Ben Johnson (actor)

Benjamin "Son" Johnson Jr. (June 13, 1918 – April 8, 1996) was an American film and television actor, stuntman, and world champion rodeo cowboy. Tall and laconic, Johnson brought authenticity to many roles in Westerns with his expert horsemanship.

Ben Johnson
Johnson in 1969
Born	(1918-06-13)June 13, 1918 Foraker, Oklahoma, U.S.
Died	April 8, 1996(1996-04-08) (aged 77) Mesa, Arizona, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Actor, stuntman, rodeo cowboy
Years active	1939–1996
Spouse(s)	Carol Elaine Jones (1941–1994; her death)

The son of a rancher, Johnson arrived in Hollywood to deliver a consignment of horses for a film. He did stunt-double work for several years before breaking into acting with the help of John Ford. An elegiac portrayal of a former cowboy theater owner in the 1950s coming-of-age drama The Last Picture Show won Johnson the 1971 Academy Award, BAFTA Award, and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Johnson also operated a horse-breeding ranch throughout his career. Although he said he had succeeded by sticking to what he knew, shrewd real estate investments made Johnson worth an estimated $100 million by his later years.[1]

Early life

Johnson was born in Foraker, Oklahoma, on the Osage Indian Reservation, of Irish and Cherokee ancestry,[2][3] the son of Ollie Susan Johnson (née Workmon; 1899-2000) and Ben Johnson, Sr. (1896-1952).[4] His father was a rancher and rodeo champion in Osage County.

Rodeo career

Johnson was drawn to the rodeos and horse breeding of his early years. In 1953, he took a break from well-paid film work to compete in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) becoming Team Roping World Champion, although he only broke even financially that year. Johnson was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1973.[5] According to his ProRodeo Hall of Fame entry, he said, "I've won a rodeo world championship, and I'm prouder of that than anything else I've ever done."[5]

Film career

Johnson's film career began with the Howard Hughes film The Outlaw. Before filming began, Hughes bought some horses at the Chapman-Barnard ranch, the Oklahoma ranch where Johnson's father was foreman, and hired Johnson to get the horses to northern Arizona (for The Outlaw's location shooting), and then to take them on to Hollywood.

Johnson liked to say later that he got to Hollywood in a carload of horses.[6] With his experience wrangling for Hughes during The Outlaw's location shooting, once in Hollywood, he did stunt work for the 1939 movie The Fighting Gringo, and throughout the 1940s, he found work wrangling horses and doing stunt work involving horses.

His work as a stuntman caught the eye of director John Ford. Ford hired Johnson for stunt work in the 1948 film Fort Apache, and as the riding double for Henry Fonda.[3] During shooting, the horses pulling a wagon with three men in it stampeded. Johnson, who "happened to be settin' on a horse", stopped the runaway wagon and saved the men. When Ford promised that he would be rewarded, Johnson hoped it would be with another doubling job, or maybe a small speaking role.[7] Instead he received a seven-year acting contract from Ford.[8] Ford called Johnson into his office, handed him an envelope with a contract in it. Johnson started reading it and when he got to the fifth line and it said "$5,000 a week," he stopped reading, grabbed a pen, and signed it, and gave it back to Ford.[7]

Johnson in Wagon Master (1950)

His first credited role was in Ford's 3 Godfathers; the film is notable for the riding skills demonstrated by both Johnson and star Pedro Armendáriz. He later said the film was the most physically challenging of his career. Ford then suggested a starring role for him in the 1949 film Mighty Joe Young; he played "Gregg" opposite Terry Moore. Ford cast him in two of the three films that have come to be known as Ford's cavalry trilogy, all starring John Wayne: She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), and Rio Grande (1950); both roles showcased Johnson's riding ability. Ford also cast Johnson as the lead in Wagon Master (1950), one of Ford's favorites.

In real life, Johnson did not show any bad temper; his demeanor in tense situations was calm but firm. Although known for avoiding drama, he had definite boundaries; during the making of Rio Grande he defied Ford, who was notorious for browbeating his actors, and reportedly told him to go to hell. Johnson thought the incident had been forgotten, but Ford did not use him in a film for over a decade. Johnson also appeared in four films of Sam Peckinpah and had a good relationship with the wayward director. Peckinpah appreciated Johnson's authenticity and lack of acting airs.[1]

Johnson played in supporting roles in Shane (1953), where he appeared as Chris Calloway, a "bad guy who makes good" after being beaten senseless by Alan Ladd, and One-Eyed Jacks (1961) starring Marlon Brando. In 1964, he worked with Ford again in Cheyenne Autumn. He also appeared in four Peckinpah-directed films: Major Dundee (1965, with Charlton Heston), The Wild Bunch (1969, with William Holden and Robert Ryan), and two back-to-back Steve McQueen films, The Getaway and the rodeo film Junior Bonner (both 1972). In 1973, he co-starred as Melvin Purvis in John Milius' Dillinger with Warren Oates; he also appeared in Milius' 1984 film Red Dawn. In 1975, he played the character Mister in Bite the Bullet, starring Gene Hackman and James Coburn. He also appeared with Charles Bronson in 1975's Breakheart Pass. In 1980, he was cast as Sheriff Isum Gorch in Soggy Bottom U.S.A.

