Jeffrey Jones
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey Duncan Jones is an American
actor. He has appeared in many films and television series, but may be best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Miloš Forman
’s Amadeus
, Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice
, and Dean of Students Edward R. Rooney in the 1986 John Hughes film Ferris Bueller's Day Off
.
, the son of Ruth (née
Schooley), an art historian
who urged him towards a career in acting, and Douglas Bennett Jones, who died during Jeffrey's childhood. After briefly attending the Sylvia Herpolscheimer Academy of the Performing Arts, Jones attended Lawrence University
, where he was initiated as a brother into Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He then went to London in 1969 to study at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
, followed by a three-year stint with the Stratford Theatre, in Stratford, Ontario
.
film Easy Money and a guest shot on Remington Steele
led to his replacing Ian Richardson
in Miloš Forman
's 1984 adaptation of the Peter Shaffer
play Amadeus
as Emperor
Joseph II
; he received a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for his performance. Jones’ performance as Mr. Edward R. Rooney, Dean of Students in Ferris Bueller's Day Off
, made him a cultural icon. Rooney, self-important and obsessed with catching the chronically truant Ferris Bueller, became a symbol of stuffed-shirt pomposity and authoritarian hatefulness. Jones has proven to be a favorite of director Tim Burton
, starring in Beetlejuice
, Ed Wood
as The Amazing Criswell
, and Sleepy Hollow
, and he has also appeared in such prominent films as The Hanoi Hilton
, The Hunt for Red October
, Howard the Duck
, Houseguest
, The Crucible, The Devil’s Advocate
, and Stuart Little
. Jones also had a key role in The Pest, a comedy starring John Leguizamo
, as the evil German trying to hunt Pestario "Pest" Vargas. Other key roles for Jones include Stay Tuned, where he played Mr. Spike, and the 1992 comedy Mom and Dad Save the World
, where he played Dick Nelson. Jones co-starred in the 1999 cult favorite cannibal western Ravenous
and played Inspector Lestrade in Without a Clue
. In 1995, Jones co-starred with Kathy Najimy
in the video storyline portion of the Walt Disney World Tomorrowland
attraction ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter
.
Jones has guested on a number of television series, including Amazing Stories
, Tales from the Crypt
and Wayside
. In 1989, Jones starred in Wes Craven
's short-lived CBS sitcom The People Next Door
, where he played a cartoonist whose imagination could make things come to life. He also appeared as famous newspaper publisher A. W. Merrick
on HBO’s highly acclaimed show Deadwood
.
In 2003, Jones was arrested for soliciting a 14-year-old boy to pose for sexually explicit photographs and possession of child pornography. The misdemeanor possession charge was dropped after Jones pleaded nolo contendere
to inducing a minor to pose for sexually explicit photographs; he was sentenced to five years' probation, ordered to undergo counseling, and required to register as a sex offender
for life.
In 2004 and 2010, Jones was arrested for failing to update his sex offender registration. On September 28, 2010, Jones was sentenced to three years' probation and 250 hours of community service.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor. He has appeared in many films and television series, but may be best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Miloš Forman
Miloš Forman
Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for...
’s Amadeus
Amadeus (film)
Amadeus is a 1984 period drama film directed by Miloš Forman and written by Peter Shaffer. Adapted from Shaffer's stage play Amadeus, the story is based loosely on the lives of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri, two composers who lived in Vienna, Austria, during the latter half of the...
, Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice is a 1988 American comedy horror film directed by Tim Burton, produced by The Geffen Film Company and distributed by Warner Bros...
, and Dean of Students Edward R. Rooney in the 1986 John Hughes film Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off is a 1986 American teen coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by John Hughes.The film follows high school senior Ferris Bueller , who decides to skip school and spend the day in downtown Chicago...
.
Early life
Jones was born in Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, the son of Ruth (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Schooley), an art historian
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
who urged him towards a career in acting, and Douglas Bennett Jones, who died during Jeffrey's childhood. After briefly attending the Sylvia Herpolscheimer Academy of the Performing Arts, Jones attended Lawrence University
Lawrence University
Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849...
, where he was initiated as a brother into Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He then went to London in 1969 to study at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art is a leading British drama school in west London. LAMDA's president is Timothy West and its new principal is Joanna Read, who recently succeeded Peter James...
, followed by a three-year stint with the Stratford Theatre, in Stratford, Ontario
Stratford, Ontario
Stratford is a city on the Avon River in Perth County in southwestern Ontario, Canada with a population of 32,000.When the area was first settled by Europeans in 1832, the townsite and the river were named after Stratford-upon-Avon, England. It is the seat of Perth County. Stratford was...
.
