New York-born and bred James Caan is a masculine and enigmatic actor whose life and movie career have had more ups and downs than the average rollercoaster. Despite his selection of roles, he has arguably derailed himself from achieving true superstar status.
Born in the Bronx to Sophie (Falkenstein) and Arthur Caan, Jewish immigrants from Germany, James was an athletically gifted individual who played football at Michigan State University while studying economics. He also holds a black belt in karate and was a regular on the rodeo circuit, earning the nickname "The Jewish Cowboy".
However, his life took a dramatic turn when he became intrigued by acting and was accepted into Sanford Meisner's Neighborhood Playhouse. He then won a scholarship to study under acting coach Wynn Handman and began to appear in several off-Broadway productions.
James made his screen debut as a sailor in Irma la Douce (1963) and began to impress audiences with his work in Red Line 7000 (1965) and the western El Dorado (1966) alongside John Wayne and Robert Mitchum. He then appeared in Journey to Shiloh (1968) and The Rain People (1969).
However, audiences were moved to tears by his heart-rending performance as cancer-stricken Chicago Bears running back Brian Piccolo in the highly rated made-for-TV film Brian's Song (1971). This strong performance led to his casting as hot-tempered gangster Santino "Sonny" Corleone in the Mafia epic The Godfather (1972).
The film was an enormous success, and James scored a Best Supporting Actor nomination. He reprised the role for several flashback scenes in the sequel The Godfather Part II (1974) and then moved on to several diverse projects.
These included a cop-buddy crime partnership with Alan Arkin in the uneven Freebie and the Bean (1974),a superb performance as a man playing for his life in The Gambler (1974) alongside Lauren Hutton, and pairing with Barbra Streisand in Funny Lady (1975).
Two further strong lead roles came up for him in 1975, first as futuristic sports star "Jonathon E" questioning the moral fiber of a sterile society in Rollerball (1975) and teaming up with Robert Duvall in the Sam Peckinpah spy thriller The Killer Elite (1975).
Unfortunately, James's rising star sputtered badly at this stage of his career, and several film projects failed to find fire with either critics or audiences. However, he did score again with the stylish Michael Mann-directed heist movie Thief (1981).
James then appeared back in favor with fans and critics alike and raised his visibility with the sci-fi hit Alien Nation (1988) and Dick Tracy (1990),then surprised everyone by playing a meek romance novelist held captive after a car accident by a deranged fan in the dynamic Misery (1990).
The 1990s were kind to him, and he notched up roles as a band leader in For the Boys (1991),another gangster in Honeymoon in Vegas (1992),appeared in the indie hit Bottle Rocket (1996) and pursued Arnold Schwarzenegger in Eraser (1996).
The demand on James's talents seems to have increased steadily over the past few years as he is making himself known to a new generation of fans. Recent hot onscreen roles have included The Yards (2000),City of Ghosts (2002) and Dogville (2003).
In addition, he finds himself at the helm of the hit TV series Las Vegas (2003) as casino security chief "Big Ed" Deline. An actor of undeniably manly appeal, James Caan continued to surprise and delight audiences with his invigorating performances up until his death in July 2022 at the age of 82.