Johnson played Bartlett in the 1962-63 season of Have Gun Will Travel, which featured a short scene of his riding skills. In 1963 Johnson appeared as Spinner on the TV western The Virginian in the episode titled Duel at Shiloh." In the 1966-67 television season, Johnson appeared as the character Sleeve in all 26 episodes of the ABC family Western The Monroes with co-stars Michael Anderson, Jr. and Barbara Hershey.[9]

He teamed up with John Wayne again, and director Andrew V. McLaglen, in two films, appearing with Rock Hudson in The Undefeated (1969) and in a fairly prominent role in Chisum (1970). The apex of Johnson's career was reached in 1971, with Johnson winning an Academy Award for his performance as Sam the Lion in The Last Picture Show, directed by Peter Bogdanovich.

On the set of The Train Robbers, in June 1972, he told Nancy Anderson of Copley News Service that winning the Oscar for The Last Picture Show was not going to change him and he would not raise his salary request to studios because of it. He continued, "I grew up on a ranch and I know livestock, so I like working in Westerns. All my life I've been afraid of failure. To avoid it, I've stuck with doing things I know how to do, and it's made me a good living".[10]

He played Cap Roundtree in the 1979 miniseries The Sacketts. He played Sam Bellows in the 1980 film Ruckus. He co-starred in the 1994 version of Angels in the Outfield.

He continued ranching during the entire time, operating a horse-breeding ranch in Sylmar, California.[3] In addition, he sponsored the Ben Johnson Pro Celebrity Team Roping and Penning competition, held in Oklahoma City, the proceeds of which are donated to both the Children's Medical Research Inc. and the Children's Hospital of Oklahoma.

Personal life

Johnson's 1941 marriage to Carol Elaine Jones lasted until her death on March 27, 1994. They had no children. She was the daughter of noted Hollywood horse wrangler Clarence "Fat" Jones.[1] In 2003, he was inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame.[11] Johnson's mother Ollie died a few years after her son, on October 16, 2000, aged 101.[12]

Death and legacy

Johnson continued to work almost steadily until his death from a heart attack at the age of 77. On April 8, 1996, the veteran actor collapsed while visiting his then 96-year-old mother Ollie at Leisure World in Mesa, Arizona, the suburban Phoenix retirement community where they both lived.[13] Johnson's body was later transported from Arizona to Pawhuska, Oklahoma, for burial at the Pawhuska City Cemetery.[14]

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Johnson has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7083 Hollywood Boulevard. In 1982, he was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. In 1996, Tom Thurman made a documentary film about Johnson's life, titled Ben Johnson: Third Cowboy on the Right, written by Thurman and Tom Marksbury.[2]

The Ben Johnson Cowboy Museum was opened in honor of Ben Johnson in his hometown of Pawhuska, OK in June 2019. The museum showcases the life and career of Ben Johnson, as well as his father, Ben Johnson, Sr., who was also a world champion cowboy. In addition to the Ben Johnsons, the museum also features other world champion cowboys and cowgirls, famous ranches (like the one Ben grew up on), and cowboy artists and craftsmen, all from the area where Ben grew up.[15]

The Ben Johnson Memorial Steer Roping and the International Roundup Cavalcade, the world's largest amateur rodeo, are held annually in Pawhuska, Oklahoma.[16]

A one-and-a-quarter-size bronze sculpture by John D. Free of Ben Johnson riding a horse and roping a steer was commissioned and produced in Pawhuska, Oklahoma.[17]

Filmography

Film (actor and stuntman)

