Known For
Acting
Born
Jul 17, 1899
Died
Mar 30, 1986
Place of Birth
New York City, New York, USA
Credits
139 titles
James Cagney
Biography
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.
Known For
Filmography
Becoming Marilyn
(archive footage)
Parkinson at 50
Self (archive footage)
This Is Bob Hope...
Self (archive footage)
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
Self (archive footage)
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression
Self (archive footage)
Warner at War
(archive footage)
Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film
Self (archive footage)
You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story
Self (archive footage)
Legends
Martin Snyder (archive footage) (uncredited)
Stardust: The Bette Davis Story
Self (archive footage) (voice)
White Heat: Top of the World
Self (archive footage)
Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public
Self (archive footage)
Angels with Dirty Faces: Whaddya Hear? Whaddya Say?
Self (archive footage)
Remembering Ragtime
NY Police Commissioner Rheinlander Waldo (archive footage)
Tupac: Resurrection
Self (archival)
Complicated Women
Self (archive footage)
Doris Day: It's Magic
Self
Vaudeville
Self (archive footage)
Bogart: The Untold Story
Self (archive footage)
James Cagney: Top of the World
Self (Archive footage)
Movie Tough Guys
Self (archive footage)
I Don't Even Like Apple Pie...
Self (Archive Footage)
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Routine Pleasures
Ed "Eddie" Bailey (archive footage)
That's Dancing!
From 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' (archive footage)
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
Self (archive footage)
Terrible Joe Moran
Joe Moran
Going Hollywood: The '30s
(archive footage)
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Showbiz Goes to War
(archive footage)
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
(in "White Heat") (archive footage)
Showbiz Ballyhoo
Self (archive footage)
Night of 100 Stars
Self
James Cagney: That Yankee Doodle Dandy
Ragtime
New York Police Commissioner Rhinelander Waldo
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
Self
The Kennedy Center Honors
Self
Bob Hope's World of Comedy
Self (archive footage)
That's Entertainment, Part II
(archive footage)
It's Showtime
Self (archive footage)
Hooray for Hollywood
Self (archive footage)
Texaco Presents: A Quarter Century of Bob Hope on Television
(archive footage)
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Self (archive footage)
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
Self
Dynamite Chicken
Self (archive footage)
Arizona Bushwhackers
Narrator
Ballad of Smokey the Bear
Narrator (voice)
The Day of the Oath
Narrator
The Road to the Wall
Narrator
One, Two, Three
C.R. MacNamara