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Arte Johnson
Johnson at the premiere ofSeems Like Old Times in December 1980
Born	Arthur Stanton Eric Johnson (1929-01-20)January 20, 1929 Benton Harbor,Michigan, U.S.
Died	July 3, 2019(2019-07-03) (aged 90) Los Angeles,California, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Illinois (B.A., 1949)
Occupations	Actor comedian
Years active	1952–2006
Spouses	Texie Waterman (divorced) Gisela Johnson ​ (m. 1968)​

Arthur Stanton Eric Johnson (January 20, 1929 – July 3, 2019) was an American actor and comedian, who was best known for his work as a regular, portraying himself, in theNBCsketch comedy seriesRowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967–1971).

Johnson was born January 20, 1929, inBenton Harbor, Michigan, the son of Abraham Lincoln and Edythe Mackenzie (Goldberg/Golden) Johnson. His father was an attorney. Johnson graduated fromAustin High School and received a bachelor's degree in radio journalism fromUniversity of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1949, where he worked at the campus radio station and the University of Illinois Theater Guild with his brother Coslough "Cos" Johnson.^[1]

Following brief military service inKorea (he was discharged due to aduodenalulcer he had suffered since childhood),^[2] he sought employment in Chicago advertising agencies but was unsuccessful and left for New York City to work forViking Press. In early 1954, Johnson performed in several New York nightclubs, including Le Ruban Bleu and theVillage Vanguard.^[3] His first job in show business came when he impulsively stepped into an audition line and was cast inGentlemen Prefer Blondes. Johnson appeared inBen Bagley'sThe Shoestring Revue, which openedoff-Broadway on February 28, 1955, at the President Theater in New York.^[1]

Johnson appeared three times in the 1955–1956CBS sitcomIt's Always Jan, starringJanis Paige andMerry Anders. In 1956 a young Arte Johnson appeared in season 3, episode 22, ofMake Room for Daddy in an episode called "Who Can Figure Kids", where he sang and danced. In 1958 he joined the cast of the short-livedNBC sitcomSally. On that program he played Bascomb Bleacher, Jr., the son of a co-owner of adepartment store, portrayed byGale Gordon. He played Ariel Lavalerra in the 1960 filmThe Subterraneans, an adaptation ofJack Kerouac's1958 novel of the same name. In 1960 and 1961, he appeared in three episodes ofJackie Cooper's military sitcom/drama seriesHennesey, also on CBS. InAlfred Hitchcock Presents he played Mr. Bates in the episode "A Secret Life" (1962). He was cast in an episode ofFrank Aletter's sitcomBringing Up Buddy. He also appeared in an episode ofThe Twilight Zone titled "The Whole Truth" (1961).

Before his big breakthrough inLaugh-In, Johnson was cast for a guest role as Corporal Coogan in the anthology seriesGE True ("The Handmade Private," 1962). He played a bumbling navy cameraman on an episode ofMcHale's Navy in the first season andThe Andy Griffith Show as a hotel clerk in the episode "Andy and Barney in the Big City" (also 1962). He was a member of the regular cast of the 1962–1963 situation comedyDon't Call Me Charlie!, portraying Corporal Lefkowitz. Johnson appeared in a comedic role as Charlie, a boom-microphone operator who demonstrates toJack Benny how to tell a joke properly, onThe Jack Benny Program that aired on October 2, 1964. The joke performed in the sketch was the "ugly baby" story, later associated withFlip Wilson. He made a guest appearance onABC's sitcom,Bewitched asSamantha's (Elizabeth Montgomery) Cousin Edgar in the final episode of the first season, airing on June 2, 1965. Also in 1965, Johnson played a rare dramatic supporting role in the filmThe Third Day as Lester Aldrich, who turns out to be the downtrodden husband of the sleazy nymphomaniac Holly.

Johnson appeared in one of the final episodes of ABC'sThe Donna Reed Show in 1966. He was cast in the satiricalJames Coburn filmThe President's Analyst (1967), in which he gave a comically chilling performance as a federal agent with a blindly obedient "orders are orders" mentality. He appeared in the Season 3 episode ofLost in Space titled "Princess of Space" (1968). Johnson also starred in an episode ofRod Serling'sNight Gallery titled "The Flip-Side of Satan" (1971).

