Jonah (fl.c. 785 bc) One of the 12 Minor Prophets in the Old Testament, whose story is told in the book of Jonah. (His narrative is part of a larger book, The Twelve, in the Jewish canon, and he is first mentioned in the book of Kings.) God orders Jonah to prophesy against the wickedness of Nineveh, but Jonah refuses to believe that the people of this hated foreign city deserve salvation, and he sails away on a ship in the opposite direc¬ tion. When a great storm threatens to destroy the ship, he confesses his fault and asks the crew to throw him overboard. A great fish swallows him, but he prays for deliverance and the fish spews him out on dry ground. He goes on to Nineveh and preaches God’s message; its sinful people repent and are saved by God. Jonah is angered over the salvation of the Ninevites and hopes that the city will be destroyed, for which God rebukes him. The book, which opposes the narrow Jewish nationalism of the time, was probably written in the 5th or 4th century bc.
Jonathan In the Hebrew scriptures, the eldest son of King Saul and friend of David. A warrior in the Israelite army, he is first mentioned as victor over the Philistines at Geba. After David joined Saul’s household, he and Jonathan became close friends. Saul became jealous of David’s popularity and sought to kill him, but Jonathan prevented him. When the two met for the last time, they planned that David would be the next king of Israel and Jonathan his prime minister, but Saul and Jonathan were killed in battle at Mount Gilboa.
Jones, Bill T. orig. William Tass Jones (b. Feb. 15, 1952, Bunnell, Fla., U.S.) U.S. dancer and choreographer. He trained in dance and the¬ atre at the State University of New York, Binghamton. In 1982, with his companion, Amie Zane (1948—88), he cofounded the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Co. All his performances have been in works he has choreo¬ graphed alone or with a collaborator; they include Runner Dreams (1978) and Open Spaces (1980). His works often make explicit reference to social issues; his controversial Still/Here (1995) deals with the sufferings caused by HIV, with which Jones is infected and which was the cause of Zane’s death.
Jones, Bobby in full Robert Tyre Jones, Jr. (b. March 17, 1902, Atlanta, Ga., U.S.—d. Dec. 18,1971,
Atlanta) U.S. golfer. Jones won 13 major championships between 1923 and 1930, a feat unequaled until 1973. In 1930 he became the first golfer to achieve the grand-slam of his time—the British and U.S. Open and Amateur championships—after which he retired from competitive golf at the age of 28, having never become a professional. Jones helped establish the Masters Tournament, one of the four major tournaments that make up the modem grand-slam of golf (the other three being the British Open, the U.S. Open, and the PGA Championship).
Jones, Chuck in full Charles Martin Jones (b. Sept. 21, 1912,
Spokane, Wash., U.S.—d. Feb. 22,
2002, Corona del Mar, Calif.) U.S. animator. He became a cartoonist for Warner Brothers (1933-62), where he helped develop characters such as Bugs Bunny, Road Runner, and Wile E. Coyote. Three of his cartoon films, noted for their speed and action, won Academy Awards. He was head of animation for MGM in the 1960s, then formed his own company and directed animated features such as The Phantom Tollbooth (1971) and specials for television. Jones received an Academy Award for lifetime achievement in 1996.
Jones, Deacon orig. David Jones (b. Dec. 9, 1939, Eatonville, Fla., U.S.) U.S. football player. He stood 6 ft 5 in. (1.96 m) tall and weighed
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250 lbs (113 kg) and could run the 100-yard dash in 9.7 seconds. He excelled at tackling the quarterback behind the line of scrimmage (for which he coined the term sack). As a defensive end for the Los Angeles Rams (1961-71), he was regarded as one of the sport’s premier defense- men and was named All-NFL six consecutive times (1965-70). He later played for the San Diego Chargers (1972-73) and Washington Redskins
(1974).
