James Earl Jones News

Vice President Joe Biden, Dr. Jill Biden, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, President pro tempore of the Senate Patrick Leahy, House Majority Leader Elect Kevin McCarthy, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, National Security Advisor Susan Rice, actress Debbie Allen, members of Congress and other distinguished guests attended the Ford's Theatre Annual Gala the evening of Sunday, June 22, 2014, at Ford's Theatre (511 10th Street NW). The gala performance was followed by a seated dinner at the National Portrait Gallery and Smithsonian American Art Museum (750 Ninth Street NW). The evening included the presentation of the Ford's Theatre Lincoln Medal to actor James Earl Jones and the U.S. House of Representatives' longest-serving member, The Honorable John D. Dingell. The award was given in recognition of their extraordinary character, service, accomplishments and work reflecting Lincoln's legacy of humanity, wisdom, eloquence and vision.

The Broadcast Television Journalists Association (BTJA) presents the 4th annual Critics' Choice Television Awards, which are being broadcast live on The CW from the Beverly Hilton Hotel tonight, June 19, 2014 (8:00pm ET/8:00pm PT) and hosted by actor/comedian Cedric the Entertainer. Cedric is currently the star, co-creator and executive producer of the hit comedy series The Soul Man on TV Land as well as one of the stars of The Original Kings of Comedy. Scroll down for the full list of winners!

NBC's Bob Costas spoke with stars Kevin Costner Dwier Brown (John) and Timothy Busfield (who played Ray's brother-in-law, Mark) for a look back. Check out the clip below!

Tickets are now on sale for The River, a new play by Jez Butterworth, starring Hugh Jackman, Laura Donnelly and Cush Jumbo, and directed by Ian Rickson.

According to WCF Courier, the cast of Field of Dreams recently reunited, 25 years after the film hit theaters, to discuss what fatherhood, baseball, and movies mean in America.

General on-sale will begin on Monday, June 16 at 12:01 AM for THE RIVER, a new play by Jez Butterworth, starring Hugh Jackman, Laura Donnelly and Cush Jumbo, and directed by Ian Rickson. The production is currently on sale to American Express cardholders only.

The Public Theater announced additional casting today for the free one-night event, PUBLIC FORUM: SHAKESPEARE IN AMERICA, on Monday, June 30 at 8:00 p.m. at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.

Producers of the upcoming Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman's Pulitzer Prize winning play You Can't Take It With You announce that tickets go on sale to the general public on Wednesday, June 11, 2014, and will be available by calling (212) 239-6200 or by visiting Telecharge.com.

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? Today's big news: Radcliffe and Webber make TV appearances, Vanessa Williams oversees Alvin Ailey's Lincoln Center season kick-off, Signature's PIECE OF MY HEART meets the press and Jim Parsons stops by our SAG series!

The 5th Avenue Theatre welcomes the National Tour of the Broadway sensation, The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, winner of the 2012 Tony Award for Best Musical Revival. This stunning musical plays today, June 11-29, 2014 (press opening June 12) at The 5th Avenue Theatre (1308 5th Ave, Seattle, WA 98101).

There may not have been 76 trombones, but Florence Henderson and Constantine Maroulis did excellent impersonations of librarian Marian Paroo and Harold Hill of 'The Music Man' fame, as they lead a 28 piece marching Broadway band into the Skirball Cultural Center in the new Guerin Pavilion/Herscher Hall to begin an evening of co-hosting for the Actors Fund's 18th Annual Tony Awards® Party. Check out the photos below!

Broadway legend, Barbara Cook, will be honored with The Julie Harris Award for Artistic Achievement at The Actors Fund's 18th Annual Tony Awards Viewing Party on June 8th, 2014.

