Finding a new gravitas, Caan was utterly convincing as a stiff-necked but compassionate army sergeant who feels that there is nothing to win, and no way of winning it in Vietnam. In later years, Caan was content to have the security of a popular TV series, Las Vegas (2003-07), appearing as a former CIA agent now the head of security at the fictional Montecito resort and casino. All titles are on sale Tuesday. . Broadway Shows Caan was perfect as the volatile heir apparent to the Corleone family. Adam Sandler tweeted, for example, Always wanted to be like him Never ever stopped laughing when I was around that man. As they traveled to the Vibrato Grill Jazz in Los Angeles for supper, the 79-year-old Godfather actor was spotted enjoying time with his youngest child, who is 21. Then his friend Coppola gave him the lead in Gardens of Stone (1987). Sonny Corleone, a violent and reckless man who conducted many killings, met his own end in one of the most jarring movie scenes in history. Life on a third straight one-year contract with the mega-talented Astros isnt bad at all. Cookies help us deliver our Services. His first and last directorial effort, Hide in Plain Sight (1980), in which he starred as a man in search of his ex-wife and children, was generally given a chilly critical reception. Get the best of Fox News' entertainment coverage, right in your inbox. Share. 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. 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'. 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. Las Vegas had practically reignited the actor's career, and through it, James garnered an armada of new fans. But Caan hit the headlines again in the 90s for the wrong reasons. James Caan's portrayal of Ed Deline, the head of security at the Montecito Resort and Casino, was the main reason many viewers switched on their TV every Monday to catch a new episode of Las Vegas. Reluctantly he returned to the movies in 1987, reuniting with Coppola for the first time in 13 years for the drama "Gardens of Stone" and starring in the 1988 sci-fi buddy cop feature "Alien Nation.". He made his 40 million dollar fortune with Countdown, The Killer Elite, Bottle Rocket. ", "I will miss him dearly and am proud to have worked with him all these years. Caan, who was nominated for an Oscar, was perfect as the hedonistic and volatile heir apparent to the Corleone family, whose bloody ways end in his own death. Even at the end, when father and son have reconciled in time to save Christmas, there's the sense that Walter still isn't a big fan of Buddy's whole thing. Caan may have been a great actor and his roles may be long-remembered. Her 2019 short story collection "Staten Island Stories" was a finalist for the International Latino Book Awards. It took several years, but the "Rollerball" actor eventually got his career back on track, starring in "Gardens of Stone" in 1987 (via IMDb). While studying at Hofstra, he became interested in acting and was soon taken on by the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York, where he studied under Sanford Meisner, whose technique was allied to the method. One member of that new generation was a young, unknown Texas filmmaker named Wes Anderson who, along with brothers Luke and Owen Wilson, was preparing his first feature, a low-budget crime comedy called "Bottle Rocket." Veteran actor James Caan, known for his tough guy roles in movies including "The Godfather," died Wednesday. The late Associated Press writer Bob Thomas contributed biographical information to this report. Perhaps, though, he was saying no a bit too often when he turned down the lead roles in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "Kramer vs. Kramer," "Superman," and "Apocalypse Now" for one reason or another. He married and divorced four times. Well, I never paid for them, you know. At the end of July, TMZ obtained Caan's death certificate revealing that his official cause of death was a combination of heart issues, including a heart attack. From 1982 to 1987, Caan suffered from depression over his sister's death from leukemia, a growing problem with cocaine, and what he described as "Hollywood burnout," and did not act in any films. Less cut and dried, however, was an altercation just a few months later when Caan allegedly pulled a gun on a man during an argument. With all due respect to Sonny Corleone, "Thief" is arguably Caan's finest performance. 