Henry Z. Jones, Jr.

Henry Z (Hank) Jones Jr. (born June 3, 1940) is an American actor, musician, genealogist and author. He became known to a wide audience primarily through his appearances in Disney films. Life Hank was born in Oakland, California and raised in San Leandro, California. He attended San Leandro High School and Stanford University majoring in communications. While in school he was singer in the band Hank Jones & The White Bucks, as a student he formed the duo Hank and Dean with his schoolfriend Dean Kay. They had their first record contract with RCA Victor in 1961. Later albums were recorded with Capitol and Epitomé Records. Hank and Dean got into television entertainment in 1962 and performed in ABC's Tennessee Ernie Ford Show. Dean was drafted in 1963 and the duo dissolved. Dean became a music publishing executive, Hank's emphasis shifted towards TV entertainment and show-biz. He starred in eight Disney films in the 1960s and 1970s. On television, Hank had roles in My Three Sons (1960) with Fred MacMurray and William Frawley and in the Patty Duke Show (1963). He was featured in many comedy programs of the 1960s and 1970s, including Petticoat Junction (1963), Love, American Style (1969), The Jeffersons (1975), Love Boat (1977), Mork & Mindy (1978) and many others. One of his most interesting roles was playing the twin brother of the Beatle Ringo Starr (after five hours of makeup every day) in a TV version of Mark Twain's Prince & The Pauper. Over the years, Hank was featured in countless television commercials, some of which have won awards (for MacDonalds, Hai Karate After Shave, Honda, and Dial Soap) and were shown on NBC's World's Greatest Commercials. A longtime songwriter and member of ASCAP, Hank's song Midnight Swinger recorded by Mel Tormé in 1970 obtained a preliminary Grammy nomination. In 1986 Hank featured three times as the champion on the popular TV quiz show Jeopardy!