Ike Jones

Isaac Lolette Jones (December 23, 1929 – October 5, 2014) was an American film producer and actor. In June 1953, he became the first Black American graduate of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and, Television and the first Black American to serve as a producer on a major motion picture.

Jones was relatively unknown outside of the film industry until 1970, when he publicly announced that he had been secretly married to actress Inger Stevens from 1961 until her death in April 1970. Jones' claim was backed up in court by Stevens' brother, Carl O. Stensland.

Early life and education Jones was born in Santa Monica, California, and attended Santa Monica High School. Later on in the decade, Jones worked as an assistant producer for Hill-Hecht Lancaster Company. After that production company folded, Harry Belafonte hired him as vice president of development for Harbel Productions. In the 1960s, Jones headed Nat King Cole's Kell-Cole Productions. The demands of their careers meant that they spent much time apart, straining their marriage and they eventually separated. In April 1970, while the couple were estranged and living apart, Stevens died of a barbiturate overdose that was eventually ruled a suicide. Jones announced that he would use a portion of Stevens' $171,000 estate to open a mental health care clinic in her name in Watts, Los Angeles, but that never happened. At the time, Jones managed a chain of convalescent homes.

Jones died "of complications from a stroke and congestive heart failure" in an assisted-living facility in Los Angeles on October 5, 2014. He was 84.

Legacy A street called Ike Jones Road near John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California, is named for Ike Jones.