James Caan, an actor whose role included playing the Bears running back Brian Piccolo, in Brian’s Song, has passed away. He was 82.
Caan is most well-known for his role as Santino Corleone, or “Sonny” Corleone, in The Godfather. Brian Piccolo will always be his favorite football player. Piccolo, a close friend of Gale Sayers (Hall of Famer), died from cancer in 1970 at the age of 26.
Caan also appeared in Rollerball, which is a film about a dominant sport worldwide that combines roller derby with hand-to-hand combat.
The audience’s younger members will recognize Caan in Elf as Will Ferrell’s biological father and in The Program as Coach Sam Winters.
Caan was nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor for his role in The Godfather and an Emmy nomination as best lead actor in a miniseries or movie for Brian’s song.
