James Earl Jones and a Voice We’ll Never Forget

He was only nominated once for an Oscar and lost to George C. Scott in Patton. He should have been nominated many times, especially for Supporting Actor in Field of Dreams.

He began his career with one of the greatest films of all time, Dr. Strangelove:

Before he became the voice of Darth Vader, he was memorable in films like Claudine and Swashbuckler. He overcame tremendous obstacles to become one of the most well known actors in the film industry. He will be greatly missed.

From the AP:

Jones was born by the light of an oil lamp in a shack in Arkabutla, Mississippi, on Jan. 17, 1931. His father, Robert Earl Jones, had deserted his wife before the baby’s arrival to pursue life as a boxer and, later, an actor.

When Jones was 6, his mother took him to her parents’ farm near Manistee, Michigan. His grandparents adopted the boy and raised him.

“A world ended for me, the safe world of childhood,” Jones wrote in his autobiography, “Voices and Silences.” “The move from Mississippi to Michigan was supposed to be a glorious event. For me it was a heartbreak, and not long after, I began to stutter.”

Too embarrassed to speak, he remained virtually mute for years, communicating with teachers and fellow students with handwritten notes. A sympathetic high school teacher, Donald Crouch, learned that the boy wrote poetry, and demanded that Jones read one of his poems aloud in class. He did so faultlessly.

It is the stuff of legends that the man who could not speak for years would grow up to have a voice none of us will ever forget.

He’s been acting my entire life and has a long and fulfilling career. He died at 93.  I will always remember his monologue in Field of Dreams because I think of it almost every day, “People will come, Ray.” Rest in power.