Mickey Horton

Mickey Horton is a fictional character from the soap opera Days of Our Lives, played from the show's debut episode in 1965 until January 2004 by John Clarke. The role was briefly played in 2004 by Richard Voigts, and later played by John Ingle from 2004 through 2006. Kevin Dobson appeared as Mickey in the character's final appearances in 2008.

Mickey Horton
John Clarke as Mickey Horton, with wife, Maggie Horton.
Days of our Lives character
Portrayed byJohn Clarke (1965–2004)
Richard Voigts (2004)
John Ingle (2004–06)
Kevin Dobson (2008)
Duration
  • 1965–2006
  • 2008
First appearanceNovember 8, 1965
Last appearanceOctober 2, 2008
Created byPeggy Phillips and Kenneth Rosen
Introduced byTed Corday
ClassificationFormer, regular
Profile
OccupationLawyer
Owner and Senior Attorney at Mickey Horton's Law Firm
Serves on the Board of Directors at Salem University Hospital

Clarke is the longest-tenured original Days of our Lives actor after onscreen mother Frances Reid (Alice Horton), appearing in the role for 39 years. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 1979 for Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his portrayal of Mickey.

Fictional character history

Mickey is the middle son of Tom and Alice Horton, he has other siblings: Tommy, Addie, Marie and, possibly his biggest rival, Bill Horton. In the first episode in 1965, Mickey was a lawyer in Salem, his father, Tom Horton found out that his granddaughter, Julie Olson (Mickey's niece) has stolen some fur from a clothes shop. Tom had to go to the police station and asked Mickey to go down with him to help with the legal side of things. Tom and Mickey did not inform Alice of where they were going. The women were busy discussing the wedding arrangements with Marie and Tony Meritt as they did not want to worry her. After a discussion at the police station with the police chief and Julie, they finally returned home.

In 1965, Mickey started a relationship with Diane Hunter, whose divorce case Mickey was dealing with, and helped her to deal with her daughter Susan. Diane and her husband later got back together, mainly because of Susan, but in 1966, Laura Spencer arrived in Salem. Bill later set the two up and after the David Martin murder case they grew closer and became engaged. They married the next year. Mickey later tested to see if he was unable to have children but the results were forgotten about when he discovered that Laura was pregnant, however the father of this unborn child was not Mickey. Little did he know that his brother, Bill Horton had raped Laura in a drunken rage. When Tom saw the results of Mickey's test, he confronted Laura who lied and said that she had given in and slept with Bill. They agreed to keep quiet to protect the family. In November 1968, Michael William Horton was born and Mickey still had no clue.

Mickey later had an affair with his secretary, Linda Patterson, in 1970. After Mickey refused to leave Laura for her, Linda attempted suicide and broadcast her affair to the whole of Salem. However, Mickey and Laura stayed together for the sake of young Michael. When Michael learned of the affair, in 1973, he confronted Mickey, who suffered a heart attack. His brother, Dr. Bill Horton, performed a life saving operation which pulled Mickey through. However shortly after, Mickey suffered a stroke but managed to walk out of the hospital. However, he was left with amnesia and had forgotten a lot, including his name. Mickey invented a new name for himself: Marty Hanson, he walked out of Salem and was taken in by a crippled farm girl called Maggie Simmons they soon fell in love and married in January 1974. Mickey later saw operations being offered at Salem University Hospital for Maggie's disabilities. Later, after his picture appeared in the paper, Mickey was reunited with the Hortons, though he had no memory of them. Bill offered to operate on Mickey in hopes of returning his memory, but Mickey refused.

After Bill's operation on Maggie fails, Mickey pointed the finger at Bill for her inability to walk, although Laura told Mickey and Maggie the paralysis was mental now. Mickey promised Maggie she would walk again and her took her back home to her farm. Mickey then divorced Laura who had been having an affair with his brother, Bill. Then he and Maggie married in October 1974.

