In
Mrs. Tillman’s 9th grade Honors English class, we watched the movie
Brian’s Song, an ABC movie of the week (back when the networks showed movies in
the evenings) which is about Chicago Bears football player Brian Piccolo and
his battle with cancer, which he eventually lost in 1970. It was the last day
of the fall semester in 1986, and she needed something to fill an hour since it
wasn’t really possible to introduce new material. What I didn’t realize was how
well-received this movie was. It earned eight Emmy nominations, winning four
times, plus it won a Peabody Award (UGA plug, since Georgia hosts the Peabody
Awards). I knew how the movie turned out, since I read I Am Third, Gale Sayers’
autobiography, as an eighth grader.
As
it turns out, this was my first exposure to the actor James Caan, who is one of
my favorites. Technically, I saw Rollerball before this, but didn’t really know
much about him at that point.
So
over time, Caan has become one of my favorite actors. Many people likely know
him for his portrayal of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather (and doesn’t everyone
think of Sonny when they stop at the toll booth on the turnpike). But as I’ve
mentioned previously, I know him best for his portrayal of Jonathan E in Norman
Jewison’s Rollerball (1975).
Anyway,
onto my three questions. Probably nothing earth shattering or worthy of 60
Minutes, but they are things that interest me.
1)
Tell me about playing Jonathan E in Rollerball. I
see so many parallels when I compare this movie to the sporting world we live
in, so I can only imagine what it seemed like in the early 70s. I realize it’s
been 40 years since the movie came out, but in this context, how meaningful of
a role/experience was this?
2)
Many other actors and actresses have turned down
roles for movies that turned out to be pretty successful. Hindsight is always
20/20, but can you tell us a little bit about the thought process behind saying
no to roles in movies such as Kramer vs. Kramer, Close Encounters of the Third
Kind, and Superman?
3)
Your first listed movie role is in 1963, and it
was uncredited in the actual movie, and you’ve done so much that perhaps it all
starts to run together. Over 50+ years, for any reason, what are some of the
roles/movies/people you look back on the most fondly?
So there you have it. There are so
many other questions to ask, but only so much time. Enjoy.
