JC
James Cagney
Actor, Producer
Died March 30, 1986 (86 years)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
James Francis Cagney, Jr. (July 17, 1899 – March 30, 1986) was an American film actor. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of roles, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys". In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth among the Greatest Male Stars of All Time.
In his first performing role, Cagney danced dressed as a woman in the chorus line of the 1919 revue Every Sailor. He spent several years in vaudeville as a hoofer and comedian until his first major acting role in 1925. He secured several other roles, receiving good reviews before landing the lead in the 1929 play Penny Arcade. After rave reviews for his acting, Warners signed him for an initial $500 a week, three-week contract to reprise his role; this was quickly extended to a seven year contract. Cagney's seventh film, The Public Enemy, became one of the most influential gangster movies of the period. Notable for its famous grapefruit scene, the film thrust Cagney into the spotlight, making him one of Warners' and Hollywood's biggest stars.
In 1938, he received his first Academy Award Best Actor nomination for Angels with Dirty Faces, before winning in 1942 for his portrayal of George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy. He was nominated a third time in 1955 for Love Me or Leave Me. Cagney retired for 20 years in 1961, spending time on his farm before returning for a part in Ragtime mainly to aid his recovery from a stroke.
Cagney walked out on Warners several times over his career, each time coming back on improved personal and artistic terms. In 1935, he sued Warners for breach of contract and won; this marked one of the first times an actor had beaten a studio over a contract issue. He worked for an independent film company for a year while the suit was settled, and also established his own production company, Cagney Productions, in 1942 before returning to Warners again four years later. Jack Warner called him "The Professional Againster", in reference to Cagney’s refusal to be pushed around. Cagney also made numerous morale-boosting troop tours before and during World War II, and was President of the Screen Actors Guild for two years.
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Filmography
| 2011 | These Amazing Shadows · as George M. Cohan (clip from Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)) |
| 2004 | |
| 2004 | Behind the Tunes: Looney Tunes Go Hollywood · as Tom Powers |
| 2003 | Tupac: Resurrection · as actor |
| 2003 | Los Angeles Plays Itself · as Tom Powers in The Public Enemy |
| 1999 | Angela's Ashes · as Rocky Sullivan |
| 1998 | |
| 1993 | L'oeil de Vichy · as Undetermined Film Role: Gambling |
| 1985 | That's Dancing! · as Unknown |
| 1982 | Night of 100 Stars · as Unknown |
| 1982 | Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid · as (in "White Heat") (archive footage) |
| 1981 | Ragtime · as New York Police Commissioner Rhinelander Waldo |
| 1980 | Fade to Black · as Cody Jarett |
| 1976 | That's Entertainment, Part II · as (archive footage) |
| 1976 | Kristina Talking Pictures · as actor |
| 1976 | America at the Movies · as George M. Cohan |
| 1975 | Brother Can You Spare a Dime · as (archive footage) |
| 1969 | Busby Berkeley and the Gold Diggers · as actor |
| 1968 | Arizona Bushwhackers · as Narrator |
| 1963 | Hollywood: The Great Stars · as Cody Jarrett |
| 1961 | One, Two, Three · as C.R. MacNamara |
| 1960 | The Gallant Hours · as Admiral William 'Bull' Halsey |
| 1959 | Shake Hands with the Devil · as Sean Lenihan |
| 1956 | These Wilder Years · as Steve Bradford |
| 1956 | Tribute to a Bad Man · as Jeremy Rodack |
| 1955 | Mister Roberts · as Captain Morton |
| 1955 | Love Me or Leave Me · as Martin Snyder |
| 1955 | Run for Cover · as Matt Dow |
| 1953 | A Lion Is in the Streets · as Hank Martin |
| 1952 | What Price Glory · as Captain Flagg |
| 1950 | Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye · as Ralph Cotter |
| 1950 | The West Point Story · as Elwin Bixby |
| 1949 | White Heat · as Arthur 'Cody' Jarrett |
| 1948 | The Time of Your Life · as Joseph |
| 1945 | Blood on the Sun · as Nick Condon |
| 1943 | Johnny Come Lately · as Tom Richards |
| 1942 | Captains of the Clouds · as Brian MacLean (bush pilot) |
| 1942 | Yankee Doodle Dandy · as George M. Cohan |
| 1941 | The Bride Came C.O.D. · as Steve Collins |
| 1941 | The Strawberry Blonde · as T. L. "Biff" Grimes |
| 1940 | City for Conquest · as Danny Kenny |
| 1940 | The Fighting 69th · as Jerry Plunkett |
| 1940 | Torrid Zone · as Nick Butler |
| 1939 | Each Dawn I Die · as Frank Ross |
| 1939 | The Roaring Twenties · as Eddie Bartlett |
| 1939 | The Oklahoma Kid · as Jim Kincaid |
| 1938 | Angels with Dirty Faces · as Rocky Sullivan |
| 1937 | Something to Sing About · as Terrence 'Terry' Rooney |
| 1936 | Great Guy · as Johnny 'Red' Cave |
| 1936 | Ceiling Zero · as Dizzy Davies |
| 1935 | Mutiny on the Bounty · as (uncredited) |
| 1935 | 'G' Men · as James 'Brick' Davis |
| 1935 | Devil Dogs of the Air · as Tommy O'Toole |
| 1935 | Frisco Kid · as Bat Morgan |
| 1935 | A Midsummer Night's Dream · as Bottom |
| 1934 | Jimmy the Gent · as Jimmy Corrigan |
| 1934 | Here Comes the Navy · as Chesty O'Conner |
| 1933 | Footlight Parade · as Chester Kent |
| 1933 | Lady Killer · as Dan Quigley |
| 1933 | Picture Snatcher · as Daniel Patrick "Danny" Kean |
| 1933 | The Mayor of Hell · as Richard 'Patsy' Gargan |
| 1933 | Hard to Handle · as Lefty Merrill |
| 1933 | Wild Boys of the Road · as Actor in Filmclip from 'Footlight Parade' |
| 1932 | The Crowd Roars · as Joe Greer |
| 1931 | The Public Enemy · as Tom Powers |
| 1931 | Smart Money · as Jack |
| 1931 | Other Men's Women · as Ed 'Eddie' Bailey |
| 1931 | Blonde Crazy · as Albert 'Bert' Harris |
| 1931 | Taxi · as Matt Nolan |
| 1930 | The Doorway to Hell · as Steve Mileaway |