"King Lear" (1974) with James Earl Jones, Act II Scene 4

[TheBermudaMan]

Ho. Lee. Shit.

I'd be terrified of even sharing the same stage with Jones at that moment, for fear of him eating me on the spot. Shakespeare on steroids!

[recordnyc]

This man is an acting God.

[LastlyMore]

The ending was pure beast.

[TheMrLandon]

7:55 to the end is... well, intensity falls short as a word so I'll leave it others to think of another. Suffice to say it is as strong a performance as I have seen and I know I'm not alone in my assessment. I would add that whoever did the camera work--and moved the camera off Jones during that last speech--should suffer twice the pains of Lear. Even with frankly weak performances surrounding him, Jones is amazing here. Thanks for posting this.

[likebrightmetal]

Yes The RSC has stolen Shakespeare for its own ends. All patrons are encouraged to donate to other more diverse organisations rather than looking at the RSC as the last vestige for the promotion of Shakespearean art. The RSC is inward looking self promoting and exercises exclusion at the highest level and offers no resolution or dialogue which encourages original creativity and understanding to those who once believed that the RSC was the almighty propeller for Mr William Shakespeare,

[CorpusChristi83]

Incredible acting on James Earl Jones' part.

[mindingosafado]

King Vaderfasta! ^__^

[kevlonk]

DAMN...Darth Vader/Mufasa is also a pretty good Lear.

[ritzreference]

James Earl... a class act all the way!

[Lab356]

oh these women have no concept of the audience, how they look away, tis so poor how they let down the quality of the performance.

[CoxandTanfield]

This is a great performance. I confess though that I need subtitles/dialogue when I watch a Shakespeare dvd so I can understand what is being said.

[brotherbrubru]

Acting!

[AbsintheMindedMe]

Thank you for posting this! I haven't seen it since it was originally broadcast. PBS just seemed to want to ignore it after that. James Earl Jones is just brilliant in this performance. And the daughters are just as godawful as I remember. Too bad this clip doesn't include the really great supporting players; Paul Sorvino as Glouchester, Rene Auberjonois as Edgar (best Edgar ever, IMHO) and Raul Julia as a steamy hot Edmund.

[brzeczyk]

As written in the description I posted: "Fragment of a televised version of the 1974 New York Shakespeare Festival production in Central Park."

So it was done in Central Park, in New York City, U.S.A.

[MrABZ019]

Pray tell where was this production done?

[MrABZ019]

Where ddi this performance take place?

[DamnitRecords]

@ Stevevandien LOL Lee Chamberlin ,my mother is not dead! She is alive and well living in Paris and working on her next play. She has a fan page on facebook! You are killing me here! You can still enjoy her performances. Thanks for the kind words. I will tell her.

[tommyt1971]

Damn, James Earl was thin back then! NOT that he isn't still a classy dude!

[Greekbaritone]

Mr. Jone's riveting Lear will go down in history as did Robeson's groundbreaking Othello....What a wonderful recording. Thank you!

[soapfave06]

Thanks for posting this, I have always wanted to see more of Ellen Holly's work!

[stevevandien]

Am I the only one who finds Holly's Regan a bat from hell, or perhaps worse?

[tommyt1971]

@stevevandien Eh, Regan & Goneril were BOTH hellish witches!

[stevevandien]

@tommyt1971 Oh, of course:). I just find Holly scarier than Cash. That's just my personal reaction --

[Caylajax]

I love him, that made me want to cry (what talent!)

[starzulu]

An Outstanding Performance From an Outstanding Actor! Don't under estimate the power of the Dark Side...

[vivascargill]

Scofield magnificent (his Coriolanus if anyone can find it even better) Jones is splendid

[stevevandien]

Jones is quite good. But I believe Lear is just this side of unplayable:). The character is OLD. Yet the language and emotions therein demand a very powerful actor. With the possible exception of Christopher Plummer, no actor approaching Lear's age has had the necessary resources ( not excluding Olivier's second Lear, circa 1983).

Jones is powerful, no doubt about it. But despite his whitened hair, he seems rather young. Holly is downright scary:) --

[thinlizzybone]

@stevevandien Wait, are you actually saying that Olivier blew it?

[stevevandien]

@thinlizzybone Not that he BLEW it, but he was old and feeble for the second one. I wish Olivier could have filmed Lear during his prime ---

[arpeggio1358]

@stevevandien I agree. I've seen the Olivier Lear that you refer to. I wish he had filmed Lear during his prime, also. i imagine he was a splendid Lear.

