James Earl Jones

Did You Know?

• Jones was a pre-med major in college before switching to drama.
• He served as an officer in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.

Early life and education

James Earl Jones was born in Arkabutla, Mississippi, on January 17, 1931, to Ruth, a teacher and maid, and Robert Earl Jones, a boxer, butler, and chauffeur. His father left shortly after his birth and later became a stage and screen actor; they reconciled in the 1950s. Jones was of mixed African-American, Irish, and Native American ancestry. From age five, he was raised by his maternal grandparents, John Henry and Maggie Connolly, on their farm in Dublin, Michigan, after they moved from Mississippi in the Great Migration.

The transition was traumatic, and he developed a severe stutter, remaining mute through his early school years. His English teacher, Donald Crouch, discovered his gift for poetry and encouraged him to read aloud, helping him overcome his silence. Jones graduated from Dickson Rural Agricultural School in Brethren, Michigan, in 1949, where he was vice president of his class. He attended the University of Michigan as a pre-med major, joined the Reserve Officers' Training Corps, and excelled in the Pershing Rifles Drill Team and Scabbard and Blade Honor Society. After his junior year, he focused on drama, graduating in 1955 with a Bachelor of Arts in drama.

Career

Jones began his acting career at the Ramsdell Theatre in Manistee, Michigan, working as a stage carpenter and later acting and stage managing from 1955 to 1957. He made his Broadway debut in 1957 as an understudy in The Egghead, then played Edward the butler in Sunrise at Campobello in 1958. In the early to mid-1960s, he became known for Shakespearean roles at Shakespeare in the Park, including Othello, King Lear, Oberon, Abhorson, and Claudius. In 1961, he appeared Off-Broadway in The Blacks alongside eight prominent Black actors.

Stanley Kubrick cast him as Lt. Lothar Zogg in Dr. Strangelove (1964) after seeing him in The Merchant of Venice, marking his feature film debut. He played a surgeon and Haitian rebel leader in The Comedians. In December 1967, he starred as boxer Jack Jefferson in Howard Sackler's The Great White Hope at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C.; the play moved to Broadway in October 1968, winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and Jones won the 1969 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play and the Drama Desk Award.

He reprised the role in the 1970 film adaptation, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. He gained international fame for voicing Darth Vader in Star Wars and Mufasa in The Lion King (1994).

Personal life and death

Jones married actress and singer Julienne Marie in 1968; they divorced in 1972. He married actress Cecilia Hart in 1982; she played Desdemona to his Othello shortly after their wedding. They had a son, Flynn Earl Jones. Hart died of complications from ovarian cancer on October 16, 2016, at age 68.

In April 2016, Jones spoke publicly for the first time in nearly 20 years about his type 2 diabetes, diagnosed in the mid-1990s after his doctor noticed he fell asleep while exercising. He was a devout Roman Catholic, having converted during his military service, and described narrating the New Testament as his greatest honor. Jones died at his home in Pawling, New York, on September 9, 2024, at age 93, surrounded by his family. CNN stated that his voice conveyed instant authority, grace, and decorum.

His alma mater, the University of Michigan, paid tribute with a video narrated by Jones. The NAACP, SAG-AFTRA, The Public Theater, and MLB also paid tribute. The Empire State Building was lit to resemble Darth Vader. Former Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Bill Clinton praised him, and actor Denzel Washington called Jones his hero.

Acting credits and accolades

Jones's film career began with Dr. Strangelove (1964) and included The Great White Hope (1970), The Man (1972), Claudine (1974), Conan the Barbarian (1982), Matewan (1987), Coming to America (1988), Field of Dreams (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Sneakers (1992), The Sandlot (1993), and Cry, the Beloved Country (1995). On television, he won two Primetime Emmy Awards for Heat Wave (1990) and Gabriel's Fire (1991), and acted in Jesus of Nazareth (1977), Roots: The Next Generations (1979), Picket Fences (1994), and Homicide: Life on the Street (1997).

He played Woodrow Paris in the series Paris (1979–1980) and voiced characters on The Simpsons in three seasons. His Broadway work included Sunrise at Campobello, Danton's Death, The Iceman Cometh, Of Mice and Men, Othello, On Golden Pond, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and You Can't Take It with You. He received two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, a Grammy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award. In 2011, he received an Academy Honorary Award, making him an EGOT winner, though debate exists over whether non-competitive winners qualify. He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1985 and received the National Medal of Arts in 1992.