HwtS 253: James Earl Jones

—Jason
Listen here: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/hwts-253-james-earl-jones--61413246

One of my favorite actors, James Earl Jones, became one with The Force on 9 September 2024. Jones was an African-American actor who starred over 70 films as well as numerous commercials and television shows. He was renowned for his incredibly powerful basso voice, and most people associate him with his most famous voiceover role: that of Darth Vader, one the main antagonists in George Lucas’s Star Wars franchise. 

Jones was born on 17 January 1931 in Arkabutla, Mississippi, to Ruth and Robert Jones. Robert left the family shortly after James was born and the two remained estranged until the 1950s. Despite Robert not being present for his childhood, Jones later followed in his father’s footsteps when seeking a career in acting.

Jones was raised from the age of five onwards by his maternal grandparents in Dublin, Michigan. His grandparents had moved to Michigan during the First Great Migration (occurring between 1910 and 1940) due to a combination of better employment opportunities and racial segregation in the southern United States. 

Jones found the transition to living with his grandparents in Michigan traumatic and developed a stutter so severe that he refused to speak. He credited his English teacher, Donald Crouch, with helping him overcome his stutter: Couch challenged Jones to recite a poem the latter wrote in class to prove that it was his own work. Following this event, Jones excelled at school and served as the vice president of his class at Brethen High School.

Jones entered the pre-med program at the University of Michigan after graduating high school. While attending classes, he decided to enlist in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps. He quickly embraced the comradery with his fellow reserve officers, and he excelled in program. After his junior year, Jones focused on drama with the thought of doing something he enjoyed before, he assumed, he would have to go off to fight in the Korean War (1950-1953) alongside other American and United Nations forces. 

As the Korean War intensified, Jones expected to be deployed as soon as he received his commission as a second lieutenant. While he waited for his orders to be processed, he worked on the stage crew and acted at the Ramsdell Theatre in Manistee, Michigan. When he was commissioned in mid-1953, Jones was sent to Fort Benning (now Fort More), Georgia to complete the Infantry Officers Basic Course. While at Fort Benning, Jones also successfully completed Ranger School, an elite special forces group, and earned his Ranger Tab. Just before he was discharged, Jones was promoted to first lieutenant. He never had to go to Korea.

After leaving the US Army in 1953, Jones began his acting career at the Ramsdell Theatre in Manistee, Michigan. Over the next four years he advanced through the various stages of production: first he was a stage carpenter, then, between 1955 and 1957, he acted and became a stage manager. In his first acting season at the Ramsdell, he portrayed Othello. By 1961, Jones had left Michigan to continue growing his stage acting career in New York, becoming one of the best-known Shakespearean actors of the time. 

In 1964, Jones made his feature film debut in Stanley Kubrick’s twisted Cold War dark comedy Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. Without too many spoilers (everyone should make a serious effort to see the movie), the Cold War suddenly turns hot over the runtime of the movie. Although Jones had only a small role as Lt. Lothar Zogg, the bombardier, aboard an ill-fated American B-52 strategic bomber attacking the Soviet Union, his powerful basso voice helped cement him in the minds of moviegoers.

Jones returned to the stage in December 1967 starring alongside Jane Alexander in Howard Sackler's play, The Great White Hope, at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The play was a huge success when it moved to Broadway on October 3, 1968. The play was well received, winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Jones himself won the 1969 Tony Award (his first of three) for Best Actor in a Play, and the Drama Desk Award for his performance.

The Great White Hope was adapted from a play to a feature film in 1970 and once again Jones caught the attention of the world. His performance was acclaimed by critics and earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. He was the second African-American male performer, after Sidney Poitier, to be nominated for this award.

It was his voiceover for Star Wars, a science fiction film released in 1977, that put Jones in the spotlight of popular culture. Jones was contacted by his agent regarding the possibility of voicework for the character Darth Vader, main antagonist of first Star Wars movie. Director Geroge Lucas wanted to have a more powerful, dark voice for his titular villain. Ultimately, four different actors portrayed the iconic Dark Lord of the Sith: David Prowse acted as him outside of fights, Bob Anderson acted as him during fights, Sebastian Shaw acted as him during his unmasking in Return of The Jedi, and he was voiced by James Earl Jones.

The voiceover work earned Jones only $7,000 at the time, his deep basso voice became forever intwined with Darth Vader and gave life to the character in the blockbuster franchise. 

Following the unbelievable success of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, which made $775 million in 1977 alone, Lucas was given the green light to continue producing his original trilogy and James Earl Jones exploded like a Death Star in popularity. Even people who claim to not be fans of the franchise immediately can identify who Darth Vader is and what his most famous lines are (again, no spoilers for people who haven’t watched the movies: go watch the movies!).

Jones is also extremely well-known for his voice acting as Mufasa in Disney’s 1994 The Lion King. Mufasa was the father of Simba, and the ruler of the Pride Lands. Mufasa attempted to impart to Simba the importance of morality, good judgement, protecting your subjects, and preserving the resources of the Pride Lands. Probably one of the most traumatic experiences for many children is when Mufasa is betrayed by his brother Scar and the subsequent scene of Simba trying to wake his father up.

Jones continued to work both on Broadway and the Silver Screen until his retirement from voiceover work for projects in 2022. He gave Lucasfilm authorization to use artificial intelligence to recreate his iconic voice for future Star Wars projects before he passed away. The world was lucky to be entertained by James Earl Jones for over 70 years.