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Russell Simpson

Russell Simpson

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.

The Horse Soldiers

1959

as Henry Goodbody

The Texan

1958

as Zeb Waters

The Tin Star

1957

as Clem Hall

Wagon Train

1957

as Mr. Carr

The Lonely Man

1957

The Brass Legend

1956

as Deputy 'Pop' Jackson

Friendly Persuasion

1956

as Brother Griffith - Elder (uncredited)

The 20th Century Fox Hour

1955

as Old Man

Sergeant Preston of the Yukon

1955

The Tall Men

1955

as Emigrant (uncredited)

The Last Command

1955

as The Parson

Broken Lance

1954

as Judge (uncredited)

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

1954

as Fred Bixby

Public Defender

1954

as Lundquist

The Sun Shines Bright

1953

as Lewt Lake

Meet Me at the Fair

1953

as Sheriff Evans

The Ghost of Crossbone Canyon

1952

as Sam Stanton

Lone Star

1952

as Maynard Cole

Cavalcade of America

1952

as Quatermaster

Cavalcade of America

1952

Cavalcade of America

1952

as Judge Grant

Feudin' Fools

1952

as Grandpa Smith

Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair

1952

as Clem Johnson

Comin' Round the Mountain

1951

as Judge

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok

1951

as Sam

Call of the Klondike

1950

as Andy McKay

Saddle Tramp

1950

as Pop

Wagon Master

1950

as Adam Perkins

The Outriders

1950

as Farmer (uncredited)

Free For All

1949

as Farmer

The Lone Ranger

1949

as Jack Brewster

The Gal Who Took the West

1949

as Bartender (as old Timer)

Tuna Clipper

1949

as Capt. Fergus MacLennan

Joan of Arc

1948

as Old Man with Pipe (uncredited)

Sundown in Santa Fe

1948

as Sheriff Jim Wyatt

The Untamed Breed

1948

as Minister

Tap Roots

1948

as Big Sam Dabney

Coroner Creek

1948

as Walt Hardison

Albuquerque

1948

as Abner Huggins

Bowery Buckaroos

1947

as Luke Barlow

The Fabulous Texan

1947

as Wade Clayton

The Romance of Rosy Ridge

1947

as Dan Yeary

A Boy and His Dog

1946

as Mr. Thornycroft

My Dog Shep

1946

as Mathew Hodgkins

My Darling Clementine

1946

as John Simpson

Death Valley

1946

as Old Silas Bagley

Bad Bascomb

1946

as Elijah Walker

California Gold Rush

1946

as Colonel Parker

They Were Expendable

1945

as 'Dad' Knowland

Along Came Jones

1945

as Pop de Longpre

Roughly Speaking

1945

as The Colonel - Drill Instructor (uncredited)

The Big Bonanza

1944

as Adam Parker

Roaring Guns

1944

as Farmer MacKenzie

Texas Masquerade

1944

as J.K. Trimble

The Woman of the Town

1943

as Sime

Moonlight in Vermont

1943

as Uncle Rufus

Riding High

1943

as Frenchy McGuire

Colt Comrades

1943

as Sheriff

Border Patrol

1943

as Orestes Krebs

Tennessee Johnson

1942

as Kirby

The Spoilers

1942

as Flapjack

Lone Star Ranger

1942

as Tom Duane

Nazi Agent

1942

as 2nd Captain (uncredited)

Shut My Big Mouth

1942

as Mayor Potter

Wild Bill Hickok Rides

1942

as Ned Nolan

Swamp Water

1941

as Marty McCord

Last of the Duanes

1941

as Tom Duane

Wild Geese Calling

1941

as Marshal Len Baker

Bad Men of Missouri

1941

as Hank Younger

Citadel of Crime

1941

as Jess Meekins

Meet John Doe

1941

as (uncredited)

Tobacco Road

1941

as Chief of Police

Santa Fe Trail

1940

as Shubel Morgan

Brigham Young

1940

as U.S. Army Major

Wyoming

1940

as Mr. Bronson

Three Faces West

1940

as Minister

Virginia City

1940

as Gaylord

The Grapes of Wrath

1940

as Pa Joad

Geronimo

1939

as Scout

Drums Along the Mohawk

1939

as Dr. Petry

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

1939

as Kenneth Allen (uncredited)

Desperate Trails

1939

as Sheriff Big Bill Tanner

The Bill of Rights

1939

as Frontiersman

Western Caravans

1939

as Winchester Thompson

Young Mr. Lincoln

1939

as Woolridge (uncredited)

