Cagney

Cagney by Cagney is an exhilarating account of the great man and an absorbing record of the people he has encountered throughout his long and eventful life. Indeed, as he says, 'People fascinate the hell out of me.' Cagney was born at the turn of this century in New York City, a sickly child, not expected to live. the family was poor and life was tough for all the Cagney children; they soon learned the vital art of self-defence. This early training in street fighting was to be put to good use later in Hollywood where, incidentally, he was careful to fake his punches. In 1918 he joined the Student Army Training Corps at Columbia University where he was able to continue his life-long interest in art. He also failed oral reading - he spoke too quickly! - and was the only member of the band who was unable to read music. Cagney's first show-business experience was in drag as a chorus girl in a production called Every Sailor. After this any regular job was tedious. In his next musical show he met the girl he later married, Frances Willard Vernon, about whom he writes with great affection. On the recommendation of Al Jolson he went to Hollywood in the early thirties with a three week guarantee. He stayed for thirty-one years, making six pictures in the first forty weeks. However life for an up-and-coming star was far from glamorous, it was very dangerous, particularly at the time before safe 'exploding' bullets had been invented and genuine bullets were fired. So for those who see Cagney only as a fast talking, quick-shooting gangster, the hero and villain of so many movies, here is the complete and authentic story, from the streets of New York City to stardom and reverence.