Arka Evren

ACTOR

Mickey Rooney

Known for
Babe: Pig in the City (1998), The Black Stallion (1979), Erik the Viking (1989), Nimo (1989)

77 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026

Mickey Rooney is an actor best known for Babe: Pig in the City, The Black Stallion and Erik the Viking.

45 Interesting Facts About Mickey Rooney

  1. #001

    During World War II, Mickey Rooney served 22 months in the United States Army, five of them with General George S. Patton's Third Army. He rose to the rank of sergeant and earned a Bronze Star, among other decorations.

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  2. #003

    Mickey Rooney may be the only actor in history to have appeared in at least one film in each of ten consecutive decades.

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  3. #004

    He reunited with his friend and former co-star Judy Garland as a singing and dancing partner in an episode of The Judy Garland Show (1963). On the program he displayed his musical versatility by playing a solo on drums.

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  4. #005

    In 1938, Rooney was severely reprimanded by MGM studio head Louis B. Mayer for having a passionate affair with Norma Shearer. The affair was causing a major uproar on the set of Marie Antoinette (1938), where the two hid in her trailer. Mickey was 18 at the time; Shearer was 36, and her husband, MGM studio executive Irving Thalberg, had recently died. Mayer managed to keep the story out of the public eye, and it was not revealed until years later, when Rooney gave the explicit details in his autobiography.

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  5. #007

    He has four stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: a Motion Pictures star at 1718 Vine St., a Television star at 6541 Hollywood Blvd., and a Radio star at 6372 Hollywood Blvd. He also shares a Live Theatre star at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. with his wife Jan Rooney.

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  6. #009

    In the 1970s he overcame a drug addiction.

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  7. #011

    Along with Norman Lloyd, William Daniels, Ernest Borgnine, Angela Lansbury, Christopher Lee, Dick Van Dyke, Betty White, Edward Asner, Marla Gibbs, Adam West, William Shatner, Larry Hagman, June Lockhart, Florence Henderson, Shirley Jones, Hal Linden and Alan Alda, Rooney was one of several actors who reached their 80s and/or 90s in Hollywood without retiring from acting, or without having stopped getting work.

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  8. #013

    When he died, his eight surviving children said in a statement that they had been prevented from seeing Rooney in his final years.

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  9. #016

    With James Stewart's death on July 2, 1997, Rooney became the last surviving entertainer among the 46 artists caricatured in Hollywood Steps Out (1941).

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  10. #017

    He was an animal rights advocate.

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  11. #018

    At 17 months old, he began performing by wearing a specially tailored tuxedo as part of his parents' act.

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  12. #019

    He was Blake Edwards's former roommate.

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  13. #021

    His hobbies included listening to music, playing football, playing golf, dancing, horse racing, painting, getting together with old friends and watching classic films.

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  14. #024

    During the filming of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) he broke his leg and was doubled by George P. Breakston in many scenes.

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  15. #025

    For many years he was a co-owner of the Mickey Rooney Tabas Hotel in Downingtown, Pennsylvania.

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  16. #026

    He attended the same high school as Jason Robards, Ann Miller, Nanette Fabray, Lana Turner, Alan Hale Jr., Marge Champion, Alexis Smith and Joseph Wapner.

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  17. #028

    He was a passionate gambler on horse races.

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  18. #029

    He ranked first in number of films, ahead of Barbara Stanwyck, Bette Davis, Jane Wyman, Eddie Albert and Ernest Borgnine; he appeared in more than 100 films.

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  19. #032

    Mickey's stunt double was Jesse Wayne for 27 years, beginning in 1959.

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  20. #033

    He played George M. Cohan three times, twice in TV programs and toured in the stage musical "George M!"

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  21. #034

    According to one story, Mickey Mouse was named after Rooney. While Walt Disney was working on the first drawings of what would become Mickey Mouse, he saw a young Rooney. He asked the child actor what he thought of the drawings and also asked him his name. This later turned out to be false.

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  22. #036

    In 1967 he met a young, struggling comedian and talk show host Joan Rivers in a production of Murray Schisgal's comedy play 'Luv'. The two remained lifelong friends for more than 45 years, until Rooney's death in 2014.

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  23. #038

    Tony Bennett and Regis Philbin were among those who attended his 90th birthday party.

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  24. #039

    Mickey Rooney knew Liza Minnelli from the day she was born.

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  25. #040

    On June 11, 2004, Mickey Rooney attended the state funeral of former President Ronald Reagan.

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  26. #041

    Mickey Rooney sold his modest Westlake home in May 2013.

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  27. #043

    Although he had never played Texas Hold 'Em poker before, Mickey Rooney finished 7th at the World Poker Tour Invitational.

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  28. #044

    Mickey Rooney filed for bankruptcy in 1962 and published his autobiography in 1965.

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  29. #045

    Mickey Rooney's parents, like Julie London's, were vaudeville performers.

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  30. #047

    In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Mickey Rooney performed a nightclub comedy act with comedian Joey Forman.

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  31. #050

    Mickey Rooney was buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, CA.

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  32. #051

    From December 2008 to January 11, 2009, Mickey Rooney appeared on stage in the United Kingdom at the Bristol Hippodrome as Baron Hardup in the pantomime Cinderella.

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  33. #052

    Mickey Rooney did not have a successful series until he was 70 years old.

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  34. #056

    Mickey Rooney was portrayed by Moosie Drier in Rainbow (1978) and by Dwayne Adams in Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows (2001).

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  35. #057

    On August 12-13, 2006, Mickey Rooney attended the 2006 Twilight Zone Convention held at the Hilton Hasbrouck Heights in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ.

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  36. #058

    Mickey Rooney was a loyal conservative Republican for many years. In his later life, however, he supported the man rather than the party. He was reported to have said he was proud of President Barack Obama and his policies.

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  37. #062

    During World War II, Mickey Rooney served in the army in Germany as a sergeant.

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  38. #063

    Mickey Rooney was considered for the Penguin in Batman (1966).

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  39. #065

    On November 5 and 6, Mickey Rooney appeared in person on stage with his wife Jan at the American Visions Art Galleries in Folsom and Granite Bay, California.

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  40. #067

    Mickey Rooney is one of the few actors whose career spanned from the silent era of cinema to the digital age.

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  41. #068

    Mickey Rooney's third child, Teddy Rooney, was born weighing 7 lb. 3 oz. in April 1950 to Martha Vickers.

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  42. #072

    Mickey Rooney was a spokesman for the Garden State Life Insurance Company.

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  43. #074

    In 2000, Mickey Rooney underwent a double heart bypass.

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  44. #075

    Mickey Rooney was a fan of The 700 Club (1966).

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  45. #076

    Mickey Rooney made his film debut in a short comedy, playing a tough boy named Mickey McGuire; he took the name Mickey from the role, and the studio he worked for added Rooney.

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