He was one of the most famous actors in America, known as the voice of Darth Vader, the Lion King, and even the taglines for CNN. He won two Emmys, a Golden Globe, two Tony Awards, a Grammy, and an honorary Oscar.

Jones told CBN's Ben Kinchlow in 1993 how he overcame his childhood problem with stuttering when a high school teacher challenged him to read a poem he wrote—in front of the class.

The stutter began after Jones' mother, abandoned by her husband, took him to live on her parents' farm near Manistee, Michigan when he was just 6. His grandparents adopted and raised him.

"A world ended for me, the safe world of childhood," Jones wrote in his autobiography, Voices and Silences. "The move from Mississippi to Michigan was supposed to be a glorious event. For me it was a heartbreak, and not long after, I began to stutter."

He further explained in a Guideposts article in 1993, "Since I was eight I'd had trouble speaking. It was so bad that whenever I stood up in class to read, the other kids snickered and laughed. I always sat down, my face burning with shame." Jones wrote, "I'm not sure what caused my stuttering. Perhaps it was an emotional problem. I was born in Arkabutla, Mississippi, and when I was about five, I moved to live with my grandparents on their farm near Dublin in northern Michigan. It was traumatic moving from the warm, easy ways of catfish country to the harsh climate of the north, where people seemed so different."

Jones also wrote in that article that, despite it being a traumatic time in his life, God used this major life event in other ways. "Fortunately, my granddaddy was a gentle man, a farmer who taught me to love the land. He was short and he had a prodigious amount of energy. He even built a church to please Grandmother, a fervent worshiper of the Lord. All sorts of people were invited to our little church; white, black and American Indian came together in a nondenominational fellowship."

But his stutter persisted and made him too embarrassed to speak, so he remained virtually mute for many years until a sympathetic high school teacher, Donald Crouch, learned that Jones wrote poetry, and demanded that he read one of his poems aloud in class. He obeyed and finally found his voice.

He eventually became an accomplished actor and was even asked to record a narration for the New Testament which he called his "greatest honor," saying he did it for the childhood mentor who had helped him overcome his stutter and who had pointed him to God.

"And so, when I was asked to record the New Testament, I really did it for a tall, lean man with gray hair who had not only helped to guide me to the Author of the Scriptures, but as the father of my resurrected voice, had also helped me find abundant life," he wrote.

James Earl Jones' cause of death is currently unknown. Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

Benjamin Gill oversees internet and social media content as the Multimedia Manager for CBNNews.com.

To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE

Why the New RomCom ‘MERV’ Can Bring You Joy This Christmas

How the 'Heavens Declare the Glory of God': What One Man's Research Has Revealed about The Star of Bethlehem

Over 50 Tren de Aragua Gang Members Imported Under Democrats Indicted in Nebraska in Massive Nationwide ATM Jackpotting Scheme

205 Child Victims Located and Rescued in DOJ Sex Exploitation Op

Trump Admin Pausing All Off Shore Wind Project Construction Due To National Security Concerns

Trump Grants Federal Workers Two Additional Christmas Holidays

America Fest 2025: Erika Kirk Endorses 'My Husband's Friend' JD Vance for President

Brent Bozell Confirmed as US Ambassador to South Africa

Jury Quickly Convicts Judge Who Helped Illegal Migrant Escape ICE

Feds Estimate Somali-Linked Fraud in Walz's Minnesota Could Top $9 Billion

Trump SUSPENDS 'Green Card Lottery' after Program Let Brown University–MIT Shooting Suspect Enter the US

Brown, MIT Shooter Found Dead for Days in NH Storage Unit; Motive Still a Mystery

House Passes Bill to Criminalize Transgender Mutilation of Children

November Inflation Falls to 2.7%, Lower than Expected: 'This Is Good News for Wall Street; It’s Good News for Main Street'

MOVIEGUIDE's Review of the New Animated Film: DAVID

Massachusetts Drops Controversial Gender Ideology Mandate for Licensing Foster Care Parents

Nearly 40% of Women Suffer Severe Grief for Years after Abortion, Miscarriage: Study

Former Pfizer Vice President: COVID Shots Were 'Designed to Cause Injury,' Reduce Fertility

Dutch Sheets Shares a Warning from the US National Counterterrorism Center

Venezuela: Trump's Pressure Campaign and Maduro's Fury