Don Johnson

Don Johnson (born Donald Wayne Johnson on December 15, 1949) is an American actor well known for his film and television appearances. Johnson became a household name as a result of his role in the popular 1980s TV cop series, Miami Vice.

Early life

Johnson was born in Flat Creek, Missouri. His father was a farmer, his mother a beautician. At the age of 6, he moved from Missouri to Wichita, Kansas. He graduated from South High School in Wichita, Kansas in 1967 and attended the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. He is of English origin.

In the late 1960s, he was one of the male contestants on the popular television show The Dating Game.

Family and Love Life

Johnson was married twice to actress Melanie Griffith (briefly in 1976 and then from 1989-1996) and is currently married to Kelley Phleger of San Francisco. They were married in 1998. Ms. Phleger is related to the Gettys of Getty Oil.

Johnson lived with Patti D'Arbanville from 1981 to 1985.

Johnson had a relationship with Barbra Streisand and created a single with her called "Till I Loved You". The single was the theme song to the 1987 film Nuts.

Johnson had an affair with Jeanne Anderson in 1996, which reportedly ended his marriage to Melanie Griffith.

Johnson has a son with D'Arbanville, Jesse Johnson, born in December 1982, a daughter with Griffith, Dakota Johnson, born in October 1989, and a daughter with Phleger, Atherton Grace Johnson, born December 28, 1999 and a son, Jasper Breckinridge Johnson, born June 6, 2002. Their third child and second son, Deacon, was born April 29, 2006.

Early career

Johnson studied drama at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. His first major role was in the 1969 Los Angeles stage production of Fortune and Men's Eyes in which he played Smitty, the lead role. This exposure led to the quickly forgotten 1970 film The Magic Garden of Stanley Sweetheart. He continued to work on stage, film and television without breaking out into stardom. His notable films from this period were The Harrad Experiment (1973) and A Boy and His Dog (1975). He was referred to as a "six-time loser" in Hollywood as a result of having been featured in six failed pilot television series.

Major television roles

In September 1984 Johnson's fortunes changed when he became a household name as a result of his co-starring role as Sonny Crockett in the popular 1980s cop series, Miami Vice. In this role, Johnson played a police detective working undercover as a drug smuggler. He typically wore thousand dollar Versace and Hugo Boss suits over pastel cotton t-shirts, drove a Ferrari Daytona (later a Ferrari Testarossa) and lived on a 42-foot yacht with his pet alligator Elvis. Miami Vice was noted for its revolutionary use of music, cinematography, and imagery as well as a more glitzy take on the police drama genre.

Johnson later starred in the 1996-2001 drama Nash Bridges with Cheech Marin and Yasmine Bleeth. Johnson played the title role of Nash, a detective for the San Francisco Police Department. In Bridges Johnson was again paired with a flashy convertible car, this time an electric yellow 1971 Plymouth Barracuda.

In the fall of 2005, he briefly starred in The WB courtroom television show Just Legal as a jaded lawyer with a very young and idealistic partner (Jay Baruchel); the show was cancelled in October 2005.

Brushes with the law

Johnson has had several brushes with the law.

When he was 12 years old, Johnson was arrested for hotwiring cars and sent to reform school^*.

In 1997, two cast members on Nash Bridges accused Johnson of sexual assault. Both cases were settled with confidential settlements.

In 2001, a 36-year-old woman accused Johnson of grabbing and bruising her arm and lewdly propositioning her outside a restroom at a San Francisco sushi bar. The woman's friends went to confront Johnson but said he fled out the back door. Johnson said he was considering buying an advertisement in the San Francisco Chronicle to state his side of the story, but later decided to post the notices on his website. Due to insufficient evidence, no charges were filed.^*^*

In 2003, bank statements showing 8 billion USD in transactions were found in Johnson's car while he was traveling in Europe. Initially it was thought Johnson was involved in money-laundering, but he was eventually cleared of wrongdoing.^*

Trivia

Johnson's height is 5' 9".
Was considered to play Eliot Ness in The Untouchables.
Popular Finnish music group Don Johnson Big Band is named after him.
Strongly supports the Republican party.
He once had a screaming match on the radio with the hosts of the syndicated Ron and Ron Show, Ron Bennington (also known as "Tex Bennington," now of The Ron and Fez Show) and Ron Diaz.
Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari gave Johnson a silver Ferrari Testarossa while he was working on Miami Vice. Johnson auctioned off the car while going through bankruptcy proceedings.^*
Moved in with Melanie Griffith when she was 14 and he 22
In a Calvin and Hobbes comic, when Calvin and Hobbes are getting ready to go to a dinner with Calvin's parents, Hobbes asks, "Do you think I should shave?", to which Calvin replies "Nah, go for the Don Johnson fuzzy look."

Filmography

The Magic Garden of Stanley Sweetheart (1970)
Zachariah (1971)
The Harrad Experiment (1973)
Lollipops and Roses (1974)
Return to Macon County (1975)
A Boy and His Dog (1975)
Swan Lake (1978) (voice in English version)
Soggy Bottom, USA (1980)
Melanie (1982)
Cease Fire (1985)
Sweet Hearts Dance (1988)
Dead Bang (1989)
The Hot Spot (1990)
Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991)
Paradise (1991)
Born Yesterday (1993)
Guilty as Sin (1993)
Tin Cup (1996)
Goodbye Lover (1998)
The Dying Gaul (2005)

Television Work

Law of the Land (1976)
The City (1977)
Cover Girls (1977)
Pressure Point (1978)
Ski Lift to Death (1978)
The Two-Five (1978)
Portrait of a Centerfold (1978)
First, You Cry (1978)
Tales of the Unexpected (1979)
Amateur Night at the Dixie Bar and Grill (1979)
The Rebels (1979) (miniseries)
From Here to Eternity (1980) (canceled after 13 episodes)
Beulah Land (1980) (miniseries)
Revenge of the Stepford Wives (1980)
Elvis and the Beauty Queen (1981)
The Two Lives of Carol Letner (1981)
Miami Vice (1984-1989)
The Long Hot Summer (1985)
In Pursuit of Honor (1995)
Nash Bridges (1996-2001) (also producer)
Word of Honor (2003) (also co-executive producer)
Just Legal (2005) (canceled after 3 episodes)

Music

Barbra Streisand - Til I Loved You (Duet with Don Johnson) Album (1990)
''Don Johnson - Let It Roll’’ Album (1989)
''Don Johnson - Heartbeat’’ Album (1987)
''Don Johnson - Heartbeat’’ Full Length Video (1987)

External links

Fan sites

Don Johnson | Don Johnson | Don Johnson | Don Johnson | Don Johnson

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