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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Russell McCaskill Simpson (June 17, 1880 – December 12, 1959) was an American character actor. Russell Simpson was born on June 17, 1880 in Danville, California. He attended grammar school in the Danville District in Contra Costa County, California; he graduated on July 2, 1892. At age 18, Simpson prospected for gold in Alaska. He began taking acting classes in Seattle, Washington. He was married to Gertrude Alter from New York City on January 19, 1910. 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. Simpson didn't usually perform lead roles, but he did star in many movies throughout the silent movie era. He did perform 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 in 1940. He was 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. He worked up to 1959, the year of his death. His final film was The Horse Soldiers, his tenth film for Ford. Simpson was the president of the Overseas Phonograph Accessories Corporation. He died on December 12, 1959 in Woodland Hills, California. Simpson had appeared in over 500 movies throughout his life.
Movie | The Horse Soldiers | Henry Goodbody | 1959-06-11 |
Series | The Texan | Unknown | 1958-09-29 |
Movie | The Lonely Man | 1957-06-21 | |
Movie | The Tin Star | Clem Hall | 1957-10-23 |
Movie | Friendly Persuasion | Brother Griffith - Elder (uncredited) | 1956-11-25 |
Movie | The Brass Legend | Deputy 'Pop' Jackson | 1956-12-01 |
Movie | The Tall Men | Emigrant (uncredited) | 1955-09-22 |
Movie | The Last Command | The Parson | 1955-08-03 |
Series | Sergeant Preston of the Yukon | Unknown | 1955-09-29 |
Series | The 20th Century Fox Hour | Unknown | 1955-10-05 |
Movie | Seven Brides for Seven Brothers | Fred Bixby | 1954-07-22 |
Movie | Broken Lance | Judge (uncredited) | 1954-09-25 |
Movie | Meet Me at the Fair | Sheriff Evans | 1953-01-01 |
Movie | The Sun Shines Bright | Lewt Lake | 1953-05-02 |
Movie | Feudin' Fools | Grandpa Smith | 1952-09-21 |
Movie | Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair | Clem Johnson | 1952-07-11 |
Series | Cavalcade of America | Unknown | 1952-10-01 |
Movie | Lone Star | Maynard Cole | 1952-10-24 |
Movie | The Ghost of Crossbone Canyon | Sam Stanton | 1952-11-01 |
Series | The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok | Unknown | 1951-04-15 |
Movie | Comin' Round the Mountain | Judge | 1951-07-26 |
Movie | Call of the Klondike | Andy McKay | 1950-12-17 |
Movie | The Outriders | Farmer (uncredited) | 1950-03-01 |
Movie | Wagon Master | Adam Perkins | 1950-04-22 |
Movie | Saddle Tramp | Pop | 1950-09-21 |
Movie | Tuna Clipper | Capt. Fergus MacLennan | 1949-04-11 |
Movie | Free For All | Farmer | 1949-11-01 |
Movie | The Gal Who Took the West | Bartender (as old Timer) | 1949-09-01 |
Movie | Tap Roots | Big Sam Dabney | 1948-08-25 |
Movie | Albuquerque | Abner Huggins | 1948-02-20 |
Movie | Coroner Creek | Walt Hardison | 1948-07-01 |
Movie | The Untamed Breed | Minister | 1948-10-20 |
Movie | Sundown in Santa Fe | Sheriff Jim Wyatt | 1948-11-05 |
Movie | Joan of Arc | Old Man with Pipe (uncredited) | 1948-12-22 |
Movie | The Romance of Rosy Ridge | Dan Yeary | 1947-08-04 |
Movie | The Fabulous Texan | Wade Clayton | 1947-11-09 |
Movie | Bowery Buckaroos | Luke Barlow | 1947-11-22 |
Movie | Bad Bascomb | Elijah Walker | 1946-05-26 |
