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.
Known For
| Birth Location | Danville, California, USA |
|---|---|
| Born | 1880-06-16 |
| Died | 1959-12-12 |
Movies
The Horse Soldiers
as Henry Goodbody
1959
The Tin Star
as Clem Hall
1957
1957
The Brass Legend
as Deputy 'Pop' Jackson
1956
Friendly Persuasion
as Brother Griffith - Elder (uncredited)
1956
The Tall Men
as Emigrant (uncredited)
1955
The Last Command
as The Parson
1955
Broken Lance
as Judge (uncredited)
1954
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
as Fred Bixby
1954
The Sun Shines Bright
as Lewt Lake
1953
Meet Me at the Fair
as Sheriff Evans
1953
The Ghost of Crossbone Canyon
as Sam Stanton
1952
Lone Star
as Maynard Cole
1952
Feudin' Fools
as Grandpa Smith
1952
Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair
as Clem Johnson
1952
Comin' Round the Mountain
as Judge
1951
Call of the Klondike
as Andy McKay
1950
Saddle Tramp
as Pop
1950
Wagon Master
as Adam Perkins
1950
The Outriders
as Farmer (uncredited)
1950
Free For All
as Farmer
1949
The Gal Who Took the West
as Bartender (as old Timer)
1949
Tuna Clipper
as Capt. Fergus MacLennan
1949
Joan of Arc
as Old Man with Pipe (uncredited)
1948
Sundown in Santa Fe
as Sheriff Jim Wyatt
1948
The Untamed Breed
as Minister
1948
Tap Roots
as Big Sam Dabney
1948
Coroner Creek
as Walt Hardison
1948
Albuquerque
as Abner Huggins
1948
Bowery Buckaroos
as Luke Barlow
1947
The Fabulous Texan
as Wade Clayton
1947
The Romance of Rosy Ridge
as Dan Yeary
1947
A Boy and His Dog
as Mr. Thornycroft
1946
My Dog Shep
as Mathew Hodgkins
1946
My Darling Clementine
as John Simpson
1946
Death Valley
as Old Silas Bagley
1946
Bad Bascomb
as Elijah Walker
1946
California Gold Rush
as Colonel Parker
1946
They Were Expendable
as 'Dad' Knowland
1945
Along Came Jones
as Pop de Longpre
1945
Roughly Speaking
as The Colonel - Drill Instructor (uncredited)
1945
The Big Bonanza
as Adam Parker
1944
Roaring Guns
as Farmer MacKenzie
1944
Texas Masquerade
as J.K. Trimble
1944
The Woman of the Town
as Sime
1943
Moonlight in Vermont
as Uncle Rufus
1943
Riding High
as Frenchy McGuire
1943
Colt Comrades
as Sheriff
1943
Border Patrol
as Orestes Krebs
1943
Tennessee Johnson
as Kirby
1942
The Spoilers
as Flapjack
1942
Lone Star Ranger
as Tom Duane
1942
Nazi Agent
as 2nd Captain (uncredited)
1942
Shut My Big Mouth
as Mayor Potter
1942
Wild Bill Hickok Rides
as Ned Nolan
1942
Swamp Water
as Marty McCord
1941
Last of the Duanes
as Tom Duane
1941
Wild Geese Calling
as Marshal Len Baker
1941
Bad Men of Missouri
as Hank Younger
1941
Citadel of Crime
as Jess Meekins
1941
Tobacco Road
as Chief of Police
1941
Santa Fe Trail
as Shubel Morgan
1940
Brigham Young
as U.S. Army Major
1940
Wyoming
as Mr. Bronson
1940
Three Faces West
as Minister
1940
Virginia City
as Gaylord
1940
The Grapes of Wrath
as Pa Joad
1940
Geronimo
as Scout
1939
Drums Along the Mohawk
as Dr. Petry
1939
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
as Kenneth Allen (uncredited)
1939
Desperate Trails
as Sheriff Big Bill Tanner
1939
The Bill of Rights
as Frontiersman
1939
Western Caravans
as Winchester Thompson
1939
Young Mr. Lincoln
as Woolridge (uncredited)
1939
Dodge City
as Orth
1939
Heart of the North
as Dave MacMillan
1938
Valley of the Giants
as McKenzie
1938
The Girl of the Golden West
as Fred - Outrider in Prologue
1938
Gold Is Where You Find It
as MacKenzie
1938
That I May Live
as Bish Plivens
1937
Paradise Isle
as Baxter
1937
Wild West Days
