Mickey Rooney Jr.

Mickey Rooney Jr. was born on July 3, 1945, as Joseph Yule III to movie legend Mickey Rooney and his second wife (among his own wives was Merci Montello, the Playmate of the Month for December 1972 as "Mercy Rooney"). A beauty pageant winner ("Miss Alabama 1944"), the former Betty Jane Rase met Mickey Sr. when he was stationed in the Army in Birmingham, Alabama, during World War II. Mickey Jr. was the first of his father's nine children. Growing up in Hollywood as the son of a famous movie star, Junior rubbed shoulders with some of the biggest stars on the planet, including Mae West, Elvis Presley and The Beatles. When he was 13 years old he met Judy Garland at a party at her Brentwood home. "So you're Mickey's first-born son," his father's most famous leading lady said. "You're a fine-looking young man." Unlike his extremely short father, the son would grow to be over six feet tall, taking after his tall mother. His father, in his 1991 autobiography "Life Is Too Short", admitted that he cheated on Betty Jane. According to Mickey Sr., she was "totally oblivious to anything going on outside our home." Mickey Sr. summed up their relationship as, "We just weren't compatible." The marriage ended in divorce in 1948. Mickey Jr. saw his father frequently after the divorce. Sharing the name of the #1 box office star of 1939, 1940 and 1941 opened doors for Mickey Jr., although making the most of the opportunities wasn't always easy. He found out he had to work twice as hard to prove himself because of his famous name. He had his first taste of show business as one of the original Mousketeers on Walt Disney's The Mickey Mouse Club (1955) (his father claims that Walt Disney named the famous Mouse after him). He and brother Tim Rooney were hired in 1955 due to their ability to sing, dance and act. After appearing on the show for a year, their contracts were terminated after the mischievous boys got into a hassle with the studio's paint department (they sneaked in and poured different colors of paint in different cans). Six years later, at age 17, he hosted "The Andy Hardy Theater" on local TV. Musically inclined, he played bass in Willie Nelson's band and has recorded an album called "The Song Album." Like his height, his musical talent was inherited from his mother, who was a gifted vocalist. His maternal grandmother taught him how to play the ukulele by showing him how to play chords, which he then played on an acoustic guitar. In addition to playing bass and guitar, Mickey Jr. plays drums, harmonica and keyboards and writes music. He, his wife Laura and their friend John Whittinghill perform rock 'n' roll and gospel music as "Mickey Rooney Jr. and Friends." A born-again Christian, Mickey Jr. met Laura, a Messianic Jew, in 1986. Through The Lord's Link Ministry, the couple minister and spread the Good News. Laura sings and plays a harp, while both she and Mickey Jr. testify to the "folly" of living "life in the fast lane." They reside in Hemet, CA. Mickey Jr. and his brother Tim operate the Rooney Entertainment Group, a movie and TV production company. He has written his autobiography, "Which One's Your Mother?"