His is one of the most iconic voices in history.

But as a child, he experienced a traumatic incident that made him stop speaking.

It took a miracle to take him from silent to superstar.

This is Two Minute Black History, what you didn't learn in school.

The train car was packed with boxes, a piano, and most of his family squeezed tightly inside.

All their tickets were one way.

Their plan to escape Jim Crow was finally in motion.

At only four years old, he sobbed and not understanding why his mother left him to be raised

by extended family.

They arrived in Michigan, like the other six million black people vacating the South

during the Great Migration, they were ready to start a new life.

But the trauma of abandonment stayed with him and he developed a stutter.

Other children made fun of his speech, so he stopped speaking altogether.

This speechless boy grew up to be James Earl Jones, one of the most iconic voices in

the entertainment industry.

How did he go from silent to superstar?

An English teacher encouraged him to recite poetry aloud.

He was scared, but he did it, and he didn't want to stop.

In college, Jones majored in theater, which led him to working in over 100 films, voicing

iconic roles like Darth Vader and Ufasa, and being the voice of CNN.

Big life changes can be exciting, but also traumatic.

James Earl Jones still works with his stutter.

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