Everything about James Earl Jones totally explained
James Earl Jones (born
January 17,
1931) is an
American Academy Award-nominated,
Emmy- and
Tony Award-winning
actor of
film and
stage well known for his deep
basso voice.
Background
Childhood
Jones was born
Todd Jones in
Arkabutla Township,
Tate County, Mississippi, the son of Ruth (
née Connolly), a teacher and maid, and
Robert Earl Jones (1910-2006), an actor,
boxer, butler, and chauffeur who left the family before James Earl's birth. Jones and his father reconciled many years later in the 1980s and 1990s. Jones was raised by his
maternal grandparents,
farmers Maggie and John Henry Connolly, and is of
African,
Irish,
Choctaw and
Cherokee descent.
He moved to his grandparents' farm in
Jackson, Michigan at the age of five, but the adoption was traumatic and he developed a
stutter so severe he refused to speak aloud. When he moved to Brethren, Michigan in later years a teacher at the Brethren schools started to help him with his stutter. He remained functionally
mute for eight years until he reached
high school. He credits his high school teacher, Donald Crouch, who discovered he'd a gift for writing
poetry, with helping him out of his silence.
Education
In 1949, Jones entered the
University of Michigan with a plan to study
medicine.
Film and stage career
Early career
Jones had his acting career beginnings at the
Ramsdell Theatre in
Manistee, Michigan. In 1953 he was a stage carpenter. During the 1955 – 1957 seasons he was an actor and stage manager. He performed his first portrayal of
Shakespeare’s
Othello in this theater in 1955.
His first film role was as a young and trim Lt. Lothar Zogg, the B-52 bombardier, in in 1964 which was more famous for the work of
Peter Sellers and
Slim Pickens. His first big role came with his portrayal of boxer Jack Jefferson in the film version of the
Broadway play,
The Great White Hope which was based on the life of boxer
Jack Johnson. For his role, Jones was nominated
Best Actor by the
Academy, with
George C. Scott ultimately taking home the Oscar for his role in
Patton. He was the second African-American male performer following
Sidney Poitier to receive a nomination.}}
While many assume he's the uncredited, briefly heard voice of Darth Vader at the conclusion of, Jones, when specifically asked if he'd supplied the voice, either newly or from a previous recording, told
Newsday, "You'd have to ask Lucas about that. I don't know".
Other voice over work
His other voice roles include
Mufasa in the
1994 film Disney animated feature
The Lion King, and its sequel, and the Emperor of the Night in
Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night. He also has done the
CNN tagline, "This is CNN"; the opening for
NBC's coverage of the 2000 and 2004
Summer Olympics' "the Big PI in the Sky" (God) in the
computer game Under a Killing Moon; a
Claymation film about
The Creation; and several guest spots on
The Simpsons. He is also credited in the movie
Robots with the voice of Darth Vader from a voice module.
Notable film roles
He also played the character Terence Mann in the baseball film
Field of Dreams; the feared neighbor and owner of the dog Hercules, in
The Sandlot; King Jaffe Joffer in
Coming to America, Reverend Stephen Kumalo in
Cry, The Beloved Country; Admiral James Greer in
The Hunt for Red October;
Patriot Games, and
Clear and Present Danger; the villain
Thulsa Doom in
Conan the Barbarian; and author
Alex Haley in the television mini-series .
Notable stage roles
Jones is an accomplished stage actor as well; he's won
Tony awards in 1969 for
The Great White Hope and in 1987 for
Fences, and his performance of
Othello is considered one of the greatest in history. Other
Shakespearean roles include
King Lear, Oberon in
A Midsummer Night's Dream, Abhorson in
Measure for Measure, and Claudius in
Hamlet. He received
Kennedy Center Honors in 2002.
In February 2008, he began starring on Broadway as Big Daddy in a limited-run, all-
African-American production of
Tennessee Williams's
Pulitzer Prize-winning
drama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, directed by
Debbie Allen and mounted at the
Broadhurst Theatre. He appears alongside stage veterans
Phylicia Rashad (Big Mama) and
Anika Noni Rose (Maggie), as well as film actor
Terrence Howard making his
Broadway debut as Brick.
Other work
His other works include his portrayal of
GDI's commanding general
James Solomon in, a starring role in the
television program Under One Roof as widowed police officer Neb Langston for which he received an
Emmy nomination, and television and radio advertising for Verizon Business
DSL and Verizon Online DSL from
Verizon Communications.
