to Hollywood

<br />Let's get things straight - I'm a huge fan of Michael Caine, and I eagerly snapped this book up. I've always found him to be a great actor (although admittedly he occasionally makes some very ill-advised choices as regards which movies to appear in), and think he's a very funny raconteur, with lots of great anecdotes to share.<br /><br />However, I was pretty disappointed with this book, for two main reasons. As a long-time fan of Caine, I'd already read his previous autobiography, "What's It All About?", which I absolutely loved. This new autobiography, however, essentially recycles that book for the first 14 chapters of this one. Caine does state in the foreword that he's "not going to apologise for telling some of the old tales", which is honest of him, but - boy! - he really does retell a lot of them, and pretty much word-for-word as they previously appeared in "What's It All About?"<br /><br />The new stuff in this book (i.e. post-1992, the point at which "What's It All About?" ended), is pretty thin on the ground, and whilst interesting, is lacking in detail. We get a little bit about later films such as Batman Begins, and even a mention of Inception, but it's all pretty sketchy. The great amounts of detail about his earlier work (which is great, but appeared in the first book) is simply not there for most of the later films he mentions.<br /><br />Secondly - and I really do think this is a bit naughty - there's a definite sense of filler material being thrown in towards the end of the book. One chapter suddenly turns into a list of some of Caine's favourite recipes, which - whilst appearing to be very tasty - is hardly what I bought the book for. After a short epilogue, we then get a list of Caine's top-ten favourite movies, and another list of his favourite films in which he's appeared. With each we get some explanatory text from the man himself, like this gem of insight - "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels: the funniest film I ever made - and the happiest." And that's that! On to the next film in the list! Hardly ground-breaking insight, and it lets the book down badly.<br /><br />On balance, this is a real shame - "What's It All About?" was a conventional and very, very funny autobiography, which revealed a lot of new information about its author, but this offering seems very weak and cobbled together in comparison.<br /><br />In spite of all this, I would recommend the book, but only to those who haven't already read "What's It All About?". The reader who is new to Caine's autobiographies shouldn't be disappointed, but I suspect everyone else might be. Add a star to the rating if you haven't read the previous book, then, or buy it with your eyes open and the aforementioned caveats in your mind if you have.

Caine's second autobiography begins with the story that he wrote his first memoir because he thought his career was winding down. His career resurgence gave him a lot more to write about. At the same time he does start at the beginning of his life and career and hit the highlights throughout. He has a breezy style and his transitions from period to period are smooth. It's an enjoyable read and I jotted down some notes that I found interesting. <br /><br />-He knew Woody Allen and Mia Farrow since the 1960s so his collaboration on Hannah and Her Sisters was a long time coming. He doesn't weigh in on the accusations.<br /><br />-His favorite actor was Humphrey Bogart and playing Peachy Carnahan in The Man Who Would Be King was perfect because it was the role that John Huston had intended for Bogart.<br /><br />-He thinks his best work was in The Quiet American, the early 2000s film starring Brandon Fraser in the titular role. <br /><br />-He first saw his wife on a television commercial. He was ready to fly to South America to meet her. <br /><br />-He was surprised to learn that she was actually Indian and living in London. <br /><br />-He doesn't say it, but you get the feeling that his long career is as much about being likable as talented. Film directors enjoy his company. <br /><br />-He has no firm ideological views. He has voted for Labour and Tory depending on the needs of the country at a given time. <br /><br />-He loves gardening and cooking the food he grows. <br /><br />-Elephant refers to Elephant and Castle, a section in southeast London known for being the slums. He grew up there as did Charlie Chaplin before him.

One wonders whether before any chat show appearance, Sir Michael pulls out a copy of this book and flicks through to pick out a few juicy numbers. That’s really what it feels like, a stream of well-worn anecdotes that he has polished to perfection across five hundred chat show couches. Undeniably it’s entertaining, but it also feels more than a little insubstantial.<br /><br />Here’s something that’s never touched on. In the book Sir Michael has great fun with anecdotes about the kinds of things he and Terence Stamp used to get up to when they shared a flat together in the swinging sixties London. But I know from having read interviews with Terence Stamp (not with Sir Michael who only uses this book as a reference) that Michael Caine hasn’t actually spoken to him since about 1970. Why is Sir Michael so happy to hail this friendship while leaving out that it’s been dead for nearly fifty years now? What caused the schism? Why is this book so silent on this?<br /><br />Once I had that omission in mind, I did start to notice other quirks. Why is the author’s brother so much in the background? How come we have one anecdote telling us about how he and Sean Connery met before they were famous, and another detailing his friendship with the only friend he kept around from his pre-fame days? A friend who isn’t Sir Sean. Are Sir Michael and Sir Sean no longer friends? It says here they are. It’s all very confusing.<br /><br />An autobiography or a memoir needn’t necessarily be the author washing his linen in public, but it needs to have a little depth. There should be some heft. This though is just a collection of pretty much pain-free anecdotes and consequently seems insubstantial.<br /><br />Well-known literary critic, Bartholomew Simpson once described Krusty the Klown’s autobiography as “self-serving with many glaring omissions.” This isn’t a bad book, but it does sail somewhat into that territory.

