Acting
Russell Simpson
Born Jun 16, 1880 · Danville, California, USA · Died Dec 12, 1959
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Russell McCaskill Simpson (June 17, 1880, Danville, California – December 12, 1959, Woodland Hills, California) was an American character actor who appeared in over 500 movies. He is best known for his "grizzled old man" appearances. Gaunt, lanky, and rustic-sounding, Simpson was a familiar character actor for almost forty-five years, particularly as a member of the John Ford Stock Company.
At age 18 Simpson prospected for gold in Alaska. He began taking acting classes in Seattle, Washington. In 1910 he married Gertrude Alter from New York City.
By 1909, he had gone into the theatre. He appeared in at least two plays on Broadway between 1909 and 1912, and made his motion picture debut in Cecil B. DeMille's 1914 original film version of The Virginian in a bit part. By 1923, when the film was remade, Simpson had progressed to playing the lead villain.
Throughout his career, Simpson worked for 12 years in road shows, stock companies, and on Broadway. He didn't usually perform lead roles, but he did star in many movies throughout the silent movie era. He performed a lead role as the grandfather in Out of the Dust (1920).
Simpson is best known for his work in the films of John Ford and, in particular, for his portrayal of Pa Joad in The Grapes of Wrath (1940). His final film was The Horse Soldiers, his tenth film for Ford. Simpson worked up to 1959, the year of his death.
He was the president of the Overseas Phonograph Accessories Corporation.
Read more
Acting
The Horse Soldiers
1959
Western · War
The Texan
1958
Western
The Tin Star
1957
Western
Wagon Train
1957
Western · Drama · Family
The Lonely Man
1957
Western
The Brass Legend
1956
Western · Action
Friendly Persuasion
1956
Drama · War
Oklahoma!
1955
Western · Music · Romance
The 20th Century Fox Hour
1955
Drama
Sergeant Preston of the Yukon
1955
Action & Adventure · Western · Drama
The Tall Men
1955
Western · Adventure · Romance
The Last Command
1955
History · Western · War
Broken Lance
1954
Drama · Western
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
1954
Comedy · Drama · Western
Public Defender
1954
Drama
The Sun Shines Bright
1953
Comedy · Drama
General Electric Theater
1953
Comedy · Drama
Meet Me at the Fair
1953
Music
The Ghost of Crossbone Canyon
1952
Western
Lone Star
1952
Western
Cavalcade of America
1952
Drama
Feudin' Fools
1952
Comedy
Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair
1952
Comedy · Adventure
Comin' Round the Mountain
1951
Comedy · Music
The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
1951
Western
Call of the Klondike
1950
Western · Adventure
Saddle Tramp
1950
Western
Wagon Master
1950
Adventure · Western
The Outriders
1950
Western
Free For All
1949
Romance · Comedy
The Lone Ranger
1949
Western · Action & Adventure
The Gal Who Took the West
1949
Western
Tuna Clipper
1949
Drama
Joan of Arc
1948
Drama · History
Sundown in Santa Fe
1948
Western
The Untamed Breed
1948
Western
Tap Roots
1948
Drama · War · Western
Coroner Creek
1948
Western
Albuquerque
1948
Action · Romance · Western
Bowery Buckaroos
1947
Comedy · Western · Crime
The Fabulous Texan
1947
War · Western
The Romance of Rosy Ridge
1947
Comedy · Drama · Romance
A Boy and His Dog
1946
Drama · Family
My Dog Shep
1946
Drama
My Darling Clementine
1946
Western
Death Valley
1946
Western
Bad Bascomb
1946
Western
California Gold Rush
1946
Western
They Were Expendable
1945
Drama · War
Along Came Jones
1945
Western · Comedy
Roughly Speaking
1945
Comedy · Drama
The Big Bonanza
1944
Drama · Western
Tall in the Saddle
1944
Western
Roaring Guns
1944
Western
Texas Masquerade
1944
Western
The Woman of the Town
1943
Western
Moonlight in Vermont
1943
Comedy · Drama · Music
Riding High
1943
Western · Comedy · Music
Colt Comrades
1943
Action · Western · Adventure
Border Patrol
1943
Western
Tennessee Johnson
1942
History · Drama
The Spoilers
1942
Drama · Western
Lone Star Ranger
1942
Western
Nazi Agent
1942
Crime · Drama
Shut My Big Mouth
1942
Western · Comedy · Adventure
Wild Bill Hickok Rides
1942
Western
Swamp Water
1941
Crime · Drama
Last of the Duanes
1941
Western
Wild Geese Calling
1941
Drama
Bad Men of Missouri
1941
Western
Citadel of Crime
1941
Drama
Meet John Doe
1941
Drama · Comedy · Romance
