Hawthorne James

{{short description|American character actor and director}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}

{{Infobox person

|name=Hawthorne James

|image=

|caption=

|birth_name=James Hawthorne

|birth_date=

|birth_place=Chicago, Illinois, U.S.

|alma_mater=University of Michigan

|occupation=Actor, director

|years_active = 1979–present

}}

Hawthorne James is an American character actor and director, known for his role as Big Red Davis in the 1991 film The Five Heartbeats.{{cite web|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9D0CE7DA103CF93AA15750C0A967958260|title=The Five Heartbeats (1991) Reviews/Film; Struggling to the Top With the Five Heartbeats|authorlink=Janet Maslin|author=Maslin, Janet|date=March 29, 1991}}

He is also known for his role as Sam, the injured bus driver, in Speed,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/31146/Hawthorne-James/filmography|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|title=Hawthorne James|date=August 10, 2023 }}{{dead link|date=April 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} George, the Night Guard at the Library, in Seven

and series as NYPD Blue and guest-starring on Frasier as Bill in the season one episode "Miracle on Third or Fourth Street".

He was born James Hawthorne in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Robert Hawthorne and A. M. Alene.{{cite web|url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/30/Hawthorne-James.html|title=Hawthorne James|work=Filmreference.com}} He earned a bachelor's degree in Theater from the University of Notre Dame, a master's degree from the University of Michigan, and taught Theater at Illinois State University.{{cite web |title=Meet: Hawthorne James aka "Big Red" |url=http://www.spotlight5thingstoknow.com/meet-hawthorne-james-aka-big-red/ |website=SPOTLIGHT 5 Things To Know |accessdate=July 12, 2019 |archive-date=March 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220305085726/http://www.spotlight5thingstoknow.com/meet-hawthorne-james-aka-big-red/ |url-status=dead }}

James was responsible for his appearance in the funeral scene of Jimmy Potter in The Five Heartbeats, which he based on a scene from Shakespeare's Richard III.{{cite web |title=big red - five heartbeats 'FIVE HEARTBEATS' STAR HAWTHORNE JAMES TALKS BIG RED, SHAKESPEARE AND SUGE KNIGHT'S LOVE OF MOVIE |url=https://eurweb.com/2016/07/10/five-heartbeats-star-hawthorne-james-talks-big-red-shakespeare-suge-knights-love-movie/ |website=eurweb.com |date=July 10, 2016 |accessdate=July 12, 2019}}