I picked this up at Barnes &amp; Noble last week. I really liked his first memoir <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/327610.What_s_It_All_about" title="What's It All about by Michael Caine" rel="noopener">What's It All about</a> I enjoyed this book very much. Michael Caine has had a very interesting life and career. He's one of my favorite actors. This book includes his favorite movies (the ones he has been in are in a separate list). I was glad to see he put Dirty Rotten Scoundrels on his list as that is one of my favorites as well. If you are a movie fan, you will enjoy this book!

“Thank god for dark brown trousers.”

The best two words to describe Michael Caine are perseverance and gratitude. Perseverance because he spent the first several years of his acting career being laughed off stage, turned down for jobs and criticized by agents before he made it big. Gratitude because each paragraph in the book seems to end with a word of gratitude for a experience or person in his life. I think it's these two traits that made Michael Caine not only a great actor but individual and family man.<br /><br />It's funny because I've only become acquainted with Michael Caine recently in Christopher Nolan's (Batman, Prestige and Inception) and a few other films. When reading a Parade article a while back I learned he was a leading star back in the day, so in a way I've discovered him backward. While I enjoyed Caine as an actor the Parade article made me realize he was different than many of the types in Hollywood. His autobiography is both funny and fascinating. Each time I read about a movie he starred in I added it to my "to watch" list. Since starting the book I've watched "The Ipcress File", "Zulu", "The Man Who Would Be King" and "The Cider House Rules" with many more to watch including "The Italian Job" (the original), "Sleuth" and "Alfie." It says a lot about Michael Caine that he's a far better actor now than he was in his thirties. Much of the book is a travelogue and a look into the "high life" but you can't help but admit he deserves it after his childhood and poverty and later years of having nothing.<br /><br />Really what I've taken away from the book is the two words that describe Caine--a greater need for perseverance and gratitude in my own life. Caine ends the book by talking about his wife, children, and three recent grandchildren who are so dear to him. In the end after all the stardom, fame and money they are what matter most to him.<br /><br />A link to the above-mentioned Parade article: <br /><a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://www.parade.com/celebrity/2009/04/michael-caine.html">http://www.parade.com/celebrity/2009/...</a>

<u>Below is the message I posted about this book at my GR group</u>:<br /><br />I recently finished reading <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/8892431.The_Elephant_to_Hollywood" title="The Elephant to Hollywood by Michael Caine" rel="noopener">The Elephant to Hollywood</a>, an autobiography by one of my favorite actors, <a href="https://goodreads.com/author/show/36215.Michael_Caine" title="Michael Caine" rel="noopener">Michael Caine</a>. The book has just come out; it was first published in September of this year (2010). I borrowed it from our public library. I'm rating this book 5 stars because I was so happy to find a book which I enjoyed thoroughly. (Those are few and far between these days.)<br /><br />The word "Elephant" refers to the area of London where Caine grew up. This is a true rags to riches story.<br /><br />Below is an excerpt from the GR description:<br />============================================================<br />"Now he shares the spectacular story of his life, from his humble upbringing in London's poverty-stricken Elephant and Castle, his military service, touching marriage and family life, and lively adventures with friends, to legendary meetings with fellow stars, forays as a restaurateur, and hilarious off-screen encounters from his glittering five-decade career. Caine brings his gift for storytelling and his insider's view to a tale that is funny, warm, and deeply honest."<br />=========================================================<br /><br />That's as good a description as any I could write.<br /><br />Caine is married to a beautiful Indian woman whom he first saw on a TV commercial. He was so taken in by her beauty that he found a way to meet her. They fell in love and are still married after 37 years. Below is a link to a photo of her and Michael:<br /><a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://images2.fanpop.com/images/photos/6500000/Michael-Caine-and-his-wife-Shakira-michael-caine-6551302-683-1024.jpg">http://images2.fanpop.com/images/phot...</a><br />His wife's name is Shakira.<br /><br />My favorite film with Michael Caine is "Educating Rita" (1983). I believe that's one of his favorites too.<br /><a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085478/">http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085478/</a><br /><a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/Educating-Rita/60010315?strackid=36ac839d2528b586_0_srl&amp;strkid=167512572_0_0&amp;trkid=222336#height1818">http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/Educa...</a><br />"The romantic comedy earned a trio of BAFTA Awards (including Best Film), a pair of Golden Globes and three Oscar nominations."<br />The film is streamable from Netflix. Hmmm, I think I might watch it again. :)<br /><br />PS-Michael Caine's real name is <u>Maurice Joseph Micklewhite</u>. Wiki says: "Unlike many actors who adopt their stage name for everyday use, Caine still uses his real name when he is not working."<br />FROM: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Caine">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_...</a>