Tobacco Road
1941
Comedy · Drama
Santa Fe Trail
1940
Western
Brigham Young
1940
History · Romance · Western
Wyoming
1940
Western
Three Faces West
1940
Drama · Romance · Western
Virginia City
1940
Western · Romance
The Grapes of Wrath
1940
Drama
Geronimo
1939
Western
Drums Along the Mohawk
1939
Drama · History · War
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
1939
Comedy · Drama
Desperate Trails
1939
Western
The Bill of Rights
1939
Drama · History
Western Caravans
1939
Western
Young Mr. Lincoln
1939
Drama · History
Dodge City
1939
Western
Heart of the North
1938
Western · Adventure
Valley of the Giants
1938
Adventure
The Girl of the Golden West
1938
Romance · Western
Gold Is Where You Find It
1938
Drama · Romance · Western
That I May Live
1937
Paradise Isle
1937
Romance · Adventure · Drama
Wild West Days
1937
Action · Adventure · Western
Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge
1937
Western
Parnell
1937
Drama · History · Romance
Mountain Justice
1937
Drama · Romance
Green Light
1937
Drama · Romance
Maid of Salem
1937
Drama
Ramona
1936
Romance · Adventure
Back to Nature
1936
Comedy
San Francisco
1936
Drama · Romance · Music
Girl of the Ozarks
1936
Family · Drama
The Harvester
1936
Comedy
Man Hunt
1936
Crime · Drama · Comedy
Paddy O'Day
1936
Comedy · Drama · Music
Way Down East
1935
Drama · Romance
Motive for Revenge
1935
Drama · Thriller · Crime
The Hoosier Schoolmaster
1935
Drama
West of the Pecos
1934
Western
Radio Scout
1934
Music · Comedy
The World Moves On
1934
Drama · History · Romance
Ever Since Eve
1934
Romance · Drama
Three on a Honeymoon
1934
Romance · Comedy
Carolina
1934
Comedy · Romance
Frontier Marshal
1934
Western
Sixteen Fathoms Deep
1934
Action
The Power and the Glory
1933
Drama
Stolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles
1933
Comedy
Secrets
1933
Drama · Western
Face in the Sky
1933
Comedy · Romance · Drama
Silver Dollar
1932
Drama
Call Her Savage
1932
Drama
The Cabin in the Cotton
1932
Drama
Hello Trouble
1932
Western
The Honor of the Press
1932
Romance · Crime · Drama
Flames
1932
The Riding Tornado
1932
Western
The Famous Ferguson Case
1932
Crime · Drama
Lena Rivers
1932
Drama · Romance
Law and Order
1932
Western
Ridin' for Justice
1932
Western
Susan Lenox
1931
Drama · Romance
Alexander Hamilton
1931
Drama · History
The Great Meadow
1931
Western · Drama
Man to Man
1930
Drama · Crime
Abraham Lincoln
1930
History · Drama
Billy the Kid
1930
Western
The Lone Star Ranger
1930
Western
After the Fog
1929
Action · Adventure · Crime
The Sap
1929
Comedy
My Lady's Past
1929
Drama
All Faces West
1929
Western
Noisy Neighbors
1929
Comedy · Music · Romance
Innocents of Paris
1929
Romance · Music
Tropical Nights
1928
Drama
Wild Geese
1927
Drama · Romance
Now We're in the Air
1927
Comedy
The First Auto
1927
Comedy
The Frontiersman
1927
Western
Annie Laurie
1927
Drama · Romance
Lovey Mary
1926
Comedy · Drama
The Social Highwayman
1926
Comedy · Drama
Rustlin' for Cupid
1926
Western · Romance
The Earth Woman
1926
Drama · Romance
The Splendid Road
1925
Drama · Western
The Eagle
1925
Adventure · Romance · Comedy
Why Women Love
1925
Drama
Thunder Mountain
1925
Drama
Paint and Powder
1925
Drama
Faint Perfume
1925
Drama
Beauty and the Bad Man
1925
Drama · Western
The Re-Creation of Brian Kent
1925
Drama
The Narrow Street
1925
Comedy
Painted People
1924
Comedy
Desire
1923
Drama
The Virginian
1923
Western
The Huntress
1923
Drama · Western
Circus Days
1923
Comedy · Drama
The Girl of the Golden West
1923
Western
Hearts Aflame
1923
Drama
Peg o' My Heart
1922
Comedy · Drama
Rags to Riches
1922
Drama
Human Hearts
1922
Drama
Across the Dead-Line
1922
Western
Under the Lash
1921
Drama
Snowblind
1921
Drama
Bunty Pulls the Strings
1921
Comedy
Godless Men
1920
Drama
The Branding Iron
1920
Drama
Lahoma
1920
Western
The Deadlier Sex
1920
Drama · Comedy
Fighting Cressy
1919
Drama · Western
Desert Gold
1919
Western
The Blue Bandanna
1919
Drama · Western
Bill Apperson's Boy
1919
Drama
The Brand
1919
Adventure
The Challenge Accepted
1918
Drama
Oh, Johnny!
1918
Comedy · Drama · Western
Riders of the Night
1918
Drama
The Border Legion
1918
Western
Breakers Ahead
1918
Drama
A Weaver of Dreams
1918
Romance · Drama
Blue Jeans
1917
Drama · Romance
The Food Gamblers
1917
Drama
The Barrier
1917
Adventure
Lovely Mary
1916
Drama
The Virginian
1914
Western