He reportedly had back surgery last . There is no doubt about that. By the time James Caan passed away in 2022, the famous actor was 82 years old. Caan was four times divorced, had a cocaine addiction, used prostituted women, was accused of beating his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend and of involvement in multiple violent assaults on other men, he had mobster friends whom he defended, and once lived at the Playboy Mansion, and apparently terrified his co-stars on multiple sets. "When all is said and done, that's the most important thing. On top of this, he walked off the set of The Holcroft Covenant (1985) and was replaced by Michael Caine. ", After his time in the proverbial desert in the 1980s, James Caan never stopped working, and in fact had several projects in the works that will now be released posthumously. As per Cigar Aficionado, the early morning before his classes he would pull a shift at a meatpacking plant. I dont deal with egos. However, the many superb portrayals he gave in scores of films and TV episodes will outlive the gossip and sensational headlines. Unfortunately, he passed [] Its hard to believe that he wont be in the world anymore because he was so alive and daring. James Caan, the curly-haired tough guy known to movie fans as the hotheaded Sonny Corleone of The Godfather and to television audiences as both the dying football player in the classic weeper Brians Song and the casino boss in Las Vegas, has died. Caan bonded with Brando, Robert Duvall and other cast members and made it a point to get everyone laughing during an otherwise tense production, sometimes dropping his pants and mooning a fellow actor or crew member. On another occasion, the FBI intercepted a phone conversation between Fiato and Caan concerning the actor Joe Pesci. The late Associated Press writer Bob Thomas contributed biographical information to this report. "Birnam Wood," by Eleanor Catton(FSG, fiction):The Booker Prizewinning author of The Luminaries returns with a gripping thriller, pitting an activist gardening collective against an enigmatic billionaire who offers the group access to his land but to what end? He managed a long career despite drug problems, outbursts of temper and minor brushes with the law. All rights reserved. Actor Scott Caan, the son of the late actor James Caan, has filed a petition to manage his father's estate in new court documents obtained by The Blast. No cause was given and Caans family, who requests privacy, said that no further details would be released at this time. Things were looking up for . Enter your email below to sign in or become a 4W member and join the conversation. According to E! "Godfather" star James Caan's cause of death has been revealed. James Caan says that he walked out of an initial " The Godfather " screening after realizing director Francis Ford Coppola cut a key scene involving Robert Duvall as Tom Hagen. Few of these films were blockbuster hits, certainly not on the level of "The Godfather," but it wasn't as if he was losing out on big roles in fact, more often than not he was turning them down. Though his career had its ups and downs over the years, Caan remained an indelible presence on screen, bringing authenticity and gravitas to everything from a Danish provocation to a 21st century Christmas classic. Caan didnt take a starring role in a TV series until 2003 but his first effort, Las Vegas, was an immediate hit. Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines of the week, Olivia Newton-John's daughter Chloe reveals 'promise' she made to mother before her death, Emma Stones 'And' co-star Willem Dafoe had her slap him 20 times to get scene right, Prince Harry's 'attacks' on 'villain' Camilla led to Frogmore Cottage eviction: expert, Film industry reacts to death of 'Saving Private Ryan' star Tom Sizemore: 'You're a legend', Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves take bumpy second flight after 'CHAOS' on Lufthansa plane: 'Wish me luck'. Unfortunately, he passed [] "Jimmy was one of the greatest," Del Piano said in a statement. Caans mistreatment of women, including those whom he is acccused of beating and sexually abusing, only fueled his image in the media. Based on the life of 1980s Ponzi schemer turned Evangelical minister Barry Minkow, the film went into production in 2009 with Minkow producing and even playing himself. Caan left the show during the fourth season and it was later canceled. Given that James fell for so many women, some fans may wonder how many kids the actor fathered. Short on cash, Caan was hired by Coppola for the leading role in the 1987 film Gardens of Stone. The movie, about life at Arlington National Cemetery, proved too grim for most audiences, but it renewed Caans acting career. As the actor said in an interview with Bright Lights Film, he did have a good few reservations about accepting a role on a TV show at first. For much of the 1980s he made no films, telling people he preferred to coach his son Scotts Little League games. Those ones I would watch more than once. