James Caan
James Caan
James Edmund Caanis an American actor. After early roles in The Glory Guysand El Dorado, he came to prominence in the 1970s with significant roles in films such as Brian's Song, The Gambler, Funny Ladyand A Bridge Too Far. For his signature role in The Godfather, that of hot-tempered Sonny Corleone, Caan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the corresponding Golden Globe...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionMovie Actor
Date of Birth26 March 1940
CityBronx, NY
CountryUnited States of America
What I do quite honestly and seriously and not in any way being humble is not as important as what the garbage collector does. People make actors important.
I never did anything else. In college I switched majors every two weeks, and acting was the only thing that held my interest.
One night I went over to get some dope from some Hollywood tough guy. After I left, my son Scott, who was only fifteen, went over with a baseball bat to kill him. I was laughing out of one eye and crying out of the other. I thought, Who am I kidding?
Some guys say beauty is only skin deep. But when you walk into a party, you don't see somebody's brain. The initial contact has to be the sniffing.
Never stop asking yourself whether you can do things better. Keep testing every aspect of your business to the nth degree, and challenge every one of your assumptions. The tougher you are on yourself now, the tougher your business will be out there in the real world.
I'll see a beautiful girl walking up to me and I'll think, Oh, my God, I can't believe my good luck. But then she'll say, 'Where's your son?' or 'My mother loves you'.
I lost my passion for work. No, that's a negative statement. I just had a bigger passion for something else, for my son, and growing up with him.
There's a big difference between wanting to work and having to work. And I had to learn that the hard way. Now money is very important to me, because I ain't got it.
Sure, I want to be the best actor in the world. But my life is my family, my son, my friends. I don't know how anyone can find fault with that.
You have to be very careful when you let someone win.
People say, 'Gee, you do a lot of mafia movies.' I think I've done two, out of 60.
Saving a letter from an old friend doesn't exist anymore. Everything is texted or emailed.
Unless I love something or hate it, I don't want to deal with it.
I remember at 16 years old, growing up in Queens, we were punks, but hey, when we went to the theater, we wore a shirt and tie! Similarly, I believe that to keep movie theaters in existence, they're gonna have to make 'em an event, have a couch, a table and drinks or something. Otherwise, there's no reason to get out of your bed!