American theater and screen legend James Earl Jones died Monday morning at his home in upstate New York. He was 93. He was best known for voicing the fearsome Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, as well as Mufasa in The Lion King.
Sixty years of career and 200 appearances on screen
James Earl Jones was born on January 17, 1931, in Arkabutla, Mississippi. He overcame a severe stutter as a child through diction lessons that shaped his career. After studying at the University of Michigan and serving in the United States Air Force during the Korean War, he made his stage debut on Broadway and became an iconic figure in theater and film. Married to Cecilia Hart from 1982 until her death in 2016, he had one son, Flynn Earl Jones.
Over the course of his 60-year career, Jones has amassed nearly 200 screen credits, beginning with television roles in the 1960s and Stanley Kubrick’s classic Dr. Strangelove (1964). In addition to his film performances, he has also made his mark on the Broadway stage. Jones is one of the few performers to have won all four major entertainment awards, the “EGOTs”: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar (honorary) and Tony Awards. He has also been honored with accolades such as the Kennedy Center Honors in 2002. His legacy, both on stage and on screen, continues to inspire generations of actors.