From 1989 to 1993, Jones served as the host of the children's TV series
Long Ago and Far Away.
He has guest-starred on such sitcoms as
Frasier,
Will & Grace and
Everwood. Jones also lent his voice for a narrative part in the
Adam Sandler comedy,
Click, released in June 2006. His voice is also used to create an audio version of the King James Bible.
On
April 7,
2005, James Earl Jones and Leslie Uggams headed the cast in an African-American Broadway revival version of
On Golden Pond, directed by Leonard Foglia and produced by Jeffrey Finn.
Personal life
Jones has been married to Cecilia Hart since 1982, with whom he's two children, Flynn Earl Jones and Shaquonique Shantell Jones. He was previously married to actress and singer Julienne Marie. They had no children. Both actors had played the role of
Desdemona in the same production in which Jones played
Othello.
Awards
Emmy Award
Tony Award
1969 Best Leading Actor in a Play
1987 Best Leading Actor in a Play
Other Awards
1991 Common Wealth Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Dramatic Arts
Filmography
(1964)
The Comedians in Africa (1967)
The Comedians (1967)
End of the Road (1970)
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis (1970)
The Great White Hope (1970)
Malcolm X (1972)
The Man (1972)
Claudine (1974)
The Cay (1974)
The UFO Incident (1975)
The River Niger (1976)
The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings (1976)
Swashbuckler (1976)
Deadly Hero (1976)
The Greatest (1977)
(1977) (voice)
(1977)
The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977)
A Piece of the Action (1977)
Jesus of Nazareth (1977)
Black Theatre: The Making of a Movement (1978)
Star Wars Christmas Special (1978) (voice)
(1979}
(1980) (voice)
(1980)
The Creation (1981)
The Bushido Blade (1981)
The Flight of Dragons (1982) (voice)
Conan the Barbarian (1982)
Blood Tide (1982)
(1983) (voice)
Allen Boesak: Choosing for Justice (1984)
City Limits (1985)
Soul Man (1986)
Gardens of Stone (1987)
Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold (1987)
My Little Girl (1987)
Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night (1987) (voice)
Matewan (1987)
Terrorgram (1988) (voice)
Coming to America (1988)
Three Fugitives (1989)
Field of Dreams (1989)
Best of the Best (1989)
By Dawn's Early Light (1990)
Convicts (1990)
The Hunt for Red October (1990)
A World Alive (1990)
The Ambulance (1990)
Grim Prairie Tales (1990)
Heatwave (1990)
True Identity (1991)
Scorchers (1991)
The Second Coming (1992)
Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama (1992)
Patriot Games (1992)
Freddie the Frog (1992)
Sneakers (1992)
Dreamrider (1993)
Sommersby (1993)
The Sandlot (1993)
Excessive Force (1993)
The Meteor Man (1993)
(1994)
(1994)
Clean Slate (1994)
The Vernon Johns Story (1994)
The Lion King (1994) (voice)
Clear and Present Danger (1994)
Countdown to Freedom: 10 Days That Changed South Africa (1994)
Jefferson in Paris (1995)
Judge Dredd (1995)
Cry, The Beloved Country (1995)
A Family Thing (1996)
Looking for Richard (1996)
Good Luck (1996)
Gang Related (1997)
What the Deaf Man Heard (1997)
New York... Come Visit the World (1998)
Primary Colors (1998) (voice)
Merlin (1998) (voice)
(1998) (voice)
Summer's End (1999)
Our Friend, Martin (1999) (voice)
On the Q.T. (1999)
Undercover Angel (1999)
The Annihilation of Fish (1999)
Fantasia 2000 (1999)
Tiberian Sun (1999)
Ennis' Gift (2000)
Antietam: A Documentary Drama (2000)
The Papp Project (2001)
Black Indians: An American Story (2001)
Finder's Fee (2001)
(2001)
Muhammad Ali: Through the Eyes of the World (2001)
The Great Year (2004)
Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (2004)
Robots (2005) (voice)
(2005) (voice)
The Reading Room (2005)
The Sandlot 2 (2005)
documentary (2006) (narration only)
Kingdom Hearts II (2006)
The Benchwarmers (2006) (voice)
Scary Movie 4 (2006)
Click (2006) (voice) (As Himself)
(2006)
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (2008)
Jack and the Beanstalk (2008) (voice)
(2009) (voice)
Further Information
Get more info on 'James Earl Jones'.
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