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Pat Rooney
(Sr., Jr., III)
1848-1892
1880-1962 1909-1979
Song &
Dance, Vaudeville
This family took Irish performers away from the stereotype
of the lowbrow  comic
to a new level of artistry. Pat Rooney Sr. was one of the
great song and dance artists of the nineteenth century. In
the twentieth century Pat Rooney Jr. became huge stars in
Vaudeville. By 1892 the next generation of Rooneys had arrived
Pat Rooney Jr. and his sister Mattie called their act "Two
Chips off the Old Block." By 1904 Pat Rooney Jr. included
his wife in the act, Marion Bent, and they delighted audiences
for over fifty years. At the age of 70 Pat Rooney Jr. was
featured in the original production of Guys and Dolls.
Pat Rooney III danced with his father after his mother retired
in 1932. They perfected a precision dance routine with the
two men working back to back. Pat Rooney Jr. was considered
a father-like figure to all vaudevillians.
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