Dodge City

1939

as Orth

Heart of the North

1938

as Dave MacMillan

Valley of the Giants

1938

as McKenzie

The Girl of the Golden West

1938

as Fred - Outrider in Prologue

Gold Is Where You Find It

1938

as MacKenzie

That I May Live

1937

as Bish Plivens

Paradise Isle

1937

as Baxter

Wild West Days

1937

as Matt Keeler

Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge

1937

as Bayliss Baynum

Mountain Justice

1937

as Matthew Turnbull

Green Light

1937

as Sheep Man

Maid of Salem

1937

as Village Marshal (Uncredited)

Ramona

1936

as Scroggs

Back to Nature

1936

as Sheriff

San Francisco

1936

as 'Red' Kelly

Girl of the Ozarks

1936

The Harvester

1936

as Abner Prewett

Man Hunt

1936

as Jeff Parkington

Paddy O'Day

1936

as Benton

Way Down East

1935

as Squire Amasa Bartlett

Motive for Revenge

1935

as McAllister

The Hoosier Schoolmaster

1935

as Doc Small

West of the Pecos

1934

as Roy Neal

The World Moves On

1934

as Notary (1825)

Ever Since Eve

1934

as Jim Wood

Three on a Honeymoon

1934

as Ezra MacDuff

Carolina

1934

as Richards

Frontier Marshal

1934

as Editor Pickett

Sixteen Fathoms Deep

1934

as A.B. Crockett

The Power and the Glory

1933

as Professor (uncredited)

Stolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles

1933

as Speaker

Face in the Sky

1933

as Pa Nathan Brown

Silver Dollar

1932

as Hamlin

Call Her Savage

1932

as Old Man in Wagon Train

The Cabin in the Cotton

1932

as Uncle Joe

Hello Trouble

1932

as Jonathan Kenyon

The Honor of the Press

1932

as Dan Perkins

Flames

1932

as Jake

The Riding Tornado

1932

as Sheriff

The Famous Ferguson Case

1932

as Banker Craig

Lena Rivers

1932

as Grandfather Nichols

Law and Order

1932

as Judge R.W. Williams

Ridin' for Justice

1932

as Marshal Joseph Slyde

Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise)

1931

as Doctor

Alexander Hamilton

1931

as Harvey Taylor - First Ex-Soldier

The Great Meadow

1931

as Thomas Hall

Man to Man

1930

as Uncle Cal

Abraham Lincoln

1930

as Lincoln's Employer

Billy the Kid

1930

as Angus McSween

The Lone Star Ranger

1930

as Colonel John Aldridge

After the Fog

1929

as Joshua Barker

The Sap

1929

as The Banker

My Lady's Past

1929

All Faces West

1929

as Gunner Bill

Innocents of Paris

1929

as Emile Leval

Tropical Nights

1928

as Singapore Joe

Wild Geese

1927

as Caleb Gare

Now We're in the Air

1927

as Lord Abercrombie McTavish

The First Auto

1927

as Hank Armstrong

The Frontiersman

1927

as Andrew Jackson

Annie Laurie

1927

as Sandy

Lovey Mary

1926

as Stubbins

Rustlin' for Cupid

1926

as Hank Blatchford

The Earth Woman

1926

as Ezra Tilden

The Splendid Road

1925

as Capt. Lightfoot

The Eagle

1925

as The Eagle's Lieutenant / Coach Driver (uncredited)

Why Women Love

1925

as Silas Martin

Thunder Mountain

1925

as Si Pace

Paint and Powder

1925

as Riley

Faint Perfume

1925

as Grandpa Crumb

Old Shoes

1925

The Narrow Street

1925

as Garvey

Painted People

1924

as Fred Lane

Defying Destiny

1923

as Mr. Wilkens

The Virginian

1923

as Trampas

The Huntress

1923

as Big Jack Skinner

Circus Days

1923

as Eben Holt

The Girl of the Golden West

1923

as Jack Rance

The Kingdom Within

1922

as Caleb Deming

Peg o' My Heart

1922

as Jim O'Connell

Rags to Riches

1922

as The Sheriff

Human Hearts

1922

as Paul Logan

Across the Dead-Line

1922

as Enoch Kidder

Under the Lash

1921

as Simeon Krillet

Snowblind

1921

as Hugh Garth

Bunty Pulls the Strings

1921

as Tammas Biggar

Godless Men

1920

as 'Black' Pawl

The Branding Iron

1920

as John Carver

Lahoma

1920

as 'Brick' Willock

The Deadlier Sex

1920

as Jim Willis

Desert Gold

1919

as Ladd

Bill Apperson's Boy

1919

as Bill Apperson

The Brand

1919

as Dan McGill

Riders of the Night

1918

as Sally's Grandfather

The Uphill Path

1918

as James Lawton

The Border Legion

1918

as Overland Bradley

Breakers Ahead

1918

as Captain Scudder

A Weaver of Dreams

1918

as Martin Chandler

Blue Jeans

1917

as Jacob Tutwiler

The Old Homestead

1915

as Sheriff

The Virginian

1914

as Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)