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1939	The Fighting Gringo	Mexican Barfly	Uncredited
1943	The Outlaw	Deputy	Uncredited
1943	Bordertown Gun Fighters	Messenger	Uncredited
1944	The Pinto Bandit	Race Contestant	Uncredited
1944	Tall in the Saddle	Townsman / Stuntman	Uncredited
1944	Nevada	Saloon Patron / Stunt Double: Robert Mitchum	Uncredited
1945	Corpus Christi Bandits	2nd Stage Driver	Uncredited
1945	The Naughty Nineties	Coach Driver	Uncredited
1946	Badman's Territory	Deputy Marshal	Uncredited
1947	Wyoming	Cowhand	Uncredited
1947	Angel and the Badman	Stuntman	Uncredited
1948	The Gallant Legion	Texas Ranger	Uncredited
1948	Fort Apache	Stunt Double: Henry Fonda	Uncredited
1948	3 Godfathers	Posse Man #1 / Stuntman	Johnson was also a stuntman but wasn't credited for it.
1948	Red River	Stuntman	Uncredited
1949	She Wore a Yellow Ribbon	Sgt. Tyree
1949	Mighty Joe Young	Gregg
1950	Wagon Master	Travis Blue
1950	Rio Grande	Trooper Travis Tyree
1951	Fort Defiance	Ben Shelby
1952	Wild Stallion	Dan Light
1953	Shane	Chris Calloway
1955	Oklahoma!	Wrangler / Stuntman	Uncredited
1956	Rebel in Town	Frank Mason
1957	War Drums	Luke Fargo
1957	Slim Carter	Montana Burriss
1958	Fort Bowie	Capt. Thomas Thompson
1960	Ten Who Dared	George Bradley
1961	One-Eyed Jacks	Bob Amory
1961	Tomboy and the Champ	Uncle Jim
1964	Cheyenne Autumn	Trooper Plumtree	Uncredited
1965	Major Dundee	Sergeant Chillum
1966	The Rare Breed	Jeff Harter
1968	Will Penny	Alex
1968	Hang 'Em High	Marshal Dave Bliss
1969	The Wild Bunch	Tector Gorch
1969	The Undefeated	Short Grub
1970	Chisum	James Pepper
1971	The Last Picture Show	Sam the Lion	Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor
1971	Something Big	Jesse Bookbinder
1972	Corky	Boland
1972	Junior Bonner	Buck Roan
1972	The Getaway	Jack Beynon
1973	The Train Robbers	Jesse
1973	The Wayne Train	Himself / Jesse	Documentary short
1973	The Red Pony	Jess Taylor	Television movie
1973	Kid Blue	Sheriff 'Mean John' Simpson
1973	Dillinger	Melvin Purvis
1973	Runaway!	Holly Gibson	Television movie
1973	Blood Sport	Dwayne Birdsong	Television movie
1974	The Sugarland Express	Captain Tanner
1974	Locusts	Amos Fletcher	Television movie
1975	Bite the Bullet	Mister	Bronze Wrangler for Theatrical Motion Picture (shared with cast & crew)
1975	Breakheart Pass	Marshal Pearce
1975	Hustle	Marty Hollinger
1976	The Savage Bees	Sheriff Donald McKew	Television movie
1976	The Town That Dreaded Sundown	Captain J.D. Morales
1977	The Greatest	Hollis
1977	Grayeagle	John Colter
1978	The Swarm	Felix
1979	The Sacketts	Cap Rountree	Television movie
1980	The Hunter	Sheriff Strong
1980	Ruckus	Sam Bellows
1980	Terror Train	Carne
1981	Soggy Bottom U.S.A.	Sheriff Isum Gorch
1982	Tex	Cole Collins
1982	The Shadow Riders	Uncle 'Black Jack' Traven	Television movie
1983	Champions	Burly Cocks
1984	Red Dawn	Mr. Jack Mason
1985	Wild Horses	Bill Ward	Television movie
1986	Let's Get Harry	Harry Burck Sr.
1986	Trespasses	August Klein
1987	Cherry 2000	Six-Fingered Jake
1988	Stranger on my Land	Vern Whitman	Television movie
1988	Dark Before Dawn	The Sheriff
1989	The Last Ride	Unnamed cowboy	Short film
1989	Back to Back	Eli Hix
1989	Hollywood on Horses	Himself
1991	The Chase	Laurienti	Television movie
1991	My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys	Jesse Dalton
1991	Thank Ya, Thank Ya Kindly	Himself	TV movie documentary
1992	Radio Flyer	Geronimo Bill
1992	The Making of Rio Grande	Himself / Trooper Travis Tyree
1993	John Ford	Himself	TV movie documentary
1994	100 Years of the Hollywood Western	Himself	TV movie documentary
1994	Angels in the Outfield	Hank Murphy
1994	Outlaws: The Legend of O.B. Taggart	Jack Parrish
1993	Bonanza: The Return	Bronc Evans	Television movie
1995	Bonanza: Under Attack	Bronc Evans	Television movie
1996	Ruby Jean and Joe	Big Man	With Tom Selleck
1996	Ben Johnson: Third Cowboy on the Right	Himself	Documentary
1996	The Evening Star	Doctor Arthur Cotton	Released posthumously (final film role)

