Mickey Rooney

For the Disney mascot, see Mickey Mouse.

Mickey Rooney

Background information

Born

Joseph Yule, Jr.
September 23, 1920
Brooklyn, New York, United States

Died

April 6, 2014 (aged 93)
Los Angeles, California, United States

Cause of death

Natural causes

Nationality

American

Alternate names

Mickey Maguire

Occupation

Actor, producer, singer, vaudevillian, radio personality

Years active

1926–2014

Family information

Spouse

Ava Gardner (1942–1943)
Betty Jane Baker (1944–1948)
Martha Vickers (1949–1951)
Elaine Devry (1952–1958)
Carolyn Mitchell (1958–1966; her death)
Marge Lane (1966–1967)
Carolyn Hockett (1969–1975)
Jan Chamberlin (1978–2014; his death)

Children

With Baker:
Mickey Rooney, Jr.
Tim †
With Vickers:
Theodore Michael
With Mitchell:
Kelly Ann
Kerry
Michael Joseph
Kimmy Sue
With Hockett:
Jimmy
Jonelle

Joseph Yule, Jr., better known by his stage name Mickey Rooney (also credited as Mickey Maguire), was an American film and stage actor, producer, singer, vaudevillian, and radio personality, whose film, television, and stage appearances spanned nearly his entire lifetime.

Rooney first gained fame as a child actor, then later as the juvenile lead in MGM's Andy Hardy movie series. During his time as an MGM contract player, he also appeared in many classic adaptations, such as A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935, as Puck) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1939, as Huck), as well as a variety of "let's put on a show" musicals (such as 1941's Babes on Broadway, with Judy Garland and Will Lee). Later credits included Breakfast at Tiffany's, Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, The Year Without a Santa Claus, Babe: Pig in the City, and Night at the Museum. Many television credits included guest spots on ER, Conan, Murder, She Wrote, Full House, The Golden Girls, The Love Boat, and The Twilight Zone.

Rooney was one of the many voices of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit during the character's run at Universal Studios.

For Disney, he voiced adult Tod in the 1981 Disney animated feature film The Fox and the Hound and portrayed Lampie in the 1977 hybrid film Pete's Dragon. In Flubber, he made a cameo appearance on Weebo's screen. He also played Movie Mason in the 2000 Disney Channel Original Movie Phantom of the Megaplex and voiced Sparky in the 2001 direct-to-video film Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure, as well as played a Smalltown resident in the 2011 musical comedy film The Muppets. Additionally, he portrayed Old Bailey and James Turner in Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color movies "Donovan's Kid" and "Little Spies", respectively.