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. "It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Jimmy on the evening of July 6," the family wrote in a tweet. The spotlight on Caans minor brushes with the law (the Associated Press) has been dim. Soon after The Godfather, Caan was wallowing in violence again as the embittered hero of Rollerball (1975). Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. ", CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER, The actor was born in the Bronx and later made his on-screen debut in 1963 with "Irma la Douce. I said you havent got enough money to make me go to work every day with a director I dont like.. More violence came his way as the brutal CIA man in Sam Peckinpahs The Killer Elite and, in contrast, he portrayed Billy Rose, the gambling, philandering husband of Barbra Streisands Fanny Brice in Funny Lady, all in the same year. James was best known for playing Sonny Corleone in "The Godfather," which won him both Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor. "If there's anything I can attribute my success to," Caan told Roger Ebert in 1988, "it's that I said 'no.'" The film, which points to the links between the mafia and American capitalism, portrays men such as Don Corleone (Marlon Brando), the godfather of the title, as businessmen. He was 82. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. I dont usually get that cerebral with s--- I read, but there was something really strange about it that drew me to it., The Bronx-born Caan employs a hard but accurate Chicago accent in Thief, but Frank has a very particular way of expressing himself, as when he first declines an offer to work for Robert Proskys crime boss, Leo. But now I see what you were doing. "I've got 14 screws in my left shoulder, six in my right, and three in my elbow," he boasts. A few years earlier, when he was still bankable, Caan had turned down three Oscar winners, M*A*S*H, Kramer vs Kramer (it was such middle-class, bourgeois baloney) and One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. Scott Caan's injury was written into the script by the show's creators and blamed on his partner, O'Loughlin. GODFATHER star James Caan had long battles with drug addiction and depression before his death at the age of 82 and even lived in the Playboy Mansion for a time. Entertainment, Caan said that he lived with cocaine addiction after turning to the drug when his sister died from leukemia. Published July 7, 2022 10:51 a.m. PDT. Yep. Bates won an Oscar for the role. Life on a third straight one-year contract with the mega-talented Astros isnt bad at all. Caan was questioned for nearly 10 hours before they released him, having concluded that Schwartz had fallen while trying to break into the flat. Both of his parents were Jewish immigrants from Germany. Caan was perfect as the volatile heir apparent to the Corleone family. But 12 years later, when oldest sister Jessica sees a woman in a raunchy reality show she thinks might be Ruthy, the Ramirez women go on a road trip to investigate. Where does he go? Following the film's release, Caan placed his acting career at the front-and-center of his professional pursuits. "He said, 'These kids down in Texas, they're doing this film. I mean, I couldn't stand it. He has the pedigree, too: his grandfather Bob was a left tackle and offensive captain on Packers teams that won five NFL championships from 1961-67. Behind the scenes, Caan and his character were not too far apart, as Ferrell once noted on a 2018 episode of "The Late Late Show with James Corden." He alsohad five children, including "Varsity Blues" and "Hawaii Five-O" actor Scott Caan, per Closer Weekly. We had a scene where he goes to Malibu [to be with his family] at the end, but Michael decided against it, said Caan. Return To The '80s With The 'Back To The Future' Musical. He was also willing to take supporting roles in movies such as Get Smart (2008), Mercy (2009), which was written by and starred his son Scott, Middle Men (2009), The Outsider (2014) and The Good Neighbor (2016). Fourth Wave. He married and divorced four times. So, what happened? Caan starred in several television series including "Naked City" and "The Untouchables" before landing a film role in "Funny Lady" opposite Barbra Streisand, giving him the chance to showcase his adaptability (via IMDb). In the early 60s, Caan made his off-Broadway debut in Schnitzlers La Ronde and started to appear on television, mostly as juvenile delinquents, in series including Naked City, Route 66, The Untouchables and Dr Kildare. He was 82. His character rose to become boss of the Montecito but remained the tough guy