[stevevandien]

@arpeggio1358 Hey Laurie, The 1982 Olivier Lear found our greatest classical actor dealing with much-reduced resources, due both to his horrific neuromuscular disease and the inevitable encroachments of age. Even so, Lord O's Lear is well worth seeing. But good heavens, how I wish that he'd filmed it contemporaneously with his Henry V, Hamlet, Richard III -- AND that he'd filmed "Macbeth" as well during those years:) --

[arpeggio1358]

@stevevandien I've seen the Olivier Lear, but found it sad that Olivier was in such ill health. By the way, have you seen the Branagh Henry V? I think it's the finest realization of a Shakespeare film ever put on film. The scene leaving the battlefield at Agincourt is positively brilliant. Branagh's Hamlet is quite the opposite. Ack!

[stevevandien]

@arpeggio1358 Hi Laurie, I LOVE Branagh's "Henry V." A GREAT film. I've seen it many times over the last 20 years, and I still take every opportunity to see it again. I'd call it the best filmed Shakespeare, but am not sure whether Branagh's "Much Ado About Nothing" isn't as good, or better:). I know what you mean about Branagh's "Hamlet." His direction is interesting, but his performance isn't. Then again, the part might simply be unplayable -- what do you think? Best, Steve

[hrtbrk808]

my acting teacher was right, easily one of the top five shakespearean actors of our time!

[JukeboxSavage]

beats the hell out of star wars =P

[stevevandien]

@JukeboxSavage You are DAMN right!:)

[sfisher71]

I haven't seen this performance since, well, probably since it was new; PBS broadcast it in about 1974-75. Many of the other roles were great too, but Jones was clearly the standout.

[EuphrasieF]

Didn't know he did Shakespeare roles, but I suppose I should not be surprised.

[Johniker]

Oh yes, he's actually a classically trained actor.

[madfoot]

thank you for posting this!

[reiman1308]

O..M..G that was amazing. James Earl Jones showed such...passion on the stage. Did you see the saliva coming out of is mouth? Now that was some damn good actting

[DeaconBlues]

Olivier, Schofield, Jones, MacKellen, even Guinness don't have the same impact in the role that Tatsuya Nakadai had for me personally. My favorite Lear to this day....I highly encourage fans to see Kurosawa's Ran if they haven't. One of the best adaptations of any work ever.

[cjaguar1]

thats mufasa!

[imeldaDuke]

And Luke´s Daddy! ^^

[tymbaland01]

i love james earl jones he is awesome

[lukemccurry]

His understanding and presentation of the text in this performance is incredible.

[amiannoyingu]

is the spit comin in the last part on purpose?

[Trevguy00]

VADER!!!!!!!!

[chilam8668]

"COmmander tear this ship apart until you've found those plans and bring me the passengers, i want them alive!" he he. Some might deride or turn up their noses at the fact that people inevitably reference star wars when it comes to James Earl Jones, but if it leads to check out stunning performances like this it can't be all bad right?

[Laffington]

Jones is well known and still an underrated actor!

[tfkskilletfan1]

MUFASA!

[DEFINEMETAL]

darth vader

[filrut]

This is CNN!

[IluvKirito]

He has the coolest voice ever.

However, I must say that I prefer Ian Holm in this part...probably because his version is the first I had ever seen, and so far the best. :o

[14santiago52]

hmm, maybe it's just me, but I don't think this performance is "breathtaking". Scofield is lightyears better. Just imho.

[brzeczyk]

I just posted Scofield's and McKellen's interpretations of the same scene. They are very different. Scofield is cold and chilling (fantastic), McKellen is touching and Jones is very intense, full of rage and, well, I stand by my opinion, breathtaking. In the literal sense. All of them way better than boring Olivier. :)

[14santiago52]

Yup, I didn't like Olivier either. :) McKellen is very fine as well. But, in the end, it's a matter of taste. For me, Scofield is 'the' lear.

[BrookHornblower]

@brzeczyk have you not seen Horden's performance?!

[JudgeJulieLit]

@brzeczyk I second your opinon of Jones' Lear as "breathtaking": not only does his performance amaze and impress (engasp) us audience as a uniquely powerful epitome, but fortuitously bisignantly it audibly takes his own breath away -- all fittingly, as Lear's onstage agon from here builds to a volcanic geyser of "hysterico passio" that eventually will stop/break his heart "smilingly." A further credit to Jones' acting -- at this show he was but age 40, all persuasively playing an octagenarian.

[missVeemack]

@14santiago52 you are right it is just you.

[hanshotfirst1138]

Are there any recordings of his Othello?

[CptUndies]

Jones Is Better Than Olivier In My Opinion. But Thats Just Me

[stevevandien]

I dunno, maybe it's just me, but Mr. Jones seems a little too young and vigorous here for the role. He is too fine an actor not to have some powerful moments, however --

[coryisawake]

I like JEJ, but this is caricaturistic.

[mfolleyr20]

im not defending jej or agreeing with you but how is it caricaturistic to someone with lil exp. in the theatre

[gfterp]

"Breathtaking indee, because JEJ uses the pauses between the words with whistling intakes, small snorts, etc. Much as Mmahler, bits between the notes meant as much as the notes. I saw him in Othello, around this time. When one's seats are Row 3,"See sweet sweat, sweet spit expend... hard-working actor until the story's end."

