James Cagney

Acting July 17, 1899 (86 years old) March 30, 1986 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.

Movies 130

7.5

One, Two, Three

as C.R. MacNamara

1961

6.8

Run for Cover

as Matt Dow

1955

7.4

Mutiny on the Bounty

as (uncredited)

1935

6.6

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

as (in "White Heat") (archive footage)

1982

7.5

The Roaring Twenties

as Eddie Bartlett

1939

7.0

Ragtime

as New York Police Commissioner Rhinelander Waldo

1981

7.5

Angels with Dirty Faces

as Rocky Sullivan

1938

7.0

Mister Roberts

as Captain Morton

1955

7.0

Yankee Doodle Dandy

as George M. Cohan

1942

6.8

Man of a Thousand Faces

as Lon Chaney

1957

7.7

White Heat

as Arthur 'Cody' Jarrett

1949

6.4

A Midsummer Night's Dream

as Bottom

1935

7.2

The Public Enemy

as Tom Powers

1931

6.8

Love Me or Leave Me

as Martin Snyder

1955

7.0

That's Entertainment, Part II

as (archive footage) (uncredited)

1976

6.9

Each Dawn I Die

as Frank Ross

1939

6.9

The Strawberry Blonde

as Biff Grimes

1941

5.9

Blood on the Sun

as Nick Condon

1945

6.9

The Bride Came C.O.D.

as Steve Collins

1941

6.3

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

as Self (archive footage)

1975

7.0

Tribute to a Bad Man

as Jeremy Rodack

1956

6.9

City for Conquest

as Danny Kenny

1940

6.8

Footlight Parade

as Chester Kent

1933

6.4

Jimmy the Gent

as Jimmy Corrigan

1934

6.7

The Gallant Hours

as Admiral William 'Bull' Halsey

1960

7.9

Tupac: Resurrection

as Self (archival)

2003

6.6

'G' Men

as ‘Brick' Davis

1935

7.5

1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year

as Self (archive footage)

2009

6.5

Shake Hands with the Devil

as Sean Lenihan

1959

7.0

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

1983

Bob Hope's World of Comedy

as (archive footage)

1976

6.4

Captains of the Clouds

as Brian MacLean

1942

7.5

The Irish in Us

as Danny O'Hara

1935

7.0

Breakdowns of 1941

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

1941

6.0

The Voice That Thrilled the World

as Self (segment 'Yankee Doodle Dandy') (archive footage)

1943

5.8

Night of 100 Stars

as Self

1982

6.0

The Oklahoma Kid

as Jim Kincaid

1939

6.8

That's Dancing!

as From 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' (archive footage)

1985

6.9

Picture Snatcher

as Daniel Patrick "Danny" Kean

1933

7.0

Show-Business at War

as Self

1943

6.7

Stardust: The Bette Davis Story

as Self (archive footage) (voice)

2006

6.0

Here Comes the Navy

as Chesty O'Conner

1934

5.8

The West Point Story

as Elwin Bixby

1950

6.1

The Seven Little Foys

as George M. Cohan

1955

5.8

What Price Glory

as Captain Flagg

1952

6.3

Blow-Ups of 1947

as Self

1947

6.9

Lady Killer

as Dan

1933

7.7

This Is Bob Hope...

as Self (archive footage)

2017

7.1

The Mayor of Hell

as Richard 'Patsy' Gargan

1933

7.6

The Millionaire

as Schofield

1931

5.9

The Fighting 69th

as Jerry Plunkett

1940

7.0

Come Fill the Cup

as Lew Marsh

1951

Bogart: The Untold Story

as Self (archive footage)

1997

8.5

Angels with Dirty Faces: Whaddya Hear? Whaddya Say?

as Self (archive footage)

2005

6.9

Smart Money

as Jack

1931

6.8

Devil Dogs of the Air

as Tommy O'Toole

1935

6.5

He Was Her Man

as Flicker Hayes, aka Jerry Allen

1934

6.5

The Doorway to Hell

as Steve Mileaway

1930

6.8

Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye

as Ralph Cotter

1950

6.2

Something to Sing About

as Terry Rooney

1937

6.2

13 Rue Madeleine

as Robert Emmett 'Bob' Sharkey

1947

6.2

A Dream Comes True

as Himself (uncredited)

1935

10.0

Showbiz Goes to War

as (archive footage)

1982

10.0

Parkinson at 50

as Self (archive footage)

2021

5.8

Short Cut to Hell

as Himself (prologue)

1957

7.5

It's Showtime

as Self (archive footage)

1976

6.9

Complicated Women

as Self (archive footage)

