History Film / HarryPalmer

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/15669260478_34f6e7f8c8_b.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Sardonic spy Harry Palmer]]

Harry Palmer had a bigger influence on Caine's career than you might think. In the film ''Blue Ice'', Caine played a retired spy named [[AdaptationNameChange Harry]] as a MythologyGag to the role, and wore the iconic NHS frames again as spies [[Franchise/AustinPowers Nigel Powers]] and [[Film/KingsmanTheSecretService Chester King/"Arthur"]].

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were actually produced by Bond producer Harry Saltzman, who recruited much of the Bond films' ProductionPosse to essentially make his own in-house, contrasting "realistic" spy series. Caine returned to the role thirty years later for two more films, ''Bullet to Beijing'' and ''Midnight in Saint Petersburg''.

* GeneralRipper: General Midwinter (Ed Begley Sr.) in Ken Russell's ''Billion Dollar Brain''.

* NamedByTheAdaptation: Harry Palmer. The narrator-protagonist of the novels never gave his name.

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were actually produced by Bond producer Harry Saltzman, who recruited much of the Bond films' ProductionPosse to essentially make his own in-house, contrasting "realistic" spy series.

Caine returned to the role thirty years later for two more films, ''Bullet to Beijing'' and ''Midnight in Saint Petersburg'' (and in the film ''Blue Ice'', played a retired spy named [[AdaptationNameChange Harry]] as a MythologyGag to the role). There are more related novels, ''Horse Under Water'' and ''An Expensive Place To Die'' starring the "Palmer" character, and ''Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Spy'' and ''Spy Story'' featuring a different (but also unnamed) spy and some recurring characters. The former two were never adapted (''Horse Under Water'' [[WhatCouldHaveBeen would have been next]] if ''Billion Dollar Brain'' had performed better), but the last was adapted separately with the character under the name "Pat Armstrong", his alias in that novel.

MichaelCaine played British secret agent Harry Palmer in five films, based on a series of novels by Creator/LenDeighton.

Caine returned to the role thirty years later for two more films, ''Bullet to Beijing'' and ''Midnight in Saint Petersburg'' (and in the film ''Blue Ice'', played a retired spy named [[AdaptationNameChange Harry]] as a MythologyGag to the role). There are three more "Harry Palmer" novels, ''Horse Under Water'', ''Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Spy'' and ''Spy Story''. The former two were never adapted (''Horse Under Water'' [[WhatCouldHaveBeen would have been next]] if ''Billion Dollar Brain'' had performed better) and the last was adapted separately with the character under the name "Pat Armstrong", his alias in that novel.

* GeneralRipper: General Midwinter (Ed Begley Sr.) in Ken ''Billion Dollar Brain''.

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The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. [[note]] In this wiki's SpyFiction rating scale, the Bond films are Martini Flavored and Palmer films are very definitely Stale Beer.[[/note]] Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were actually produced by Bond producer Harry Saltzman, who recruited much of the Bond films' ProductionPosse to essentially make his own in-house, contrasting "realistic" spy series.

!!The other films in this series provide examples of:

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Caine returned to the role thirty years later for two more films, ''Bullet to Beijing'' and ''Midnight in Saint Petersburg'' (and in the film ''Blue Ice'', played a retired spy named [[AdaptationNameChange Harry]] as a MythologyGag to the role). There are three more "Harry Palmer" novels, ''Horse Under Water'', ''Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Spy'' and ''Spy Story''. The former two were never adapted (''Horse Under Water'' [[WhatCouldHaveBeen would have been]] next if ''Billion Dollar Brain'' had performed better) and the last was adapted separately with the character under the name "Pat Armstrong", his alias in that novel.

Caine returned to the role thirty years later for two more films, ''Bullet to Beijing'' and ''Midnight in Saint Petersburg'' (and in the film ''Blue Ice'', played a retired spy named [[AdaptationNameChange Harry]] as a MythologyGag to the role).

Caine returned to the role thirty years later for two more films, ''Bullet to Beijing'' and ''Midnight in Saint Petersburg''.

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. [[note]] In this wiki's SpyFiction rating scale, the Bond films are Martini Flavored and Palmer films are very definitely Stale Beer.[[/note]] Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were actually produced by Bond producer Harry Saltzman, who recruited much of the Bond films' ProductionPosse to essentially make his own, contrasting "realistic" spy series.

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. [[note]] In this wiki's SpyFiction rating scale, the Bond films are Martini Flavored and Palmer films are very definitely Stale Beer.[[/note]] Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were actually produced by Bond producer Harry Saltzman, who recruited much of the Bond films' ProductionPosse.

# ''Film/TheIpcressFile''
# ''Film/FuneralInBerlin''

* ''Film/TheIpcressFile''
* ''Film/FuneralInBerlin''

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. (In this wiki's SpyFiction rating scale, the Bond films are Martini Flavored and Palmer films are very definitely Stale Beer.) Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were made by Bond producer Harry Saltzman, who recruited much of the Bond films' ProductionPosse.

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the increasingly flashy espionage of Bond. (In this wiki's SpyFiction rating scale, the Bond films are Martini Flavored and Palmer films are very definitely Stale Beer.) Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that they were largely made by the Bond films' ProductionPosse.

The first three -- ''The Ipcress File'', ''Funeral in Berlin'', and ''Billion Dollar Brain'' -- were released in the 1960s, during the height of the Sean Connery Film/JamesBond films, and offer a grimmer alternative to the flashy espionage of Bond. (In this wiki's SpyFiction rating scale, the Bond films are Martini Flavored and Palmer films are very definitely Stale Beer.)

MichaelCaine played British secret agent Harry Palmer in five films, based on a series of novels by LenDeighton.