[altodivo]

He's 43 here!! Is that the youngest Lear EVER?!

[14santiago52]

There have been younger ones in the theatre. Paul Scofield was only 40 when he delievered one of the most outstanding Lear performances for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1962.

[samartz]

sum1 giv him a clap

[chilam8668]

James Earl Jones is Awesome! Though I can't help but hear a deep respirator breathing whenever he talks. I keep expecting him to talk about the dark side. : )

[dglekjofg]

I personally find Laurence Olivier's performance far more moving than this one. Larry's Lear really managed to bring tears to my eyes. But many thanks for posting!

[EbClectic]

i think the fundamental difference here is that this piece is live and the one with sir laurence olivier is tv produced. i think they both have their qualities.

[dglekjofg]

I personally find Laurence Olivier's performance far more moving than this one. Larry's Lear really managed to bring tears to my eyes. But many thanks for posting!

[Bentl11]

YOU BETTA SLOB JAMES! Brilliant Acting. God is amazing at what He does!

[zoroalabaster]

do you have the rest of the play? more!

[yaykermit]

James Earl Jones is definately one of the best actors of he 20th century one of the best voices too.

[Darknight364]

jej is good

the woman is weird

[willfulshakespeare]

thanks for posting this. my favorite actor in my favorite play.

[reniZzal]

wow the acting is shocking. She cant stop smiling. Earl Jones is still amazing, But i cant take this seriously. SHE KEEPS SMILING !!!!!

[pussybanger89]

she's smiling because this was their plan(reagan & goneril) all along.. to make their father look crazy and sinile.. that's my view

[southfieldmo]

Yes, I think she's going for "gleefully spiteful."

[cydwaze8]

Absolutely, and you wouldn't dare speak to a king with anything other than complete deference.

[rfcbeilfuss]

What the hell is wrong with the rest of the players??? Here we have James E Jones kicking ass...and the rest of the company still doing high-school acting....GAWD.

[manthasagittarius]

@rfcbeilfuss Regan is awful.

[TheSchoolWorld]

@rfcbeilfuss I agree with this statement 100%. The supporting cast, especially that woman, is severely hurting the wonderful performance of jones.

[JudgeJulieLit]

@rfcbeilfuss Why "James E Jones kicking ass. . .and the rest of the company still doing high-school acting" -- professional courtesy? To set off his greater acting, theirs a noncompetitive, nondistractive foil ? To paraphrase Wordsworth, Jones now "fair as a star when only one is shining in the sky"? Or as the bard himself put it in 1 Henry 4, "Two stars keep not their orbit in one sphere!" And as J. Alfred Prufrock, they are "not Prince Hamlet, nor were meant to be."

[JudgeJulieLit]

@rfcbeilfuss But ultimately, in this scene the other actors' underacting (e.g., stark immobility, silence and distance from one another) is both the bard's and the director's call. The spotlight is on the character Lear -- this is his great soliloquy.

[JudgeJulieLit]

@rfcbeilfuss But ultimately, in this scene the other actors' underacting (ex., stark immobility, silence and distance from one another) is both the bard's and the director's call. The spotlight is on the character Lear -- this is his great soliloquy.

[brotherbrubru]

ACTING!

[FELO151]

Luke, I am your father!

[notaniceguy34]

i have to disagree. ellen holly was rather good as regan

[recordnyc]

OMG. Thank you. I love Mr. Jones' work and was lucky to meet him as a freshman in college years ago. His acting is just sublime. Also, do you have and can post Raul Julia's scenes too?

[Deadeye777]

wow. that chick is HORRIBLE. I wonder how James Earl Jones can sit there and listen to her plod along her lines like a child in between his stunning performance.

[PittFan88]

whoa

[davidleedutton]

I have fond memories of this production. Of all the Lears I've seen, this was my favorite. Yes, Lee Chamberlain was wonderful in this, as were Raul Julia, Douglas Watson, Tom Aldredge and Rene Auberjonois (in my mind, the definitive Edgar). And Frankie Faison, in the small role of the Captain, made a huge impression on me with his line, "I cannot draw a cart nor eat dried oats; if it be man's work, I'll do it."

[DamnitRecords]

Can you please post he section with my mother in it? Lee Chamberlin was a fine Cordelia and the scene when she is about to be taken to the stocks to be hung is heartbreaking. I helped my mother with this role and I don't understand why she has been left out. She is and still is a fine fine actress,writer and director. Am I her fan? Yes. I want to see her receive her due. Thank you. Ekayani Chamberlin

[stevevandien]

@DamnitRecords I very much admired your mother! I loved her in "Roots: II" and "Paris." A fine actress and a formidably attractive woman.. May she rest in peace:). Best wishes always,  Steve