Mickey Rooney (1920–2014) was an American actor of stage, film, television, Broadway, radio, and vaudeville. Beginning as a child actor, his career extended over 88 years, making him one of the most enduring performers in show business history. He appeared in more than 300 films and was one of the last surviving stars of the silent film era, having one of the longest careers in the medium's history.[1]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | Orchids and Ermine | Mickey McGuire | ||
| 1928 | Mickey the Detective | R.K.O. silent short Oct 1928 | ||
| 1932 | The Beast of the City | Mickey Fitzpatrick | Uncredited | |
| Sin's Pay Day | "Chubby" Dennis | |||
| High Speed | Buddy Whipple | Uncredited | ||
| Fast Companions | Midge | |||
| My Pal, the King | King Charles V | |||
| Officer Thirteen | Buddy Malone | |||
| 1933 | The Big Cage | Jimmy O'Hara | ||
| The Life of Jimmy Dolan | "Freckles" | Uncredited, Alternate title: The Kid's Last Fight | ||
| The Big Chance | Arthur Wilson | |||
| Broadway to Hollywood | Ted Hackett III as a Child | |||
| The Chief | Willie | |||
| The World Changes | Otto Peterson, as a Child | |||
| 1934 | Beloved | Tommy | ||
| The Lost Jungle | Mickey | Serial, [Ch.1] | ||
| I Like It That Way | Messenger Boy | |||
| Upper World | Jerry | (scenes deleted) | ||
| Manhattan Melodrama | "Blackie" as a Boy | |||
| Love Birds | Gladwyn Tootle | |||
| Half a Sinner | Willie Clark | |||
| Blind Date | Freddie | |||
| Hide-Out | Willie Miller | |||
| Chained | Boy Shipboard Swimmer | Uncredited | ||
| Death on the Diamond | Mickey | |||
| 1935 | The County Chairman | "Freckles" | ||
| West Point of the Air | (scenes deleted) | |||
| Reckless | Eddie | Alternate titles: Born Reckless and Hard to Handle | ||
| The Healer | Jimmy | Alternate title: Little Pal | ||
| A Midsummer Night's Dream | Puck or Robin Goodfellow, a Fairy | |||
| Rendezvous | Country Boy | Uncredited | ||
| Ah, Wilderness! | Tommy | |||
| A Night at the Opera | Al | |||
| 1936 | Riffraff | Jimmy | ||
| Little Lord Fauntleroy | Dick | |||
| Down the Stretch | "Snapper" Sinclair | |||
| The Devil Is a Sissy | James "Gig" Stevens | |||
| 1937 | A Family Affair | Andy Hardy | ||
| Captains Courageous | Dan Troop | |||
| Slave Ship | "Swifty" | |||
| Hoosier Schoolboy | "Shockey" Carter | |||
| Live, Love and Learn | Jerry Crump | |||
| Thoroughbreds Don't Cry | Timmie Donovan | |||
| You're Only Young Once | Andy Hardy | |||
| 1938 | Love Is a Headache | Mike O'Toole | ||
| Judge Hardy's Children | Andy Hardy | |||
| Hold That Kiss | Chick Evans | |||
| Lord Jeff | Terry O'Mulvaney | |||
| Love Finds Andy Hardy | Andy Hardy | |||
| Boys Town | "Whitey" Marsh | |||
| Stablemates | Mickey | |||
| Out West with the Hardys | Andy Hardy | |||
| 1939 | The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn | Huckleberry Finn | ||
| The Hardys Ride High | Andy Hardy | |||
| Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever | ||||
| Babes in Arms | Mickey Moran | At age of only 19 years old, Mickey Rooney became the second-youngest Academy Award Best Actor nominee. | ||
| Judge Hardy and Son | Andy Hardy | |||
| 1940 | Young Tom Edison | Thomas Edison | ||
| Andy Hardy Meets Debutante | Andy Hardy | |||
| Strike Up the Band | Jimmy Connors | |||
| 1941 | Andy Hardy's Private Secretary | Andy Hardy | ||
| Men of Boys Town | "Whitey" Marsh | |||
