On This Day

Birthday of James Caan

March 26th 1940

12:48 26 March 2024

American actor James Caan was born on this day in 1940. Caan's acting career began in theatre, appearing in plays off-Broadway before progressing to roles in Broadway productions. His film debut came with a small uncredited part in 'Irma la Douche' (1963) followed by further minor roles in film and television. Caan landed his first starring role in Howard Hawks' 'Red Line 7000' (1965). The movie was not a success but Hawks liked Caan and cast him in his next film 'El Dorado' (1966) where he played a support role to John Wayne and Robert Mitchum.

Further starring roles followed in 'Countdown' (1968), 'Submarine X-1' (1968), 'Journey to Shiloh' (1968) and Francis Ford Coppola's 'The Rain People' (1969). None of these movies were particularly successful at the box office, although Caan did receive praise for his performance in Coppola's film. Returning to television, he won further praise and an Emmy nomination for his performance in the TV movie 'Brian's Song' (1971). His breakthrough role came when he was cast as Sonny Corleone in 'The Godfather' (1972). The part turned him into a Hollywood star and earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Leading roles followed in 'Slither' (1973), 'Cinderella Liberty' (1973), 'The Gambler' (1974), 'Freebie and the Bean' (1974), 'Rollerball' (1975), 'The Killer Elite' (1975), 'Harry and Walter Go to New York' (1976), 'A Bridge Too Far' (1977) and 'Comes A Horseman' (1978).

He made his directorial debut with and also starred in 'Hide in Plain Sight' (1980). The movie was not a hit with the public but received good reviews. Caan was widely praised for his role in 'Michael Mann's 'Thief' (1981) which also went largely unnoticed but has since gained a large cult following. Due to personal and health reasons he took a hiatus from acting between 1982 and 1987 but returned to star in 'Gardens of Stone' (1987). Other notable film credits include 'Alien Nation' (1988), 'Dick Tracy' (1990), 'Misery' (1990), 'Honeymoon in Vegas' (1992), 'The Program' (1993), 'Bottle Rocket' (1996), 'Eraser' (1996), 'Mickey Blue Eyes' (1999), 'The Yards' (2000), 'The Way of the Gun' (2000), 'City of Ghosts' (2002), 'Dogville' (2003), 'Elf' (2003), 'Get Smart' (2003), 'A Fighting Man' (2014), 'The Good Neighbor' (2016) and 'Out of Blue' (2018).

One of the breakout stars of 1970s American cinema, James Caan remained prolific in film and television up until his death in 2022 aged 82.