RIP James Earl Jones
I grew up on Star Wars. I watched the movies repeatedly. For a good few years, we watched the entire trilogy on pretty much every holiday. I loved it. The first movie I remember seeing in a movie theater was Return of the Jedi. I was six. My mom took me because she knew I loved watching Star Trek with my dad and she thought it was the same thing. It’s the thought that counts, I guess. Lord knows I loved it, even if it was a few years before I could figure out why Princess Leia in a metal bikini was such a big deal.
Darth Vader was, of course, a HUGE part of those movies. And his voice was what made the character, at least to me. That voice, and I’m sure you already know this, came from James Earl Jones. It was epic. It wasn’t until I was in my thirties that I learned that he hadn’t physically acted the character. It blew my mind because, in my mind, James Earl Jones WAS Darth Vader.
No really, when I saw Coming to America I almost died laughing when the guy in the big black suit told his son he had sex with his bathers. I couldn’t stop. I seem to remember asking someone if he left his cape on. And yeah, I get that Jones was playing the king and not the Sith, but I was a teenager, it was about sex and my sense of humor has always been warped. That’s the way is was always going to be.
And let’s not forget about The Lion King. I was till in my teens when that came out. I loved it. James Earl Jones my have actually done a better voice for Mufasa than he did for Vader. If you can think of a higher compliment, let me know, because that’s the best I’ve got. Who can forget hearing Mufasa explain the Circle of Life to Simba?
Uhh…
Can I mention that given current context? Probably not. Re-read that last paragraph and cover your eyes for the last sentence.
As I was saying…
James Earl Jones did a whole bunch of movies and I don’t claim to have seen all of them. I do know, however, that he never failed to entertain. I loved him in everything I saw that he did.
Ya know, it’s weird. Once upon a time, I used to wonder why people got all worked up when a celebrity they never met passed. I would shake my head and walk away. I didn’t want to make fun of them but it didn’t make sense. And then, the Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup.
I know some of y’all are not fans of the Sportsball, but I am. Days after they won their first Stanley Cups in forty-something years, there was a car wreck. Two Red Wings players (Vladi Konstantinov and Slava Kozlov) and one of their training staff (Sergei Mnatsakanov) were badly injured. There was a good chance at the time that two of them might not make it. (They all did, but it was touch and go for a minute.)
I was a wreck. I followed the team so closely at the time that I knew all of the nicknames that the players called each other. I knew when their parents trips were. I watched every game that was on when I wasn’t working. I went to games with the girl I was dating at the time. I paid money to go Joe Louis Arena to watch the games on the Jumbotron and eat overpriced hot dogs.
I was devastated. I couldn’t catch my breath. I remember someone, I think it was Chris Draper, being interviewed on TV and mentioning how Vladi’s wife wouldn’t allow anyone to cry at the hospital. She felt that crying was only appropriate if someone had passed. I shrugged and said, “It’s a good thing I’m not at the hospital. I had invited those injured Red Wings into my living room for eighty-two regular season games and only God knows exactly how many playoff games for probably a decade by that point. I had a definite attachment to these guys on a personal level.
Wow. That sounded creepy.
In short, I was Red Wings geek. But I’m also a Star Wars geek. I have been since 1983. I was devastated both times. It’s a bitter thing watching people I’ve never met but somehow feel like I know pass on. I can’t help like feeling like I personally have lost something when the world lost James Earl Jones. I spent holidays with the dude. I played with the toys that represented him. I read books in the Star Wars Expanded Universe and heard his character speaking in his voice. I spent time with Jones, even if he ever knew it.
I’m going to miss the man. He was a terrific actor. His presence filled up a screen. Seriously, if you’ve ever seen the unedited version of Star Wars then you know how Jones made that movie. Luke, Han and Leia might get all the credit but that series doesn’t work unless you’ve got someone to root against. Vader gave us that, right up until he did a face turn and saved Luke from the Emperor. That moment was epic but it doesn’t have a tenth of the emotional impact without Jones voicing that character.
And who can forget the feeling of confidence and wisdom that Jones gave to Mufasa? I saw that movie in the theater four times (my personal record) and it never failed to remind me of the bond I had with my own father. Not that my old man ever had a voice that sounded that impressive, but no one is perfect.
If I ever forget hearing King Jaffe Joffer ask Prince Akeem if he had sex with his bathers, or the look I got from my own father when he said it and right before we both started laughing, it’s because dementia has struck. I’m still laughing.
So Rest In Peace Mr. Jones. May fair winds and following seas carry you to your rest. I will see you when I get there.