| Life Begins for Andy Hardy | Andy Hardy | |||
| Babes on Broadway | Tommy Williams | |||
| 1942 | The Courtship of Andy Hardy | Andy Hardy | ||
| A Yank at Eton | Timothy Dennis | |||
| Andy Hardy's Double Life | Andy Hardy | |||
| 1943 | The Human Comedy | Homer MacAuley | At age of 23, Rooney became the third-youngest Academy Award Best Actor nominee before he was surpassed by 22-year old Timothée Chalamet in Call Me by Your Name, 74 years later. | |
| Thousands Cheer | Emcee At The Show | |||
| Girl Crazy | Danny Churchill Jr. | |||
| 1944 | Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble | Andy Hardy | ||
| 1945 | National Velvet | Michael "Mi" Taylor | ||
| 1946 | Love Laughs at Andy Hardy | Andy Hardy | ||
| 1947 | Killer McCoy | Tommy "Killer" McCoy | ||
| 1948 | Summer Holiday | Richard Miller | ||
| Words and Music | Lorenz Hart | |||
| 1949 | The Big Wheel | Billy Coy | ||
| 1950 | Quicksand | Dan | ||
| The Fireball | Johnny Casar | |||
| He's a Cockeyed Wonder | Freddie Frisby | |||
| 1951 | My Outlaw Brother | J. Dennis "Denny" O'Moore | ||
| The Strip | Stanley Maxton | |||
| 1952 | Sound Off | Mike Donnelly | ||
| 1953 | Off Limits | Herbert Tuttle | ||
| All Ashore | Francis "Moby" Dickerson | |||
| A Slight Case of Larceny | Augustus "Geechy" Cheevers | |||
| 1954 | Drive a Crooked Road | Eddie Shannon | ||
| The Atomic Kid | Barnaby "Blix" Waterberry | |||
| 1955 | The Bridges at Toko-Ri | Mike Forney | ||
| The Twinkle in God's Eye | Reverend William Macklin II | |||
| 1956 | The Bold and the Brave | Willie Dooley | Nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1956. | |
| Francis in the Haunted House | David Prescott | |||
| Magnificent Roughnecks | Frank Sommers | |||
| 1957 | Operation Mad Ball | Master Sergeant Yancy Skibo | ||
| Baby Face Nelson | Lester M. "Baby Face Nelson" Gillis | |||
| 1958 | A Nice Little Bank That Should Be Robbed | Gustav "Gus" Harris | ||
| Andy Hardy Comes Home | Andy Hardy | |||
| 1959 | The Last Mile | "Killer" Mears | ||
| The Big Operator | Joe "Little Joe" Braun | Alternate title: Anatomy of the Syndicate | ||
| 1960 | The Private Lives of Adam and Eve | Nick Lewis / The Devil | ||
| Platinum High School | Steven Conway | |||
| 1961 | The Big Bankroll | Johnny Burke | Alternate title: King of the Roaring 20s: The Story of Arnold Rothstein | |
| Breakfast at Tiffany's | I.Y. Yunioshi | |||
| Everything's Ducky | Kermit "Beetle" McKay | |||
| 1962 | Requiem for a Heavyweight (film) | Army | ||
| Follow that Dream | ||||
| 1963 | It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World | "Dingy" Bell | ||
| 1964 | The Secret Invasion | Terence Scanlon | ||
| 1965 | Twenty-Four Hours to Kill | Norman Jones | ||
| How to Stuff a Wild Bikini | "Peachy" Keane | |||
| 1966 | Ambush Bay | Sergeant Ernest Wartell | ||
| The Devil in Love | Adramalek | |||
| 1968 | Skidoo | George "Blue Chips" Packard | ||
| 1969 | The Extraordinary Seaman | Cook #3 / C W. J. Oglethorpe | ||
| The Comic | Martin "Cockeye" Van Buren | |||
| 80 Steps to Jonah | Wilfred Bashford | |||
| 1970 | The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County | Tom "Indian Tom" | ||
| Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town | Kris Kringle / Santa Claus | Voice, TV movie | ||
| 1971 | Mooch Goes to Hollywood | Himself | ||
| The Manipulator | B.J. Lang | |||
| 1972 | Evil Roy Slade | Nelson Stool | TV movie | |
