Cat. #0008012221: JAMES CAGNEY

Uncommonly early vintage 7-7/8 x 9-7/8-inch black and white portrait, boldly signed and inscribed in black fountain pen in the 1930s. In fine condition for its age, with somewhat thin borders. With his often-impersonated raspy voice and staccato vocal inflections, James Cagney was one of the brightest stars in American cinema history. In 1930, he recreated his role in the hot play "Penny Arcade" in the film adaptation, Sinner's Holiday, and, within a year, he was signed by Warner Brothers. In his fifth film with the studio, he portrayed the ruthless gangster in Public Enemy (1931), and, practically overnight, became every American's favorite antihero. Audiences loved the small, rather plain-looking man who, while lacking the looks usually associated with the traditional Hollywood leading man of the era, projected a contentious, arrogant confidence and dynamic energy. Unforgettable in subsequent gangster films, most notably Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) and White Heat (1949), Cagney wa