James Cann Biography

The iconic American actor James Caan was born in 1940 in the Bronx, New York. Young James grew up in a working class family in Queens, and attended Hofstra University in the 1960’s, at the same time as Francis Ford Coppola. During his time in college, Caan became fascinated with acting as a profession and so he switched to studying theater at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theater in New York City. After five years of study, James Caan began to garner roles on the New York stage.

James first appeared in a number of off-Broadway roles before appearing in Blood, Sweat, and Stanley Poole on Broadway. His talent caught the attention of casting directors, and he sound found himself with small roles on such television shows as the Untouchables, Dr. Kildare, Route 66, and the Alfred Hitchcock Hour. Starring film roles followed, in such movies as Red Line 7000 (1965), El Dorado (1966), Countdown (1968), and The Rain People (1969.) His first acclaimed role was as the title character in Brian’s Song in 1971, which led to his casting in the breakthrough role as Sonny Corleone in the Godfather.

Caan’s performance as Sonny brought him an Academy Award nomination, and since that time he has grown into one of America’s most notable and iconic actors. For the remaining decades, James Caan appeared in dozens of hit feature films, including: The Gambler (1974), The Godfather: Part II (1974), Funny Lady (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977), Chapter Two (1979), Kiss Me Goodbye (1982), Dick Tracy (1990), Misery (1990), For the Boys (1991), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Flesh and Bone (1993), Eraser (1996), The Yards (2000), A Glimpse of Hell (2001), Dogville (2003), Get Smart (2008), Middle Men (2010), Blood Ties (2013), and Back in the Game (2013.)

Most recently, James Caan began his performance in the role of Terry Gannon on ABC’s sitcom Back in the Game. He also appeared in the 2014 film The Outsider, and is slated to appear in 2015’s Sweetwater.