Today it is BroadwayWorld's extreme honor to bring you an exclusive and extensive discussion with one of the finest American actors in history all about his legendary career onstage and on screens large and small - the commanding and versatile two-time Tony Award-winning and Academy Award-winning James Earl Jones. Touching upon much of his internationally regarded iconography as well as looking ahead to current and future endeavors, Jones eloquently expresses his observations on acting, art, humanity and life itself. Focusing on the ScreenVision presentation of Alfred Uhry's DRIVING MISS DAISY starring opposite fellow icon and InDepth InterView participant Dame Angela Lansbury, Jones astutely outlines the themes of the touching Southern drama depicting the unlikely friendship between an uptight society woman and her dedicated chauffer as well as opens up about his own experiences with culture clashes and race in his life. Additionally, Jones juxtaposes his observations of working alongside Vanessa Redgrave on the Broadway and West End iterations of the play versus the Australian tour with Lansbury which has now been preserved on film and is being shown in movie theaters across the country throughout this month. Plus, Jones reveals some of his own favorite moments in the powerful play and dissects the dynamics of his dense and complex characterization of Hoke in the piece and how he sees Hoke's relationship to that of Daisy (Lansbury) and her son, Boolie (played by Boyd Gaines). Besides all about DRIVING MISS DAISY, Jones also previews his upcoming Broadway return in the recently announced revival of the classic Kaufmann & Hart chestnut YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU and expresses his thoughts on the multi-racial casting planned for the hotly anticipated production. Furthermore, Jones looks back at some of his most fondly remembered roles to date - ranging from the voice of Darth Vader in STAR WARS and Mufasa in THE LION KING, to his seminal work in films such as DR. STRANGELOVE, CLAUDINE, CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY, FIELD OF DREAMS and more. All of that, his thoughts on the upcoming STAR WARS sequels currently in production, observations on his role in the new feature film comedy THE ANGRIEST MAN IN BROOKLYN, memories of his Shakespeare In The Park KING LEAR (available on DVD), his Tony Award-winning work in August Wilson's FENCES as well as much, much more!

Ford's Theatre Society will host its annual gala on Sunday, June 22, 2014, at Ford's Theatre (511 10th Street NW) followed by a seated dinner at the National Portrait Gallery and Smithsonian American Art Museum (750 Ninth Street NW). The evening includes the presentation of Lincoln Medals to actor James Earl Jones and the U.S. House of Representatives' longest-serving member, The Honorable John D. Dingell, whose extraordinary character, service, accomplishments and work reflect Lincoln's legacy of humanity, wisdom, eloquence and vision.

In April 2014, Artistic Director Vincent J. Cardinal announced that Tony and Emmy Award-winning actress Leslie Uggams would be starring as Rose in Connecticut Repertory Theatre's (CRT) production of GYPSY: A Musical Fable July 10-20. This announcement quickly spread through social media circles and the theatre community and set off a firestorm of discussion on message boards and Twitter about casting an African American actress in this iconic role.

With esteemed careers spanning 60 to 70 years long, actors Dame Angela Lansbury and James Earl Jones will bring the magic of the stage to movie theaters across the country this June. Screenvision and Broadway Near You have partnered to make the stage production of the Pulitzer-Prize winning Driving Miss Daisy available in more than 500 movie theaters in the U.S. and Canada beginning today, June 4. Click below to watch a trailer for the production!

Good morning, BroadwayWorld! Because we know all our readers eat, sleep and breathe Broadway, what could be better than waking up to it? Today's big news: DRIVING MISS DAISY, starring Lansbury and Jones, hits movie theaters today, while the NY Phil's CANDIDE concert, featuring Chenoweth and LuPone, is out online!

Producers of the upcoming Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman's Pulitzer Prize winning drama You Can't Take It With You announce that Tony Award nominee Kristine Nielsen (Vonya and Sonia and Masha and Spike) joins previously announced Tony Award and Outer Critics Circle winner James Earl Jones (Gore Vidal's The Best Man, Fences, The Great White Hope) as Penelope Sycamore in the cast. Further casting will be announced soon.