When James Earl Jones stopped in Rochester

Rochester, N.Y. (WROC) — James Earl Jones, the acclaimed actor who died this week, made a stop in Rochester in 1997.

He gave a talk at Eastman Theatre in February of that year and during that speech addressed the value of Black History Month.

News 8 was there to record part of that event, which was sponsored by the University of Rochester.

“I trust that in this concentrated and abbreviated time called Black History Month, that you would have heard the praises sung of heroes, and surprising achievements, by Americans called African-Americans,” Jones said.

Jones lent his remarkable voice to CNN and to the famous Star Wars villain Darth Vader and starred in a number of movies including Field of Dreams, The Sandlot and Coming to America.

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