Editing James Cagney (section)

====Fighting with Warner Bros.====
[[File:James Cagney in G Men trailer.jpg|alt=Head and shoulders shot of Cagney, looking stern, wearing a suit with a white handkerchief in his pocket.|thumb|left|upright|Along with [[George Raft]], [[Edward G. Robinson]], and [[Humphrey Bogart]], all of whom were Warner Bros. actors, Cagney defined what a movie gangster was. In ''[[G Men]]'' (1935), however, he played a lawyer who joins the FBI.]]
[[File:The Crowd Roars (1932) trailer 2.jpg|thumb|right|Cagney, [[Ann Dvorak]] and [[Joan Blondell]] in ''[[The Crowd Roars (1932 film)|The Crowd Roars]]'' (1932)]]
[[File:Olivia de Havilland and James Cagney in The Irish in Us.jpg|thumb|right|Cagney and [[Olivia de Havilland]] in ''[[The Irish in Us]]'' (1935)]]
[[File:James Cagney and Pat O'Brien in Here Comes the Navy trailer.jpg|thumb|right|With close friend [[Pat O'Brien (actor)|Pat O'Brien]] in ''[[Here Comes the Navy]]'' (1934), their first of nine films together]]
Despite his success, Cagney remained dissatisfied with his contract. He wanted more money for his successful films, but he also offered to take a smaller salary should his star wane.<ref name="Warren93">Warren, page 93</ref><ref name="auteur45">McGilligan, page 45</ref> Warner Bros. refused, so Cagney once again walked out. He held out for $4000 a week,<ref name="Warren93"/> the same salary as Edward G. Robinson, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and [[Kay Francis]].<ref name="auteur45"/> Warner Bros. refused to cave in this time, and suspended him. Cagney announced that he would do his next three pictures for free if they canceled the five years remaining on his contract. He also threatened to quit Hollywood and go back to Columbia University to follow his brothers into medicine. After six months of suspension, [[Frank Capra]] brokered a deal that increased Cagney's salary to around $3000 a week, and guaranteed top billing and no more than four films a year.<ref>Warren, pages 94–95</ref>

Having learned about the block-booking [[studio system]] that virtually guaranteed the studios huge profits, Cagney was determined to spread the wealth.<ref>Warren, page 95</ref><ref name="Cagney52">Cagney, page 52</ref> He regularly sent money and goods to old friends from his neighborhood, though he did not generally make this known.<ref>Warren, page 96</ref> His insistence on no more than four films a year was based on his having witnessed actors—even teenagers—regularly being worked 100 hours a week to turn out more films. This experience was an integral reason for his involvement in forming the [[Screen Actors Guild]] in 1933.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}

Cagney returned to the studio and made ''[[Hard to Handle (film)|Hard to Handle]]'' (1933). This was followed by a steady stream of crowd-pleasing films, including the highly regarded ''[[Footlight Parade]]'',<ref>Warren, page 101</ref> which gave Cagney the chance to return to his song-and-dance roots. The film includes show-stopping scenes with [[Busby Berkeley]]-choreographed routines.<ref name="auteur49">McGilligan, page 49</ref> In 1934, ''[[Here Comes the Navy]]'' paired him with [[Pat O'Brien (actor)|Pat O'Brien]] for the first of nine films together. The two would have an enduring friendship.<ref>Warren, page 100</ref> Also in 1934, Cagney made his first of two raucous comedies with [[Bette Davis]], ''[[Jimmy the Gent (film)|Jimmy the Gent]]'', for which he had himself heavily made up with thick eyebrows and procured an odd haircut for the period without the studio's permission, shaved on the back and sides. Cagney initially had the make-up department put prominent scars on the back of his head for a close-up but the studio demanded that he remove them. Cagney's and Davis's fast-paced scenes together were particularly energetic.

[[File:James Cagney in Here Comes the Navy trailer.jpg|thumb|left|upright|''[[Here Comes the Navy]]'' (1934)]]
In 1935 Cagney was listed as one of the Top Ten Moneymakers in Hollywood for the first time,<ref>Warren, page 114</ref> and was cast more frequently in non-gangster roles; he played a lawyer who joins the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] in ''[[G Men|G-Men]]'', and he also took on his first, and only, [[William Shakespeare|Shakespearean]] role, as top-billed [[Nick Bottom]] in ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935 film)|A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'' alongside [[Joe E. Brown]] as [[Francis Flute]] and [[Mickey Rooney]] as [[Puck (A Midsummer Night's Dream)|Puck]].

Cagney's last movie in 1935 was ''[[Ceiling Zero]]'', his third film with Pat O'Brien. O'Brien received top billing, which was a clear breach of Cagney's contract. This, combined with the fact that Cagney had made five movies in 1934, again against his contract terms, caused him to bring legal proceedings against Warner Bros. for [[breach of contract]].<ref name="Warren120121">Warren, pages 120–121</ref><ref name="Reelclassics">{{cite web|url=http://www.reelclassics.com/Teams/Flynn-deHav/efodh3.htm|title=Errol Flynn & Olivia de Havilland&nbsp;– The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)|publisher=Reelclassics|access-date=January 15, 2009|archive-date=February 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219224440/http://www.reelclassics.com/Teams/Flynn-deHav/efodh3.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> The dispute dragged on for several months. Cagney received calls from [[David O. Selznick|David Selznick]] and [[Samuel Goldwyn|Sam Goldwyn]], but neither felt in a position to offer him work while the dispute went on.<ref name="Warren120121"/> Meanwhile, while being represented by his brother William in court, Cagney went back to New York to search for a country property where he could indulge his passion for farming.<ref name="Warren120121"/>