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Born to a Jewish butcher in the Bronx in 1939, James Caan rejected the world of kosher sausages for Michigan State University where he studied economics and played American football. Forever identified as The Godfather's eldest son Sonny Corleone - Caan is still called Sonny in New York's Little Italy and has twice been voted Italian of the year. Caan spent a lot of time in the late 70s living in the Playboy mansion abusing drugs and alcohol, a lifestyle that may explain some of his poor post-Godfather choices , such as turning down Jack Nicholson's role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Following his sister's death in 1981, Caan quit acting but bankruptcy helped him refocus and his career got a much-needed boot up the backside after Warren Beatty passed on playing Kathy Bates' bed-bound victim in Misery.
