Russell Simpson
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.
Filmography (206 Appearances)
The Horse Soldiers
The Texan
The Tin Star
Wagon Train
The Lonely Man
The Brass Legend
Friendly Persuasion
Oklahoma!
The 20th Century Fox Hour
Sergeant Preston of the Yukon
The Tall Men
The Last Command
Broken Lance
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Public Defender
The Sun Shines Bright
General Electric Theater
Meet Me at the Fair
The Ghost of Crossbone Canyon
Lone Star
Cavalcade of America
Feudin' Fools
Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair
Comin' Round the Mountain
The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
Call of the Klondike
Saddle Tramp
Wagon Master
The Outriders
Free For All
The Lone Ranger
The Gal Who Took the West
Tuna Clipper
Joan of Arc
Sundown in Santa Fe
The Untamed Breed
Tap Roots
Coroner Creek
Albuquerque
Bowery Buckaroos
The Fabulous Texan
The Romance of Rosy Ridge
A Boy and His Dog
My Dog Shep
My Darling Clementine
Death Valley
Bad Bascomb
California Gold Rush
They Were Expendable
Along Came Jones
Roughly Speaking
The Big Bonanza
Tall in the Saddle
Roaring Guns
Texas Masquerade
The Woman of the Town
Moonlight in Vermont
Riding High
Colt Comrades
Border Patrol
Tennessee Johnson
The Spoilers
Lone Star Ranger
Nazi Agent
Shut My Big Mouth
Wild Bill Hickok Rides
Swamp Water
Last of the Duanes
Wild Geese Calling
Bad Men of Missouri
Citadel of Crime
Meet John Doe
Tobacco Road
Santa Fe Trail
Brigham Young
Wyoming
Three Faces West
Virginia City
The Grapes of Wrath
Geronimo
Drums Along the Mohawk
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Desperate Trails
The Bill of Rights
Western Caravans
Young Mr. Lincoln
Dodge City
Heart of the North
Valley of the Giants
The Girl of the Golden West
Gold Is Where You Find It
That I May Live
Paradise Isle
Wild West Days
Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge
Parnell
Mountain Justice
Green Light
Maid of Salem
Ramona
Back to Nature
San Francisco
Girl of the Ozarks
The Harvester
Man Hunt
Paddy O'Day
Way Down East
Motive for Revenge
The Hoosier Schoolmaster
West of the Pecos
Radio Scout
The World Moves On
Ever Since Eve
Three on a Honeymoon
Carolina
Frontier Marshal
Sixteen Fathoms Deep
The Power and the Glory
Stolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles
Secrets
Face in the Sky
Silver Dollar
Call Her Savage
The Cabin in the Cotton
Hello Trouble
The Honor of the Press
Flames
The Riding Tornado
The Famous Ferguson Case
Lena Rivers
Law and Order
Ridin' for Justice
Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise)
Alexander Hamilton
The Great Meadow
Man to Man
Abraham Lincoln
Billy the Kid
The Lone Star Ranger
After the Fog
The Sap
My Lady's Past
All Faces West
Noisy Neighbors
Innocents of Paris
Tropical Nights
The Bushranger
Life's Mockery
Wild Geese
Now We're in the Air
The First Auto
The Frontiersman
The Heart of the Yukon
Annie Laurie
Lovey Mary
The Social Highwayman
Rustlin' for Cupid
The Earth Woman
Ship of Souls
The Splendid Road
The Eagle
Why Women Love
Thunder Mountain
Paint and Powder
Faint Perfume
Old Shoes
Beauty and the Bad Man
The Re-Creation of Brian Kent
The Narrow Street
Painted People
Desire
Defying Destiny
The Virginian
The Huntress
Circus Days
The Girl of the Golden West
Hearts Aflame
The Kingdom Within
Peg o' My Heart
Rags to Riches
Human Hearts
Across the Dead-Line
Under the Lash
Snowblind
Bunty Pulls the Strings
Godless Men
The Branding Iron
Lahoma
The Deadlier Sex
Fighting Cressy
Desert Gold
The Blue Bandanna
Bill Apperson's Boy
The Brand
The Challenge Accepted
Oh, Johnny!
Riders of the Night
The Uphill Path
The Border Legion
Breakers Ahead
A Weaver of Dreams
Blue Jeans
The Barrier
Lovely Mary
The Old Homestead
The Virginian