Jeffrey Jones

Jeffrey Duncan Jones (born September 28, 1946) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Amadeus, Edward R. Rooney in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986), Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice (1988), Dr. Skip Tyler in The Hunt for Red October (1990), Eddie Barzoon in The Devil's Advocate (1997), and A. W. Merrick in both Deadwood (2004–2006) and Deadwood: The Movie (2019).

His career started in Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, and advanced to London and Broadway. In film and television, Jones has had many roles which capitalized on his deadpan portrayal of characters in unusual situations, often to comic effect. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance in Amadeus and a Screen Actors Guild Award as part of the ensemble cast of Deadwood.

In 2002, Jones was charged with soliciting a minor to pose for nude photographs. The offenses occurred in 1999 and 2000. In July 2003, he pleaded no contest and prosecutors dropped the charges for possession of child pornography. He was then sentenced to five years of probation and required to register as a sex offender for life. He had two subsequent arrests, in 2004 and 2010, for failing to update his sex offender status.

Early life Jones was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Ruth (née Schooley) and Douglas Bennett Jones. His mother was an art historian, who urged him towards a career in acting. Jones's father died when Jones was an infant.

Career

Early career After graduating from The Putney School in 1964, Jones enrolled in Lawrence University as a premed student, where his performances in university productions brought him to the attention of Tyrone Guthrie, who recruited him for the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

His stage career included more than 125 productions, starting with the Guthrie Theater, then internationally in South America, Canada, and London, as well as on Broadway in productions including Trelawny of the "Wells" and The Elephant Man. His transition from stage to film began in 1970.

Jones's work in the Lucille Lortel Theatre production of Cloud 9 was noticed by the casting team of Easy Money (1983), earning Jones a supporting role opposite Rodney Dangerfield.

Amadeus Cloud 9 further attracted the attention of director Miloš Forman, who cast Jones as Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor in Amadeus (1984), an adaptation of the Peter Shaffer play of the same name. Critic James Berardinelli noted that Jones portrayed the Emperor "as a superficial and self-absorbed ruler who can't tell the difference between a great opera and a mediocre one". Vincent Canby of The New York Times praised Jones's performance, citing the film's most memorable line, when the Emperor complains of Die Entführung aus dem Serail that "there are too many notes". Jones's work earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off Jones's performance as Edward R. Rooney in the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) made him a cultural icon. Rooney, self-important and obsessed with catching the chronic truant Ferris Bueller, became a symbol of pomposity and authoritarian hatefulness. The New York Times review characterized Jones's performance as having "fine cartoon like ferocity", wherein his character "gets scratched, bitten, attacked by ferocious dogs and covered with mud while pursuing his weaker, but craftier prey, and emerges each time bruised but undaunted, thinking up some new (and futile) plan". The review likened Jones's role as akin to that of Wile E. Coyote as a character who is fated to be unable to catch The Road Runner (Ferris Bueller). Jones expressed concern about being remembered more for this role than for Amadeus. Regarding its premise, he said: "What's amazing about Ferris Bueller, is that we're asked to, and do, sympathize with a kid whose only complaint in life is that his sister got a car for her birthday and he got a computer."

Beetlejuice and Tim Burton In the horror comedy film Beetlejuice (1988), Jones and Catherine O'Hara portrayed a married couple (Charles and Delia Deetz) who unwittingly become co-owners of a haunted house. To highlight this couple's status as boors, director Tim Burton cast Dick Cavett and Robert Goulet to appear as their guests at a dinner party, at which the ghosts of the previous owners cause everyone to sing "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)".

Jones collaborated with Burton again on the films Ed Wood (1994), in which he portrays The Amazing Criswell, and Sleepy Hollow (1999). Shortly prior to the release of Sleepy Hollow, Jones said of Burton, "I've known Tim now for quite some time and really enjoy working with him. I like his sensibility, and he's great fun."

Other films Jones played Dr. Walter Jenning in the George Lucas film Howard the Duck (1986). He portrayed Inspector Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes spoof film Without a Clue (1988). In The Hunt for Red October (1990), he played ex-submarine commander Skip Tyler, who identifies the Red October's propulsion system to Alec Baldwin's Jack Ryan. He also appeared as real-life figure Thomas Putnam in The Crucible (1996). He also played Uncle Crenshaw Little in Stuart Little (1999). As lumber mogul Joe Potter, Jones was the primary antagonist of the Eddie Murphy comedy Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001). He was the star of another short-lived CBS program: the sitcom The People Next Door (1989), portraying a cartoonist whose imagination could make things come to life. Keith Uhlich of Slant Magazine referred to both Jones and the character of Merrick as "perversely appropriate additions" to the program, further citing Merrick as its "secular soul". Along with the ensemble cast, Jones was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

Later career Following his appearance in the golf comedy Who's Your Caddy? (2007), he was absent from film and television for several years. He returned with an uncredited cameo as Collier's editor Charles Colebaugh in the HBO original film Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012), followed by the supporting role of scientist Gladstone in the independent disaster film 10.0 Earthquake (2014). Jones went on to play a fictional version of himself in the short film 7 Days (2016)

In May 2015, Jones returned to the stage with the New American Theatre production of 63 Trillion, directed by Steve Zuckerman. The Los Angeles Times said his portrayal of financial adviser Dick had "malevolent gusto that Satan himself might envy". Beginning in March 2018, Jones portrayed ailing patriarch Bradley in a production of the A. R. Gurney play The Cocktail Hour, staged at the Annenberg Theater in the Palm Springs Art Museum.