| Richard | Guardian Angel | |||
| Pulp | Preston Gilbert | |||
| 1973 | The Godmothers | Rocky Mastrasso | ||
| 1974 | Thunder County | Gas Station Attendant | ||
| Journey Back to Oz | Scarecrow | Voice | ||
| 1974 | The Year Without a Santa Claus | Santa Claus | Voice | |
| 1975 | Ace of Hearts | Papa Joe | ||
| From Hong Kong with Love | Marty | Alternate title: Bons Baisers de Hong Kong | ||
| The Intruder | Captain Jennings | |||
| Rachel's Man | Laban | |||
| 1976 | Find the Lady | "Trigger" | ||
| 1977 | The Domino Principle | Spiventa | ||
| Pete's Dragon | Lampie | |||
| 1978 | The Magic of Lassie | Gus | ||
| 1979 | Arabian Adventure | Daad El-Shur | ||
| The Black Stallion | Henry Dailey | Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1979. | ||
| Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July | Santa Claus | Voice, TV movie | ||
| 1981 | The Fox and the Hound | Adult Tod | Voice | |
| Bill | Bill Sackter | TV movie | ||
| 1982 | Odyssey of the Pacific | The Railway Engineer | Alternate titles: The Emperor of Peru and Treasure Train | |
| 1983 | Bill Sackter | TV movie | ||
| 1984 | It Came Upon the Midnight Clear | Mike Halligan | ||
| 1985 | The Care Bears Movie | Mr. Cherrywood | Voice | |
| 1986 | Lightning, the White Stallion | Barney Ingram | ||
| Little Spies | Jimmie "The Hermit" | [2] | ||
| 1988 | Bluegrass | John Paul Jones | ||
| 1989 | Flip | Voice | ||
| Erik the Viking | Erik's Grandfather | |||
| 1990 | Home For Christmas | Elmer | TV movie | |
| 1991 | My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys | Junion | ||
| The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw | The Director | TV movie | ||
| Joe Petto | Direct-to-video | |||
| 1992 | The Magic Voyage | The Narrator | Voice | |
| Maximum Force | Chief of Police | |||
| The Legend of Wolf Mountain | Pat Jensen | |||
| Sweet Justice | Zeke | |||
| 1993 | The Milky Life | Barry Reilly | ||
| 1994 | Revenge of the Red Baron | Grandpa Spencer | ||
| Making Waves | Gabriel | |||
| 1995 | Outlaws: The Legend of O.B. Taggart | O.B. Taggart | ||
| 1997 | The Face on the Barroom Floor | |||
| Killing Midnight | Professor Mort Sang | |||
| 1998 | Animals | Tollkeeper | ||
| Michael Kael vs. the World News Company | Griffith | |||
| The Snow Queen | Ol Dreamy | |||
| Sinbad: The Battle of the Dark Knights | Sage | |||
| Fugly Floom | ||||
| The First of May | Ed "Boss Ed" | |||
| 1999 | Holy Hollywood | |||
| 2000 | Internet Love | |||
| Phantom of the Megaplex | Mason "Movie Mason" | TV movie | ||
| 2001 | Sparkey | Voice, Direct-to-video | ||
| 2002 | Topa Topa Bluffs | The Prospector | ||
| 2003 | Illusion Infinity, aka Paradise | Simon / Henry Sr. | Dual role | |
| 2004 | To Kill a Mockumentary | Max | ||
| 2005 | David McCord | |||
| The Happy Elf | Santa | Voice | ||
| 2006 | Night at the Museum | Gus | ||
| The Thirsting | Savy | |||
| 2007 | A Christmas Too Many | Grandpa | Direct-to-video | |
| The Yesterday Pool | Trobadar | Short | ||
| Bamboo Shark | Brooks | TV movie | ||
| 2008 | Chief | |||
| A Miser Brothers' Christmas | Santa Claus | Voice, TV movie | ||
| Empire State Building Murders | Paulie Genovese | |||
| 2009 | Saddle Up with Dick Wrangler & Injun Joe | Owen Blumenkrantz | ||
| Gus | Deleted scene only | |||
| Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva | Harvey | English dub | ||
