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Mickey Simpson, a burly American character actor, was born Charles Henry Simpson to Fred and Bertha Rogers Simpson in Rochester, New York. His paternal background was Irish. He was the oldest of four brothers, one of whom, Richard, died in childhood. After the 1929 stock market crash left his father unemployed, his mother supported the family by working as a waitress. By his twenties, Mickey had developed a large physique and considered a boxing career. Some sources call him the 1935 "New York City Heavyweight Boxing Champion," but official records only show two fights in Los Angeles in 1939, both losses.
Known as "Mickey," Simpson moved to Los Angeles in the late 1930s. Unverified accounts suggest he worked as a chauffeur for Claudette Colbert. In 1939, he reportedly had a small part in Stagecoach, directed by John Ford, who would greatly influence Simpson's career. Simpson found steady work playing roles such as guards, policemen, bouncers, and thugs until World War II interrupted his acting; he reportedly served in the U.S. Army during the war. Upon returning to Hollywood, John Ford revived his career by casting him in a small but memorable role as one of Walter Brennan’s sons in My Darling Clementine (1946). Simpson appeared in a total of nine Ford films, with his most recognizable role being Sarge, the racist diner owner who assaults Rock Hudson near the end of Giant (1956).
Simpson continued working mainly in minor roles—including an appearance in the short Gents in a Jam (1952) with The Three Stooges—until he was 57. He died of heart failure on September 23, 1985, in Northridge, California, near his home in Reseda, at age 71. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, in Los Angeles.
