James Coburn Biography

Prolific screen actor James Coburn was one of Hollywood's original tough guys. His career slowed down during the 1980s due to Coburn's affliction with rheumatoid arthritis, but he returned to film during the 1990s and continued acting until his death in 2002. He won his first and only Oscar at the age of seventy, four years before his death, proving that his talent was as timeless and enduring as the films in which he appeared.James Coburn was born on August 31, 1928, in Laurel, Nebraska. Before his breakthrough role, he had parts in several movies, many of them westerns, including those in The Magnificent Seven, Charade, and Major Dundee. Coburn worked with many well-known actors in these films, including Charles Bronson, Steve McQueen, Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, Charlton Heston, and Richard Harris.Coburn won a starring role in the 1966 film Our Man Flint, and James finally became a recognizable face in Hollywood. The sequel In Like Flint, which also starred Coburn, was released the following year. Surprisingly, he decided soon after that to pursue independent film. During this time, he was trained in karate by martial arts genius Bruce Lee, and became interested in Buddhism.In 1973, Coburn agreed to take on the starring role in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, which also featured Kris Kristofferson. The film's director was Sam Peckinpah, a controversial figure who was also a close friend of Coburn s. Both the director and Coburn were disappointed with the film, which had been heavily edited before its release. They worked together again on the 1977 film Cross of Iron, but that was unfortunately a box office flop.The 1980s would see James staying away from film, mainly due to rheumatoid arthritis. During this hiatus from film, he had a relationship with the British singer and songwriter Lynsey DePaul. However, he returned to acting in the 1990s, and claimed he had healed himself using a sulfur-containing compound. Whether or not the effect was real or psychological, it did allow James to resume his film career. He appeared in highly successful films like Young Guns II, starring Emilio Estevez, Kiefer Sutherland, and Lou Diamond Phillips; The Nutty Professor, also starring Eddie Murphy and Jada Pinkett; and Maverick, starring Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster.It was also during his return to film that he received his first and only Academy Award. Affliction, a 1997 film starring Nick Nolte and Sissy Spacek, earned Coburn an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal as Nolte's violent and abusive father.James's final film appearance was in the 2002 film Snow Dogs, starring Cuba Gooding Jr. He died unexpectedly in the same year of a heart attack at the age of seventy-four. Coburn was survived by his wife, Paula O Hara, who died of cancer several years later. He also had two children (James and Lisa) from his previous marriage to Beverly Kelly. He will be remembered as a versatile actor who showed a great love of acting, as well as timeless talent.