Movie | Death Valley | Old Silas Bagley | 1946-08-15 |
Movie | California Gold Rush | Colonel Parker | 1946-02-04 |
Movie | My Darling Clementine | John Simpson | 1946-10-17 |
Movie | A Boy and His Dog | Mr. Thornycroft | 1946-12-26 |
Movie | My Dog Shep | Mathew Hodgkins | 1946-11-01 |
Movie | Along Came Jones | Pop de Longpre | 1945-07-19 |
Movie | Roughly Speaking | The Colonel - Drill Instructor (uncredited) | 1945-01-31 |
Movie | They Were Expendable | 'Dad' Knowland | 1945-12-07 |
Movie | Texas Masquerade | J.K. Trimble | 1944-02-08 |
Movie | Roaring Guns | Farmer MacKenzie | 1944-02-19 |
Movie | The Big Bonanza | Adam Parker | 1944-12-30 |
Movie | Border Patrol | Orestes Krebs | 1943-04-02 |
Movie | Colt Comrades | Sheriff | 1943-06-18 |
Movie | Riding High | Frenchy McGuire | 1943-11-11 |
Movie | The Woman of the Town | Sime | 1943-12-31 |
Movie | Wild Bill Hickok Rides | Ned Nolan | 1942-01-31 |
Movie | Shut My Big Mouth | Mayor Potter | 1942-02-19 |
Movie | Nazi Agent | 2nd Captain (uncredited) | 1942-03-01 |
Movie | Tennessee Johnson | Kirby | 1942-12-01 |
Movie | The Spoilers | Flapjack | 1942-06-11 |
Movie | Lone Star Ranger | Tom Duane | 1942-03-20 |
Movie | Tobacco Road | Chief of Police | 1941-02-20 |
Movie | Citadel of Crime | Jess Meekins | 1941-07-23 |
Movie | Wild Geese Calling | Marshal Len Baker | 1941-08-15 |
Movie | Bad Men of Missouri | Hank Younger | 1941-07-26 |
Movie | Swamp Water | Marty McCord | 1941-11-16 |
Movie | The Grapes of Wrath | Pa Joad | 1940-03-15 |
Movie | Virginia City | Gaylord | 1940-03-23 |
Movie | Three Faces West | Minister | 1940-07-03 |
Movie | Brigham Young | U.S. Army Major | 1940-09-27 |
Movie | Santa Fe Trail | Shubel Morgan | 1940-12-20 |
Movie | Wyoming | Mr. Bronson | 1940-09-13 |
Movie | Western Caravans | Winchester Thompson | 1939-06-14 |
Movie | Young Mr. Lincoln | Woolridge (uncredited) | 1939-06-09 |
Movie | Dodge City | Orth | 1939-04-08 |
Movie | The Bill of Rights | Frontiersman | 1939-08-19 |
Movie | Geronimo | Scout | 1939-11-26 |
Movie | Desperate Trails | Sheriff Big Bill Tanner | 1939-09-30 |
Movie | Drums Along the Mohawk | Dr. Petry | 1939-11-10 |
Movie | Mr. Smith Goes to Washington | Kenneth Allen (uncredited) | 1939-10-19 |
Movie | The Girl of the Golden West | Fred - Outrider in Prologue | 1938-03-18 |
Movie | Gold Is Where You Find It | MacKenzie | 1938-02-12 |
Movie | Valley of the Giants | McKenzie | 1938-09-17 |
Movie | Heart of the North | Dave MacMillan | 1938-12-10 |
Movie | Green Light | Sheep Man | 1937-02-20 |
Movie | Maid of Salem | Village Marshal (Uncredited) | 1937-02-12 |
Movie | Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge | Bayliss Baynum | 1937-06-14 |
Movie | Mountain Justice | Matthew Turnbull | 1937-04-24 |
Movie | That I May Live | Bish Plivens | 1937-09-13 |
Movie | Paradise Isle | Baxter | 1937-07-21 |
Movie | Wild West Days | Matt Keeler | 1937-07-05 |
Movie | Man Hunt | Jeff Parkington | 1936-01-29 |
Movie | Paddy O'Day | Benton | 1936-01-17 |
Movie | The Harvester | Abner Prewett | 1936-04-18 |
Movie | San Francisco | 'Red' Kelly | 1936-06-26 |
Movie | Back to Nature | Sheriff | 1936-08-14 |
Movie | Ramona | Scroggs | 1936-09-25 |
Movie | Girl of the Ozarks | 1936-06-12 | |
Movie | The Hoosier Schoolmaster | Doc Small | 1935-05-14 |
Movie | Motive for Revenge | McAllister | 1935-05-15 |