2003

6.9

Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film

as Self (archive footage)

2008

5.4

A Lion Is in the Streets

as Hank Martin

1953

7.0

Frisco Kid

as Bat Morgan

1935

7.1

Blonde Crazy

as Albert 'Bert' Harris

1931

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

as Self (archive footage)

2009

6.3

Great Guy

as Johnny 'Red' Cave

1936

5.4

Winner Take All

as Jim 'Jimmy' Kane

1932

4.2

Ballad of Smokey the Bear

as Narrator (voice)

1966

5.7

Other Men's Women

as Ed 'Eddie' Bailey

1931

Breakdowns of 1936

as Self

1936

6.0

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

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

1988

6.3

The St. Louis Kid

as Eddie Kennedy

1934

8.2

Never Steal Anything Small

as Jake MacIllaney

1959

7.5

Becoming Marilyn

as (archive footage)

2022

7.8

Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public

as Self (archive footage)

2005

4.3

Arizona Bushwhackers

as Narrator

1968

6.0

The Hollywood Gad-About

as Self (uncredited)

1934

6.9

Hard to Handle

as Lefty Merrill

1933

8.5

You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story

as Self (archive footage)

2008

8.0

Vaudeville

as Self (archive footage)

1997

7.0

Torrid Zone

as Nick Butler

1940

5.9

A Trip Thru a Hollywood Studio

as Himself (uncredited)

1935

6.6

Starlift

as James Cagney

1951

Showbiz Ballyhoo

as Self (archive footage)

1982

6.5

These Wilder Years

as Steve Bradford

1956

6.1

The Crowd Roars

as Joe Greer

1932

5.2

Things You Never See on the Screen

as Self

1935

6.1

The Time of Your Life

as Joseph

1948

9.0

Going Hollywood: The '30s

as (archive footage)

1984

6.9

Boy Meets Girl

as Robert Law

1938

Doris Day: It's Magic

as Self

1998

5.6

Hollywood Hobbies

as Self (uncredited)

1939

5.5

Dynamite Chicken

as Self (archive footage)

1971

2.0

Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers

as Self (archive footage)

1985

7.0

Johnny Come Lately

as Tom Richards

1943

The Day of the Oath

as Narrator

1965

6.3

Sinners' Holiday

as Harry Delano

1930

10.0

James Cagney: That Yankee Doodle Dandy

1981

The Bob Hope Chevy Show

as Himself

1956

7.0

Terrible Joe Moran

as Joe Moran

1984

Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years

as Self

1979

7.7

White Heat: Top of the World

as Self (archive footage)

2005

Texaco Presents: A Quarter Century of Bob Hope on Television

as (archive footage)

1975

6.8

Taxi!

as Matt Nolan

1932

Screen Snapshots Series 14, No. 8

1935

I Don't Even Like Apple Pie...

as Self (archive footage)

1989

4.9

The Singing Fool

as Handsy Patron at Blackie Joe's (uncredited)

1928

Remembering Ragtime

as NY Police Commissioner Rheinlander Waldo (archive footage)

2004

8.0

Hooray for Hollywood

as Self (archive footage)

1976

5.9

Ceiling Zero

as Dizzy Davies

1936

8.5

James Cagney: Top of the World

as Self (Archive footage)

1992

6.2

You, John Jones!

as John Jones

1943

6.7

Okay for Sound

as Tommy Powers (archive footage)

1946

Screen Snapshots No. 11

as Himself

1934

6.8

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

as Himself

1931

6.5

Breakdowns of 1939

as Self

1939

6.0

Calling All Girls

as Himself (archive footage)

1942

Intimate Interviews: James Cagney

as Himself

1931

10.0

Movie Tough Guys

as Self (archive footage)

1991

7.0

Warner at War

as (archive footage)

2008

4.0

Breakdowns of 1940

as Self

1940

5.6

The Road to the Wall

as Narrator

1962

6.8

Routine Pleasures

as Ed "Eddie" Bailey (archive footage)

1986

TV Shows 11

5.8

The Mike Douglas Show

as Self

1961

7.1

What's My Line?

as Self

1950

6.0

Robert Montgomery Presents

as George Bridgeman

1950

6.8

The Ed Sullivan Show

as Self

1948

6.8

The Ed Sullivan Show

as Self (uncredited)

1948

7.1

The Oscars

as Self

1953

7.4

The Kennedy Center Honors

as Self

1978

7.0

Parkinson

as Self - Guest (archive footage)

2004

6.3

The American Film Institute Salute to ...

as Self

1973

7.5

MGM Parade

as self

1955

5.0

Legends

as Martin Snyder (archive footage) (uncredited)

2006