Jones, (Alfred) Ernest (b. Jan. 1, 1879, Rhosfelyn, Glamorgan, Wales—d. Feb. 11, 1958, London, Eng.) Welsh psychoanalyst. After he became a member of London’s Royal College of Physicians, his interest gradually shifted to psychiatry. With Carl Gustav Jung he organized the first psychoanalytic conference (Salzburg, 1908), where he met Sigmund Freud. Jones was instrumental in introducing psychoanalysis to Britain and North America; in 1919 he founded the British Psycho-Analytical Insti¬ tute, and in 1920 he founded the International Journal of Psycho- Analysis, which he edited until 1939. After the Nazi takeover of Austria, he helped the ailing Freud and his family to escape to London. His biog¬ raphy of Freud, entitled The Life and Work of Sigmund Freud (3 vol., 1953-57), was for many years the standard biography.
Jones, George (Glenn) (b. Sept. 12, 1931, Saratoga, Texas, U.S.) U.S. country music singer and songwriter. He was born to an impover¬ ished family, which moved to Beaumont, Texas, when he was 11 years old. He sang on the streets as a youngster, and he began recording in the early 1950s. His first hit, “Why, Baby, Why” (1955), was followed by “She Thinks I Still Care,” “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” and many others. In 1957 he joined the Grand Ole Opry. He continued to have hits into the 1980s, including many with his former wife Tammy Wynette. His rocky personal life and career only increased his fans’ enduring affection.
Jones, Inigo (b. July 15, 1573, Smithfield, London, Eng.—d. June 21, 1652, London) British painter, architect, and designer. The son of a cloth- worker, he studied painting in Italy and attracted the patronage of the king of Denmark, for whom he apparently designed two palaces before return¬ ing to England. Beginning in 1605, he designed the scenes and costumes for masques by Ben Jonson and others. From 1615 to 1642, he was the King’s Surveyor of Works. His first important undertaking was the Queen’s House at Greenwich (begun 1616), England’s first Palladian- style building. His greatest achievement, the Banqueting House at White¬ hall (1619-22), consists of one great raised chamber with colonnades set against the walls, which support a flat, beamed ceiling. For his design for Covent Garden (1630), London’s first square, Jones is credited with the introduction of town planning in England.
Jones, James Earl (b. Jan. 17, 1931, Arkabutla, Miss., U.S.) U.S. actor. He studied acting in New York City and made his Broadway debut in 1957. He was praised for his performance in Othello (1964) and in roles with the New York Shakespeare Festival (1961-73). He starred as the black boxer in The Great White Hope (1969, Tony Award; film, 1970). After returning to Broadway in Paul Robeson (1978) and Fences (1985, Tony Award), he starred in the television series Paris (1979-80) and Gab¬ riel’s Fire (1990-91, Emmy Award). He has appeared in numerous films; his sonorous voice lent gravity to the character of Darth Vader in Star Wars (1977) and its sequels and to the Mufasa role in The Lion King
(1994).
Jones, Jennifer orig. Phyllis Isley (b. March 2, 1919, Tulsa, Okla., U.S.) U.S. film actress. She played leads in minor films from 1939 before coming to the notice of David O. Selznick, who cast her in The Song of Bernadette (1943, Academy Award). Selznick continued to choose her roles, and she starred in such films as Love Letters (1945), Duel in the Sun (1946), and Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955). She married Selznick in 1949 and appeared in films into the 1960s.
Jones, Jim orig. James Warren Jones (b. May 13, 1931, near Lynn, Ind., U.S.—d. Nov. 18, 1978, Jonestown, Guyana) U.S. leader of a New Religous Movement. He became a preacher in Indianapolis. He estab¬ lished the People’s Temple, which was affiliated with the Disciples of Christ and opposed racism and poverty. The group moved to San Fran¬ cisco in 1971. Accused of defrauding church members, Jones led his group to Guyana in 1977 and set up the agricultural commune of Jonestown, using threats and force to control his followers. In 1978 U.S. Congress¬ man Leo Ryan went to Jonestown to investigate allegations against Jones. Ryan and four others were killed when they reached the airport to return to the U.S. In the aftermath, most of the Jonestown residents, in a mass