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. "The thing I most cherish, as far as my whole career was the respect I felt from these young kids, really good actors," he said. Whether or not Caan gets his wish, he will be remembered as a shining star of American cinema. While some actors don't like watching themselves on screen, James Caan was not one of them. Caan survived all this to rebuild his career. The generous support of our readers allows 4W to pay our all-female staff and over 50 writers across the globe for original articles and reporting you cant find anywhere else. Alexis Cosio-Read more. Scott Caan's injury was written into the script by the show's creators and blamed on his partner, O'Loughlin. That work ethic, whether due to artistic passion or financial need, resulted in a very busy 21st century for the actor. Market data provided by Factset. But even an artistic success like "Thief" can't nourish an actor forever, and at a certain point in the early 1980s, James Caan stepped away from the film business, seemingly for good. The "Godfather" star continued to act in recent years, with IMDb listing an upcoming project of his, titled "Fast Charlie," as being in post-production ahead of a 2023 release. I mean, I couldn't stand it. First among those was "Thief," the 1981 debut feature of writer-director Michael Mann, who would go on to revolutionize the crime drama on television and film with "Miami Vice," "Manhunter," and "Heat," among many others. 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. I would love to do a real character thing. 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. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). Always wanted to be like him. I looked guilty.. Married and divorced four times, Caan had a daughter, Tara, and sons Scott, Alexander, James and Jacob. Become a monthly donor! After the death of his sister, Barbara in 1981 from leukemia, Caan fell into a deep depression that plagued him for most of his life. In an interview with Collider published less than three months before his death, he dismissed actors who don't like watching themselves. James Caan (@James_Caan) July 7, 2022. Much of that time was spent coaching Little League baseball, an experience Caan cherished. 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). 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. "Ruthy Ramirez" is Jimenez's first novel. Cinderella Liberty is a 1973 American drama film adapted by Daryl Ponicsan from his 1973 novel of the same title. Caans comeback became entrenched with a difficult role in Rob Reiners Misery (1990) he spends most of the movie bedridden and doped as a seriously injured writer kept captive by his No 1 fan (Kathy Bates, who won the best actress Oscar). (Michael Kovac), The tweet was completed withCaan's famous Twitter phrase, "End of tweet.". Let's put it that way. The family appreciates the outpouring of love and heartfelt condolences and asks that you continue to respect their privacy during this difficult time. The first episode of the crime drama aired on Sept. 22, 2003 and it was an immediate hit. A brilliant director. Barbra Streisand said, He was so talented. Maria Shriver called him a legend. If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. There are some film stars for whom the frisson of fame and the exultation of acting are not enough. I am doing fine. Thief was a critical smash, with the Sun-Times Roger Ebert giving it three and a half stars and writing, It is a good thing when a movie creates characters we feel strongly about, and Thief is populated with them. 0. According to E! "The Godfather" would sit at the top of nearly any actor's resume, and rightly so, but James Caan had other, less heralded favorites. Following a brief stage career, he moved to Hollywood. On July 6, 82-year-old American actor, James Caan, best known for his roles in The Godfather, Misery, and Elf, died from causes that have not yet been made public. 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. The second nickname, Killer Caan, came from his skills as a teenage boxer. Las Vegas provided him with an exceptional opportunity to experience an aspect of film production he was more or less unacquainted with before. Given that James fell for so many women, some fans may wonder how many kids the actor fathered. He survived a car crash in 1985. Detectives were questioning a person who was inside the home at the time. In the early 1990s, Caan appeared in a number of hit movies, including 1991's big budget spectacle, For the Boys. James Caan, the Hollywood icon who portrayed Sonny Corleone in The Godfather and starred in films like Brian's Song, Thief, and Misery, has died at the age of 82. Interspersed between the elaborate heist sequences and the shootouts, Thief makes time for dialogue-rich interludes, most famously the nearly 10-minute scene where Frank and Tuesday Welds Jessie lay their cards on the table and speak with raw truth about their pasts and the prospects for a future together. According to Yahoo! The legendary actor starred in 'Misery' and 'Elf," in addition to hundreds