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1956	Cavalcade of America	Cal Bennett	Once a Hero (Season 5, Episode 12)
1958	The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet	Tex Barton	Top Gun (Season 6, Episode 26)
1958	Navy Log	Border Patrol Officer	Florida Weekend (Season 3, Episode 28)
1958	The Restless Gun	Sheriff Tim Malachy	No Way to Kill (Season 2, Episode 9)
1958	Alfred Hitchcock Presents	Jeff, The Sheriff	And the Desert Shall Blossom (Season 4, Episode 11)
1958	Wagon Train	Wagon Driver	episode: Bije Wilcox Story
1959	Border Patrol	Hank Colman	Everglades Story (Season 1, Episode 1)
1960—1961	Laramie	Various	Seasons 1—2; 3 episodes
1961—1962	Route 66	Various	Seasons 1—2; 2 episodes
1960—1962	Have Gun – Will Travel	Various	Seasons 4—6; 3 episodes
1962	Stoney Burke	Rex Donally	Point of Honor (Season 1, Episode 4)
1962	Bonanza	Deputy Sheriff Stan Mace	Episode: "The Gamble"
1964	Perry Mason	Kelly - Mine Foreman	The Case of the Reckless Hound (Season 8, Episode 10)
1965	Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre	Burt Wade	March from Camp Tyler (Season 3, Episode 3)
1966	Branded	Bill Latigo	McCord's Way (Season 2, Episode 20)
1966	ABC Stage 67	Sheriff Barbee	Noon Wine (Season 1, Episode 9)
1966—1967	The Monroes	Sleeve	Recurring role; 14 episodes
1963—1968	The Virginian	Various	Seasons 1—7; 4 episodes
1969	Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color	Himself	Ride a Northbound Horse: Part 1 and 2 (Season 15, Episodes 21 & 22)
1969	Bonanza	Sgt. Samuel Bellis	Episode: "The Deserter"
1971	Bonanza	Kelly James	Episode: "Top Hand"
1963—1971	Gunsmoke	Ben Crown/Vern Morland/Hannon	Seasons 8—17; episodes: Quint-Cident / Quaker Girl /Drago
1980	Wild Times	Doc Bogardus	Television miniseries; 2 episodes
1984	Hollywood Greats	Himself	episode: John Wayne
1986	Dream West	Jim Bridger	Television miniseries

References

1. Jensen, Richard D. (2010). The Nicest Fella - the Life of Ben Johnson: The World Champion Rodeo Cowboy who Became an Oscar-winning Movie Star. iUniverse. ISBN 9781440196782.
2. Thurman, Tom (September 1, 1996). "Ben Johnson: Third Cowboy on the Right". Retrieved April 30, 2018.
3. Erickson, Hal. "Ben Johnson profile". AllMovie. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
4. Ollie Susan Workmon Rider obituary Archived 2008-02-18 at the Wayback Machine, Osage County, Oklahoma USGenWeb Project, Rootsweb.com; accessed June 24, 2015.
5. "Ben Johnson - Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame". Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
6. "Ben Johnson". JWayne.com. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
7. Brown, David G. (September–October 1995). "Last of a Breed". American Cowboy. Active Interest Media. 2 (3): 43. ISSN 1079-3690.
8. McBride, Joseph (2003). Searching for John Ford: A Life. Macmillan. p. 496. ISBN 978-0-312-31011-0.
9. Filmography, imdb.com; accessed June 24, 2015.
10. Anderson, Nancy (June 4, 1972). "John Wayne A Father Figure On Movie Set in Durango, Mexico". The Joplin Globe. Copley New Service.
11. "Ben Johnson". Western Heritage from the Texas Trail of Fame. 6 June 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
12. Profile, prorodeo.com; accessed June 24, 2015.
13. "Actor Ben Johnson dies at 77", The Press of Atlantic City, Atlantic City, NJ, April 9, 1996, retrieved August 31, 2012
14. "Actor Buried Near Pawhuska". Tulsa World. April 15, 1996. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
15. "The Ben Johnson Cowboy Museum". Facebook. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
16. May, Jon D. "Johnson, Ben, Jr. | The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture". www.okhistory.org. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
17. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-10-12. Retrieved 2016-06-03.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

Further reading

• Oliver, Myrna (April 9, 1996). "Obituaries : Ben Johnson; Oscar-Winning Actor". The Los Angeles Times.
• http://files.usgwarchives.net/ok/osage/obits/lssnwrdr.txt (archive of Ollie Susan Johnson's obituary)

External links

• Ben Johnson on IMDb
• Ben Johnson at the TCM Movie Database
• Ben Johnson at Find a Grave
• Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Johnson, Ben, Jr.