In the history of Hollywood there are just some lines that are so iconic that no other information is needed for automatic recognition. They are so known that they have become part of our vocabulary and are often used in our day-today conversations – lines like “We’re not in Kansas anymore,” “Go ahead. Make my day,” “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse,” and “I’ll be back.”Some actors over the years have had several of these lines. I think Humphrey Bogart has at least 10, but most actors are lucky to have one. What sets James Earl Jones apart is that he has two and both are in movies in which he did not actually act. Yet, with Jones, it was okay not to see him because it’s impossible to not recognize that voice.Jones’ voice is possibly the most recognized voice ever in Hollywood. That deep baritone. Movie history was made in 1977, starting with the opening scene of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope when a massive star destroyer filled up the entire screen as it chased down Princess Leia’s ship. The movie just started and yet the audience was already enthralled. As Leia’s ship was boarded and a fight breaks out, suddenly Darth Vader enters.Using the Force, Vader begins to choke an officer and asks, “Where are those transmissions you intercepted?” Suddenly, one of the greatest villains was born. It will not be until Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (the best in the entire series by the way) that Vader gives his most iconic and often misquoted line, “No, Iam your father,” and cemented Jones into legendary status of movie one-liners.Jones helped make Star Wars into one of the most, if not the most, influential movie franchises of all time. It helped establish the massive special effects blockbusters that came to dominate Hollywood. It was also the first movie to really franchise itself with a toy deal, making over $100 million (approximately $400 million today) in the first year or so. I still have a couple of my old action figures that I played with as a kid somewhere in my house.‘The Lion King’For me, Jones’ second-most iconic line comes from a much softer movie but one where you still never saw his face. After young Prince Simba runs away, he eventually has to decide if he will return and face his ...
