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James Cagney: Paperback Book (Applause Legends)

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Richard Schickel published this book in 1985, a few years after making a documentary about James Cagney that was released around the time of the actor's last theatrical feature, "Ragtime." Schickel interviewed Cagney for the documentary as "Ragtime" was being filmed in 1980, and he based this book on that and other conversations with the actor late in Cagney's life.

Although this long essay contains a great deal of information about Cagney's life and film career, Schickel did not set out to write a conventional biography. His main topic is the development of Cagney's screen persona, the "tough guy" character that Cagney (and Warner Brothers) created, played, and refined in more than sixty film roles. Schickel is interested in the way that this cinematic character reflected many of the country's social concerns during the 1930s, Cagney's first decade in the movies, and after. He traces that development from the actor's first major starring role in "The Public Enemy" (1931) through his last major gangster role in "White Heat" (1949). He also shows how that persona emerged, or was altered, in other Cagney films, notably "Yankee Doodle Dandy" (1942), for which Cagney received his only Academy Award. Schickel notes that Cagney was a little ahead of his time when, in 1943, he left Warner Brothers and established his own production company (and made a rather undistinguished string of pictures); and he traces how Cagney's character fared in the late 1940s and 1950s, a time that saw Cagney's star fade until his "retirement" in 1961. The actor came out of retirement in 1980 to appear in "Ragtime" in a small but crucial role; his last film was a rather dreary TV movie made in 1984, by which time Cagney was so frail his lines had to be dubbed by another actor doing a Cagney imitation.

Schickel also is interested in Cagney's reluctance to talk about his film career in creative terms (save for a handful of fondly remembered films, such as "Yankee Doodle Dandy"). Cagney seems to have placed very little value on the work he did in the 1930s, on the character he created, perhaps because Cagney's "tough guy" was so at odds with the real man. Like many actors, Cagney did not intellectualize about what he did on the screen; his art was instinctual, visceral, not cerebral. Cagney thought of himself as a lucky song-and-dance man who found a relatively easy way to make a very good living when he was in his early 30s. With few exceptions, each role he played was "just a job" to Cagney, no matter how much those roles enthralled and thrilled his admirers.

One might say that this book is less about Cagney and more about Schickel's own reaction to Cagney's screen persona and career. It's definitely more a work of criticism than biography or history. (There is, however, enough biographical information here to provide a good introduction to Cagney for those who know little or nothing about his career. There are also many good photos.) But for those who admire Cagney's work, Schickel has written a valuable assessment of just why this exceptional actor -- and quiet, gentle man offscreen -- was, and is, such a treasure to American cinema.

This book was terribly long-winded! This was not about the man Cagney. I felt like I was reading some engineering book. The language was usually incomprehensible and boring. Instead of talking about Cagney (which I assumed this book was about) the actor, he went into the psychological and philosophical aspects of Cagney's acting and the way the public responded to this in the golden movie age. In other words, if you are looking for a decent biography about James Cagney, I do not suggest this book. The only redeeming quality that this book possesses is the group of pictures. Looking for something a little more revealing about the man James Cagney, try to get your hands on "Cagney by Cagney", the autobiography. (Although it is his autobiography, Mr. Cagney seems to be uncomfortable speaking about himself). I have purchased a copy of John McCabe's (close friend of J. Cagney) biography titled "Cagney". I'll be writing a review as soon as I finish reading this particular book.