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October 8 - 14, 2023 • Terre Haute Tribune-Star • 9 Many secret agents came to the screen during the spy craze of the 1960s, but Harry Palmer made his mind his main weapon. Played by Michael Caine, novelist Len Deighton's brainy character sparked three theatrical features, re- leased over three consecutive years … and two of them form a double bill Sunday, Oct. 8, on Turner Classic Movies. Logically scheduled first is the character's initial film, "The Ipcress File" (1965), then the lineup skips the second picture in the series (1966's "Funeral in Berlin") to proceed directly to the third, "Billion Dollar Brain" (1967). Harry Saltzman, who was one of the original pro- ducers of the James Bond movies along with Albert R. Broccoli), bought the film rights to the Palmer books from Deighton during the latter's brief involvement with the Bond franchise. Interestingly, each of the '60s Palmer capers was released by a different studio: "The Ipcress File" by Universal, "Funeral in Berlin" by Para- mount, and "Billion Dollar Brain" by United Artists. Such key players in the 007 series as composer John Barry, editor Peter R. Hunt and composer John Barry were brought over by Saltzman for "The Ipcress File." The movie that made later two-time Oscar winner Caine a star, it finds ex-military man Palmer enlisted to find a kidnapped scientist. Complications involv- ing British Intelligence and the CIA arise as the case proceeds, with Palmer eventually captured and sub- jected to brainwashing in a classic sequence designed for maximum tension by Hunt and director Sidney J. Furie. While "The Ipcress File" is deliberately low in gad- getry, "Billion Dollar Brain" leans more into the tech- nology that became such a part of the spy genre during that era. An early work by director Ken Russell, later of "Women in Love" and "Tommy" fame, it pits Palm- er against a computer-obsessed tycoon (Ed Begley) who schemes to incite World War III by dispatching his own private army. Karl Malden, who would reunite with Caine in 1979's "Beyond the Poseidon Adven- ture," plays a presumed friend of Palmer. The Palmer series continued, at least in a sense, much later with two TV movies that brought Caine back to the role, "Bullet to Beijing" (1995) and "Mid- night in Saint Petersburg" (1996). While those films credited Palmer as a Deighton creation, the author wasn't involved with them in any way (the two stories were conceived by veteran British writer-producer Har- ry Alan Towers, under his pseudonym Peter Welbeck). Of note in the casting, Sue Lloyd returned in "Bullet to Beijing" in her "Ipcress File" part as Jean Courtney. Harry Palmer isn't the brawniest of spies, but that's a big part of what makes him so memorable both on film and in literature… a fact that TCM is acknowl- edging by devoting a night to showcasing his very cerebral exploits. spotlight BY JAY BOBBIN Michael Caine and Nigel Green in "The Ipcress File" Michael Caine is spy Harry Palmer in a TCM double feature Marc Warren in "Van Der Valk" Sunday on PBS Q: Was David Eigenberg still playing Steve on "Sex and the City" when he started working on "Chica- go Fire"? – Melanie Paul, Tacoma, Wash. A: In a manner of speaking. "Sex and the City" ended its original six-season HBO run in 2004, with the movie sequels released in 2008 and 2010, and "Chicago Fire" premiered on NBC in 2012. However, Eigenberg has returned on a recurring basis as Steve Brady on Max's "Sex and the City" continuation series "And Just Like That … ," with the char- acter's relationship with Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon) continuing to endure twists and turns. The nature of both "Chicago Fire" and "And Just Like That … " has facilitated Eigenberg being able to do both shows, since they don't necessarily need all cast members present at any given time. That will be even more the case when "Chicago Fire's" next season begins, since as a cost-containment measure, all of the Dick Wolf-produced NBC shows will be reducing the number of episodes in which each of the principal cast members appear (in most cases). That would seem to portend less screen time on "Chicago Fire" for Eigenberg overall, though he'll likely be more prominent in many episodes in which he is seen. celebritypipeline BY JAY BOBBIN Send questions of general interest via email to tvpipeline@gmail.com. Writers must include their names, cities and states. Personal replies cannot be sent.