James Earl Jones is an American actor. He has been described as “one of America’s most distinguished and versatile” actors for his performances on stage and screen, and “one of the greatest actors in American history.” Born: January 17, 1931 (age 92 years), Arkabutla, MS. * * *
o According to Jones, when George Lucas was trying to cast the voice of Darth Vader, his immediate idea was to cast Orson Welles. However, he felt that Welles was too well-known for the role. So instead, he looked for an actor with a deep voice, “like Orson Welles”, which is how he got the role.
o Known for his humility, he declined to have his name appear on the credits of both Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) and Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980), claiming that he felt his contribution wasn’t significant enough to warrant a credit. He did agree to have his name appear on the credits of Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983).
o He used to use “Darth Vader” as his handle on his CB radio but stopped when it was frightening people.
o Took acting lessons to control his stutter.
o He was the first established celebrity to appear on the series Sesame Street (1969).
o Had a stuttering problem as a child and spoke very little; still struggles with the problem and says he has to think about what he says carefully before saying it (impressive, since he is known widely for his voice). To help get over his stuttering, he would write poetry, and his schoolteachers would let him read it in front of the class.
o Narrated the documentary Black Indians: An American Story (2001) , which explores issues of racial identity between the mixed-descent peoples of both Native American and African American heritage. Jones himself is a Black Indian.
o His vocal performance of Darth Vader is ranked #84 on Premiere Magazine‘s 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
o Is one of only 14 individuals who are an “EGOT”, meaning that he has received at least one of all of the four major entertainment awards: an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony. The other recipients, in chronological order, are Richard Rodgers, Barbra Streisand, Helen Hayes, Rita Moreno, Liza Minnelli, John Gielgud, Audrey Hepburn, Marvin Hamlisch, Jonathan Tunick, Mel Brooks, Mike Nichols, Whoopi Goldberg and Scott Rudin. Three of the 14 recipients, including Jones, did receive one non-competitive award: Streisand won a Special Tony, Minnelli won a Special Grammy, and Jones won a Special Oscar.
o His “death” was announced during a live broadcast of an NBA playoff game in April 1998. The deceased was actually James Earl Ray, the convicted assassin of Martin Luther King.
o He’s the commanding voice that says “This is CNN”.
o His parents were both African-American. He is also said to have Native American (Choctaw and Cherokee) and Irish ancestry. His maternal great-great-grandmother is said to be Parthenia Connolly, a native of Ireland who worked as an indentured servant, and who married a former slave named Brice. Because Brice had no surname of his own, he took his wife’s name, “Connolly”.
o He received the Kennedy Center Honor in December 2002.
o Served in the United States Army as a Lieutenant during the Korean War after graduating from college.
o Is the first African-American actor to play the President of the United States on film in The Man (1972).
o Has appeared with Harrison Ford in six films: Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977), Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983), Patriot Games (1992), Clear and Present Danger (1994) and Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019).
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