Patrick McNee in his autobiography "Blind In One Ear" talked about being offered the ticket. He was getting acting gigs on the stage in London, landed a starring role as John Steed in "The Avengers" on TV, and was offered a starring role in an American film production. He just had to "go to dinner" with the producer. He'd been around actors and artists enough to know what was expected.
He turned down the offer and his career pretty much dried up, going from roles as John Stud to roles as the Rich Gay Englishman, like Sir Dennis Eaton-Hogg in Spinal Tap.