James Cagney

Acting · 1.2 popularity

Age

127

Movies

130

Born: July 17, 1899 – March 30, 1986
From: New York City, New York, USA

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.

Works

130 films

White Heat

19497.6

One, Two, Three

19617.5

Blonde Crazy

19317.0

Mutiny on the Bounty

19357.4

Footlight Parade

19336.8

Angels with Dirty Faces

19387.5

Yankee Doodle Dandy

19427.0

The Public Enemy

19317.2

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

19826.7

Mister Roberts

19557.0

The Roaring Twenties

19397.5

The Millionaire

19317.6

A Midsummer Night's Dream

19356.4

Ragtime

19817.0

'G' Men

19356.6

Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye

19506.8

Love Me or Leave Me

19556.9

The Oklahoma Kid

19396.0

Terrible Joe Moran

19847.0

The Gallant Hours

19606.7

That's Entertainment, Part II

19767.0

Man of a Thousand Faces

19576.8

Complicated Women

20036.9

That's Dancing!

19856.9

Night of 100 Stars

19825.8

The Bride Came C.O.D.

19417.0

Blood on the Sun

19455.9

Tupac: Resurrection

20037.9

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

19756.3

It's Showtime

19767.5

White Heat: Top of the World

20057.7

Smart Money

19316.9

Each Dawn I Die

19396.8

Vaudeville

19978.0

Picture Snatcher

19336.8

Stardust: The Bette Davis Story

20066.6

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

19837.0

Breakdowns of 1941

19417.0

Run for Cover

19556.8

Bob Hope's World of Comedy

1976

Dynamite Chicken

19715.5

Shake Hands with the Devil

19596.5

Tribute to a Bad Man

19567.0

Breakdowns of 1936

1936

What Price Glory

19525.7

The Fighting 69th

19405.8

1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year

20097.5

You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story

20088.5

Short Cut to Hell

19575.8

Becoming Marilyn

20227.6

Going Hollywood: The '30s

19849.0

This Is Bob Hope...

20178.0

Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers

19852.0

James Cagney: Top of the World

19928.5

Jimmy the Gent

19346.4

Come Fill the Cup

19517.0

City for Conquest

19406.9

The Strawberry Blonde

19417.0

Hooray for Hollywood

19768.0

Frisco Kid

19357.0

Torrid Zone

19407.0

The Mayor of Hell

19337.0

Great Guy

19366.3

Lady Killer

19336.9

Other Men's Women

19315.7

Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years

1979

Arizona Bushwhackers

19684.3

13 Rue Madeleine

19476.1

Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression

2009

Parkinson at 50

202110.0

A Dream Comes True

19356.3

James Cagney: That Yankee Doodle Dandy

198110.0

Warner at War

20087.0

Hard to Handle

19336.9

The Time of Your Life

19486.1

The Doorway to Hell

19306.5

Showbiz Goes to War

198210.0

I Don't Even Like Apple Pie...

1989

Bogart: The Untold Story

1997

Breakdowns of 1939

19396.5

The West Point Story

19505.8

Show-Business at War

19437.0

A Lion Is in the Streets

19535.4

Texaco Presents: A Quarter Century of Bob Hope on Television

1975

Here Comes the Navy

19346.0

You, John Jones!

19436.3

Captains of the Clouds

19426.4

Things You Never See on the Screen

19355.3

Starlift

19516.8

These Wilder Years

19566.5

Never Steal Anything Small

19598.2

Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC

19886.0

Ceiling Zero

19365.9

Hollywood Hobbies

19395.6

Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film

20086.9

Doris Day: It's Magic

1998

The Seven Little Foys

19556.2

Devil Dogs of the Air

19356.8

Taxi!

19326.8

Remembering Ragtime

2004

Something to Sing About

19376.2

Winner Take All

19325.4

Intimate Interviews: James Cagney

1931

The Voice That Thrilled the World

19436.0

He Was Her Man

19346.5

Showbiz Ballyhoo

1982

Boy Meets Girl

19386.9

A Trip Thru a Hollywood Studio

19355.9

Johnny Come Lately

19437.0

The Irish in Us

19357.5

Blow-Ups of 1947

19476.3

The Crowd Roars

19326.1

The Hollywood Gad-About

19346.0

Sinners' Holiday

19306.2

Breakdowns of 1940

19404.0

Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public

20057.8

The Bob Hope Chevy Show

1956

Screen Snapshots No. 11

1934

How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 11: 'Practice Shots'

19316.8

Angels with Dirty Faces: Whaddya Hear? Whaddya Say?

20058.5

Ballad of Smokey the Bear

19664.2

The St. Louis Kid

19346.3

The Singing Fool

19285.0

Okay for Sound

19466.7

Movie Tough Guys

199110.0

The Day of the Oath

1965

The Road to the Wall

19625.6

Calling All Girls

19426.0

Routine Pleasures

19866.8

Screen Snapshots Series 14, No. 8

1935