of other roles. Caan's behavior was erratic he was. Seldom unemployed, he traded happily on his 70s persona, particularly playing older and wiser versions of Sonny Corleone, either as mafia bosses, louche gamblers or businessmen with mafia connections in films such as Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Mickey Blue Eyes (1999), with Hugh Grants British art auctioneer getting mixed up with the mob, City of Ghosts (2002) and Dogville (2003). ". Legal Statement. Caan receive good reviews for the role he called the most physically demanding of his career as he had to stay in bed most of the time. Sign up now to get updates and support our team of feminist writers. At the film's premiere, Caan approached Ferrell and said, "Every day on set, I thought you were way too over the top. After undergoing serious back surgery in 2020, he was hospitalized for months and has only recently begun to walk again. But then he has to get rid of all the s--- he got in B so he can go back to A, you see what Im saying? However, the many superb portrayals he gave in scores of films and TV episodes will. Caan didnt take a starring role in a TV series until 2003 but his first effort, Las Vegas, was an immediate hit. Caan was best known for his role as Sonny Corleone in " The Godfather " and "The Godfather II," but before the iconic film series . The actor's rep told The Hollywood Reporter that Caan died Wednesday night at 82, confirming a Twitter post from his family. Market data provided by Factset. There were several flops, undeservedly in the case of Michael Manns Thief (1981), released as Violent Streets in the UK, and deservedly with the whimsical Kiss Me Goodbye (1982) Caans attempts at comedy were slow to be appreciated. (Getty Images), Caan's early work included "Red Line 7000," "El Dorado" and "The Rain People. J ames Caan is showing off his war wounds. As at home as Caan felt at the Playboy Mansion, he seems to have felt just as welcome in the magazine's pages. The guys nuts.. "When all is said and done, that's the most important thing. He is survived by a daughter, Tara, from his first marriage, to Dee Jay Mathis; a son, Scott, from his second, to Sheila Ryan; a son, Alexander, from his third marriage, to Ingrid Hajek; and two sons, James and Jacob, from his fourth, to Linda Stokes. I am Joe the boss of my own body, so what the f--- do I have to work for you for?, Caan said Frank never uses a contraction throughout the movie, and speaks in deliberate, measured tones so he is never misunderstood. Fox News' Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report. The actor's family announced . James Caan's son on 'dysfunctional' relationship with dad. Many actors become associated with one particular role, and this was certainly true for Caan, especially in his later years; many of his roles in the 1990s and 2000s like "Mickey Blue Eyes" and "The Way of the Gun" played on the audience's familiarity with Sonny Corleone. When [Mann] came to me with the script [for Thief], I bought three tomatoes, I didnt know what the hell he was selling, cracked Caan. For Women. All rights reserved. So, what happened? Between 1982 and 1987, he went on what he would later call the Hollywood burnout. Per Rotten Tomatoes, the film also stars Caan who plays "a blue-collar worker in Buffalo whose estranged wife, Ruthie (Barbara Rae), has taken up with a local mobster, Jack Scolese (Robert Viharo)." Fans of a certain age will no doubt know James Caan best from "The Godfather," but their children and grandchildren might have a different experience of the actor not as a violent mid-century mobster but as a grumpy dad who needs to learn the true meaning of Christmas. I'm frustrated. Al Pacino called Caan, A great actor. Even offscreen, his life was the stuff of legend: An athlete turned actor turned Little League coach turned actor again; a fixture at the Playboy mansion; a movie mobster who all too often was mistaken for the real thing; and an unlikely star on Twitter. The Godfather star James Caan dies aged 82 Actor who played Sonny Corleone in the groundbreaking 1972 epic engineered a comeback after his career went off the rails in the early 1980s A life in. In The Rain People, the first of the three films Caan made with Coppola, a certain vulnerability and warmth surfaced as he played a soft-hearted drifter. He eventually agreed to direct, though, saying, "But it took a year from my life." I'd have to go out and beat up a wildcat or something." The football star played for Michigan State University before transferring to Hofstra University where he discovered his talent as an actor and was accepted into the New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre (via Walk of Fame). 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.