George Clayton Johnson
George Clayton Johnson | |
|---|---|
 Johnson in 2006 | |
| Born | July 10, 1929 Cheyenne, Wyoming, U.S. |
| Died | December 25, 2015 (aged 86) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Genre |
|
| Years active | 1959–2015 |
| Notable works | |
| Notable awards |
|
| Spouse |
Lola Johnson (m. 1952) |
| Children | 2 |
George Clayton Johnson (July 10, 1929 – December 25, 2015) was an American science fiction writer, who co-wrote with
A Game of Pool", and "A Penny for Your Thoughts"), and the first telecast episode of Star Trek, entitled "The Man Trap".[1] He also wrote the story and screenplay[2] on which the 1960 and 2001 films Ocean's Eleven
were based.
Early life
Johnson was born in a barn in
draftsman in the United States Army, then enrolled at the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University) under the G.I. Bill, but quit to return to his travels around the U.S., working as a draftsman, before becoming a writer.[4]
Writing career
"For me, fantasy must be about something, otherwise it's foolishness ... ultimately it must be about human beings, it must be about the human condition, it must be another look at infinity, it must be another way of seeing the paradox of existence."[5]
—Johnson quoted in The Twilight Zone Companion
In 1959, Johnson wrote the story "I'll Take Care of You" for Ocean's 11, although most of the details were changed for the actual film.[6] Later, Johnson joined the Southern California School of Writers that included, among others, William F. Nolan, Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson and Ray Bradbury.[7]
Through them he met
Kung Fu. Johnson also wrote the Star Trek episode "The Man Trap", which was the first episode telecast.[8] Johnson briefly had a L.A.-based radio program called "The Writer and the Story" which featured interviews with authors, including Charles Beaumont and William F. Nolan.[9] As his career progressed, Johnson formed, in the 1960s, a loose, short-lived federation with fellow authors and friends Matheson, Theodore Sturgeon, and others called "The Green Hand". The intent was to leverage their works in the fashion of a union within the Hollywood system for TV production. Unfortunately, the enterprise fell apart after a few months.[10] In his later years, he wrote comic books and was a frequent guest at science fiction and comics conventions. Johnson co-created the comic book series Deepest Dimension Terror Anthology with cartoonist and author Jay Allen Sanford.[7]
Personal life
Johnson married Lola Brownstein on October 10, 1952, in Los Angeles, and fathered two children, Paul and Judy.
Death
Johnson died on
North Hills, California.[15] He is interred at Riverside National Cemetery
.
Partial bibliography
Novels
- Ocean's 11 (1960) – Novelization (based on the story by George Clayton Johnson and Jack Golden Russell and screenplay by "George Johnson")[3]
- The Logan series
- Logan's Run (1967) – Novel (with William F. Nolan)[3]
- Jessica's Run: A New Sequel for the Logan's Run Universe (George Clayton Johnson's long rumored personal sequel to Logan's Run said to be "in development";[16] yet to be published)
Television and film scripts
- Icarus Montgolfier Wright (with Ray Bradbury; 1962)[17]
- Logan's Run (1976)[3]
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
- "I'll Take Care of You" (1959; story by)[14]
The Twilight Zone
- "The Four of Us Are Dying (1960; story by)[3]
- "Execution" (1960; story by)[14]
- "A Penny for Your Thoughts" (1961; teleplay)[18]
- The Prime Mover (1961; story; uncredited) [19]
- "A Game of Pool" (1961; teleplay)[3]
- "Nothing in the Dark" (1962; teleplay)[3]
- "Kick the Can" (1962; teleplay; also featured in the 1983 movie The Twilight Zone: The Movie)[3]
- "Ninety Years Without Slumbering" (1963; story by, as Johnson Smith)[3]
- In 1960, Johnson submitted a story to The Twilight Zone called "Sea Change" which wasn't used but was later adapted for Johnson's 1994 comic book series Deepest Dimension Terror Anthology.[20]
Route 66
- "Eleven, the Hard Way" (1961; written by)[18]
Honey West
- "The Flame and the Pussycat" (1965; teleplay)[14]
Star Trek
- "The Man Trap" (1966; teleplay; first aired episode of the series)[18]
Kung Fu
- "The Demon God" (1974; teleplay)[18]
Film, TV and documentary appearances
- Sea Hunt ("Sub Hatch" [Season 4, Episode 19]; 1961) as "USCG Lt. Hartwell"[21]
- The Intruder (dir. Roger Corman; 1962) as villain "Phil West"[citation needed]
- Archive of American Television (2003) as himself[6]
- Charles Beaumont: The Short Life of Twilight Zone's Magic Man (dir. Jason V Brock; JaSunni Productions, LLC; 2010) as himself[21]
- The AckerMonster Chronicles! (dir. Jason V Brock; JaSunni Productions, LLC; 2012) as himself[21]
Fiction collections
- Writing for The Twilight Zone (Outre House, 1980)[22]
- George Clayton Johnson Twilight Zone Scripts & Stories (Streamline Pictures, 1996)[23]
- All of Us Are Dying and Other Stories (Subterranean Press, 1999)[24]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result | ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Inkpot Award | Lifetime achievement | Won | [25] | |
| Nebula Award | Nebula Award for Best Script | Logan's Run | Nominated | [26] | |
| 1977 | Hugo Award | Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation | Logan's Run | Nominated | [27] |
| 1980 | Balrog Award
|
Best works and achievements of speculative fiction | A Penny For Your Thoughts (The Twilight Zone) (S 2:Ep 16) | Nominated | [28] |
| Nothing in the Dark (The Twilight Zone) (S 3:Ep 16) | Nominated | [28] | |||
| 1981 | Sea Change (The Twilight Zone)1 | Nominated | [28] | ||
| 1982 | All of Us Are Dying (Twilight Zone May 1982)2 | Won | [28] |
- Notes
Further reading
- Cushman, Marc; Osborn, Susan (2013). These are the Voyages: TOS, Season One. San Diego, CA: Jacobs Brown Press. ISBN 978-0-989-23811-3.
