Walter Emanuel Jones
Encyclopedia
Walter Emanuel Jones is an American actor
and dancer known for playing the role of Zack Taylor
, the Black Ranger on the hit television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
.
, the original Black Ranger in the Power Rangers universe. He was written out of the series midway through the second season, apparently due to disagreements over wages and fee, and was replaced by Johnny Yong Bosch
. Jones returned to Power Rangers in the Lost Galaxy season (1999) where he played the voice of Hexuba's Nightmare Monster in the episode "Dream Battle"; he also acted in an important episode of Power Rangers: Wild Force
(2002) entitled Forever Red
in which many previous Red Rangers teamed up. Again, he did not appear as his original character, Zack, but rather provided the voice for one of the antagonists, a general in the Machine Empire
named Gerrok. He was also one of the special commentators, along with fellow co-star Amy Jo Johnson
, on the "1993" episode of I Love the '90s
. He also reunited with Austin St. John
(with whom he formed a close friendship during their time together on the show) as co-host for a special airing of the original pilot episode
of Power Rangers called "The Lost Episode".
Jones was the very first actor to do voicework for any character other than a Ranger (mainly for monsters or villains) on a Power Rangers show after having a role as a Ranger himself. Other former Rangers who would do voicework after Jones included Archie Kao
, Catherine Sutherland
, Jason Faunt
, Valerie Vernon
, Sean Cw Johnson
and Johnny Yong Bosch
.
Jones had major roles in the independent movie The Dogwalker. He has appeared in other well-known productions, including a small part in Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the season 4 episode "Fear, Itself" and the Disney Channel Original Movie, Brink!
. He also appeared as Harlan Band in the Nickelodeon
series Space Cases
, his second role as a main character and as a teenager. He guest starred in an episode of Family Matters
as Kissel, and portrayed a supporting character in the first season of The Shield
named Rondell Robinson, a drug dealer. He also had a small role in the film Suckers
in which he played a character named Clay. Additionally, he also played a small role in the film of the Dead 2 as "locker zombie". Jones also had a cameo appearance in the movie "Fast and the Furious 3 - Tokyo Drift."
Jones also had a major role in the backyard wrestling
movie Backyard Dogs
, which spent time as the lowest-rated movie on the Internet Movie Database
. As of July 2007 it is no longer on the list as it was straight-to-video. Jones provided the voice of a main character in the video game Freedom Fighters
; he played a character known as The Kid.
Most recently, he appeared briefly as a salsa dance instructor on Age of Love
. Additionally Jones has also been featured in a PETCO commercial and a Bank of America commercial as well.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and dancer known for playing the role of Zack Taylor
Zack Taylor
Zachary "Zack" Taylor is a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe, appearing in the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He is the original Black Ranger of the first generation of Power Rangers...
, the Black Ranger on the hit television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is an American live-action children's television series based on the 16th installment of the Japanese Super Sentai franchise, Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. Both the show and its related merchandise saw unbridled overnight success, catapulting into pop culture in mere months...
.
Life and career
Jones played the character of Zack TaylorZack Taylor
Zachary "Zack" Taylor is a fictional character in the Power Rangers universe, appearing in the television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He is the original Black Ranger of the first generation of Power Rangers...
, the original Black Ranger in the Power Rangers universe. He was written out of the series midway through the second season, apparently due to disagreements over wages and fee, and was replaced by Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch is an American actor, voice actor, martial artist, and musician.He may be best known for portraying Adam Park in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and being the English voice of Ichigo Kurosaki in the hit anime series Bleach, Vash the Stampede in Trigun and Lelouch Lamperouge in Code...
. Jones returned to Power Rangers in the Lost Galaxy season (1999) where he played the voice of Hexuba's Nightmare Monster in the episode "Dream Battle"; he also acted in an important episode of Power Rangers: Wild Force
Power Rangers: Wild Force
Power Rangers Wild Force is the tenth anniversary of the Power Rangers franchise, based on the Super Sentai series Hyakujuu Sentai Gaoranger, which itself was the 25th anniversary of Super Sentai.Power Rangers Wild Force takes place in 2002...
(2002) entitled Forever Red
Forever Red
"Forever Red" is an episode of the television series Power Rangers: Wild Force, commemorating the tenth anniversary of the Power Rangers meta-series. The episode was later included in the 2003 DVD collection The Best Of The Power Rangers: The Ultimate Rangers as one of several voted by the fans to...
in which many previous Red Rangers teamed up. Again, he did not appear as his original character, Zack, but rather provided the voice for one of the antagonists, a general in the Machine Empire
Machine Empire
The Machine Empire is a group of robotic villains in the Power Rangers universe, who first appeared in the television show Power Rangers Zeo and were later mentioned in Power Rangers in Space and Power Rangers Wild Force.-History:...
named Gerrok. He was also one of the special commentators, along with fellow co-star Amy Jo Johnson
Amy Jo Johnson
Amy Jo Johnson is an American actress, singer, songwriter and musician.She is best known for her roles in the televison series as the constable Jules Callaghan in the Canadian CTV television series Flashpoint, the famous jockey Tina Sharp in the ABC Family's original show Wildfire, the rookie cop...
, on the "1993" episode of I Love the '90s
I Love the '90s
I Love the '90s is a television mini-series produced by VH1 in which various music and TV personalities talk about the 1990s culture and all it had to offer. The show premiered July 12, 2004 with the episode "I Love 1990" and aired two episodes daily until July 16, 2004, when it ended with "I Love...
