Patrick Joseph Rooney (July 4, 1880  – September 9, 1962) was an American actor, dancer, comedian, and vaudeville entertainer.

He was born in New York City, and began dancing at the age of ten as part of an act with his parents, Pat (Sr.) and Josie Rooney.

[1] His career on Broadway spanned seven decades, beginning in 1898 with the role of Butts in the musical In Atlantic City.

[1] As a dancer, Rooney was famous for inventing the 'waltz clog' step used in both tap dance and clog dancing while working as a dancer at Tony Pastor's 14th Street Theatre during the early years of the 20th century.

Pat Rooney Jr. then worked with their son, Pat Rooney III, performing a precision dance routine with father and son working back to back, which was described by Anthony Slide as "quite extraordinary and... never successfully copied".