James Caan was a big name in Hollywood films. When I read he was scheduled to rope in a rodeo competition in Phoenix, AZ., you can bet I made it my business to make it to the rodeo.
Caan was a pleasant fellow about my same age and he agreed to an interview. As we sat on adjoining stools getting our boots polished, we talked about Hollywood and his career.
'I like acting," he said. 'But if I could make nearly as much money roping calves, I'd take that over acting any day.'
Caan actually did well in the roping that day and picked up some prize money as a team roper. He seemed to get along well with the other cowboys who overlooked his star status.
Born in the Bronx of New York, Caan grew up the son of a butcher. He attended Hoffstrau University and two of his classmates were Francis Ford Coppola and Lainie Kazan.
Acting attracted him and he studied the art in his formative years. He hired an agent and began getting bit parts in several television series such as 'The Untouchables,' 'Alfred Hitchcock,' 'Dr. Kildaire,' 'Ben Casey,' 'Route 66' and 'Naked City.'
He also scored on several nobies -- 'El Dorado,' starring John Wayne and Robert Mitchum, 'Brian's Song,' 'Funny Lady,' 'Elf' and 'The Gambler,' where he played a university professor who was addicted to gambling.
Caan was a fan of big car racing. He and Gene Hackman attended the Jimmy Bryant 350-mile memorial race and I met both of them in the inner circle where the drivers and their teams gathered.
Both actors were low-keyed individuals who downplayed their starring roles and who would rather talk about other things like roping, rodeos and car races.
Caan was a regular on the rodeo circuit and got involved as a contestant in as many rodeos as possible when he wasn't making a movie. He was serious about the sport and often practiced on his own horses that he owned and trained.
And he had an eye for the ladies. He was married four times and became embroiled in costly divorces.
His career as an actor skyrocketed when he was hired to portray Sonny Coreleone in 'The Godfather.' That made up for a lot of bad parts he was later forced to accept when his acting career sagged.
He made an unforgettable movie called 'Misery,' in which he was kept captive by a psychotic woman who injured him and kept him in a bed in her home.
Kathy Bates does a great job portraying the psychotic who becomes enamored over Caan, who plays a successful novelist. After some terrorizing moments, she is finally disposed of in a very effective way that will leave some viewers shaken.
I kind of liked him as a rodeo cowboy. As we sat there at the Phoenix Rodeo Arena getting our boots shined, I offered to swapmy hat for his.
He grinned and we played that one about. While I agreed Caan's hat probably cost more than mine, I pointed out that mine had more character.
"It was once stepped on by John Wayne's horse," I said, which caused him to howl.
'When i see him, I'll have to remind him of that," he said.
