ACTOR · BORN 1918 · DIED 1996
Ben Johnson
- Born
- 13 June 1918
- Died
- 8 April 1996
21 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
All facts (21)
- #001
The trophy belt buckle Ben Johnson won for calf roping was stolen from his car when he visited Houston in 1976; ten years later, on another visit, he was a live guest on radio station KIKK when someone who had been looking for him returned the buckle.
- #002
Ben Johnson initially turned down the role of Sam the Lion in The Last Picture Show (1971), which Peter Bogdanovich had first offered him, because he considered the script "dirty" and did not approve of profanity and nudity in motion pictures. Bogdanovich appealed to John Ford, who persuaded Johnson to change his mind as a favor to him. With Bogdanovich's permission, Johnson rewrote his part with the offensive words removed. Johnson won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role.
- #003
Ben Johnson and his father, Ben Johnson, Sr., were champion steer ropers. The elder Johnson was also a cattle rancher and farm owner and was inducted into the Great Westerners Hall of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1961. The younger Johnson was inducted into the Great Western Artists Hall of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1982.
- #004
Ben Johnson had his first big break in the late 1940s as a member of John Ford's stock company. During the making of Rio Grande (1949), however, a brief verbal argument occurred between Johnson and Ford. Afterward everything seemed fine and nothing more was said about it, so Ben assumed it had blown over completely. Yet Ford did not use Johnson in another film for 14 years, until Johnson played a small role in Cheyenne Autumn (1964). Johnson's lifelong friend Harry Carey Jr. said he believed the reason was that when Ford was casting The Sun Shines Bright (1953), Johnson's agent heard Ford wanted him for a role and, without Johnson's knowledge, called Ford and demanded a hefty salary. Angered at being pressured this way, Ford held it against Johnson and used it and the argument during Rio Grande as a pretext never to use him again. Even so, the two managed to maintain a friendly relationship.
- #005
Ben Johnson appeared in three films in which his character was named Travis: She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), as Sergeant Travis Tyree; Wagon Master (1950), as Travis Blue; and Rio Grande (1950), as Trooper Travis Tyree.
- #006
Ben Johnson also doubled for Randolph Scott.
- #007
Ben Johnson appeared in eight films with John Wayne: The Long Saddle (1944), 3 Godfathers (1948), Fort Apache (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), Rio Grande (1950), The Undefeated (1969), Chisum (1970) and The Train Robbers (1973).
- #008
Because both he and his father were named Ben, the younger Johnson was known at home as "Son." The road sign leading to the actor's ranch near Shidler, Oklahoma, declares it to be Ben "Son" Johnson's ranch.
- #009
Johnson's wife, Carol, was the daughter of Clarence Young "Fats" Jones, owner of Fats Jones Stables, which supplied horses to many films and television series.
- #010
His father, Ben Johnson, Sr., was inducted into the Rodeo Historical Society's Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1961 (the Rodeo Historical Society is a support group of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum). The Ben Johnson Memorial Award, given in his father's honor, has been presented annually since 1998 to leading representatives of the Western character and spirit.
- #011
Ben Johnson's great-grandfather Calvin C. Johnson (1840-1915) served in the 14th Arkansas Infantry of the Confederate States Army.
- #012
On June 2, 1994, Ben Johnson was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7082 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
- #013
Ben Johnson appeared in five films selected by the Library of Congress for the National Film Registry as "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: Shane (1953), Oklahoma! (1955), One-Eyed Jacks (1961), The Wild Bunch (1969) and The Last Picture Show (1971).
- #014
Ben Johnson had Cherokee and Irish ancestry.
- #015
Ben Johnson, his father and his nephew all hold Belt Buckle awards in the team roping sport.
- #016
Ben Johnson was Johnny Weissmuller's stunt double in Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943).
- #017
Ben Johnson served as a Marine in the Pacific theater during World War II. He took part in the Guadalcanal campaign and other operations. He was discharged as a Private First Class.
- #018
Ben Johnson appeared in two films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Shane (1953) and The Last Picture Show (1971).
- #019
Ben Johnson also appeared alongside Harry Carey Jr. in The Rare Breed (1966).
- #020
Ben Johnson's parents divorced when he was young. His mother Ollie remarried Fred Rider, and his father Ben Sr. remarried Allie Johnson. Ben Sr. died two years after the marriage.
- #021
On Junior Bonner, Ben Johnson allowed Steve McQueen to wear his 1953 World Champion rodeo buckle throughout the shoot.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
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