James Earl Jones Death, Obituary: Legendary actor James Earl Jones, iconic voice of Darth Vader, dies at 93

James Earl Jones was an American actor known for his film roles and for his work in theater. He was one of the few performers to have achieved the EGOT. Jones was described as “one of America’s most … Wiki

The 93-year-old passed away this morning at his Dutchess County, New York, home, according to reports from Variety and Deadline.

According to his agent Barry McPherson, Jones passed away at home on Monday morning. It was unclear at first what the cause was.

On January 17, 1931, Jones was born in Arkabutla, Mississippi, by the light of an oil lamp in a hut. Before the baby was born, Robert Earl Jones, his father, had left his wife to follow his dreams of becoming a boxer and then an actor.

Jones’s mother took him to her parents’ farm outside Manistee, Michigan, when he was six years old. The boy was reared by his grandparents after being adopted.

At the University of Michigan, he failed a pre-med exam and switched to drama, also playing four seasons of basketball. He served in the Army from 1953 to 1955.

In New York, he moved in with his father and enrolled with the American Theater Wing program for young actors. Father and son waxed floors to support themselves while looking for acting jobs.

True stardom came suddenly in 1970 with “The Great White Hope.” Howard Sackler’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Broadway play depicted the struggles of Jack Johnson, the first Black heavyweight boxing champion, amid the racism of early 20th-century America. In 1972, Jones repeated his role in the movie version and was nominated for an Academy Award as best actor.