British actor Michael Caine delivers another autobiography, this one an update on his first book, <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/327610.What_s_It_All_about" title="What's It All about by Michael Caine" rel="noopener">What's It All About?</a>, from 1993. This volume is most definitely an update, as the actor basically provides a skimmer on his earlier bio then does some extra chapters on his life since his first book.<br /><br />I hate comparing books as the idea is to read each book as its own entity, but in this case it's quite pertinent. If you want a Niven-esque story about Caine's life (up to 1993), then read <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/327610.What_s_It_All_about" title="What's It All about by Michael Caine" rel="noopener">What's It All About?</a>. It's far more detailed and quite frankly, more fun. I still love his telling of the Cheetah and the dog tale in that book.<br /><br />By contrast, this latest auto-bio is not as detailed with only some of the previous escapades popping up. It's really a primer for the basic cinematic fan who just wants a basic overview, which is okay but certainly nothing special. It feels as though Mr. Caine was asked to provide some more writings and this is the result. The one constant throughout the book is his reminding us that he is getting old. I kept thinking of T.S. Eliot and, <i>"I grow old ... I grow old ...I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled."</i> <br /><br />Time for tea.<br /><br />Book Season = Summer (basic beachbag book)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />

“زمانی می گویند فردی یک زبان خارجی را خوب یاد گرفته است که آن فرد بتواند به آن زبان خواب ببیند.”<br />نویسنده ی کتاب یکی از محبوب ترین هنرپیشه ها و مترجم آن محبوب ترین استادم در بهترین واحد دوره ی ارشد یعنی واحد سینما است. نمی توانستم کتاب را نخوانم. برای دوستداران بازیگری کتاب مفیدی می‌تواند باشد. ترجمه میتوانست روان‌تر باشد و مشکلات ویرایشی هم کم نبود. اما یک بار خواندنش خوب بود. اگر شما هم عشق سینما باشید از ارجاعات مایکل کین به فیلمها و روش بازیگری خودش یا نوع کارگردانی کارگردان ها خوشتان خواهد آمد.

Exactly what I'm looking for in a celebrity memoir. First, Caine was almost 80 when he wrote this, not middle aged like a lot of memoirs I'm seeing these days. Why is that a trend? Writing an autobiography when your life is only (hopefully) half over? I don't like it. You don't have enough perspective on your life to look back upon it because you are still living it. Not that Michael Caine isn't living his life lol but he is winding things up and able to be more thoughtful about his past.<br /><br />I adored all the anecdotes he told about other celebrities. I appreciated his sense of fandom about meeting various movie stars he loved as a kid. He came to Hollywood as old Hollywood was dying out and so was able to hang out with both golden era movie stars and the newer generation of actors. I too would have been thrilled so show up at a party and have Cary Grant there! His story about Marlene Dietrich is one of my favorites in the book. Caine went to a party at Liza Minelli's right after Peter Sellers had suddenly broken up with her and Liza was devastated. Dietrich (who was Liza's godmother, who knew?) went up to Caine and gave him a piece of her mind because she knew he was friends with Sellers. Dietrich ends by telling Caine he dresses poorly before she walks off. Lol. Caine's John Wayne and Frank Sinatra stories are great as well. Caine doesn't quite rise to the level of David Niven's witty stories in his memoir, but he comes close.<br /><br />Caine mentions all the movies he has done and writes at least a few sentences about each of them. It bothers me when I read an actor's memoir and they barely touch upon their career. Hello! I am reading the memoir to get insider stories about moviemaking. Caine's descriptions and stories about all the movie sets he was on over the years are fascinating. I appreciate him admitting that he said yes to some movies based solely on the filming location or because they will pay him a lot and he needs the money to pay for remodeling his house. That makes sense to me! He's not the type to suffer for the sake of 'art'.<br /><br />Michael Caine is not crazy unlike many other celebrities. He's not destroying his career by becoming an addict or throwing fits on the set or spending money recklessly or being vicious to his family and friends. He seems pretty normal, perhaps because he didn't become a successful actor until his early thirties? He struggled a lot before becoming rich and famous. Those struggles helped him appreciate his good fortune. One story stood out as very moving. He was at a fancy charity event in London, chatting with Princess Michael of Kent, wondering why the location seemed familiar, when he realized the building used to be the fish market where his father had worked. Caine recognized how crazy his life's trajectory had been, a boy from the London slums ending up in a tuxedo, chatting with a Princess.<br /><br />Michael Caine's life is full of stories worth hearing. Before becoming a successful actor, he lived through the Depression and at 6 was sent away to the countryside when the war started. (His dad was at Dunkirk but managed to escape) His mom ended up bringing Michael &amp; his brother home because they were being mistreated. he then experienced the Blitz in London, before evacuating (this time with his mom) to the countryside and experienced this basically cliched version of pastoral England. Caine served in the Korean War before spending years trying to make it as an actor. <br /><br />I'm glad I grabbed this from the library. He's not a favorite actor of mine - I mean, he's fine but I'm not over the moon about him - but this is a favorite Hollywood memoir, for sure.