| 2010 | Now Here | "Swifty" | ||
| Gerald | The Doctor | |||
| 2011 | Night Club | Jerry Sherman | ||
| The Muppets | Elderly Smalltown Resident | |||
| Bamboo Shark | Brooks | |||
| 2012 | Last Will and Embezzlement | Himself | ||
| The Voices from Beyond | Johnny O'Hara | |||
| The Woods | Lester | |||
| Driving Me Crazy | Mr. Cohen | |||
| 2014 | Gus | Released posthumously | ||
| 2017 | Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | Mr. Louis | Released posthumously (final film role) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | Not to Be Trusted | The Nephew | ||
| 1927 | Mickey's Circus | Mickey McGuire | ||
| Mickey's Pals | ||||
| Mickey's Eleven | ||||
| Mickey's Battles | ||||
| 1928 | Mickey's Parade | |||
| Mickey in School | ||||
| Mickey's Nine | ||||
| Mickey's Little Eva | ||||
| Mickey's Wild West | ||||
| Mickey in Love | ||||
| Mickey's Triumph | ||||
| Mickey's Babies | ||||
| Mickey's Movies | ||||
| Mickey's Rivals | ||||
| Mickey the Detective | ||||
| Mickey's Athletes | ||||
| Mickey's Big Game Hunt | ||||
| 1929 | Mickey's Great Idea | |||
| Mickey's Menagerie | ||||
| Mickey's Last Chance | ||||
| Mickey's Brown Derby | ||||
| Mickey's Northwest Mounted | ||||
| Mickey's Initiation | ||||
| Mickey's Midnite Follies | ||||
| Mickey's Surprise | ||||
| Mickey's Mix-Up | ||||
| Mickey's Big Moment | ||||
| Mickey's Strategy | ||||
| 1930 | Mickey's Champs | |||
| Mickey's Explorers | ||||
| Mickey's Master Mind | ||||
| Mickey's Luck | ||||
| Mickey's Whirlwinds | ||||
| Mickey's Warriors | ||||
| Mickey the Romeo | ||||
| Mickey's Merry Men | ||||
| Mickey's Winners | ||||
| Screen Snapshots Series 9, No. 24 | ||||
| Mickey's Musketeers | ||||
| Mickey's Bargain | ||||
| 1931 | Mickey's Stampede | |||
| Mickey's Crusaders | ||||
| Mickey's Rebellion | ||||
| Mickey's Diplomacy | ||||
| Mickey's Wildcats | ||||
| Mickey's Thrill Hunters | ||||
| The Hare Mail[3] | Oswald the Lucky Rabbit | Voice role | ||
| The Fisherman | ||||
| Mickey's Helping Hand | Mickey McGuire | |||
| Mickey's Sideline | ||||
| 1932 | Mickey's Busy Day | |||
| Mickey's Travels | ||||
| Mickey's Holiday | ||||
| Mickey's Big Business | ||||
| Mickey's Golden Rule | ||||
| Mickey's Charity | ||||
| 1933 | Mickey's Ape Man | |||
| Mickey's Race | ||||
| Mickey's Big Broadcast | ||||
| Mickey's Disguises | ||||
| Mickey's Touchdown | ||||
| Mickey's Tent Show | ||||
| Mickey's Covered Wagon | ||||
| 1934 | Mickey's Minstrels | |||
| Mickey's Rescue | ||||
| Mickey's Medicine Man | ||||
| 1935 | Pirate Party on Catalina Isle | Himself | ||
| 1940 | Andy Hardy's Dilemma | Andy Hardy | ||
| 1940 | Rodeo Dough | Himself | ||
| 1941 | Meet the Stars #4: Variety Reel #2 | |||
| 1943 | Show Business at War | |||
| 1947 | Screen Snapshots: Out of This World Series | |||
| 1953 | Screen Snapshots: Mickey Rooney – Then and Now | |||
| 1958 | Screen Snapshots: Glamorous Hollywood | |||
| 1968 | Vienna | Kidnapper | ||
| 1974 | Just One More Time | Himself | ||
| 1975 | The Lion Roars Again | |||
| 2008 | Wreck the Halls | Santa Claus |
For a number of years, film exhibitors regularly voted Rooney as one of the top money making stars in the country in the annual Quigley Poll:[4]
Rooney made countless appearances in TV sitcoms and television films. He also lent his voice to many animation films. Only his most important work is listed in this section.