Career and filmography
Jones began acting in small parts in film and TV in the 1970s. A supporting role in the 1983 Rodney DangerfieldRodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield , was an American comedian, and actor, known for the catchphrases "I don't get no respect!," "No respect, no respect at all... that's the story of my life" or "I get no respect, I tell ya" and his monologues on that theme...
film Easy Money and a guest shot on Remington Steele
Remington Steele
Remington Steele is an American television series, co-created by Robert Butler and Michael Gleason. The series, starring Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan, was produced by MTM Enterprises and first broadcast on the NBC network from 1982 to 1987. The series blended the genres of romantic...
led to his replacing Ian Richardson
Ian Richardson
Ian William Richardson CBE was a Scottish actor best known for his portrayal of the Machiavellian Tory politician Francis Urquhart in the BBC's House of Cards trilogy. He was also a leading Shakespearean stage actor....
in Miloš Forman
Miloš Forman
Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for...
's 1984 adaptation of the Peter Shaffer
Peter Shaffer
Sir Peter Levin Shaffer is an English dramatist and playwright, screenwriter and author of numerous award-winning plays, several of which have been filmed.-Early life:...
play Amadeus
Amadeus (film)
Amadeus is a 1984 period drama film directed by Miloš Forman and written by Peter Shaffer. Adapted from Shaffer's stage play Amadeus, the story is based loosely on the lives of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri, two composers who lived in Vienna, Austria, during the latter half of the...
as Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
Joseph II
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...
; he received a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for his performance. Jones’ performance as Mr. Edward R. Rooney, Dean of Students in Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off is a 1986 American teen coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by John Hughes.The film follows high school senior Ferris Bueller , who decides to skip school and spend the day in downtown Chicago...
, made him a cultural icon. Rooney, self-important and obsessed with catching the chronically truant Ferris Bueller, became a symbol of stuffed-shirt pomposity and authoritarian hatefulness. Jones has proven to be a favorite of director Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
, starring in Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice is a 1988 American comedy horror film directed by Tim Burton, produced by The Geffen Film Company and distributed by Warner Bros...
, Ed Wood
Ed Wood (film)
Ed Wood is a 1994 American comedy-drama biopic directed and produced by Tim Burton, and starring Johnny Depp as cult filmmaker Edward D. Wood, Jr. The film concerns the period in Wood's life when he made his best-known films as well as his relationship with actor Bela Lugosi, played by Martin Landau...
as The Amazing Criswell
The Amazing Criswell
Jeron Criswell King , born Jeron Criswell Konig, and known by his stage-name The Amazing Criswell , was an American psychic known for wildly inaccurate predictions...
, and Sleepy Hollow
Sleepy Hollow (film)
Sleepy Hollow is a 1999 American period horror film directed by Tim Burton. It is a film adaptation loosely inspired by the 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving and stars Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Marc Pickering, Michael Gambon, Jeffrey Jones,...
, and he has also appeared in such prominent films as The Hanoi Hilton
The Hanoi Hilton (film)
The Hanoi Hilton is a 1987 Vietnam War film which focuses on the experiences of American prisoners of war who were held in the infamous Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi during the 1960s and 1970s and the story is told from their perspectives...
, The Hunt for Red October
The Hunt for Red October (film)
The Hunt for Red October is a 1990 thriller film based on the novel of the same name by Tom Clancy. It was directed by John McTiernan and stars Sean Connery as Captain Marko Ramius and Alec Baldwin as Jack Ryan...
, Howard the Duck
Howard the Duck (film)
Howard the Duck is a 1986 American science fiction comedy film directed by Willard Huyck and produced by George Lucas. It is loosely based on the Marvel comic book of the same name, created by Steve Gerber and quoting scripts by Bill Mantlo, the film focuses on Howard, an alien from a planet...
, Houseguest
Houseguest
Houseguest is a 1995 feature film starring Sinbad and Phil Hartman and directed by Randall Miller.-Plot:Kevin Franklin is an inner-city Pittsburgh native; raised in an orphanage, has delusions of grandeur, and talks about getting rich and driving a Porsche one day...
, The Crucible, The Devil’s Advocate
The Devil's Advocate (film)
The Devil's Advocate is a 1997 American horror film directed by Taylor Hackford starring Keanu Reeves, Al Pacino and Charlize Theron, and based on a novel by Andrew Neiderman....
, and Stuart Little
Stuart Little (film)
Stuart Little is a 1999 family film. It is loosely based on the novel of the same name by E. B. White. It combines live-action and computer animation. The screenplay was co-written by M. Night Shyamalan and Greg Brooker, with uncredited script doctoring by David O. Russell and Billy Ray...
. Jones also had a key role in The Pest, a comedy starring John Leguizamo
John Leguizamo
Jonathan Alberto "John" Leguizamo is an Colombian-American actor, producer, voice artist, and comedian.-Early life:...
