LYCOS RETRIEVER 
James Caan
built 185 days ago
Romance author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) longs to be rid of Misery, his plucky heroine of seven novels. She has delivered him fame and fortune and recognition beyond the average writer's dreams, but she is ... interminably linked to him. Determined to escape an eternal role as pulp novelist, he kills her off in the eighth novel and heads to his New England cabin to work on his own Great American Novel. Upon completion, Sheldon excitedly sets out for his New York City publisher in the midst of a raging blizzard and within minutes veers into a desolate snowbank. From the brink of death, he is rescued from the snow by Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), who just so happens to be Misery's self-professed biggest fan. At first, she nurses him back to health in her remote cabin, telling him the roads and phones are damaged by the storm, fawning over his literary accomplishments.
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Tough-guy leading man and sometime supporting player James Caan is best-known for his role as hot-tempered Sonny Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather (1972). Caan grew up in Queens, New York and got into acting after a brief flirtation with college football. During the 1960s he appeared in small roles in TV shows and films, while at the same time participating in professional rodeo competitions. By the end of the 1960s he was getting good roles in films such as El Dorado (1966, starring John Wayne) and Coppola's The Rain People (1969, with Robert Duvall). The Godfather earned Caan an Oscar nomination and came on the heels of his Emmy-nominated performance in the homoerotic tearjerker Brian's Song (1971). During the 1970s he was a box office star who made a string of misfires, including Freebie and the Bean (1974, opposite Alan Arkin), Funny Lady (1975, starring Barbra Streisand), Rollerball (1975) and The Killer Elite (1975).
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After some stage experience, James Caan began his film career with an uncredited bit part in "Irma La Douce" (1963). Tall and curly-haired, with a ruddy complexion, Caan gained prominence in the early 1970s with two powerful performances: as the cancer-stricken football player in the made-for-TV-movie "Brian's Song" (ABC, 1971) and as the hot-tempered eldest son Santino "Sonny" Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather" (1972). He used the stardom he derived from playing Sonny Corleone in the latter to star in Karel Reisz's "The Gambler" (1974). That same year, he co-starred with Alan Arkin in "Freebie and the Bean" before moving on to play a sailor who falls for Marsha Mason in "Cinderella Liberty" (1975). He oozed charm (and displayed a passable singing voice) as Billy Rose opposite Barbra Streisand's redux as Fanny Brice in "Funny Lady" (1975), but most of Caan's films had neither box office success nor prestige. He had a good turn, again opposite Mason, in the film version of Neil Simon's autobiographical play "Chapter Two" (1979), although it was not a hit, and suffered the flop of playing the ghost of Sally Field's lovable but philandering choreographer husband (modeled on Bob Fosse) in "Kiss Me Goodbye" (1982).
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To prepare for a new movie in which he plays a radio broadcaster, actor James Caan arrives to spend some time observing Bill. As one of his biggest fans, Matthew can't wait to get an autograph from the movie star. But Bill is certain that they will be much too busy to bother with Matthew's request. Meanwhile, as Beth and Catherine jockey for a ticket to join Jimmy to a big basketball game, Dave prepares to surprise Lisa with an unexpected birthday gift. While Bill is certain he'll want to understand what drives him to do his job, all Caan wants is to watch him at work. However, after meeting Matthew, he does take an interest in what it is that makes him so strange.
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James Caan is best known for his Oscar-nominated performance in The Godfather. Although from a German Jewish family, he's a two-time recipient of New York's "Italian of the Year" award. Caan played football at Michigan State University, where he studied economics. He ... has a black belt in karate and was a regular on the rodeo circuit. A graduate of NYC's Neighborhood Playhouse, Caan's film credits include Misery, Honeymoon in Vegas and Eraser. He currently stars in the NBC TV series Las Vegas.
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James Caan was born the son of a New York butcher. James was athletically gifted, and played football at Michigan State University. Acting intrigued him, and after gaining acceptance into Sanford Meisner's Neighbourhood Playhouse, Caan won a scholarship to study Wynn Handman.
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James Caan