who had learned judo in an undercover division of the U.S. government. Her 2019 short story collection "Staten Island Stories" was a finalist for the International Latino Book Awards. At the film's premiere, Caan approached Ferrell and said, "Every day on set, I thought you were way too over the top. James Caan counted a lot of Hollywood celebrities as close friends, including Don Rickles and Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner. James was a core cast member on the show since the very beginning. Poles needs to make sure Eberflus maintains significant input. Those legal run-ins did little to slow James Caan's career momentum, as he settled into serving as an elder statesman for a new generation of actors and audiences who grew up watching him in his 1970s heyday. He was most known for playing the "tough guy" character, with notable examples in films like "Mickey Blue Eyes," where he starred alongsideHugh Grant, and "Honeymoon in Vegas," where he appeared oppositeSarah Jessica Parker. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. He also made a brief appearance in a flashback sequence in The Godfather, Part II.. Just a few months later, Caan faced a lawsuit from ex-girlfriend Leesa Anne Rowland, alleging he attacked her in a Los Angeles hotel in May. As screenwriter William Goldman wrote in his 2000 memoir, "That pent-up energy you saw on screen was very real. A car accident in 1985 sidelined him further, and soon it had been a full five years since he'd appeared in a movie. (Getty Images), Caan's early work included "Red Line 7000," "El Dorado" and "The Rain People. Los Angeles benefit at Paramount Studios on April 22, 2017 in Hollywood, California. Alexis Cosio-Read more. And yes, there was a bruise, but nothing else. Despite the admitted slap, shove, and bruise, Caan claimed the picture was a total fabrication., In 1993, Caan was one of the first stars picked up in a major high-end prostitution bust, according to The Guardian. Caan asked his friend to take care of Pesci after learning about an unpaid $8,000 bill from Pescis stay at a friends Miami hotel. Offscreen, Caan's personal life was a bit of a rollercoaster. This month marks the 40th anniversary of the release of Michael Manns directorial debut, a gritty, Mamet-esque crime drama that perfectly captured the Chicago of the early 1980s and struck the ideal balance between elaborately choreographed safe-cracking sequences, moments of stunningly realistic violence and extended scenes dependent on great actors delivering pages of authentic yet stylized dialogue. Caan embraced his role as the hotheaded Sonny, turning to his friend, insult comic extraordinaire Don Rickles, for inspiration. Between 1982 and 1987, he went on what he would later call the Hollywood burnout. Caan really did live at Hef's house for a short time, and even after moving out remained a frequent guest of the mansion for decades. James Caan, who has died aged 82, sought satisfaction in extreme sports, drugs and a colourful personal life. With all due respect to Sonny Corleone, "Thief" is arguably Caan's finest performance. His dad was a butcher and his mother was a homemaker. One of Caans fellow students was Robert Duvall, with whom he was to co-star in The Godfather, as well as in Robert Altmans moon-landing drama, Countdown (1967), Coppolas The Rain People (1969) and The Killer Elite. Tough insouciance was his style, well suited to handsome but rather emotionless features. The men, 23, were exiting a building about 2 a.m. in the 100 block of West Kinzie Street when a fight broke out between them and three other people. Caan's long career was marked by a. A football player at Michigan State University and a practical joker on production sets, Caan was a grinning, handsome performer with an athletes swagger and muscular build. "But yeah, I mean, there's a few that I'm extra proud of. After attending various schools, he entered two universities, Michigan State University, at which he was a football hero, and Hofstra University, Long Island, but failed to graduate from either. Caan was spotted using a walker at a restaurant with friends in California last year after spending some time in a wheelchair as he recovered from back surgery in 2020 +73 View gallery A. "The Godfather" would sit at the top of nearly any actor's resume, and rightly so, but James Caan had other, less heralded favorites. That work ethic, whether due to artistic passion or financial need, resulted in a very busy 21st century for the actor. I have more fun when I'm working, and I have a lot of laughs. As in The Gambler, in which he brings to life screenwriter James Toback's fantasy/projection of a lit professor who can show up to class after an overstimulated night at the craps tables and. "Caan took pride in his work, telling Bright Lights Film Journal that he especially loved being looked