All I try to do is to realize the man I'm playing fully, then put as much into my acting as I know how. To do it, I draw upon all that I've ever known, heard, seen or remember. — James Cagney Copy Share Image
“Where once was a vertebrae is now a tangle, from constant kissing at an awkward angle.” — James Cagney Copy Share
Where I come from, if there's a buck to be made, you don't ask questions, you go ahead and make it. — James Cagney Copy Share
There's not much to say about acting but this. Never settle back on your heels. Never relax. If you relax, the audience relaxes. And… — James Cagney Copy Share
I never had the slightest difficulty with a fellow actor. Not until One, Two, Three. In that picture, Horst Buchholz tried all sorts of… — James Cagney Copy Share
Once a song and dance man, always a song and dance man. Those few words tell as much about me professionally as there is… — James Cagney Copy Share
I never actually said, 'Nnng-you dirty ra-at!' What I actually said was 'Judy! Judy! Judy!' — James Cagney Copy Share
“I hate the word superstar". I have never been able to think in those terms. They are overstatements. You don't hear them speak of… — James Cagney Copy Share
My biggest concern is that doing a rough-and-tumble scene I might hurt someone accidentally. — James Cagney Copy Share
New Orleans is 5 feet below sea level, which means that holes dug in the ground immediately fill with water. Coffins were punctured and… — James Cagney Copy Share
Though I soon became typecast in Hollywood as a gangster and hoodlum, I was originally a dancer, an Irish hoofer, trained in vaudeville tap… — James Cagney Copy Share
Learn your lines, find your mark, look 'em in the eye and tell 'em the truth. — James Cagney Copy Share
