Clark Johnson
Clark Johnson | |
|---|---|
| Occupation(s) | Actor and director |
| Years active | 1983-present |
Clark Johnson (born September 10 1954),[1] sometimes credited as "Clark 'Slappy' Jackson", "Clarque Johnson", and "J. Clark Johnson", is an American actor and director who has worked in both television and film.
Biography
Early years
Johnson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to an African American father and a White mother. The family eventually moved to Canada.[2] He attended Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. He has three siblings[2] including jazz singer Molly Johnson and actress and singer Taborah Johnson.
Johnson's football prowess took him to Eastern Michigan University on a partial scholarship, but he was kicked out after he was caught stealing turkey dogs from the school cafeteria.
He attended several other schools including Loyola and the University of Ottawa before ending up at the Ontario College of Art as a film major. He went on to be drafted by the Canadian Football League, and even played short stints with the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers before he decided he'd "better try and get some sort of job."
He began doing feature film work in 1981, landing roles in the movies Killing 'em Softly, Colors, Wild Thing, Adventures in Babysitting, and Nowhere to Hide. He also acted in a number of television shows early in his career, including Night Heat and Hot Shots.
Homicide: Life on the Street
In 1993, Johnson became part of the original cast of the television series Homicide: Life on the Street playing Detective Meldrick Lewis for all seven seasons and the reunion movie, as well as directing several episodes. Though the ensemble nature of the show meant that Johnson always filled an important role in the series, he became an even larger presence after his character was paired with a new partner, Mike Kellerman (played by Reed Diamond). The two detectives became the central figures in a plot line surrounding a Baltimore drug lord whose financial resources and front as a devoted community servant made it nearly impossible for the police department to bring him up on charges. Johnson made the transition to director with the season four episode "Map of the Heart".[3][4] He also directed "Betrayal",[5] "Valentine's Day",[6] "Full Court Press"[7] and "The Twenty Percent Solution".[8] Author of the non fiction book Homicide was based upon, teleplay writer and producer David Simon commented that the transition from actor to director was made easy by Johnson's familiarity with the show and that he was one of the better directors in terms of keeping the tone of the show consistent.[4]
The Wire
Johnson also worked on The Wire, reuniting him with Simon. Johnson directed the pilot,[9][10] second episode,[11][12] fifth episode and series finale. He appeared as Gus Haynes, the fictional, principled city desk editor of the Baltimore Sun in the fifth and final season.[13]
Directing
Johnson's other directing credits include the big-screen releases The Sentinel (2006) and S.W.A.T. (2003), and episodes of Third Watch and The Shield as well as the HBO original production Boycott (2001), a project which he helmed and in which he also acted. He also directed the first episodes of Seasons 1 and 2 of the 2005 mini-series Sleeper Cell.
Filmography
Actor
Nick of time - Cab Driver
- The Shield Witness Protection Program agent, Episode 7.13 "Family Meeting" (2008)
- The Wire TV series as Gus Haynes (2008)
- Homicide: The Movie as Meldrick Lewis (2000)
- Homicide: Life on the Street TV series as Meldrick Lewis (1993-1999)
Director
- The Wire TV series (2002-2008)
- Episode 1.01 "The Target" (2002)
- Episode 1.02 "The Detail" (2002)
- Episode 1.05 "The Pager" (2002)
- Episode 5.10 "–30–" (2008)
- Sleeper Cell TV series (2005-2006)
- Episode "Al-Faitha" (2005)
- Episode "Al-Bagara" (2006)
- The Sentinel (2006)
- N.Y.-70 (2005)
- The Jury (2004)
- "Lamentation on the Reservation" (2004)
- The Shield TV series (2002-2008)
- Episode 1.01 "Pilot" (2002)
- Episode 1.03 "The Spread" (2002)
- Episode 1.05 "Blowback" (2002)
- Episode 3.01 "Playing Tight" (2004)
- Episode 3.02 "Blood and Water" (2004)
- Episode 6.04 "The New Guy" (2007)
- Episode 7.13 "Family Meeting" (2008)
- The Secret Service (2004)
- S.W.A.T. (2003)
- Boycott (2001)
- NYPD Blue TV series (2000)
- Episode "Lucky Luciano" (2000)
- The West Wing TV series (2000)
- Episode "Six Meetings Before Lunch" (2000)
- The Beat TV series (2000)
- Third Watch TV series (2000)
- Episode "Nature or Nurture?" (2000)
- City of Angels TV series (2000)
- The City TV series (2000)
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit TV series (1999)
- Episode "Sophomore Jinx" (1999)
- Homicide: Life on the Street TV series (1996-1998)
- Episode "Map of the Heart" (1996)
- Episode "Betrayal" (1997)
- Episode "Valentine's Day" (1997)
- Episode "Betrayal" (1998)
- Episode "The Twenty Percent Solution" (1998)
- Welcome to Paradox TV series (1998)
- La Femme Nikita TV series (1998)
- Fast Track TV series (1997)
References
- ^ Clark Johnson Biography (1954-)
- ^ a b Lee, Felicia R. (2008-01-04). "Bittersweet Work of Wrapping 'Wire'". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-09-11.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Clark Johnson (1996-04-26). "Map of the Heart". Homicide: Life on the Street. Season 4. Episode 19. NBC.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|episodelink=and|city=(help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|writers=ignored (help) - ^ a b David Simon (1998). Homicide: Life on the Street season 4 interviews (DVD). NBC.
- ^ Clark Johnson (1997-01-10). "Betrayal". Homicide: Life on the Street. Season 5. Episode 12. NBC.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|episodelink=and|city=(help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|writers=ignored (help) - ^ Clark Johnson (1997-02-14). "Valentine's Day". Homicide: Life on the Street. Season 5. Episode 16. NBC.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|episodelink=and|city=(help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|writers=ignored (help) - ^ Clark Johnson (1998-04-03). "Full Court Press". Homicide: Life on the Street. Season 6. Episode 18. NBC.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|episodelink=and|city=(help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|writers=ignored (help) - ^ Clark Johnson (1998-10-30). "The Twenty Percent Solution". Homicide: Life on the Street. Season 7. Episode 04. NBC.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|episodelink=and|city=(help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|writers=ignored (help) - ^ "Episode guide - episode 01 The Target". HBO. 2004. Retrieved 2006-07-24.
- ^ David Simon, Ed Burns (2002-06-02). "The Target". The Wire. Season 1. Episode 1. HBO.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|city=and|writers=(help); Unknown parameter|episodelink=ignored (|episode-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help) - ^ "Episode guide - episode 02 The Detail". HBO. 2004. Retrieved 2006-07-26.
- ^ David Simon, Ed Burns (2002-06-09). "The Detail". The Wire. Season 1. Episode 2. HBO.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|city=and|writers=(help); Unknown parameter|episodelink=ignored (|episode-link=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help) - ^ Wiltz, Teresa (September 3, 2001). "Down to "The Wire": It's a Wrap for Gritty TV Series". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-09-03.
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