Inside James Caan's drug addiction and depression battle after The Godfather star lived at Playboy Mansion

GODFATHER star James Caan had long battles with drug addiction and depression before his death at the age of 82 and even lived in the Playboy Mansion for a time.

After the death of his sister, Barbara in 1981 from leukemia, Caan fell into a deep depression that plagued him for most of his life.

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“When I lost her, I couldn't, I couldn't handle it, I didn't know what to do,” he told Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz last July.

The siblings lived close to each other as Barbara even ran his production company.

He told the New York Times in 1991 that after his sister’s death: “I realized passion is such an important thing to have in life because it ends so soon, and my passion was to grow up with my son.”

Following Barbara’s death, Caan became a frequent partier throughout the 1980s, becoming well-known in Hollywood for his cocaine usage.

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“First you have peer pressure,” he said. “You have parties. I was single. There were girls. That was the way to get girls.”

"There are pictures I made that I still haven't seen.

"I was depressed when I was making them. In the middle of some of these pictures, I kept thinking, 'What am I doing here?' It's like you're in a hallway and you can't get out."

The destructive habit eventually led to money troubles by the latter half of the decade and Caan ran the risk of possibly losing his house at one point.

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However, he was able to be saved when his friend, director Rob Reiner, offered him a role in the psychological thriller film, Misery, in 1989.

“I had some wonderful people, like Rob Reiner and those guys, God bless them. That was a big-time winner for me,” Caan said.

Warren Beatty was initially slated to play the role of a bedridden novelist taken captive by a crazed super fan - played by Kathy Bates - in an adaptation of Stephen King’s work.

However, his work on Dick Tracy led to scheduling conflicts and Caan ended up with the role, saving his career.

“Yeah, it’s unusual to have a second act,” he said. “Especially in this town.”

LIFE IN THE PLAYBOY MANSION 

For a brief stint in the 1970s, Caan lived in the Playboy Mansion at the invitation of Hugh Hefner after a divorce left the actor homeless.

“There were tons of girls over there and well, I'm sorry, but I liked 'em,” he told The Guardian in 1999.

While his time in the “greatest nightclub in the world” was short, it had a profound impact on Caan, who left after only a year.

Caan moved out of the mansion in fear that he would never be able to live in the “real world” again if he overstayed his welcome.

“Hef didn't want me to leave because I guess I brought a lot of levity to the place,”

But the constant nightlife took a toll on the actor, who said he even contemplated suicide while living in the mansion because he figured his life wasn’t “getting any better than this.”

GOODBYE SONNY

Caan death was confirmed with a tweet from his official page, reading: “It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Jimmy on the evening of July 6.

“The family appreciates the outpouring of love and heartfelt condolences and asks that you continue to respect their privacy during this difficult time.”

His career spanned over 50 years but he was perhaps best known for his role as Santino “Sonny” Corleone in the 1972 film The Godfather, directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

The film star received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor as well as a Golden Globe for his performance.

He later reprised the role when he returned for Godfather II.

FAMILY LIFE

The long-time actor was born in 1940 in the Bronx of New York to Jewish immigrant parents from Germany.

His father supported his family as a butcher in the city, and Caan later played football at Michigan State University.

The award-winning star has been married four times, the first to Dee Jay Mathis with whom he shares a daughter named Tara.

After their divorce in 1966, Caan married a former girlfriend of Elvis Presley, Sheila Marie Ryan, but their relationship was short-lived and only lasted a year.

Their son, Scott Caan, later followed in his father's acting footsteps and earned a starring role on Hawaii 5-0.

In the early 90s, Caan married Ingrid Hajek and they had a son together, Alexander James Caan.

The actor tied the knot for the final time in 1995 to a woman named Linda Stokes, and the couple welcomed two sons, James Arthur Caan and Jacob Nicholas Caan.

After 22 years of marriage, the pair divorced citing irreconcilable differences.

In 2015, Caan was rushed to the hospital with extreme chest pain, and despite concerns of a heart attack, medics attributed it to infection.

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The actor has been seen in a wheelchair in more recent years as his health has declined since the incident.

His family and friends have shared photos of remembrance for the lost talent.

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