In 1976, Mickey learned that he was not Mike's biological father. After Mike suffered an accident on Maggie's farm, Mickey and Laura donated blood. When neither matched, Mickey realized he could not be Mike's father. Mickey looked through medical records, and when he found out his brother Bill was a match, all of Mickey's memory came back to him. Mickey then went to Linda Patterson and asked if Melissa could possibly be his child, and she told him no because he was unable to have children, according to Laura Horton. Angry at being lied to for years Mickey bought a gun and plotted to kill Bill, and when the two fought over the gun it went off, shooting Bill in the arm. After the fight, Mickey suffered a mental breakdown and was admitted to Bayview Sanitarium for a year. After Mickey was released, he and Maggie adopted Janice Barnes. In 1978, Janice was taken from Mickey and Maggie by her mother Joanna Barnes. Janice was found and went back to Mickey and Maggie, but Joanna accepted a job in Salem and stayed near her daughter. This relationship took its toll on Maggie, who began to drink heavily. Eventually Mickey and Maggie lost custody of Janice to her mother in 1979.

In 1981, Maggie agreed to be a surrogate mother for an anonymous donor. Maggie approached Neil, who performed the procedure which inseminated Maggie. Shortly after, Maggie tested as pregnant.

Mickey found out that the baby she was carrying was Evan Whyland's, and even when he confronted Maggie with the facts, Maggie stated that she still wanted to keep the baby no matter who the father was, so Mickey agreed to love it as it were his own child. In late 1981, baby Sarah Horton was born, and following a custody battle with Evan Whyland, Mickey and Maggie finally won custody of Sarah. Later Mickey and Maggie also got custody of Melissa Anderson who had run away from boarding school after the death of her adoptive sister, Mary. Linda had come back for the funeral, and attempted to remove Melissa from the Horton household, which made Mickey and Maggie decide to fight for custody of Melissa. Linda did not show up for the custody hearing, and the judge granted them permanent custody.

Mickey was kidnapped by Stefano DiMera after Mickey discovered that Stefano was blackmailing Evan and that Stefano was the mastermind behind Maggie's car accident. In 1983, Mickey escaped the DiMera island and arrived back in Salem to find that Maggie, believing Mickey was dead, was now having a relationship with Don Craig. The revelation gave Mickey a second heart attack, from which he eventually recovered. Maggie and Mickey divorced that year but Maggie soon realized that she was still in love with Mickey. Maggie left Salem for New York in the fall of 1984 after Linda Anderson had returned to make amends to her daughter, Melissa, but was really after Melissa's shares of Anderson. Her scheme failed, and Linda left Salem for good in late 1985, right after Maggie had returned from her year's sabbatical. Mickey was shot in a gang rumble and recovered at Maggie's house. Mickey and Maggie remarried in 1986.

Recent years

In 1988 Mickey ran for a seat in the Senate, and his rival was none other than Jack Deveraux. Jack was going out with Mickey's adoptive daughter Melissa, and even proposed to her. However, Melissa learned Jack was using her, and got rid of him.

Maggie and Mickey's marriage had hit rock bottom by 1990. Mickey was always at work and always disappointed Maggie and missed romantic meals with her. Maggie ended up in the arms of Neil Curtis. Maggie's daughter, Sarah, caught Maggie and Neil in the act and took photos of them together in bed for evidence. Sarah was ready to tell Mickey and reveal their secret, when Maggie and Neil revealed that Neil was Sarah's true father. Sarah still exposed them and the news destroyed Mickey. Though Mickey was frustrated and greatly hurt, he felt he was the reason for Maggie's affair. Mickey and Maggie repaired their marriage and Neil left Salem.

Mickey was usually seen whenever a Salem character had legal problems and needed an attorney. In 2003, Mickey was absolutely heart broken when he and Maggie were attacked in their home by the Salem Stalker; Mickey got stabbed with a scalpel but unfortunately Maggie was killed due to a blow to the head from a wine bottle. A few months onward, a confused Mickey was eventually released from his sorrow by Bonnie Lockhart, whom he married soon after, not before learning Maggie had not really died but her death had been faked and she had been kidnapped and trapped by the DiMeras, like the other Salem Stalker victims, in a plot to get rid of Salem's best-loved residents. Mickey was torn, because although Maggie was back, he was legally married to Bonnie since his marriage to Maggie was deemed invalid by her apparent death. After months of going back and forth between the two women, Mickey finally picked his original love, Maggie.

