Sir Michael Caine born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; is an English retired actor.
Beginning from a humble background, he went on to become one of the most celebrated stars in the English as well as American entertainment industry.
In a career spanning more than 60 years, Michael Caine has appeared in around 115 films, earning numerous awards and nominations.
Today, he is regarded as a British film icon and ranked as the ninth highest-grossing star.
In spite of such adulation, he remains a family-oriented private person interested in charity work.
Although he had to change his name at the beginning of his career, he never forgot his roots and thus when he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2000, he accepted the honor as Maurice Micklewhite.
Apart from being an established actor, Michael Caine is also a reputed writer and has authored 11 books, which include his autobiographies ‘What’s It All About’ and ‘The Elephants to Hollywood.
Michael Caine Biography
Michael Caine was given the name Maurice Joseph Micklewhite Jr. when he was born on March 14, 1933 in London.
His father, Maurice Sr., was a fish market porter and his mother, Ellen, was a cook and charwoman. He was raised in a Protestant home with his younger brother, Stanley.
Later in life, after the death of his mother, Caine learned that he also had an elder half-brother named David who suffered from severe epilepsy and had been kept in a mental hospital his entire life.
The mother had kept the child a secret from her entire family.
His father was called away during the Second World War and upon his return the family moved into a prefabricated house, given that many of the houses in London had been destroyed during the Blitz in 1940-1941. The family stayed there for eighteen years.
Michael Caine began acting in school plays at the age of 10. He was also an intelligent student and won a scholarship to the Hackney Downs School, where he attended until transferring to the Wilson’s Grammar School in Camberwell.
At the age of 16, he left school after completing his qualifications in six subjects and worked briefly as a filing clerk and messenger.
Between 1952 and 1954, he completed his national service, which was required at the time, in the British Army’s Royal Fusiliers. He was stationed in West Germany and then called to active service during the Korean War.
At the age of 20, Caine began his acting career by securing an assistant stage manager position who would also occasionally perform walk-on roles at the Carfax Electric Theatre.
He adopted the stage name “Michael White” during this time. He was cast as the character Hindley in a 1953 stage production of “Wuthering Heights” and he also joined the Lowestoft Repertory Company for a year, during which he appeared in nine plays.
He then began working in London in 1954, where he was required to select a new stage name as another actor was already performing under the name Michael White.
He selected “Michael Caine” while on the phone with his agent down the street from the Odeon Cinema, which was currently showing “The Caine Mutiny.
Caine moved in with fellow actor Terence Stamp and also became friends with actor Peter O’Toole, taking over O’Toole’s role in “The Long and the Short and the Tall” after O’Toole left to make “Lawrence of Arabia.
He also began appearing in television and films in the mid-1950s and his worked steadily over the next decade.
Caine’s big break came in 1963 when he was cast in the play “Next Time I’ll Sing To You.” He was visited backstage by Stanley Baker, a fellow actor, who then introduced Caine to film director Cy Endfield.
Endfield ended up casting Caine in his film, “Zulu,” despite having already cast actor James Booth. This film thrust Caine into the spotlight.
He then starred as the spy Harry Palmer in “The Ipcress File” in 1965 and the title character in “Alfie” in 1966. He reprised his role of Palmer for four additional spy films, made from 19966 to 1995.
Michael Caine Wife
Michael Caine has been married to actress and and model Shakira Baksh since 8 January 1973.
Michael Caine marriages
Michael Caine has been married twice. His first marriage was to Patricia Haines from 1955 to 19621.
He then married Shakira Caine on January 8, 1973. Shakira Caine is a former model and actress from Guyana.
Michael Caine Children
Michael Caine has two daughters. His first daughter, Dominique Caine, was born in 1956 to Michael Caine and his first wife, Patricia Haines1.
Dominique is a keen equestrian and owns a horse farm1. Michael Caine’s second daughter, Natasha Caine, was born in 1973 to Michael Caine and his second wife, Shakira Caine1.
Natasha is a former model and turned her attention to property development in the early 2000s1. She worked on developing luxury villas with her ex-husband, Michael Hall.
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