Clark Johnson (born September 10, 1954)^[1] is an American-Canadian actor and director who has worked in both television and film. He is best known for his roles as David Jefferson inNight Heat (1985–1988), Clark Roberts inE.N.G. (1989–1994),Meldrick Lewis inHomicide: Life on the Street (1993–1999) andAugustus Haynes inThe Wire (2008). He is anEmmy Award and two-timeGenie Award nominee.

Clark Johnson
Johnson at the 2009Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
Born	(1954-09-10)September 10, 1954 (age 70) Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S.
Other names	Clark "Slappy" Jackson, Clarque Johnson, J. Clark Johnson
Alma mater	Eastern Michigan University University of Ottawa Concordia University OCAD University
Occupation(s)	Actor, director
Years active	1981–present
Relatives	Molly Johnson (sister) Taborah Johnson (sister)

Johnson was born inPhiladelphia,Pennsylvania, to aAfro-Caribbean father fromTrinidad and Tobago and a white mother. The family later moved to Canada.^[2] He has three siblings^[2] includingjazz singerMolly Johnson and actress and singerTaborah Johnson.

Johnson attendedEastern Michigan University on a partial athletic scholarship forAmerican football, but he was expelled after he was caught stealing food from the school cafeteria.^[3] He attended several other universities including theUniversity of Ottawa andLoyola College/Concordia University, where he playedCanadian football, before ending up at theOntario College of Art as a film major.^[3] He was drafted by theToronto Argonauts in the seventh round of the1978 CFL Draft but ultimately did not play professionally.

Johnson started in film doing special effects, includingDavid Cronenberg'sThe Dead Zone. This behind-the-scenes work often served as a "backup" for him during the early stages of his acting career.

He began performing in feature films in 1981, landing roles in the filmsKilling 'em Softly,Colors,Wild Thing,Adventures in Babysitting, andNowhere to Hide. He also acted in a number of television shows early in his career, includingThe Littlest Hobo,Night Heat,Hot Shots andE.N.G.. He starred in the first episode ofThe Women of Brewster Place in 1989 as Butch Fuller.

In 1993, Johnson became part of the original cast of the television seriesHomicide: Life on the Street playing DetectiveMeldrick Lewis for all seven seasons and the reunion movie, as well as directing several episodes. Johnson regularly improvised during filming and made up his own jokes and dialogue; writer and producerJames Yoshimura called Clark the "king of the ad lib".^[4] Although the ensemble nature of the show meant that Johnson never played a minor role, he became an even larger presence after his character was paired with a new partner, Mike Kellerman (played byReed 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 make it nearly impossible for the police department to charge him. Johnson made the transition to director with the season four episode "Map of the Heart".^[5][6] He also directed "Betrayal",^[7] "Valentine's Day",^[8] "Full Court Press"^[9] and "The Twenty Percent Solution".^[10]David Simon, the author of the non-fiction bookHomicide was based upon, as well as a writer and producer for the series, 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.^[6] In 2013, Johnson made a brief cameo as Lewis in theLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit episode "Wonderland Story" when the squad are at a retirement party forJohn Munch (Richard Belzer).

Johnson worked onThe Wire, reuniting with writer David Simon. Johnson directed the pilot episode "The Target",^[11][12] thesecond^[13][14] andfifth first-season episodes, and theseries finale. He playsAugustus Haynes, the dedicated and principled editor forThe Baltimore Sun city desk.^[15]

In 2013, Johnson starred as Sen. Robert Bettencourt (R-PA) inAmazon'sAlpha House, a political comedy written byDoonesbury creatorGarry Trudeau.^[16] Along withJohn Goodman, Johnson plays one of four Republican senators living together in a house on Capitol Hill. Johnson also directed the season finale for the show's first season.^[17] Johnson spent the summer of 2014 filming season two.

Johnson's other directing credits include the big-screen releasesThe Sentinel (2006) andS.W.A.T. (2003), and episodes ofThird Watch as well as theHBO original productionBoycott (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-seriesSleeper Cell. He also directed the first and last episodes ofThe Shield, along with other episodes of that series.

Johnson directed the pilot episode of the FX dramaLights Out. The series stars fellowThe Wire cast membersPablo Schreiber andReg E. Cathey and focuses on a retired heavyweight boxing champion.

Johnson is a guest instructor atHB Studio.^[18]

Television

Film

TV movies

• Boycott (2001)
• The Secret Service (2004)
• N.Y.-70 (2005)

Feature film

• S.W.A.T. (2003)
• The Sentinel (2006)
• Juanita (2019)
• Percy (2020)

Television

• Clark Johnson atIMDb
• 2008 interview onFresh Air