Acting · Danville, California, USA · Born June 16, 1880
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.
MovieThe Horse Soldiers
1959
as Henry Goodbody
TVThe Texan
1958
as Zeb Waters
MovieThe Tin Star
1957
as Clem Hall
TVWagon Train
1957
as Mr. Carr
MovieThe Lonely Man
1957
MovieThe Brass Legend
1956
as Deputy 'Pop' Jackson
MovieFriendly Persuasion
1956
as Brother Griffith - Elder (uncredited)
MovieOklahoma!
1955
as The Minister (uncredited)
TVThe 20th Century Fox Hour
1955
as Old Man
TVSergeant Preston of the Yukon
1955
MovieThe Tall Men
1955
as Emigrant (uncredited)
MovieThe Last Command
1955
as The Parson
MovieBroken Lance
1954
as Judge (uncredited)
MovieSeven Brides for Seven Brothers
1954
as Fred Bixby
TVPublic Defender
1954
as Lundquist
MovieThe Sun Shines Bright
1953
as Lewt Lake
TVGeneral Electric Theater
1953
MovieMeet Me at the Fair
1953
as Sheriff Evans
MovieThe Ghost of Crossbone Canyon
1952
as Sam Stanton
MovieLone Star
1952
as Maynard Cole
TVCavalcade of America
1952
as Quatermaster
MovieFeudin' Fools
1952
as Grandpa Smith
MovieMa and Pa Kettle at the Fair
1952
as Clem Johnson
MovieComin' Round the Mountain
1951
as Judge
TVThe Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
1951
as Sam
MovieCall of the Klondike
1950
as Andy McKay
MovieSaddle Tramp
1950
as Pop
MovieWagon Master
1950
as Adam Perkins
MovieThe Outriders
1950
as Farmer (uncredited)
MovieFree For All
1949
as Farmer
TVThe Lone Ranger
1949
as Jack Brewster
MovieThe Gal Who Took the West
1949
as Bartender (as old Timer)
MovieTuna Clipper
1949
as Capt. Fergus MacLennan
MovieJoan of Arc
1948
as Old Man with Pipe (uncredited)
MovieSundown in Santa Fe
1948
as Sheriff Jim Wyatt
MovieThe Untamed Breed
1948
as Minister
MovieTap Roots
1948
as Big Sam Dabney
MovieCoroner Creek
1948
as Walt Hardison
MovieAlbuquerque
1948
as Abner Huggins
MovieBowery Buckaroos
1947
as Luke Barlow
MovieThe Fabulous Texan
1947
as Wade Clayton
MovieThe Romance of Rosy Ridge
1947
as Dan Yeary
MovieA Boy and His Dog
1946
as Mr. Thornycroft
MovieMy Dog Shep
1946
as Mathew Hodgkins
MovieMy Darling Clementine
1946
as John Simpson
MovieDeath Valley
1946
as Old Silas Bagley
MovieBad Bascomb
1946
as Elijah Walker
MovieCalifornia Gold Rush
1946
as Colonel Parker
MovieThey Were Expendable
1945
as 'Dad' Knowland
MovieAlong Came Jones
1945
as Pop de Longpre
MovieRoughly Speaking
1945
as The Colonel - Drill Instructor (uncredited)
MovieThe Big Bonanza
1944
as Adam Parker
MovieTall in the Saddle
1944
as Pat Foster (uncredited)
MovieRoaring Guns
1944
as Farmer MacKenzie
MovieTexas Masquerade
1944
as J.K. Trimble
MovieThe Woman of the Town
1943
as Sime
MovieMoonlight in Vermont
1943
as Uncle Rufus
MovieRiding High
1943
as Frenchy McGuire
MovieColt Comrades
1943
as Sheriff
MovieBorder Patrol
1943
as Orestes Krebs
MovieTennessee Johnson
1942
as Kirby
MovieThe Spoilers
1942
as Flapjack
MovieLone Star Ranger
1942
as Tom Duane
MovieNazi Agent
1942
as 2nd Captain (uncredited)
MovieShut My Big Mouth
1942
as Mayor Potter
MovieWild Bill Hickok Rides
1942
as Ned Nolan
