James La Rue Avery (November 27, 1945 – December 31, 2013) was an American actor. He was best known for his roles as Philip Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Judge Michael Conover on L.A. Law, Steve Yeager in The Brady Bunch Movie, and Dr. Crippen on The Closer (2005–2007); and as the voice actor for Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Haroud Hazi Bin in Aladdin.
Early life
Avery was born on November 27, 1945, in Pughsville, Virginia (present-day Suffolk, Virginia), to mother Florence J. Avery. He graduated from Atlantic City High School in 1963. He served in the U.S. Navy in the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1969, Avery's first acting role was playing God in the play J.B. in 1971 at San Diego Community College.
He won an Emmy for production of "Ameda Speaks: Poet James Avery". He then received a scholarship to UC San Diego, where he attended Thurgood Marshall College (then Third College), earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in drama and literature in 1976.
Career
thumb|Avery in September 2013, three months before his death
Avery began his career in the 1980s with appearances in television series such as NBC's Hill Street Blues, Showtime sitcom Brothers as Bubba Dean, Amen, FM and L.A. Law. In the 1990s, he achieved prominence for his role as Philip Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a character that was ranked number 34 in TV Guides "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time". After The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ended, he played the lead role of Alonzo Sparks in the UPN comedy series Sparks that lasted for two seasons. Other notable roles in television included Dr. Crippen in The Closer, Charles Haysbert in The Division, and Michael Kelso's commanding officer at the police academy late in the series run of That '70s Show.
Among his most notable voice credits are the voices of Shredder in the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series, Br'er Bear in the Walt Disney World version of Splash Mountain and Kinect: Disneyland Adventures and James Rhodes/War Machine in the 1990s Iron Man series. He also lent his powerful bass voice as Junkyard Dog in Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling (1985–1986), Turbo in Rambo and the Forces of Freedom (1986), and Haroud Hazi Bin in Aladdin (1994).
In 1997, Avery hosted the travel series "Going Places" on PBS.
Personal life
In 1988, Avery married Barbara Waters. Barbara was later dean of student life at Loyola Marymount University. He had no biological children, but was a stepfather to Barbara's son, Kevin Waters.
Death
On December 31, 2013 (New Year's Eve), Avery died at the age of 68 at Glendale Memorial Medical Center following complications from open heart surgery. Will Smith, Alfonso Ribeiro, In April 2020, Will Smith reunited with the cast of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on a video conference honoring Avery's best moments on the show.
AveryFest
thumb|Barbara Avery and actress Daphne Maxwell Reid at the inaugural AveryFest in James Avery's hometown of Suffolk, Virginia AveryFest is an annual African-American cultural and music festival held every September or October since 2023 in Suffolk, Virginia, near Avery's birthplace.
Featured at the 2023 festival were Barbara Avery, his TV wife from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, actress Daphne Maxwell Reid, and a special jazz spotlight in memory of Avery, who loved jazz music.
Filmography
Film
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
| 1978
| Libra
| Dr. Baker
|
|-
| rowspan="2" | 1980
| The Stunt Man
| Customer at Diner
| rowspan="2" | Uncredited
|-
| The Blues Brothers
| Dancer
|-
| rowspan="3" | 1985
| Fletch
| Detective #2
|
|-
| Appointment with Fear
| Connors
|
|-
| Stoogemania
| Gulch
|
|-
| rowspan="5" | 1986
| Fist of the North Star
| Fang
| Voice (1991 Streamline Pictures dub)
|-
| The Eleventh Commandment
| Larry
|
|-
| 8 Million Ways to Die
| Deputy
|
|-
| The Ladies Club
| Joe
|
|-
| Extremities
| Security Guard
|
|-
| rowspan="4" | 1987
| Three for the Road
| Clarence
|
|-
| Nightflyers
| Darryl
|
|-
| Deadly Daphne's Revenge
| Det. Wood
|
|-
| Jake's M.O.
| Abel Barnes
|
|-
| 1988
| License to Drive
| Les' DMV Examiner
|
|-
| rowspan="3" | 1991
| Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time
| Lt. Coberly
|
|-
| Shout
| Midnight Rider
| Voice
|-
| The Linguini Incident
| Phil
|
|-
| 1993
| Little Miss Millions
| Agent Noah Hollander
|
|-
| 1995
| The Brady Bunch Movie
| Steve Yeager
|
|-
| 1997
| Spirit Lost
| Dr. Glidden
|
|-
| rowspan="2" | 1998
| 12 Bucks
| Slow
|
|-
| The Prince of Egypt