BIO

Mickey Rooney was born Joseph Yule, Jr. in New York City, in 1920.   His father, the Scottish actor Joe Yule, and mother were both vaudevillians.   Rooney began performing at the age of 17 months in 1922.   His parents separated in 1924 and his mother took him to Hollywood.

Entering the movie business in 1926, he made his name as the title character in the Mickey McGuire shorts - a series of two-reel comedies adapted from the Toonerville Folks comic strip which ran through 1936.

Rooney's successful role as Andy Hardy in A Family Affair (1937) led to 13 further films featuring that character between 1938 and 1958.   But it was his break-out dramatic role in Boys Town (1938) that made him a star.   He received an Academy Special Award in 1939 for his filmwork.

His fame peaked in World War II with a string of successful musicals with Judy Garland.

In 1944, Rooney entered military service for 21 months during World War II, during which time he was a radio personality on the American Forces Network.   After his return to civilian life, his career slumped.   He turned to television roles and hosted The Mickey Rooney Show for 39 episodes during 1954 and 1955.

He was also nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his performances in Sugar Babies (1979-1980).

Rooney appeared in more than 165 feature films released through 2015.

He married eight times:

1. Ava Gardner (1922-1990), actress, (m. 1941-1942), divorced.   He married her before she became famous as a Hollywood bombshell.   She was 19 and he was 20.   She divorced him because, among other reasons, he would not give up his night-clubbing lifestyle.
2. B.J. Baker (1927-2002), a former Miss Alabama and singer, (m. 1944-1949), two children, divorced.   One son is the actor/producer Mickey Rooney, Jr. (1945-) and the other son was the actor Tim Rooney (1947-2006).
3. Martha Vickers (1925-1971), actress, (m. 1949-1951), one child, divorced.   Their son was the child actor Teddy Rooney (1950-).
4. Elaine Devry (1930-), pin-up model and actress, (m. 1952-1958), divorced.   Devry met Rooney on a golf driving range and married him one month later.   They divorced, in part, because of his philandering.
5. Carolyn Mitchell (1937-1966), pin-up model and actress, (m. 1958-1966), 4 children, widowed.   She was found dead in their bed.   Beside her was her lover, an actor acquaintance of Rooney's.   Detectives ruled it a murder-suicide accomplished with Rooney's own gun.
6. Margaret Lane, 1966-1967, divorced.
7. Carolyn Hockett, 1969-1975, 2 children, divorced.
8. Jan Chamberlin (1939-), singer, (m. 1978-2014).

Rooney died at the age of 93 in Westlake Village, California, in 2014.

Additional Broadway stage history is available at:

Additional biographical information is available at:

NOTED FILMS

Full filmography at:

TV SERIES