For almost forty years, James Cagney dazzled audiences with one virtuoso performance after another, from the quintessential tough guy in Public Enemy to the psychopathic Cody in White Heat; the manic captain in Mr Roberts; or the great song-and-dance man George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy. Few performers have ever so dominated the screen, yet few celebrities are such private and complex people. Raised in the teeming neighbourhoods of pre-World War I by a strong-willed mother and a charming -if unreliable - father, young Jimmy Cagney learnt to use his fists, running with street gangs, several of whose members ended up in prison or on death row. But from boyhood, the tough city kid had a dream to pursue a career - as a farmer. It was only by chance that he became involved in the world of the theatre and vaudeville. There were some lean years, but by his early thirties, Cagney was a household name. In many of his films he played tough, fiercely independent characters - but as this biography bears out, he always avoided the spotlight and the 'glamour' Hollywood life, instead living in a down to earth manner, devoted to his family, his wife of 60 years and a small but true circle of friends, describing his career as 'just a job'. A uniquely creative professional, all the way through. Illustrated with black and white photographs.