Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor, vaudevillian, comedian, producer and radio personality. In a career spanning nine decades and continuing until shortly before his death, he appeared in more than 300 films and was one of the last surviving stars of the silent film era. At the height of a career that was marked by precipitous declines and raging comebacks, Rooney performed the role of Andy Hardy in a series of 15 films in the 1930s and 1940s that epitomized American family values. A versatile performer, he
Joseph Lanier Jr. Joseph Lanier Jr. Joseph Lanier Jr. is an American heir and businessman. His great–grandfather, LaFayette Lanier, founded the Alabama and Georgia Manufacturing Company in 1866. By 1882, it became known as the West Point Manufacturing Company. It specialized in sails for clipper ships and cotton covers for the Conestoga wagons that crossed the prairies. In the 1980s, Joseph Lamar Lanier Jr. took over, focusing on brand-name product lines such as Lady Pepperell sheets and towels and Cabin Crafts carpets. In 1989, he reluctantly sold it to William F. Farley, Chairman of Farley, Inc., and received US$4 million in golden parachute.