MovieSwamp Water
1941
as Marty McCord
MovieLast of the Duanes
1941
as Tom Duane
MovieWild Geese Calling
1941
as Marshal Len Baker
MovieBad Men of Missouri
1941
as Hank Younger
MovieCitadel of Crime
1941
as Jess Meekins
MovieMeet John Doe
1941
as (uncredited)
MovieTobacco Road
1941
as Chief of Police
MovieSanta Fe Trail
1940
as Shubel Morgan
MovieBrigham Young
1940
as U.S. Army Major
MovieWyoming
1940
as Mr. Bronson
MovieThree Faces West
1940
as Minister
MovieVirginia City
1940
as Gaylord
MovieThe Grapes of Wrath
1940
as Pa Joad
MovieGeronimo
1939
as Scout
MovieDrums Along the Mohawk
1939
as Dr. Petry
MovieMr. Smith Goes to Washington
1939
as Kenneth Allen (uncredited)
MovieDesperate Trails
1939
as Sheriff Big Bill Tanner
MovieThe Bill of Rights
1939
as Frontiersman
MovieWestern Caravans
1939
as Winchester Thompson
MovieYoung Mr. Lincoln
1939
as Woolridge (uncredited)
MovieDodge City
1939
as Orth
MovieHeart of the North
1938
as Dave MacMillan
MovieValley of the Giants
1938
as McKenzie
MovieThe Girl of the Golden West
1938
as Fred - Outrider in Prologue
MovieGold Is Where You Find It
1938
as MacKenzie
MovieThat I May Live
1937
as Bish Plivens
MovieParadise Isle
1937
as Baxter
MovieWild West Days
1937
as Matt Keeler
MovieYodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge
1937
as Bayliss Baynum
MovieParnell
1937
as Dead Child's Father
MovieMountain Justice
1937
as Matthew Turnbull
MovieGreen Light
1937
as Sheep Man
MovieMaid of Salem
1937
as Village Marshal (Uncredited)
MovieRamona
1936
as Scroggs
MovieBack to Nature
1936
as Sheriff
MovieSan Francisco
1936
as 'Red' Kelly
MovieGirl of the Ozarks
1936
as Bascomb Rogers
The Harvester
1936
as Abner Prewett
MovieMan Hunt
1936
as Jeff Parkington
MoviePaddy O'Day
1936
as Benton
MovieWay Down East
1935
as Squire Amasa Bartlett
MovieMotive for Revenge
1935
as McAllister
MovieThe Hoosier Schoolmaster
1935
as Doc Small
MovieWest of the Pecos
1934
as Roy Neal
MovieRadio Scout
1934
as Pappy Tolliver
MovieThe World Moves On
1934
as Notary (1825)
MovieEver Since Eve
1934
as Jim Wood
MovieThree on a Honeymoon
1934
as Ezra MacDuff
MovieCarolina
1934
as Richards
MovieFrontier Marshal
1934
as Editor Pickett
MovieSixteen Fathoms Deep
1934
as A.B. Crockett
MovieThe Power and the Glory
1933
as Professor (uncredited)
MovieStolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles
1933
as Speaker
MovieSecrets
1933
as Doctor (uncredited)
MovieFace in the Sky
1933
as Pa Nathan Brown
MovieSilver Dollar
1932
as Hamlin
MovieCall Her Savage
1932
as Old Man in Wagon Train
MovieThe Cabin in the Cotton
1932
as Uncle Joe
MovieHello Trouble
1932
as Jonathan Kenyon
MovieThe Honor of the Press
1932
as Dan Perkins
MovieFlames
1932
as Jake
MovieThe Riding Tornado
1932
as Sheriff
MovieThe Famous Ferguson Case
1932
as Banker Craig
MovieLena Rivers
1932
as Grandfather Nichols
MovieLaw and Order
1932
as Judge R.W. Williams
MovieRidin' for Justice
1932
as Marshal Joseph Slyde
MovieSusan Lenox
1931
as Doctor
MovieAlexander Hamilton
1931
as Harvey Taylor - First Ex-Soldier
