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.
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.
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0000010
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q94041
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Filmography (Movies)
Parkinson at 50
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:28/08/2021
This Is Bob Hope...
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:29/12/2017
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:02/07/2009
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/2009
Warner at War
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:11/11/2008
Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:21/10/2008
You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:15/05/2008
Angels with Dirty Faces: Whaddya Hear? Whaddya Say?
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/2005
Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/2005
White Heat: Top of the World
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/2005
Remembering Ragtime
Character:NY Police Commissioner Rheinlander Waldo (archive footage)
Release Date:16/11/2004
Los Angeles Plays Itself
Character:Tom Powers in The Public Enemy (archive footage)
Release Date:28/07/2004
Tupac: Resurrection
Character:Self (archival)
Release Date:14/11/2003
Complicated Women
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:06/05/2003
Doris Day: It's Magic
Character:Self
Release Date:18/10/1998
Bogart: The Untold Story
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:05/01/1997
James Cagney: Top of the World
Character:Self (Archive footage)
Release Date:05/07/1992
Movie Tough Guys
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1991
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:16/05/1988
That's Dancing!
Character:From 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' (archive footage)
Release Date:18/01/1985
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1985
Terrible Joe Moran
Character:Joe Moran
Release Date:26/03/1984
Going Hollywood: The '30s
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1984
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Character:Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Release Date:25/02/1983
Showbiz Goes to War
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:31/12/1982
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
Character:(in "White Heat") (archive footage)
Release Date:21/05/1982
Showbiz Ballyhoo
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:05/05/1982
Night of 100 Stars
Character:Self
Release Date:08/03/1982
James Cagney: That Yankee Doodle Dandy
Character:
Release Date:01/12/1981
Ragtime
Character:New York Police Commissioner Rhinelander Waldo
Release Date:20/11/1981
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
Character:Self
Release Date:13/12/1979
That's Entertainment, Part II
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:16/05/1976
It's Showtime
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:31/03/1976
Hooray for Hollywood
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1976
Texaco Presents: A Quarter Century of Bob Hope on Television
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:24/10/1975
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:06/08/1975
Dynamite Chicken
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:20/01/1971
Arizona Bushwhackers
Character:Narrator
Release Date:01/03/1968
Ballad of Smokey the Bear
Character:Narrator (voice)
Release Date:24/11/1966
The Day of the Oath
Character:Narrator
Release Date:01/01/1965
The Road to the Wall
Character:Narrator
Release Date:01/01/1962
One, Two, Three
Character:C.R. MacNamara
Release Date:15/12/1961
The Gallant Hours
Character:Admiral William 'Bull' Halsey
Release Date:13/06/1960
Shake Hands with the Devil
Character:Sean Lenihan
Release Date:24/06/1959
Never Steal Anything Small
Character:Jake MacIllaney
Release Date:11/02/1959
Short Cut to Hell
Character:Himself (prologue)
Release Date:01/09/1957
Man of a Thousand Faces
Character:Lon Chaney
Release Date:15/08/1957
The Bob Hope Chevy Show
Character:Himself
Release Date:21/10/1956
These Wilder Years
Character:Steve Bradford
Release Date:17/08/1956
Tribute to a Bad Man
Character:Jeremy Rodack
Release Date:30/03/1956
The Seven Little Foys
Character:George M. Cohan
Release Date:30/09/1955
Mister Roberts
Character:Captain Morton
Release Date:10/07/1955
Love Me or Leave Me
Character:Martin Snyder
Release Date:26/05/1955
Run for Cover
Character:Matt Dow
Release Date:29/04/1955
A Lion Is in the Streets
Character:Hank Martin
Release Date:23/09/1953
What Price Glory
Character:Captain Flagg
Release Date:22/08/1952
Starlift
Character:James Cagney
Release Date:14/12/1951
Come Fill the Cup
Character:Lew Marsh
Release Date:24/10/1951
The West Point Story
Character:Elwin Bixby
Release Date:25/11/1950
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
Character:Ralph Cotter
Release Date:19/08/1950
White Heat
Character:Arthur 'Cody' Jarrett
Release Date:02/09/1949
The Time of Your Life
Character:Joseph
Release Date:03/09/1948
Blow-Ups of 1947
Character:Self
Release Date:31/12/1947
13 Rue Madeleine
Character:Robert Emmett 'Bob' Sharkey
Release Date:15/01/1947
Okay for Sound
Character:Tommy Powers (archive footage)
Release Date:07/09/1946
Blood on the Sun
Character:Nick Condon
Release Date:26/04/1945
The Voice That Thrilled the World
Character:Self (segment 'Yankee Doodle Dandy') (archive footage)
Release Date:16/10/1943
Johnny Come Lately
Character:Tom Richards
Release Date:03/09/1943
Show-Business at War
Character:Self
Release Date:21/05/1943
You, John Jones!