Over the past years, Mickey has been in Chicago covering several trials and has been rarely seen in Salem. On December 23, 2008 Mickey spent time with his mother Alice watching classic Christmas films at the Horton house. Mickey returns to Salem again on December 24, 2009, for the Horton Family Christmas sitting in the kitchen with Alice. On December 31, 2009, Mickey is unable to return to spend New Year's Eve in Salem and calls Maggie to let her know. During their conversation, Maggie and Mickey decided to spend more time in the new year. They plan to go on a cruise because Doug and Julie always tell them how beautiful they are. Maggie reflects on the great times she has shared with Mickey over the years. On January 5, 2010 Maggie tells Bo that Mickey will be returning home so they can go on a New Year's cruise.

Death

Mickey died from a heart attack while packing to go on a cruise with Maggie on January 8, 2010. Maggie found Mickey's body and came downstairs in shock. Hope came while Maggie was still in shock and noticed something was wrong, she went up stairs to check and called 911. The paramedic removed Mickey's body from the house. On January 14, 2010, the Hortons celebrated Mickey's life with a memorial service that brought together the entire family. His life and the love of his life, Maggie, were celebrated. His daughter, Melissa, returned to comfort her mother during this difficult time. In June, Mickey's mother, Alice Horton, died of natural causes. Maggie and Julie celebrated Alice's relationship with her son, Mickey.

Mickey's cases

Mickey Horton got a bad rep for never winning a case. He defended Salemnites for decades, many of his clients have ended up in jail for crimes they didn't commit. In the table, unless otherwise noted, Mickey represented the defendant. He spent a few years as assistant district attorney in the late 1980s.

