Actress Cecilia Hart Jones, wife of James Earl Jones, dies at 68

PAWLING NEW YORK, Oct. 23 Cecilia Hart, stage and screen actress and wife of actor James Earl Jones, died Sunday, October 16, 2016 after a yearlong battle with ovarian cancer in Westport, CT, according to multiple media sources. She was 68.

Hart and Jones starred together in the CBS series “Paris,” which was notable for being Jones’ first starring role. He played Police Captain Woody Paris, who supervised a team of young detectives. Hart played one of those detectives, Stacy Erickson. The show ran for one season, 1979 – 1980.

The two later played opposite one another in a theatrical revival of Shakespeare’s “Othello.” They married in 1982.

Hart was born June 6, 1948 in Cheyenne, Wyoming. She appeared on Broadway in revivals of “The Heiress” (1976) and “Design for Living” (1984). She was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for her performance in the premiere production of Tom Stoppard’s “Dirty Linen & New-Found-Land” (1977).

She made guest appearances on television in “Emergency!” (1978), “Three’s Company” (1978) and “Quincy M.E.” (1979). She later co-starred in the sitcom “Mr. Sunshine” (1986) with Jeffrey Tambor and made appearances in multiple roles on “Law & Order.”

Hart is survived by Jones and their son, Flynn.