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Team or No Team: The Partnership of Joan Blondell and James Cagney by Kim Luperi

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Thumbing through Hollywood’s Great Love Teams, I came across a chapter about James Cagney and Ann Sheridan. Figuring I missed out on a classic Hollywood partnership, I googled how many movies they co-starred in. The answer: Just three.

I expected to see Joan Blondell’s name next to Cagney’s, as they appeared in more than twice as many pictures together (an impressive seven), starting with SINNERS’ HOLIDAY (‘30) and ending with HE WAS HER MAN (‘34). Whether flinging wise cracks, landing slaps or locked in intense drama, Blondell and Cagney always drew me in. Her breezy broads and his tough yet charming chaps exuded a sense of vitality that makes them a joy to watch, even when they aren’t onscreen together. So, why don’t they earn more recognition as a duo? I’d never given that question much thought, so I decided to investigate.

Interestingly, Blondell and Cagney were regularly referred to as a team in 1930s publications. An ad for their fourth film, 1931’s BLONDE CRAZY, proclaimed: “Leading a cheer for the fastest and funniest team on the screen, Blondell and Cagney.” That same year, the Los Angeles Times revealed that Blondell replaced Dorothy Mackaill in THE CROWD ROARS (‘32) because “fans are demanding to see more pictures in which these two artists play opposite each other.” A few months later, another Los Angeles Times article confirmed “the Cagney-Blondell combination had been recognized by the production heads as a strong one.” By 1934, their rapport had become so recognizable that they both penned a two-page spread of articles for Screenland, “What I Think of Joan, As Told By James Cagney” and “What I Think of Jimmy, As Told By Joan Blondell.” (Intriguingly, they both call each other “moody as the devil”!)

In a prophetic move, the two were actually brought to Hollywood together. Blondell and Cagney co-starred on Broadway in Maggie the Magnificent, which had the luck of opening the week the stock market crashed. They made enough of an impression to get cast in Penny Arcade, which Al Jolson bought and sold to Warner Bros. with one big stipulation: Blondell and Cagney went with the sale. Both arrived in Hollywood for the film adaptation, released as SINNERS’ HOLIDAY, but not everyone was happy. “Well, we’re stuck with you for one picture,” WB production head Darryl F. Zanuck bemoaned. In no time, though, that displeasure turned to delight when Zanuck realized what talent he had on his hands. According to an interview with Blondell, “He cornered us along the back lot while we were working—no agents, no time to think—and signed us each to a five-year contract.” The rest is history.

And that history includes a lot of films. Given that Blondell and Cagney’s partnerships came early in their Hollywood days and they both enjoyed long careers, they had a lot more to account for than their movies together (not to mention, many of their early pairings were in supporting roles). Blondell’s reliability and versatility meant that Warners could put her in anything, and in one eight-year period, she churned out over 50 pictures for the studio, making it easy for those Cagney pictures to blend in. Meanwhile, the equally multifaceted Cagney skyrocketed to fame in THE PUBLIC ENEMY (‘31) and took home a Best Actor Oscar for 1942’s musical biopic YANKEE DOODLE DANDY. His later A-level stardom has a habit of sometimes overshadowing his earlier workmanlike roles.

I don’t think Blondell and Cagney are as well-remembered as a team because unlike Hepburn and Tracy, Astaire and Rogers and other famous classic duos, they weren’t pigeonholed in the public’s mind; though some traits remained constant, they portrayed different characters in their films together. Furthermore, we tend to think of male-female screen teams in a romantic sense, but Blondell and Cagney more often simply appeared as castmates. Cases in point: SINNERS’ HOLIDAY saw them attempt to go on a date; they briefly shared one scene in OTHER MEN’S WOMEN (1931), both out on the town with others; Cagney smashed that grapefruit into Mae Clarke’s face in THE PUBLIC ENEMY and Blondell gets hitched to Cagney’s brother in THE CROWD ROARS. They fall in love, with hitmen hot on Cagney’s tail, in HE WAS HER MAN… but Blondell marries someone else.

That said, my favorite Blondell-Cagney entries are the two in which they end up together, BLONDE CRAZY and FOOTLIGHT PARADE (both ‘33), after working platonically alongside each other the whole time. The duo’s relationship is playful, acerbic and low-key sweet, showcasing a vivacious romantic chemistry that felt ahead of its time. One wishes they had been romantically paired more often, if only to savor exchanges like this from FOOTLIGHT PARADE: