Thursday, July 14, 2022

Happy 123rd Birthday (Wow!), Mr. Cagney

 James Francis Cagney was born on July 17, 1899, in New York City, New York.  Died in 1986 at the age of 86.  In between, he made a few movies and became a real star.  It's extremely difficult to dislike Mr. Cagney on the screen.  

Cagney was a redhead with extremely fair-haired facial hair.  They had to darken his eyebrows and lashes for his screen roles.  Note in the photo below that his right eyebrow is highlighted only with a slim dark line.  Somewhat feminine, but a great accent.  Definitely catches your attention, in a good way.  

                                   James Cagney, c. 1931

3 comments:

Allison said...

He was such a versatile actor. To be George Cohen where he dances and sings and then the crazy psycho in White Heat.

Kathy said...

Yup, a heck of a career, had Mr. Cagney. From dancing in bars for nickels and dimes to "Top of the World!" Allison, if you're interested, "Cagney," by John McCabe is a great bio. McCabe ghosted "Cagney by Cagney" so he actually knew his subject. He was also going to write Bob's autobiography, but Bob's death stopped that project. Darn it.

Allison said...

Ooh I will need to see if the library has that one! That's too bad. With all the different things Bob was involved in, so much was lost with it being written down.