Throughout the 70s to the now, boatloads of generations have been familiar with the following sounds. Those same generations were wowed by the following voices. That was James Earl Jones. One of the most influential actors that stood the test of time in the history of film, television in animation. While Jones had many bit parts, he first debut in Doctor Strangelove as Lieutenant Lothar Zogg a B-52 Bombadier under the command of Major Kong played by Slim Pickens. And while many know the iconic scene that Pickens has done Riding the Bomb:
Jones delivered the set up to this iconic punchline of a scene.
However it wasn't until a certain role in the 70s that got him a claim to fame. An epic movie that made us question everything about ourselves. I am talking about....The Exorcist II The Heretic:
Just kidding....kinda. For you see while Jones was dressing up in Locust attire and delivering an astounding hammy performance in which was a breath of fresh air compared to the rest of that garbage movie, he took a side job as a voice actor. Preparing for a role no one expected to succeed because no one thought said movie would succeed, I am talking about of course. Star Wars:
His role? Darth fucking Vader.
While the voice was very iconic it did gain some controversy as soon as the movie began. For example, the suit actor David Prowse had no idea he was gonna be dubbed over and gave what he thought was his all in that performance:
Needless to say Prowse was pissed off and it was a miracle Lucas paid him to stay in the next two movies before Hayden Christensen took over as suit actor.
But it was that iconic voice that was the missing piece of the puzzle Lucas tried to create in his glorified Flash Gordon Knockoff.
There was even more controversy as Jones was uncredited for the role until the first batch of special editions.
Once Star Wars became an astounding success, the world was Jones' Oyster. Not just for himself, but for a certain iconic action star whom back then was just an unknown bodybuilder:
For his role as Thulsa Doom being the perfect foil for Arnold's Conan the Barbarian, not only added another great role to Jones' roster, but kickstarted the career of Arnold we knew and loved.
Of course action movies weren't his only forte. He has known to do Comedies:
Coming of Age movies:
But if you were like me and were raised in the 90s, you know exactly how you caught his voice:
Good old Mufasa. A stern but wise king. To bad his brother was a total prick:
With me it was both Star Wars and Lion King that got me started, but his unique contributions to the world of media in general, have gotten me to stay. My only regret is not meeting this guy in person, but I did hope it'd be something similar to this:
When Peter Cushing passed, we lost an Iconic Hammer Horror Icon. Much like with Christopher Lee after. When Alec Guiness passed, I was sad that Star Wars was all they knew him from. When Carrie Fisher passed, everyone lost a boss, but heaven gained a princess. When Kenny Baker died, R2D2 just didn't look the same to me anymore and I don't give a fuck what people say, no one can replace Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca. However, while these were iconic roles, made by such iconic people, I feel that Star Wars truly died, now that James has joined them. Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford (to his reluctance), are all that's left of the old cast now. All I can stay is, stay happy and healthy for as long as you can.
RIP James Earle Jones, you were everyone's father, in the circle of life. May the force be with you.
BlueMonday1984
May the Force be with him, and may he rest in peace.