James Avery

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Birthday:

27 November 1945, Pughsville [now Suffolk], Virginia, USA

Birth Name:

James La Rue Avery

Height:

196 cm

Although best known as the uncle/patriarch and judge "Philip Banks" on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990), James Avery is a classically trained actor and scholar. A native of Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA, he joined the US Navy after graduating high school and served in Vietnam from 1968 to 1969. Upon leaving the military, he moved to San Diego, California and began writing TV scripts and poetry for PBS. He won an Emmy for production during his tenure there and deservedly won a scholarship to the University of California at San Diego from which he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Drama and Literature. (Sidenote: His wife Barbara is the Dean of Student Life at California's Loyola Marymount University.) In addition to his sitcom popularity, he has lent his voice to over a dozen animated television series and features. He also has been the primary host of the popular PBS travel and adventure series Going Places (1997). Armed with a diverse resume of credits, James Avery remains a unique creative force as convincing a comedian as he is a Shakespearean character. Show less «

You are only an actor if you absolutely love it and can not do anything else. Starving for your art is great in your 20s, but it's not so gr...Show more »

You are only an actor if you absolutely love it and can not do anything else. Starving for your art is great in your 20s, but it's not so great at 35. It has to be absolute love. You can't worry about being a movie star or anything else. Just love. That's it. Show less «

Monetary success is not success. Career success is not success. Life, someone that loves you, giving to others, doing something that makes y...Show more »

Monetary success is not success. Career success is not success. Life, someone that loves you, giving to others, doing something that makes you feel complete and full. That is success. And it isn't dependent on anyone else. Show less «

I wanted to leave home, and I didn't know where I was going or what I was going to do or what would happen. That's youth, though. Being fixa...Show more »

I wanted to leave home, and I didn't know where I was going or what I was going to do or what would happen. That's youth, though. Being fixated on things. I was fixated on being a writer. Show less «

Writing is such a singular and lonely occupation. And it's interesting; all of the work that you create is so singular.

I don't understand this whole Twitter, Facebook stuff. I don't get it. Make a phone call. Talk to somebody.