James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor who in a career of more than 50 years has become known as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" and "one of the greatest actors in American history." Since his Broadway debut in 1957, Jones has won many awards, including a Tony Award and Golden Globe Award for his role in The Great White Hope. Jones has won three Emmy Awards, including two in the same year in 1991, and he also earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role in the film version of The Great White Hope. He is also known for his voice acting, most notably as Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise as well as in many other film, stage, and television roles.
As a child Jones overcame a stutter that lasted for several years. A pre-med major in college, he went on to serve as a U.S. Army Ranger during the Korean War, before dedicating his career to acting.
On November 12, 2011, he received an Honorary Academy Award.
Read more about James Earl Jones: Personal Life, Awards, Filmography
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“I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over.”
—Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.)
“The awe and dread with which the untutored savage contemplates his mother-in-law are amongst the most familiar facts of anthropology.”
—Sir James George Frazer (1854–1941)
“It is hard to say which is the greatest fool: he who tells the whole truth, or he who tells no truth at all. Character is as necessary in business as in trade. No man can deceive often in either.”
—Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl Chesterfield (1694–1773)
“There used to be two kinds of kisses. First when girls were kissed and deserted; second, when they were engaged. Now there’s a third kind, where the man is kissed and deserted. If Mr. Jones of the nineties bragged he’d kissed a girl, everyone knew he was through with her. If Mr. Jones of 1919 brags the same everyone knows it’s because he can’t kiss her any more. Given a decent start any girl can beat a man nowadays.”
—F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940)