American actor James Caan, star of the films The Parrain and Misery, died at the age of 82, announced his family on Twitter and his manager on Thursday. “It is with great sadness that we inform you of Jimmy’s passing on the evening of July 6th,” his family said in a tweet posted on Caan’s account. His manager, Matt DelPiano, confirmed the news to AFP.
Born in New York, in the Bronx district, in 1940, James Caan played Sonny Corleone in 1972 in Francis Ford Coppola’s legendary film about the Italian-American mafia, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. This role had earned him an Oscar nomination: the brutal assassination of his character under a hail of bullets at a toll booth became one of the most striking moments of the film, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year.
“Misery”, “Rollerball”…
For one of his other great roles, in Misery, adapted from Stephen King’s book, he played a writer kidnapped by an evil woman played by Kathy Bates. Caan had also had roles in the films The solitary and roller ball.
“Jimmy was one of the greats. Not only was he one of the best actors our industry has ever seen, but he was funny, loyal, caring and loved,” his manager Matt DelPiano said.