Let’s remember the life of James Caan, an actor who got married 4 times and who left an important lesson about fatherhood

James Caan, the eternal Sonny Corleone of The Godfather, was a brilliant actor who was very successful in both cinema and television. James worked for 61 years, was nominated for an Oscar, four Golden Globes and an Emmy and in 1978 had his name registered on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood.

We, from awesome.clubwe were very saddened by the death of this movie legend and that’s why we decided to honor him by telling a little about his trajectory and the teachings he left to fans and family.

Like many actors of his generation, James Caan began his career on television, more precisely in an episode of Naked City, in 1961. About three years later, he won his first important role in the film The Caged Lady, when alongside another cinema legend, Olivia de Havilland.

From now on the actor started to accept only film roles, refusing offers on TV: “I want to be an actor, not a millionaire”🇧🇷 However, in 1971 he received an offer – he had already turned it down four times – to play football player Brian Piccolo in the made-for-television film Glory and Defeat. After reading the script, James decided to accept the offer, which seems to have been the right decision, after all the film turned out to be a huge critical success and he was nominated for an Emmy.

The following year, the great opportunity appeared in the actor’s life: he landed the role of Sonny Corleone in the smash hit The Godfathera role for which he would be remembered throughout his life. For his brilliant performance he received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor, which opened the door to other projects ten times in his already solid career.

However, James’ career was not brilliant from start to finish. Several projects he participated in ended up failing and received bad reviews from both the public and film experts. However, James never gave up and always sought to regain success through other brilliant interpretations, which we can see in films like Profession: Thief, My Adorable Ghost and Gardens of Stone.

Throughout his career, James has worked in over a hundred films and television shows, but despite his great roles and many nominations, he has almost never won awards.

Just like his career, James’ love life has had many ups and downs. He got married for the first time in 1961 when he was just 21 years old. It was with actress Dee Jay Mathis, with whom he had a daughter named Tara.🇧🇷 Two years after the birth of their daughter, the couple decided to divorce.

Approximately ten years later, he decided to give love a second chance and married Sheila Marie Ryan🇧🇷 Even though the marriage was short-lived – they were divorced a year after the wedding – the relationship did give the couple a son: Scott Caan.

About 13 years after his divorce from Sheila, the actor married Ingrid Hajek🇧🇷 The couple’s son, Alexander James Caan, was born in 1991, but the two decided to divorce after 4 years of relationship.

A year later, James married Linda Stokes, with whom he had two sons, James Arthur Caan and Jacob Nicholas Caan. O wedding with Linda it was the longest of all and lasted more than 20 years; however, due to some differences, the two ended up getting divorced in 2017.

All his life James fought for his father’s affection and approval. Sadly, that never happened, which is why he swore he would never make the same mistake with his children.🇧🇷 James thinks it’s important that new generations don’t carry negative aspects of their fathers, and he says toxic masculinity is something that should stay in the past.

In an interview, the actor spoke candidly about the importance of being a loving and sensitive father. “I never saw my father cry. My son saw me cry. As my father never told me that he loved me, whenever he could he told my father that he loved him🇧🇷 The important thing is that I make fewer mistakes than my father, just as I hope that my children make fewer mistakes than I do, and their children less mistakes than their parents.”

As you can see, James faced some difficulties in his life: four divorces, “Hollywood burnout” and depression after losing his sister, who had leukemia. All this influenced the relationship with Scott, his son; however, they always found alternatives to strengthen the bond between father and son🇧🇷 Scott is sympathetic to his father and does not harbor any resentment towards him, especially since James was such a present father. “He made mistakes that affected him and me, but he was always there for me.”

“No matter how far you get in this industry, it’s inevitable that some things get out of hand. People who bet everything on just one opportunity end up getting hurt a lot. The best advice I give young actors is related to my choices: my main priority has always been my family and my friends🇧🇷

The actor shared some of his wisdom

There is a big difference between wanting to work and needing to work., and I had to learn that the hard way. Today, money is very important to me because I don’t have it.You have to be careful when you let someone beat you.You are the one who closes your eyes at bedtime. Nobody else can do it for you.Many men in Hollywood they pat you on the back too hard.Being present every day is not enough. Many people show up every day but should never be there.People wonder why first-time directors can make a brilliant film and fail the second. It’s because the first time they are a little terrified and they listen to all the experts who are next to them.

What did you think of James Caan’s life and teachings? And what is your favorite movie of the actor? Be sure to tell in the comments.