Character:John Jones
Release Date:14/01/1943
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Character:George M. Cohan
Release Date:29/05/1942
Captains of the Clouds
Character:Brian MacLean
Release Date:12/02/1942
Calling All Girls
Character:Himself (archive footage)
Release Date:24/01/1942
Breakdowns of 1941
Character:Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Release Date:14/11/1941
The Bride Came C.O.D.
Character:Steve Collins
Release Date:12/07/1941
The Strawberry Blonde
Character:Biff Grimes
Release Date:21/02/1941
Breakdowns of 1940
Character:Self
Release Date:31/12/1940
City for Conquest
Character:Danny Kenny
Release Date:21/09/1940
Torrid Zone
Character:Nick Butler
Release Date:18/05/1940
The Fighting 69th
Character:Jerry Plunkett
Release Date:27/01/1940
Breakdowns of 1939
Character:Self
Release Date:31/12/1939
The Roaring Twenties
Character:Eddie Bartlett
Release Date:28/10/1939
Each Dawn I Die
Character:Frank Ross
Release Date:19/08/1939
Hollywood Hobbies
Character:Self (uncredited)
Release Date:03/05/1939
The Oklahoma Kid
Character:Jim Kincaid
Release Date:11/03/1939
Angels with Dirty Faces
Character:Rocky Sullivan
Release Date:26/11/1938
Boy Meets Girl
Character:Robert Law
Release Date:27/08/1938
Something to Sing About
Character:Terrence 'Terry' Rooney
Release Date:30/09/1937
Breakdowns of 1936
Character:Self
Release Date:30/12/1936
Great Guy
Character:Johnny 'Red' Cave
Release Date:01/12/1936
Ceiling Zero
Character:Dizzy Davies
Release Date:16/01/1936
A Dream Comes True
Character:Himself (uncredited)
Release Date:31/12/1935
Things You Never See on the Screen
Character:Self
Release Date:01/12/1935
Frisco Kid
Character:Bat Morgan
Release Date:30/11/1935
Mutiny on the Bounty
Character:(uncredited)
Release Date:22/11/1935
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Character:Bottom
Release Date:09/10/1935
The Irish in Us
Character:Danny O'Hara
Release Date:31/07/1935
'G' Men
Character:‘Brick' Davis
Release Date:04/05/1935
Screen Snapshots Series 14, No. 8
Character:
Release Date:12/04/1935
Devil Dogs of the Air
Character:Tommy O'Toole
Release Date:09/02/1935
A Trip Thru a Hollywood Studio
Character:Himself (uncredited)
Release Date:02/02/1935
The St. Louis Kid
Character:Eddie Kennedy
Release Date:10/11/1934
The Hollywood Gad-About
Character:Self (uncredited)
Release Date:04/10/1934
Here Comes the Navy
Character:Chesty O'Conner
Release Date:21/07/1934
He Was Her Man
Character:Flicker Hayes, aka Jerry Allen
Release Date:16/06/1934
Jimmy the Gent
Character:Jimmy Corrigan
Release Date:09/03/1934
Screen Snapshots No. 11
Character:Himself
Release Date:01/01/1934
Lady Killer
Character:Dan
Release Date:09/12/1933
Footlight Parade
Character:Chester Kent
Release Date:21/10/1933
The Mayor of Hell
Character:Richard 'Patsy' Gargan
Release Date:24/06/1933
Picture Snatcher
Character:Daniel Patrick "Danny" Kean
Release Date:06/05/1933
Hard to Handle
Character:Lefty Merrill
Release Date:28/01/1933
Winner Take All
Character:Jim 'Jimmy' Kane
Release Date:16/07/1932
The Crowd Roars
Character:Joe Greer
Release Date:16/04/1932
Taxi!
Character:Matt Nolan
Release Date:23/01/1932
Intimate Interviews: James Cagney
Character:Himself
Release Date:24/10/1931
Blonde Crazy
Character:Albert 'Bert' Harris
Release Date:16/09/1931
Smart Money
Character:Jack
Release Date:11/06/1931
The Millionaire
Character:Schofield
Release Date:01/05/1931
The Public Enemy
Character:Tom Powers
Release Date:23/04/1931
How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 11: 'Practice Shots'
Character:Himself
Release Date:15/04/1931
Other Men's Women
Character:Ed 'Eddie' Bailey
Release Date:17/01/1931
The Doorway to Hell
Character:Steve Mileaway
Release Date:18/10/1930
Sinners' Holiday
Character:Harry Delano
Release Date:11/10/1930
The Singing Fool
Character:Handsy Patron at Blackie Joe's (uncredited)
Release Date:29/09/1928
Television Appearances
Legends
Character:Martin Snyder (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Kennedy Center Honors
Character:Self
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
Character:Self
The Mike Douglas Show
Character:Self
The Oscars
Character:Self
What's My Line?
Character:Self - Mystery Guest
Robert Montgomery Presents
Character:George Bridgeman
The Ed Sullivan Show
Character:Self
The Ed Sullivan Show
Character:Self (uncredited)
Images