, as the evil German trying to hunt Pestario "Pest" Vargas. Other key roles for Jones include Stay Tuned, where he played Mr. Spike, and the 1992 comedy Mom and Dad Save the World
Mom and Dad Save The World
Mom and Dad Save the World is a 1992 sci-fi adventure, family, romantic comedy film which stars Jon Lovitz, Teri Garr, Jeffrey Jones, Eric Idle, Thalmus Rasulala and other actors. Jon Lovitz plays Emperor Tod Spengo who is the cruel, silly and over-dramatic emperor of the planet named Spengo. Teri...
, where he played Dick Nelson. Jones co-starred in the 1999 cult favorite cannibal western Ravenous
Ravenous
Ravenous is a 1999 horror film directed by Antonia Bird and starring Guy Pearce, Robert Carlyle and Jeffrey Jones. The film revolves around cannibalism in 1840s California and some elements bear similarities to the story of the Donner Party and that of Alferd Packer...
and played Inspector Lestrade in Without a Clue
Without a Clue
Without a Clue is a 1988 British comedy film directed by Thom Eberhardt and starring Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley and Lysette Anthony.-Plot:...
. In 1995, Jones co-starred with Kathy Najimy
Kathy Najimy
Kathy Ann Najimy is an American actress, most notable as Olive Massery on the television series Veronica's Closet, Sister Mary Patrick in Sister Act and the voice of Peggy Hill on the animated television series King of the Hill. Prior to her film work, she was best known for two Off Broadway shows...
in the video storyline portion of the Walt Disney World Tomorrowland
Tomorrowland
- Tomorrowland 1955–1967 :The first Tomorrowland opened at Disneyland on July 18, 1955, with only several of its planned attractions open, due to budget cuts. The construction of the park was rushed, so Tomorrowland was the last land to be finished. It became something of a corporate showcase,...
attraction ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter
ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter
ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter was a "theater-in-the-round" attraction in the Tomorrowland section of the Magic Kingdom themepark at Walt Disney World Resort...
.
Jones has guested on a number of television series, including Amazing Stories
Amazing Stories (TV series)
Amazing Stories is a fantasy, horror, and science fiction television anthology series created by Steven Spielberg. It ran on NBC from 1985 to 1987, and was somewhat erratically screened in Britain by BBC1 and BBC2 - billed in the Radio Times as "Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories" - with episodes...
, Tales from the Crypt
Tales from the Crypt (TV series)
Tales from the Crypt, sometimes titled HBO's Tales from the Crypt, is an American horror anthology television series that ran from 1989 to 1996 on the premium cable channel HBO...
and Wayside
Wayside (TV series)
Wayside is a Canadian animated television series created by Louis Sachar, developed and written by John Derevlany for Canadian television channel Teletoon. The series centers on Todd, a transfer student who attends Wayside, an offbeat educational institution based on Sachar's upbringing...
. In 1989, Jones starred in Wes Craven
Wes Craven
Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
's short-lived CBS sitcom The People Next Door
The People Next Door
The People Next Door is an American situation comedy which aired briefly on CBS as part of its Fall 1989 schedule.-Synopsis:Set in Covington, Ohio, The People Next Door stars Jeffrey Jones, previously regarded as a character actor, as cartoonist Walter Kellogg, a man whose imagination was so vivid...
, where he played a cartoonist whose imagination could make things come to life. He also appeared as famous newspaper publisher A. W. Merrick
A. W. Merrick
A. W. Merrick, from Denver, Colorado, published the first newspaper in Deadwood, South Dakota, the Black Hills Pioneer, along with W. A. Laughlin. The newspaper continues to be published today, but has moved its offices to Spearfish, South Dakota....
on HBO’s highly acclaimed show Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
.
Sex offense arrest and conviction
In 2001, Jones was charged with selling cigarettes and trafficking marijuana to minors. He was fined $5,000 and sentenced to 100 hours of community service.In 2003, Jones was arrested for soliciting a 14-year-old boy to pose for sexually explicit photographs and possession of child pornography. The misdemeanor possession charge was dropped after Jones pleaded nolo contendere
Nolo contendere
is a legal term that comes from the Latin for "I do not wish to contend." It is also referred to as a plea of no contest.In criminal trials, and in some common law jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neither admits nor disputes a charge, serving as an alternative to a pleading of...
to inducing a minor to pose for sexually explicit photographs; he was sentenced to five years' probation, ordered to undergo counseling, and required to register as a sex offender
Sex offender
A sex offender is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and by legal jurisdiction. Most jurisdictions compile their laws into sections such as traffic, assault, sexual, etc. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crimes of a...
for life.
In 2004 and 2010, Jones was arrested for failing to update his sex offender registration. On September 28, 2010, Jones was sentenced to three years' probation and 250 hours of community service.
External links
- Jeffrey Jones' entry at California Sex Offender Registry