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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
The Horse Soldiers
(1959)
Henry Goodbody
My Darling Clementine
(1946)
John Simpson
Joan of Arc
(1948)
Old Man with Pipe (uncredited)
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
(1954)
Fred Bixby
The Grapes of Wrath
(1940)
Pa Joad
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
(1939)
Kenneth Allen (uncredited)
Dodge City
(1939)
Orth
Friendly Persuasion
(1956)
Brother Griffith - Elder (uncredited)
The Tin Star
(1957)
Clem Hall
Drums Along the Mohawk
(1939)
Dr. Petry
They Were Expendable
(1945)
'Dad' Knowland
Santa Fe Trail
(1940)
Shubel Morgan
Wagon Master
(1950)
Adam Perkins
Broken Lance
(1954)
Judge (uncredited)
Lone Star
(1952)
Maynard Cole
San Francisco
(1936)
'Red' Kelly
Full Filmography
Acting
The Virginian
(1914)
Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
The Old Homestead
(1915)
Sheriff
Blue Jeans
(1917)
Jacob Tutwiler
Riders of the Night
(1918)
Sally's Grandfather
A Weaver of Dreams
(1918)
Martin Chandler
The Border Legion
(1918)
Overland Bradley
Breakers Ahead
(1918)
Captain Scudder
Bill Apperson's Boy
(1919)
Bill Apperson
Desert Gold
(1919)
Ladd
The Brand
(1919)
Dan McGill
The Branding Iron
(1920)
John Carver
Godless Men
(1920)
'Black' Pawl
The Deadlier Sex
(1920)
Jim Willis
Under the Lash
(1921)
Simeon Krillet
Snowblind
(1921)
Hugh Garth
Bunty Pulls the Strings
(1921)
Tammas Biggar
Human Hearts
(1922)
Paul Logan
Rags to Riches
(1922)
The Sheriff
Peg o' My Heart
(1922)
Jim O'Connell
Across the Dead-Line
(1922)
Enoch Kidder
The Kingdom Within
(1922)
Caleb Deming
Defying Destiny
(1923)
Mr. Wilkens
The Virginian
(1923)
Trampas
The Huntress
(1923)
Big Jack Skinner
Circus Days
(1923)
Eben Holt
The Girl of the Golden West
(1923)
Painted People
(1924)
Fred Lane
Faint Perfume
(1925)
Grandpa Crumb
Why Women Love
(1925)
Silas Martin
Old Shoes
(1925)
The Narrow Street
(1925)
Garvey
Paint and Powder
(1925)
Riley
The Splendid Road
(1925)
Capt. Lightfoot
Thunder Mountain
(1925)
Si Pace
The Eagle
(1925)
The Eagle's Lieutenant / Coach Driver (uncredited)
The Earth Woman
(1926)
Ezra Tilden
The First Auto
(1927)
Hank Armstrong
The Frontiersman
(1927)
Andrew Jackson
Annie Laurie
(1927)
Sandy
Wild Geese
(1927)
Caleb Gare
Now We're in the Air
(1927)
Lord Abercrombie McTavish
Tropical Nights
(1928)
Singapore Joe
After the Fog
(1929)
Joshua Barker
Innocents of Paris
(1929)
Emile Leval
My Lady's Past
(1929)
All Faces West
(1929)
Gunner Bill
The Sap
(1929)
The Banker
Billy the Kid
(1930)
Angus McSween
Man to Man
(1930)
Uncle Cal
Abraham Lincoln
(1930)
Lincoln's Employer
The Lone Star Ranger
(1930)
Colonel John Aldridge
Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise)
(1931)
Doctor
Alexander Hamilton
(1931)
Harvey Taylor - First Ex-Soldier
The Great Meadow
(1931)
Thomas Hall
Silver Dollar
(1932)
Hamlin
Law and Order
(1932)
Judge R.W. Williams
Lena Rivers
(1932)
Grandfather Nichols
The Cabin in the Cotton
(1932)
Uncle Joe
The Honor of the Press
(1932)
Dan Perkins
The Famous Ferguson Case
(1932)
Banker Craig
Call Her Savage
(1932)
Old Man in Wagon Train
Ridin' for Justice
(1932)
Marshal Joseph Slyde
The Riding Tornado
(1932)
Sheriff
Flames
(1932)
Jake
Hello Trouble
(1932)
Jonathan Kenyon
The Power and the Glory
(1933)
Professor (uncredited)
Face in the Sky
(1933)
Pa Nathan Brown
Stolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles
(1933)
Speaker
Ever Since Eve
(1934)
Jim Wood
Frontier Marshal
(1934)
Editor Pickett
West of the Pecos
(1934)
Roy Neal
Three on a Honeymoon
(1934)
Ezra MacDuff
The World Moves On
(1934)
Notary (1825)
Sixteen Fathoms Deep
(1934)
A.B. Crockett
Carolina
(1934)
Richards
Motive for Revenge
(1935)
McAllister