Movie | Way Down East | Squire Amasa Bartlett | 1935-10-25 |
Movie | Frontier Marshal | Editor Pickett | 1934-01-19 |
Movie | Carolina | Richards | 1934-02-02 |
Movie | Sixteen Fathoms Deep | A.B. Crockett | 1934-01-01 |
Movie | West of the Pecos | Roy Neal | 1934-12-27 |
Movie | The World Moves On | Notary (1825) | 1934-06-27 |
Movie | Ever Since Eve | Jim Wood | 1934-03-25 |
Movie | Three on a Honeymoon | Ezra MacDuff | 1934-03-22 |
Movie | Face in the Sky | Pa Nathan Brown | 1933-01-15 |
Movie | The Power and the Glory | Professor (uncredited) | 1933-10-06 |
Movie | Lena Rivers | Grandfather Nichols | 1932-03-27 |
Movie | Law and Order | Judge R.W. Williams | 1932-02-09 |
Movie | Ridin' for Justice | Marshal Joseph Slyde | 1932-01-04 |
Movie | The Famous Ferguson Case | Banker Craig | 1932-04-19 |
Movie | The Cabin in the Cotton | Uncle Joe | 1932-09-26 |
Movie | Silver Dollar | Hamlin | 1932-12-22 |
Movie | The Honor of the Press | Dan Perkins | 1932-07-13 |
Movie | Call Her Savage | Old Man in Wagon Train | 1932-11-24 |
Movie | Hello Trouble | Jonathan Kenyon | 1932-07-15 |
Movie | Alexander Hamilton | Harvey Taylor - First Ex-Soldier | 1931-09-12 |
Movie | The Great Meadow | Thomas Hall | 1931-01-24 |
Movie | Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise) | Doctor | 1931-10-10 |
Movie | The Lone Star Ranger | Colonel John Aldridge | 1930-01-05 |
Movie | Billy the Kid | Angus McSween | 1930-10-16 |
Movie | Man to Man | Uncle Cal | 1930-12-05 |
Movie | Abraham Lincoln | Lincoln's Employer | 1930-11-08 |
Movie | All Faces West | Gunner Bill | 1929-03-02 |
Movie | My Lady's Past | 1929-04-01 | |
Movie | Innocents of Paris | Emile Leval | 1929-01-02 |
Movie | After the Fog | Joshua Barker | 1929-12-15 |
Movie | The Sap | The Banker | 1929-11-09 |
Movie | Tropical Nights | Singapore Joe | 1928-12-10 |
Movie | The Frontiersman | Andrew Jackson | 1927-06-11 |
Movie | Annie Laurie | Sandy | 1927-05-10 |
Movie | The First Auto | Hank Armstrong | 1927-06-27 |
Movie | Wild Geese | Caleb Gare | 1927-11-15 |
Movie | Now We're in the Air | Lord Abercrombie McTavish | 1927-10-21 |
Movie | The Earth Woman | Ezra Tilden | 1926-04-04 |
Movie | Old Shoes | 1925-04-08 | |
Movie | The Narrow Street | Garvey | 1925-01-04 |
Movie | Faint Perfume | 1925-06-08 | |
Movie | The Eagle | The Eagle's Lieutenant / Coach Driver (uncredited) | 1925-11-08 |
Movie | Why Women Love | Silas Martin | 1925-10-18 |
Movie | Painted People | Fred Lane | 1924-01-28 |
Movie | Circus Days | Eben Holt | 1923-07-30 |
Movie | The Girl of the Golden West | 1923-05-03 | |
Movie | The Virginian | Trampas | 1923-09-29 |
Movie | The Huntress | Big Jack Skinner | 1923-08-20 |
Movie | Defying Destiny | Mr. Wilkens | 1923-09-29 |
Movie | Human Hearts | Paul Logan | 1922-08-19 |
Movie | Rags to Riches | The Sheriff | 1922-09-24 |
Movie | Peg o' My Heart | Jim O'Connell | 1922-12-17 |
Movie | The Deadlier Sex | Jim Willis | 1920-03-28 |
Movie | The Branding Iron | John Carver | 1920-10-31 |
Movie | Godless Men | 'Black' Pawl | 1920-11-06 |
Movie | Bill Apperson's Boy | 1919-06-22 | |
Movie | Desert Gold | Ladd | 1919-11-21 |
Movie | Riders of the Night | Sally's Grandfather | 1918-10-15 |
Movie | Breakers Ahead | Captain Scudder | 1918-03-25 |
Movie | Blue Jeans | Jacob Tutwiler | 1917-12-10 |
Movie | The Virginian | Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited) | 1914-09-07 |