up to by the next generation of actors. Caan briefly lived at the Playboy Mansion and, in 2010, People reported that his son, Scott, spent much of his unconventional childhood inside the walls of the Playboy Mansion. James Caan told People, Id have Scott bring me girls. I was doing this thing with Marsha Mason [Note: Chapter Two] and some guy was sitting there on a little wooden chair and he had this script and asked me to read it. I had a couple of guys show me all the stuff, it was unbelievable, the stuff these guys could do, said Caan And I pulled it off and [made a convincing thief] and I was really proud of myself and so were my parents.. As the actor described in a previous interview with Today, the creators were very open to his suggestions granting him plenty of opportunities to get involved in the creative process. Per the New York Post, their relationship was so strong that when Russo was arrested in 2011, the "Rollerball" actor submitted a letter to the court vouching for him. James Caan, the curly-haired tough guy known to movie fans as the hotheaded Sonny Corleone of "The Godfather" and to television . I spend most of my time upstairs in my bedroom, wearing out one spot on the bed where I sit when Im making phone calls. When he had not appeared in a film for four years, people in Hollywood were beginning to ask, What ever happened to ?. In 1981, Caans sister Barbara, to whom he was very close and who ran his production company, died of leukaemia, aged 38. It took several years, but the "Rollerball" actor eventually got his career back on track, starring in "Gardens of Stone" in 1987 (via IMDb). The latter title chimed with Caan, who was once dubbed the Jewish cowboy because of his earlier participation in rodeos and his ownership of a stable of horses. Feminist Writing. Outside, they had discovered a body of an aspiring actor, Mark Alan Schwartz, on the pavement eight storeys below. When Ronnie Lorenzo, an LA mobster, was arrested for drug trafficking, kidnap and extortion, Caan offered his home as collateral toward the $2m bail and appeared as a character witness for his best friend. But for the women and co-stars Caan abused, the legendary actor leaves behind a different legacy one that the mainstream media is not yet ready to acknowledge. He toldCigar Aficionado that followingher death,his personal life took a turn for the worse. When the series debuted, he was a casino surveillance chief dealing with cheaters and competitors of the fictional Montecito Resort and Casino. By the mid-1990s, James Caan was back on top, thanks to a string of hits and notable films like "Misery" and the 1992 romantic comedy "Honeymoon in Vegas." But when we chatted via Zoom on Monday . After undergoing serious back surgery in 2020, he was hospitalized for months and has only recently begun to walk again. You can bull---t your way around it, but it is there, you know?" Like our work? Make sure to sign up for our books newsletter to have the latest books news delivered straight to your inbox. At the end of Thief, Frank has sent his wife and child away to California and has literally burned everything from his places of business to his home and has eliminated his enemies, and he walks off into the darkness. "The Moth Keeper," byK. ONeill (Random House Graphic, fiction): This beautifully illustrated fantastical graphic novel tells the story of Anya the Moth Keeper, whose village needs her to protect its precious lunar moths. All titles are on sale Tuesday. Caan was asleep when this happened, and though the police initially questioned him as a person of interest, he was eventually cleared of all suspicion. His manager Matt DelPiano said he died Wednesday. Much of that time was spent coaching Little League baseball, an experience Caan cherished. Entertainment, Caan said that he lived with cocaine addiction after turning to the drug when his sister died from leukemia. Then in the B form, he has this woman he loves and a baby now, so he cant afford to be that guy anymore. ", JAMES CAAN, GODFATHER STAR, DEAD AT 82, FAMILY SAYS, 'Godfather' actor James Caan died on Wednesday, July 7. While some actors don't like watching themselves on screen, James Caan was not one of them. Cookies help us deliver our Services. He hadnt done any motion pictures but hed done a TV movie, The Jericho Mile, and that was pretty good, so I read the script for Thief and it was fantastic. In a 2013 interview with the AV Club, Caan took credit for discovering Mann, recounting how the fledgling filmmaker waited to talk to him on the set of the Neil Simon adaptation "Chapter Two." The legendary actor starred in 'Misery' and 'Elf," in addition to hundreds of other roles. J ames Caan is showing off his war wounds. Hip hop artist Derek Lee, who went by the stage name Doc Rapper, intervened, at which point, according to Lee, Caan pointed a pistol at Lee.