MovieThe Great Meadow
1931
as Thomas Hall
MovieMan to Man
1930
as Uncle Cal
MovieAbraham Lincoln
1930
as Lincoln's Employer
MovieBilly the Kid
1930
as Angus McSween
MovieThe Lone Star Ranger
1930
as Colonel John Aldridge
MovieAfter the Fog
1929
as Joshua Barker
MovieThe Sap
1929
as The Banker
MovieMy Lady's Past
1929
MovieAll Faces West
1929
as Gunner Bill
MovieNoisy Neighbors
1929
as Ebenezer
MovieInnocents of Paris
1929
as Emile Leval
MovieTropical Nights
1928
as Singapore Joe
The Bushranger
1928
as Sir Eric
Life's Mockery
1928
as Wolf Miller
MovieWild Geese
1927
as Caleb Gare
MovieNow We're in the Air
1927
as Lord Abercrombie McTavish
MovieThe First Auto
1927
as Hank Armstrong
MovieThe Frontiersman
1927
as Andrew Jackson
The Heart of the Yukon
1927
as 'Cash' Cynon
MovieAnnie Laurie
1927
as Sandy
MovieLovey Mary
1926
as Stubbins
MovieThe Social Highwayman
1926
as The Mayor's Partner
MovieRustlin' for Cupid
1926
as Hank Blatchford
MovieThe Earth Woman
1926
as Ezra Tilden
Ship of Souls
1925
as Angus Garth
MovieThe Splendid Road
1925
as Capt. Lightfoot
MovieThe Eagle
1925
as The Eagle's Lieutenant / Coach Driver (uncredited)
MovieWhy Women Love
1925
as Silas Martin
MovieThunder Mountain
1925
as Si Pace
MoviePaint and Powder
1925
as Riley
MovieFaint Perfume
1925
as Grandpa Crumb
Old Shoes
1925
MovieBeauty and the Bad Man
1925
as Chuckwalla Bill
MovieThe Re-Creation of Brian Kent
1925
as Jap Taylor
MovieThe Narrow Street
1925
as Garvey
MoviePainted People
1924
as Fred Lane
MovieDesire
1923
as Patrick Ryan
Defying Destiny
1923
as Mr. Wilkens
MovieThe Virginian
1923
as Trampas
MovieThe Huntress
1923
as Big Jack Skinner
MovieCircus Days
1923
as Eben Holt
MovieThe Girl of the Golden West
1923
as Jack Rance
MovieHearts Aflame
1923
as Black Joe
The Kingdom Within
1922
as Caleb Deming
MoviePeg o' My Heart
1922
as Jim O'Connell
MovieRags to Riches
1922
as The Sheriff
MovieHuman Hearts
1922
as Paul Logan
MovieAcross the Dead-Line
1922
as Enoch Kidder
MovieUnder the Lash
1921
as Simeon Krillet
MovieSnowblind
1921
as Hugh Garth
MovieBunty Pulls the Strings
1921
as Tammas Biggar
MovieGodless Men
1920
as 'Black' Pawl
MovieThe Branding Iron
1920
as John Carver
MovieLahoma
1920
as 'Brick' Willock
MovieThe Deadlier Sex
1920
as Jim Willis
MovieFighting Cressy
1919
as Hiram McKinstry
MovieDesert Gold
1919
as Ladd
MovieThe Blue Bandanna
1919
as Jim Yancy
MovieBill Apperson's Boy
1919
as Bill Apperson
MovieThe Brand
1919
as Dan McGill
MovieThe Challenge Accepted
1918
as Uncle Zeke Sawyer
MovieOh, Johnny!
1918
as Adele's Father
MovieRiders of the Night
1918
as Sally's Grandfather
The Uphill Path
1918
as James Lawton
MovieThe Border Legion
1918
as Overland Bradley
Breakers Ahead
1918
as Captain Scudder
MovieA Weaver of Dreams
1918
as Martin Chandler
MovieBlue Jeans
1917
as Jacob Tutwiler
MovieThe Food Gamblers
1917
as Samuel Sloane
MovieThe Barrier
1917
as John Gaylord / John Tale
MovieLovely Mary
1916
as Peter Nelson
The Old Homestead
1915
as Sheriff
MovieThe Virginian
1914
as Undetermined Secondary Role (uncredited)