. He also reunited with Austin St. John
Austin St. John
Austin St. John is a former American actor and martial artist known for his role in the popular Power Rangers children's television series as Jason Lee Scott, the original Red Ranger and first leader of the Power Rangers. He is an emergency medical technician and firefighter.-Personal life:St...
(with whom he formed a close friendship during their time together on the show) as co-host for a special airing of the original pilot episode
Day of the Dumpster
"Day of the Dumpster" is the first episode of the American television program Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and, as a result, the first episode of the Power Rangers franchise. It was initially broadcast on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Network, as part of the Fox Kids programming block, and was later...
of Power Rangers called "The Lost Episode".
Jones was the very first actor to do voicework for any character other than a Ranger (mainly for monsters or villains) on a Power Rangers show after having a role as a Ranger himself. Other former Rangers who would do voicework after Jones included Archie Kao
Archie Kao
Archie David Kao is an American film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Archie Johnson in the hit television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, as well as the role of Kai Chen in Power Rangers Lost Galaxy...
, Catherine Sutherland
Catherine Sutherland
Catherine Jane Sutherland/Catherine J Chilson is an Australian actress best known for playing Katherine "Kat" Hillard, the Pink Ranger on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Power Rangers: Zeo, and Power Rangers: Turbo from 1995–1997, joining the TV series in the third season and leaving in 5th...
, Jason Faunt
Jason Faunt
Jason Patrick Faunt is an American actor, best known for playing the role of Wes Collins in Power Rangers: Time Force, as well as that of Alex, the former Red Time Force Ranger....
, Valerie Vernon
Valerie Vernon
Valerie Ann Vernon is an American actress best known for her role as Kendrix Morgan, the Pink Ranger on Power Rangers: Lost Galaxy...
, Sean Cw Johnson
Sean Cw Johnson
Sean Cw Johnson is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Carter Grayson, the Red Lightspeed Power Ranger, having appeared on the show Power Rangers: Lightspeed Rescue in 2000.-Biography:...
and Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch is an American actor, voice actor, martial artist, and musician.He may be best known for portraying Adam Park in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and being the English voice of Ichigo Kurosaki in the hit anime series Bleach, Vash the Stampede in Trigun and Lelouch Lamperouge in Code...
.
Jones had major roles in the independent movie The Dogwalker. He has appeared in other well-known productions, including a small part in Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the season 4 episode "Fear, Itself" and the Disney Channel Original Movie, Brink!
Brink!
Brink! is a 1998 Disney Channel Original Movie set in the backdrop of casual inline skating.-Plot:Andy "Brink" Brinker and his in-line skating crew--Peter, Jordy, and Gabriella--who call themselves "Soul-Skaters" , clash with a group of sponsored skaters, Team X-Bladz--led by Val--with whom they...
. He also appeared as Harlan Band in the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
series Space Cases
Space Cases
Space Cases is a science fiction television series that aired on Nickelodeon for two seasons. Created by Peter David and Bill Mumy, it premiered on March 2, 1996, and was cancelled a year later. It aired for a time on Nickelodeon's Saturday night block of shows known as SNICK, and on Nickelodeon...
, his second role as a main character and as a teenager. He guest starred in an episode of Family Matters
Family Matters (TV series)
Family Matters is an American sitcom about a middle-class African-American family living in Chicago, Illinois, which ran on national television for nine full seasons. The series was a spin-off of Perfect Strangers, but revolves around the Winslow family...
as Kissel, and portrayed a supporting character in the first season of The Shield
The Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
named Rondell Robinson, a drug dealer. He also had a small role in the film Suckers
Suckers (film)
Suckers is a 2001 film written by Roger Nygard and Joe Yanetty which revolves around events at a car dealership. Suckers stars Daniel Benzali, Lori Loughlin, and Louis Mandylor and co-stars Walter Emanuel Jones...
in which he played a character named Clay. Additionally, he also played a small role in the film of the Dead 2 as "locker zombie". Jones also had a cameo appearance in the movie "Fast and the Furious 3 - Tokyo Drift."
Jones also had a major role in the backyard wrestling
Backyard wrestling
Backyard wrestling , and also referred to as yarding or backyarding is a controversial underground recreation based on the usually untrained practice of professional-style wrestling in a typically low budget environment between predominantly 12 to 30 year old males. Some practitioners have attended...
movie Backyard Dogs
Backyard Dogs
-Plot:Two best friends with dreams of becoming professional wrestlers start wrestling in underground backyard events.-Principal cast:...
, which spent time as the lowest-rated movie on the Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
. As of July 2007 it is no longer on the list as it was straight-to-video. Jones provided the voice of a main character in the video game Freedom Fighters
Freedom Fighters (video game)
Freedom Fighters, originally titled Freedom: The Battle For Liberty Island, is a 2003 third-person shooter video game available for the PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Xbox and Microsoft Windows that is set in an alternate history...
; he played a character known as The Kid.
Most recently, he appeared briefly as a salsa dance instructor on Age of Love
Age of Love (TV series)
Age of Love was an American reality TV dating series that ran for one season in summer 2007.The show featured then-30-year-old Australian tennis star Mark Philippoussis as he looked for love among a group of women ranging in age from their early 20s to their late 40s.Hosted by Mark Consuelos, the...
. Additionally Jones has also been featured in a PETCO commercial and a Bank of America commercial as well.