as Matt Keeler
1937
Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge
as Bayliss Baynum
1937
Mountain Justice
as Matthew Turnbull
1937
Green Light
as Sheep Man
1937
Maid of Salem
as Village Marshal (Uncredited)
1937
Ramona
as Scroggs
1936
Back to Nature
as Sheriff
1936
San Francisco
as 'Red' Kelly
1936
1936
The Harvester
as Abner Prewett
1936
Man Hunt
as Jeff Parkington
1936
Paddy O'Day
as Benton
1936
Way Down East
as Squire Amasa Bartlett
1935
Motive for Revenge
as McAllister
1935
The Hoosier Schoolmaster
as Doc Small
1935
West of the Pecos
as Roy Neal
1934
The World Moves On
as Notary (1825)
1934
Ever Since Eve
as Jim Wood
1934
Three on a Honeymoon
as Ezra MacDuff
1934
Carolina
as Richards
1934
Frontier Marshal
as Editor Pickett
1934
Sixteen Fathoms Deep
as A.B. Crockett
1934
The Power and the Glory
as Professor (uncredited)
1933
Stolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles
as Speaker
1933
Face in the Sky
as Pa Nathan Brown
1933
Silver Dollar
as Hamlin
1932
Call Her Savage
as Old Man in Wagon Train
1932
The Cabin in the Cotton
as Uncle Joe
1932
Hello Trouble
as Jonathan Kenyon
1932
The Honor of the Press
as Dan Perkins
1932
Flames
as Jake
1932
The Riding Tornado
as Sheriff
1932
The Famous Ferguson Case
as Banker Craig
1932
Lena Rivers
as Grandfather Nichols
1932
Law and Order
as Judge R.W. Williams
1932
Ridin' for Justice
as Marshal Joseph Slyde
1932
Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise)
as Doctor
1931
Alexander Hamilton
as Harvey Taylor - First Ex-Soldier
1931
The Great Meadow
as Thomas Hall
1931
Man to Man
as Uncle Cal
1930
Abraham Lincoln
as Lincoln's Employer
1930
Billy the Kid
as Angus McSween
1930
The Lone Star Ranger
as Colonel John Aldridge
1930
After the Fog
as Joshua Barker
1929
The Sap
as The Banker
1929
1929
All Faces West
as Gunner Bill
1929
Innocents of Paris
as Emile Leval
1929
Tropical Nights
as Singapore Joe
1928
Wild Geese
as Caleb Gare
1927
Now We're in the Air
as Lord Abercrombie McTavish
1927
The First Auto
as Hank Armstrong
1927
The Frontiersman
as Andrew Jackson
1927
Annie Laurie
as Sandy
1927
The Earth Woman
as Ezra Tilden
1926
The Splendid Road
as Capt. Lightfoot
1925
The Eagle
as The Eagle's Lieutenant / Coach Driver (uncredited)
1925
Why Women Love
as Silas Martin
1925
Thunder Mountain
as Si Pace
1925
Paint and Powder
as Riley
1925
Faint Perfume
as Grandpa Crumb
1925
1925
The Narrow Street
as Garvey
1925
Painted People
as Fred Lane
1924
The Virginian
as Trampas
1923
Defying Destiny
as Mr. Wilkens
1923
The Huntress
as Big Jack Skinner
1923
Circus Days
as Eben Holt
1923
The Kingdom Within
as Caleb Deming
1922
Peg o' My Heart
as Jim O'Connell
1922
Rags to Riches
as The Sheriff
1922
Human Hearts
as Paul Logan
1922
Across the Dead-Line
as Enoch Kidder
1922
Under the Lash
as Simeon Krillet
1921
Snowblind
as Hugh Garth
1921
Bunty Pulls the Strings
as Tammas Biggar
1921
Godless Men
as 'Black' Pawl
1920
The Branding Iron
as John Carver
1920
The Deadlier Sex
as Jim Willis
1920
Desert Gold
as Ladd
1919
Bill Apperson's Boy
as Bill Apperson
1919
The Brand
as Dan McGill
1919
Riders of the Night
as Sally's Grandfather
1918
The Border Legion
as Overland Bradley
1918
Breakers Ahead
as Captain Scudder
1918
A Weaver of Dreams
as Martin Chandler
1918
Blue Jeans
as Jacob Tutwiler
1917
The Old Homestead
as Sheriff
1915
The Virginian
as Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
1914
Russell Simpson hasn't worked on any movies or TV shows