James Caan Quotes

One night I went over to get some dope from some Hollywood tough guy. After I left, my son Scott, who was only fifteen, went over with a baseball bat to kill him. I was laughing out of one eye and crying out of the other. I thought, Who am I kidding?

I won't mention names, but in my career, the most talented people invariably are the easiest and nicest to get along with.

To get over my divorce, I got a prescription to live at the Playboy Mansion for a while.

Success is the result of clear goal, unshakable confidence, proper planning, enthusiastic ACTION and consistent persistence.

Obstacles are only opportunities to succeed or fail; how we handle them determines what will happen.

My least favorite phrase in the English language is 'I don't care.'

Observe the masses and do the opposite

Showing up every day isn't enough. There are a lot of guys who show up every day who shouldn't have showed up at all.

Never stop asking yourself whether you can do things better. Keep testing every aspect of your business to the nth degree, and challenge every one of your assumptions. The tougher you are on yourself now, the tougher your business will be out there in the real world.

Actors have bodyguards and entourages not because anybody wants to hurt them - who would want to hurt an actor? - but because they want to get recognized. God forbid someone doesn't recognize them.

It is that, but really, it's about how we don't recognise the little things in life, or appreciate the little things in life like belonging. A sense of belonging is a big thing today.

I had great, great times as a Little League coach. People were talking about me quitting acting, and they would say, What about your creative juices? Coaching is creative, because you could take a kid who thought he wasn't any good and, within four minutes, change his mind. And I didn't have to wait six months for them to put music to it.

I went to a shrink once, but I caught him going to a fortune-teller so I quit.

There's nothing more boring than actors talking about acting.

I never rode a bull - I'm not that stupid.

Some guys say beauty is only skin deep. But when you walk into a party, you don't see somebody's brain. The initial contact has to be the sniffing.

I always thought of myself as some sort of athlete until I started playing golf a couple years ago.

It's a very charming movie about the mob - a real stretch for me.

You're the only one who's closing your eyes at night. There's no one else who can do it for you.

My acting technique is to look up at God just before the camera rolls and say, 'Give me a break.'

I'm sort of a Walter Mitty. I got fewer brain cells than most people, so when I got friendly with cowboys, I started rodeoing. When I was calf-roping, there was something about the dirt that made me feel clean.

What I do quite honestly and seriously and not in any way being humble is not as important as what the garbage collector does. People make actors important.

My kid was a great baseball player. I thought I had it made. Front-row seats at Yankee Stadium. Then he turned sixteen and wanted to be a rapper.

I'll see a beautiful girl walking up to me and I'll think, Oh, my God, I can't believe my good luck. But then she'll say, 'Where's your son?' or 'My mother loves you'.

You have to be very careful when you let someone win.

There's a big difference between wanting to work and having to work. And I had to learn that the hard way. Now money is very important to me, because I ain't got it.

No matter what heights you achieve, even if you're Brad Pitt, the slide is coming, sure as death and taxes.

Someone's always saying, "It's not whether you win or lose," but if you feel that way, you're as good as dead.

I really believe that you grow up a certain way in New York. There's a New York morality, a sense of loyalty. You know how to win and lose. There's a thousand kids outside, you know who to push and who not to push. There's a sixth sense you develop just because it's New York.

Anyone of my generation who tells you he hasn't 'done Brando' is lying.

People say, 'Gee, you do a lot of mafia movies.' I think I've done two, out of 60.

Sometimes it seems like this is the choice - either kick ass or kiss ass.

What's the difference between sex and love? I have four wives and five kids. I apparently don't know the difference.

I never saw my dad cry. My son saw me cry. My dad never told me he loved me, and consequently I told Scott I loved him every other minute. The point is, I'll make less mistakes than my dad, my sons hopefully will make less mistakes than me, and their sons will make less mistakes than their dads.

The most talented people are always the nicest.

I never did anything else. In college I switched majors every two weeks, and acting was the only thing that held my interest.

I'm here instead of having shoulder surgery. But I'm not sure which is more painful.

I remember at 16 years old, growing up in Queens, we were punks, but hey, when we went to the theater, we wore a shirt and tie! Similarly, I believe that to keep movie theaters in existence, they're gonna have to make 'em an event, have a couch, a table and drinks or something. Otherwise, there's no reason to get out of your bed!

People are always backing up when I'm just going to shake their hands.

I don't think silicone makes a girl good or bad.

Sure, I want to be the best actor in the world. But my life is my family, my son, my friends. I don't know how anyone can find fault with that.

I've been lucky. The critics never went out of their way to single me out for doing bad work.

Saving a letter from an old friend doesn't exist anymore. Everything is texted or emailed.

Unless I love something or hate it, I don't want to deal with it.

There are a lot of guys in Hollywood who clap you on the back just a little too hard.

I've never been difficult to anybody or with anybody on a picture. Especially when you're in that nice status of hierarchy of actors and actresses who get to approve directors. Because once you make that choice, it's my belief that the director's boss.

I lost my passion for work. No, that's a negative statement. I just had a bigger passion for something else, for my son, and growing up with him.