James Wheaton

The eldest son of the Reverend James D. Wheaton, a Methodist minister and Jessie O. Holmes, the daughter of a Methodist minister, James Lorenzo Wheaton was born on 11 January 1924 in Meridian, Mississippi. As an infant the family moved to Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He attended public schools in Hattiesburg, Meridian and Yazoo City, Mississippi. After graduating from Yazoo City High School #2 (where he was actively involved in student government), he began his college education at Wiley College, a Methodist institution located in Marshall, Texas. At Wiley, he served as senior class president. Upon his graduation in 1945, James was drafted into the U.S. Army at the tail end of World War Two. Stationed in the Philippines, he served as a chaplain's assistant for most of his time in the military. It was at this time he began to take a serious interest in acting. However, he turned down the opportunity to become involved in the Philippines's developing film industry, anxious to return back t