Jones was not brought back to reprise his role as Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) due to his legal issues. His character is explained to have been killed by being eaten by a shark after his plane crashed in the ocean, and his likeness is used through means of stop-motion in flashback sequences, as well as archival photos and footage throughout the film thereafter. In scenes set in the afterlife, Deetz is portrayed by a body double (with half of his body missing) and a voice impersonator, in a rare instance of a fake Shemp being used on a living actor.

Personal life Jones has one son, actor Julian Coutts, whose mother was Lloy Coutts, a Canadian voice coach. She and Jones met in Stratford, Ontario.

One interviewer in 1989 found Jones to value anonymity and the enjoyment of everyday tasks, like home repairs, and found him to be uninterested in status symbols and fan adulation. Jones pointed out that greater public recognition makes it more difficult to transition between roles and allow the character to come to the fore and the actor to recede from view. Jones photographed the child, and paid him to pose nude on multiple occasions wearing a cowboy hat, with stuffed animals, and dressed as a Native American. Jones surrendered himself and was released on bond prior to arraignment. Jones initially pleaded not guilty to the possession charge and no contest to a charge of soliciting a minor. The victim initiated a separate civil action against Jones seeking damages and compensation. The misdemeanor charge of possession of child pornography was dropped following the no-contest plea. His attorney emphasized that there was no allegation of improper physical contact. His punishment was five years' probation and the requirement to register as a sex offender for life. Jones is listed in sex offender registries in California and Florida. He was also required to undergo one year psychological counseling and two years of drug and alcohol abuse counseling, and prohibited from possessing pornography.

Other offenses Jones was arrested twice for failing to update his sex offender status, first in Florida in 2004, and then in California in 2010.

In 2006, Jones's record became the subject of a community complaint during production of Who's Your Caddy? in Aiken, South Carolina. Upon learning of his involvement, locals insisted that the public should have been alerted, considering that families were being invited to visit the set.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1970 The Revolutionary Red-Haired Radical Committee Member Credited as Jeff Jones 1978 A Wedding Guest Uncredited 1982 The Soldier U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense 1983 Easy Money Clive Barlow 1984 Amadeus Emperor Joseph II 1985 Transylvania 6-5000 Mayor Lepescu 1986 Ferris Bueller's Day Off Dean Ed Rooney Howard the Duck Dr. Walter Jenning / The Dark Overlord of the Universe 1987 The Hanoi Hilton Major Fischer Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues Buffalo Bill 1988 Beetlejuice Charles Deetz Without a Clue Inspector George Lestrade 1989 Who's Harry Crumb? Elliot Draison Valmont Gercourt 1990 The Hunt for Red October Dr. Skip Tyler 1992 Out on a Limb Matt Skearns / Peter Van Der Haven Mom and Dad Save the World Dick Nelson Stay Tuned Spike 1993 Heaven & Earth Minister Uncredited 1994 Ed Wood The Amazing Criswell 1995 Houseguest Ron Timmerman 1996 The Crucible Thomas Putnam 1997 The Devil's Advocate Eddie Barzoon The Pest Gustav Shank Santa Fe Dr. Raskin Uncredited Flypaper Roger 1999 Stuart Little Crenshaw Little Ravenous Colonel Hart Sleepy Hollow Reverend Steenwyck 2000 Company Man Senator Biggs 2001 Heartbreakers Mr. Appel Dr. Dolittle 2 Joe Potter How High Vice President 2002 Par 6 Lloyd Bator Jenkins 2007 Who's Your Caddy? Cummings 2014 10.0 Earthquake Marcus Gladstone 2016 7 Days Himself Short

Television

Year Title Role Notes 1977 Great Performances Sergeant Wilson Episode: "Secret Service" Kojak Attendant Episode: "Lady in the Squadroom" 1983 A Fine Romance Harr Television film Remington Steele Clifford Conant Episode: "A Steele at Any Price" 1985 The Twilight Zone Carl Wilkerson Episode: "Opening Day" 1986 If Tomorrow Comes Budge Hollander Miniseries; 1 episode George Washington II: The Forging of a Nation Thomas Jefferson Television film Fresno Mr. Acme Miniseries; 2 episodes Amazing Stories John Baldwin Episode: "The Eternal Mind" 1987 Disney's DTV Monster Hits Magic Mirror TV special 1989 The People Next Door Walter Kellogg 10 episodes 1993 Tales from the Crypt Professor Finley Episode: "Creep Course" 1994 Duckman Warden (voice) Episode: "I, Duckman" Eek! The Cat Seymour the Sloth (voice) Episode: "Honey, I Shrunk the Cat" 1995 Batman: The Animated Series Nivens (voice) Episode: "A Bullet for Bullock" Aaahh!!! Real Monsters Man In White (voice) Episode: "Monsters Are Real" Extraterrorestrial Alien Encounter L.C. Clench Theme park attraction 1998 Fallout 2 Dick Richardson Video game