References
- ^ "George Clayton Johnson 1929—2015". startrek.com. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
- ^ "WBMT Literary, Film and Television represents the Literary Estate of George Clayton Johnson". www.lwb3.com. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "WBMT Literary Film and Television". Agent's Website. September 19, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- ^ a b Rogers, John (December 25, 2015). "'Logan's Run' Co-Author George Clayton Johnson Dead at 86". ABC News. ABC. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ "George Clayton Johnson, Quotes". Good Reads. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
- ^ a b "George Clayton Johnson". Emmy TV Legends. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
- ^ a b c d "George Clayton Johnson, Writer of First 'Star Trek' Episode, Dies at 86". NBCNews.com. NBCUniversal. Reuters. December 25, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ Cushman & Osborn (2013): p. 176
- user-generated source]
- ^ a b "Dark Discoveries – Issue #14". Journal Store. March 30, 2015. Archived from the original on December 27, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ a b "George Clayton Johnson". wbmtagency.com. Archived from the original on December 27, 2015. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
- News From Me. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ McNary, Dave (December 25, 2015). "George Clayton Johnson, Writer of First 'Star Trek' Episode, Dies at 86". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
- ^ a b c d Barnes, Mike. "George Clayton Johnson, 'Twilight Zone' and 'Star Trek' Writer, Dies at 86". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
- ^ Derschowitz, Jessica. "George Clayton Johnson, Star Trek and The Twilight Zone writer, dies at 86". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ "Jessica's Run". Archived from the original on February 4, 2015.
- ^ "Logan's Run author George Clayton Johnson dies at 86". BBC News. December 27, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ a b c d McNary, Dave (December 26, 2015). "Writer of first 'Star Trek' episode, George Clayton Johnson, dies at 86". Zap2it. Archived from the original on December 27, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "The Twilight Zone Vortex: "The Prime Mover"". July 4, 2014.
- ^ Sandford, Jay Allen (September 5, 2007). "Deepest Dimension Terror Anthology: Inside Story of a Local Twilight Zone Spin-Off". San Diego Reader. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ a b c "George Clayton Johnson (1929–2015)". Legacy.com. December 26, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "George Clayton Johnson". Science Fiction Awards Database. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "Twilight Zone (television program)". Writers Guild Foundation. Archived from the original on January 30, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "All of Us Are Dying and Other Stories". Subterranean Press. Archived from the original on January 7, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ Hahn, Joel (ed.). "Inkpot Awards". Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on November 30, 2009. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "The Locus Index to SF Awards: 1977 Nebula Awards". Locus. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "1977 Hugo Awards". World Science Fiction Society. Archived from the original on May 7, 2011. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ a b c d "George Clayton Johnson". Science Fiction Awards Database. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone Magazine". The Twilight Zone Vortex. January 27, 2012. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ "The Four of Us Are Dying". The Twilight Zone Vortex. November 9, 2011. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to George Clayton Johnson.
- George Clayton Johnson at Memory Alpha
- George Clayton Johnson at IMDb
- George Clayton Johnson at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Hennessey-DeRose, Cristopher; McCarty, Michael (February 9, 2004). "All of us are dying, but writer George Clayton Johnson is still living it up". Archived from the original on April 4, 2004.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - George Clayton Johnson at The Interviews: An Oral History of Television
- The Literary Estate of George Clayton Johnson
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