Way Down East
(1935)
Squire Amasa Bartlett
The Hoosier Schoolmaster
(1935)
Doc Small
Ramona
(1936)
Scroggs
The Harvester
(1936)
Abner Prewett
Paddy O'Day
(1936)
Benton
Man Hunt
(1936)
Jeff Parkington
San Francisco
(1936)
'Red' Kelly
Back to Nature
(1936)
Sheriff
Girl of the Ozarks
(1936)
Paradise Isle
(1937)
Baxter
That I May Live
(1937)
Bish Plivens
Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge
(1937)
Bayliss Baynum
Mountain Justice
(1937)
Matthew Turnbull
Wild West Days
(1937)
Matt Keeler
Green Light
(1937)
Sheep Man
Maid of Salem
(1937)
Village Marshal (Uncredited)
The Girl of the Golden West
(1938)
Fred - Outrider in Prologue
Gold Is Where You Find It
(1938)
MacKenzie
Heart of the North
(1938)
Dave MacMillan
Valley of the Giants
(1938)
McKenzie
Dodge City
(1939)
Orth
Young Mr. Lincoln
(1939)
Woolridge (uncredited)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
(1939)
Kenneth Allen (uncredited)
Drums Along the Mohawk
(1939)
Dr. Petry
Western Caravans
(1939)
Winchester Thompson
Desperate Trails
(1939)
Sheriff Big Bill Tanner
Geronimo
(1939)
Scout
The Bill of Rights
(1939)
Frontiersman
The Grapes of Wrath
(1940)
Pa Joad
Santa Fe Trail
(1940)
Shubel Morgan
Virginia City
(1940)
Gaylord
Wyoming
(1940)
Mr. Bronson
Brigham Young
(1940)
U.S. Army Major
Three Faces West
(1940)
Minister
Tobacco Road
(1941)
Chief of Police
Wild Geese Calling
(1941)
Marshal Len Baker
Citadel of Crime
(1941)
Jess Meekins
Swamp Water
(1941)
Marty McCord
Bad Men of Missouri
(1941)
Hank Younger
Last of the Duanes
(1941)
Tom Duane
Shut My Big Mouth
(1942)
Mayor Potter
Lone Star Ranger
(1942)
Tom Duane
Wild Bill Hickok Rides
(1942)
Ned Nolan
The Spoilers
(1942)
Flapjack
Tennessee Johnson
(1942)
Kirby
Nazi Agent
(1942)
2nd Captain (uncredited)
Border Patrol
(1943)
Orestes Krebs
Colt Comrades
(1943)
Sheriff
The Woman of the Town
(1943)
Sime
Riding High
(1943)
Frenchy McGuire
Moonlight in Vermont
(1943)
Uncle Rufus
The Big Bonanza
(1944)
Adam Parker
Texas Masquerade
(1944)
J.K. Trimble
Roaring Guns
(1944)
Farmer MacKenzie
Along Came Jones
(1945)
Pop de Longpre
They Were Expendable
(1945)
'Dad' Knowland
Roughly Speaking
(1945)
The Colonel - Drill Instructor (uncredited)
My Darling Clementine
(1946)
John Simpson
Death Valley
(1946)
Old Silas Bagley
Bad Bascomb
(1946)
Elijah Walker
California Gold Rush
(1946)
Colonel Parker
My Dog Shep
(1946)
Mathew Hodgkins
A Boy and His Dog
(1946)
Mr. Thornycroft
Bowery Buckaroos
(1947)
Luke Barlow
The Romance of Rosy Ridge
(1947)
Dan Yeary
The Fabulous Texan
(1947)
Wade Clayton
Coroner Creek
(1948)
Walt Hardison
The Untamed Breed
(1948)
Minister
Albuquerque
(1948)
Abner Huggins
Sundown in Santa Fe
(1948)
Sheriff Jim Wyatt
Tap Roots
(1948)
Big Sam Dabney
Joan of Arc
(1948)
Old Man with Pipe (uncredited)
Tuna Clipper
(1949)
Capt. Fergus MacLennan
Free For All
(1949)
Farmer
The Gal Who Took the West
(1949)
Bartender (as old Timer)
Wagon Master
(1950)
Adam Perkins
Saddle Tramp
(1950)
Pop
Call of the Klondike
(1950)
Andy McKay
The Outriders
(1950)
Farmer (uncredited)
Comin' Round the Mountain
(1951)
Judge
Lone Star
(1952)
Maynard Cole
The Ghost of Crossbone Canyon
(1952)
Sam Stanton
Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair
(1952)
Clem Johnson
Feudin' Fools
(1952)
Grandpa Smith
The Sun Shines Bright
(1953)
Lewt Lake
Meet Me at the Fair
(1953)
Sheriff Evans
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
(1954)
Fred Bixby
Broken Lance
(1954)
Judge (uncredited)
The Last Command
(1955)
The Parson
The Tall Men
(1955)
Emigrant (uncredited)
The Brass Legend
(1956)
Deputy 'Pop' Jackson
Friendly Persuasion
(1956)
Brother Griffith - Elder (uncredited)
The Tin Star
(1957)
Clem Hall
The Lonely Man
(1957)
The Horse Soldiers
(1959)
Henry Goodbody