YearDefendantAccused crime/caseVerdictActual culpritEnd result and other details
1966 Tom Horton negligence in death of Carl Sawyer case dismissed none Marie told the court just what had made Tom "unavoidably detained." She confessed to having attempted to commit suicide, and that thanks to Tom she was still alive. Because of Marie's testimony, it became clear to everyone that it had been impossible for Tom to visit Carl because he'd had an emergency happening in his own home. As a result, the case was dismissed.
1967 Susan Martin murder of David Martin acquitted on grounds of temporary insanity Susan Martin Mickey encouraged her to plead innocent by reason of insanity, but Susan plead guilty (by reason of insanity) instead. Then Susan escaped from prison, only to face Helen Martin, who was grief-stricken that her son was taken from her. Helen shot Susan in the chest. Susan survived but had a serious heart problem that Tom took care of later on.
1969 Bill Horton causing the death of Kitty Horton guilty of involuntary manslaughter—sentenced to five years in prison Bill Horton Bill refused to say exactly why he had gone to see Kitty the night that she suffered a heart attack (she had been blackmailing him with a taped conversation where Laura admitted that Michael was Bill's son), so they lost the case.
1976 Mickey Horton attempted murder of Bill Horton (sanity hearing) insane—sent to Bayview Sanitarium Mickey defended himself at a sanity hearing following his attempt to kill Bill Horton. He pretended to be calm and rational, but he lost the case after Laura's testimony, which stated that Mickey was well enough to be treated at home rather than in a sanitarium, was thrown out because it wasn't objective. Mickey lost control at that moment and tried to strangle Bill. Thus, he was sent to Bayview Sanitarium
1978 Julie Williams murder of Larry Atwood case dismissed Arlo Roberts They entered an innocent plea but things went downhill when details of Julie's relationship with Larry and the rape came out. They would've lost the case if the real culprit, Arlo Roberts, had not confessed at the last minute.
1981 David Banning attempted murder of Alex Marshall guilty—sentenced to three years in prison Eames, a hitman who worked for Stuart Whyland David never had a chance. Not only did all the witnesses damage Mickey's case, but Alex Marshall woke up from his coma and said that David had shot him.
1987 **Kimberly Brady (represented by Chris Kositchek, prosecuted by Mickey) murder of Emma Marshall guilty Gillian Forrester Mickey and fellow DA Leslie Landman won when they sent Kim to jail. However, Shane eventually helped trap Gillian and she is still in prison for the crime
1987 **Steve Johnson murder of Duke Johnson case dismissed Adrienne Johnson Mickey was the prosecutor in this case. During the trial, Adrienne finally remembered that she had killed Duke in self-defense, after he had raped her.
1988 Melissa Anderson poisoning Kayla Deveraux charged dropped Harper Deveraux Mickey represented Melissa when she was accused of poisoning Kayla. Harper Deveraux was the one who really poisoned Kayla, because he felt Kayla had betrayed Jack by being with Steve. Kayla later had the charges dropped.
1989 **Sally Wales attempted robbery of Brady Fish Market guilty—sentenced to 10 years in prison Sally Wales Mickey was the prosecutor in this case. Sally was a homeless teen who had held people at gunpoint at the Brady Fish Market so that she could be arrested and have her child in prison. Mickey was able to get the maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
1989 **Cal Winters attempted murder of Roman Brady case dismissed Diana Colville Mickey was the prosecutor in this case. The case was dismissed when Diana remembered that she shot Roman.
1990 Kayla Brady murder of Marina Toscano guilty—sentenced to 10 years in prison Isabella Toscano Mickey was no longer D.A. so he defended Kayla in this case. The decision was later overturned when it was discovered that the real culprit was Isabella Toscano.
1990 Isabella Toscano murder of Marina Toscano innocent (self-defense) Isabella Toscano Isabella was found INNOCENT, after it was established that Isabella had acted in self-defense.
1990 Bo Brady being the Riverfront Raider guilty Bo Brady (with help from Emmy Borden) The day after Christmas, Bo's hearing took place. Mickey Horton asked Carly to testify on behalf of Bo. Emmy, who was madly in love with Bo, was asked to testify against him. She had to tell the judge exactly what Bo had done and she felt awful about this. After her testimony things didn't look too good for Bo. According to Mickey, Bo could go to jail for a long time. But then Carly took the stand and told the judge about Bo's personal circumstances at the time of his criminal activities. She told her about Hope's death and about Shawn D's accident, which was caused by Jencon. She also told the judge that no-one believed that Bo should be punished for what he had done. They all thought he was a hero. After hearing this, the judge decided to let Bo off with a one-year probation and 1000 hours of community work.
1991 Lawrence Alamain (represented by Gregory Marchand, Jennifer represented by Mickey) rape of Jennifer Horton guilty—6 months in prison Lawrence Alamain
1992 Salem University Hospital wrongful death of Dean Lombard hospital not responsible none Mickey represented the hospital when it was sued by the Lombard family for the wrongful death of Dean Lombard. He won the case by establishing that Dean had a pre-existing medical condition that caused his death.
1994 Billie Reed murder of Curtis Brown (Reed) case dismissed Stefano DiMera Mickey almost lost the case. Just as the judge was about to pass sentence, Bo Brady decided to play attorney and helped her remember that Stefano DiMera had killed Curtis. The case against Billie was dismissed.
1995-96 John Black murder of Tony DiMera guilty Tony, self-inflicted gunshot wound John was in the gas chamber when Jack and Jennifer came in with evidence to save him. Years later it was discovered that it wasn't actually Tony who committed suicide. It was actually his cousin Andre DiMera.
1998 Jack Deveraux murder of Peter Blake guilty Peter wasn't really dead Jack went to jail, but escaped with Jennifer's help. They went on the run and Peter went after him. After staging Jennifer's "death," they were able to prove that Peter was still alive.
1998-99 Sami Brady murder of Franco Kelly guilty Lucas Roberts Sami was sentenced to death, but in reality Lucas killed Franco, who was attempting to murder his mother Kate. To protect her son, Kate framed Sami for the murder, but to save Sami she had Franco's dying friend Roberto Barelli confess to the killing on his deathbed freeing Sami and letting Lucas off the hook.
1998-99 Sami Brady custody battle over Will Roberts Lucas won custody of the boy none
Year? Mike Horton sexual harassment of Ali McIntyre the hospital board investigated this incident
2002 Bo and Hope Brady custody of JT Brady Glen Reiber won custody none
2003 Shawn Douglas Brady murder of Colin Murphy
2004 Tony DiMera murder of Roman Brady Case Dismissed Marlena Evans

Notes
  1. Mickey and Maggie first married in January 1974; however the marriage was invalid because he was still legally married to Laura. Laura and Mickey divorced in October 1974, and Mickey and Maggie were remarried that same month. Their divorce was finalized in January 1984.
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