Hollywood’s Biggest Star in 1943
How special was Private Mickey Rooney? Clarence Brown, who directed Rooney in National Velvet, remarked, “He’s the closest thing to a genius I’ve ever worked with.” Laurence Olivier once said he considered Rooney, “The best there has ever been.”
Mickey Rooney was a superb dramatic actor. He was one of the best dancers of his era. He played piano and drums at a professional level. He did brilliant slapstick and stand-up, including impressions. He wrote songs and sang well enough himself to match Judy Garland in several musicals. He learned to play the banjo in a day. There was nothing in show business Mickey Rooney couldn’t do, except grow an inch over 5’2″.
Mickey Rooney stars again in Jeep Show — A Trouper at the Battle of the Bulge
Experience the unparalleled entertainer, Private Mickey Rooney, performing for combat infantry in places the USO could not go in the WWII novel Jeep Show.
