Legendary actor Mickey Rooney has died at the age of 93. Born Joseph Yule Jr in Brooklyn NYC on September 23, 1920, Rooney started young and went on to become one of the biggest box office draws of the 1930s. While appearing in 1934′s Blind Date and with Judy Garland in 1939′s Babes In Arms, where he earned his first of four Oscar nominations, it was the more than a dozen Andy Hardy movies from MGM starting in 1938 that made Rooney an international star.
Once World War II was over, Rooney was no longer the superstar he once was but the actor kept working for decades to come. Rooney appeared in the films like 1979’s The Black Stallion, on Broadway, where Rooney earned a Tony nomination in the late Seventies, and on television where he won an Emmy and a Golden Globe in 1981 for Bill.
While in ill health for the past several years, Rooney was seen out just over a month ago on Oscar night 2014 and onscreen in 2011’s Muppets reboot.With more than 300 credits to his name and two honorary Oscars, one in 1938 and another in 1982, Rooney was most recently working on a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde film which is set to be released later this year.
Last year, the actor was victorious is a long running legal battle of elder abuse with his stepson and his stepson’s wife. Back in 2011, Rooney had previously testified before Congress on elder abuse. In his own case, the court-appointed conservator for Rooney signed off on a $2.8 million stipulated judgment in the actor’s favor but insurance companies remain locked in court over who has to pay the funds out.