| Year(s) | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954–1955 | The Mickey Rooney Show | Mickey Mulligan | 33 episodes | |
| 1957 | Playhouse 90 | Sammy Hogart | "The Comedian"; lead role | |
| 1959 | Wagon Train | Samuel T. Evans | Episode: "The Greenhorn Story" | |
| 1960 | Wagon Train | Samuel T. Evans | Episode: "Wagons Ho!" | |
| 1960 | General Electric Theater | Al Roberts | Episode: "The Money Driver" | |
| 1963 | The Twilight Zone | Grady | Episode: "The Last Night of a Jockey" | |
| 1964 | Rawhide | Pan Macropolous | Episode: "Incident of the Odyssey" | |
| 1964 | Combat | Harry White | Episode: "Silver Service" | |
| 1964–1965 | Mickey | Mickey Grady | 17 episodes | |
| 1972 | Night Gallery | August Kolodney | Episode: "Rare Objects" | |
| 1977 | A Year at the Top | Uncle Mickey Durbin | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 1979 | The Wonderful World of Disney | Old Bailey | Episodes: "Donovan's Kid: Parts 1 & 2" | |
| 1982 | One of the Boys | Oliver Nugent | 13 episodes | |
| 1982 | The Love Boat | Angelarum Dominicus | Episode: "The Christmas Presence" | |
| 1986 | The Disney Sunday Movie | James Turner | Episode: "Little Spies" | |
| 1986 | Care Bears | Noble Heart Horse | 4 episodes; uncredited | |
| 1988 | The Golden Girls | Rocco | Episode: "Larceny and Old Lace" | |
| 1990–1993 | The Adventures of the Black Stallion | Henry Dailey | 78 episodes | |
| 1993 | Murder, She Wrote | Matt Cleveland | Episode: "Bloodlines" | |
| 1994 | Full House | Mr. Dreghorn | Episode: "Arrest Ye Merry Gentlemen " | |
| 1995 | The Simpsons | Himself | Voice, Episode: "Radioactive Man" | |
| 1996 | Harold Lang | Episode: "A Shaolin Treasure" | ||
| 1997 | Conan | Gobe | 2 episodes | |
| 1997 | Kleo the Misfit Unicorn | Talbut | 26 episodes | |
| 1998 | ER | Dr. George Bikel | Episode: "Exodus" | |
| 1998 | Mike Hammer, Private Eye | Lucius | Episode: "Lucky in Love" | |
| 2002–2006 | Kleo the Misfit Unicorn | Talbut | Voice, 26 episodes | |
| 2003 | GodRocks! | Coach Bullseye | Episode: "Splatball Square-Off" | |
| 2011 | Eagleheart | Himself | Episode: "Once in a Wattle" | |
| 2015 | American Dad! | Short Producer | Voice, Episode: "A Star Is Reborn" Released posthumously |
| Year | Association | Category | Nominated work / Honor | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | (with Deanna Durbin) "For their significant contribution in bringing to the screen the spirit and personification of youth, and as juvenile players setting a high standard of ability and achievement." | ||||
| 1939 | Academy Awards | Babes in Arms | |||
| 1943 | Academy Awards | Best Actor in a Leading Role | The Human Comedy | ||
| 1956 | Academy Awards | Best Actor in a Supporting Role | The Bold and the Brave | ||
| 1957 | Best Single Performance in a Leading or Supporting Role | "The Comedian", episode of Playhouse 90 | |||
| 1957 | Top Male Action Star | Baby Face Nelson | |||
| 1958 | Best Single Performance in a Leading or Supporting Role | Alcoa Theatre Eddie | |||
| 1960 | |||||
| Star of Television | |||||
| Star of Radio | Star at 6541 Hollywood Boulevard | ||||
| 1961 | Best Single Performance in a Leading or Supporting Role | "Somebody's Waiting", episode of The Dick Powell Show | |||
| 1962 | Top Male Supporting Performance | Requiem for a Heavyweight | |||
| 1964 | Best TV Star – Male | Mickey | |||
| 1980 | The Black Stallion | ||||
| 1980 | Sugar Babies | ||||
| 1980 | Sugar Babies | ||||
| 1981 | Bill | ||||
| 1981 | Bill | ||||
| 1983 | Academy Awards | "In recognition of his 60 years of versatility in a variety of memorable film performances." | |||
| 1983 | |||||
| 1991 | The Adventures of the Black Stallion | ||||
| 1991 | For lifetime achievement as a child star (Subsequently renamed "The Mickey Rooney Award") | ||||
| 1996 | |||||
| 2004 | Pocono Mountains Film Festival | Lifetime Achievement Award | |||
In May 1956, Rooney received an honorary PhD in Fine Arts from both Fremont College and degree mill Sequoia University for his work in the entertainment field.[6] [7]
On February 8, 1960, Rooney was initiated into the Hollywood Walk of Fame with a star heralding his work in motion pictures, located at 1718 Vine Street, one for his television career located at 6541 Hollywood Boulevard, and a third dedicated to his work in radio, located at 6372 Hollywood Boulevard. On March 29, 1984, he received a fourth star, this one for his live performances, located at 6211 Hollywood Boulevard.[8]
He was the subject of a This Is Your Life programme in 1988, when he was surprised by Michael Aspel while appearing in Sugar Babies (musical) at London's Savoy Theatre.
In 1996, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to Rooney.[9]