Johnson is best known for his work onRowan & Martin's Laugh-In from 1968 to 1973, on which he played many characters, including "Wolfgang," a cigarette-smoking German soldier oblivious to the fact thatWorld War II was long over, as he skulked while hidden behind a potted plant. He would then invariably comment on a preceding gag with the catchphrase "Very interesting ...," which Johnson claimed was inspired by aNazi character who spoke the line during an interrogation scene in the filmDesperate Journey (1942).^[4] Often toward the show's close, he (as the German) would offer words of affection to "Lucy and Gary" (Lucille Ball and her second husbandGary Morton).The Lucy Show and laterHere's Lucy on CBS were indirect competition with NBC'sLaugh-In onMonday night. Johnson reprised the role briefly onSesame Street in the early 1970s,^[5] and while voicing the Nazi-inspired characterVirman Vundabar on an episode ofJustice League Unlimited.^[6]

His other prominentLaugh-In character was "Tyrone F. Horneigh" (pronounced "horn-eye," a "clean" variant of the vulgar term "horny"), the white-haired,trench coat-wearing "dirty old man" who repeatedly sought to seduce "Gladys Ormphby," (Ruth Buzzi's brown-clad "spinster" character) on a park bench. Tyrone would enter the scene, muttering a song (usually "In the Merry, Merry Month of May"), and, spying Gladys on the bench, would sit next to her. He would ask her a question, and regardless of the answer, turn it into a double entendre. She would then start hitting him with her purse and he would fall off the bench, sometimes with a plea for help.

To boost ratings in the third season, Tyrone successfully courted Gladys which led to an on-air wedding on the March 16, 1970, episode during the spring ratings sweep.Tiny Tim played best man, withCarol Channing as the bridesmaid, andHenry Gibson officiating.^{[citation needed]} Alas, both bride-to-be and groom-to-be walk out of the church just before the wedding vows are spoken.

Years afterLaugh-In ended, the two characters were the subject of an animated Saturday-morning children's show,Baggy Pants and the Nitwits, with Tyrone as a helpful, muttering "superhero."

Johnson and his brother Coslough earnedEmmy Awards while working onLaugh-In^{[broken anchor]}.^[7][8]

Johnson guest-starred in two episodes ofThe Partridge Family ("My Heart Belongs to a Two Car Garage" and "For Whom the Bell Tolls... and Tolls... and Tolls") and the situation comedyA Touch of Grace (1973). He appeared in the first season of the Detroit-produced children's showHot Fudge (1974) and, for one week, as a celebrity guest panelist on the game showMatch Game. From 1976 to 1980, Johnson was a regular celebrity guest judge onThe Gong Show.

In 1976, Johnson voiced the animated cartoon characterMisterjaw, a blue, German-accented shark, inThe Pink Panther Show. He also voiced the character "Rhubarb" onThe Houndcats and appeared as a guest on Canadian TV showCelebrity Cooks (1976) with hostBruno Gerussi. Johnson appeared on an episode of the NBC daytime version ofWheel of Fortune in September 1977 as a substitute letter-turner, both to fill in for an injuredSusan Stafford, and to promote his short-lived NBC game showKnockout, which aired through early 1978. Instead of being introduced by the show's announcer, he would start the show with a small monologue, then the announcer would introduce the day's contestants. He was cast as Renfield, the comic sidekick ofGeorge Hamilton'sDracula in the filmLove at First Bite (1979) and appeared in the all-star television disaster filmCondominium (1980). He voiced "Weerd" inThe 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo (1985), and played a disgruntled employee deniedseverance pay in an episode ofAirwolf. He also voiced several other characters: Dr. Ludwig Von Strangebuck and Count Ray on two episodes ofDuckTales; Devil Smurf onThe Smurfs;Top Cat and Lou onYo Yogi!; and Newt onAnimaniacs. Johnson guest-starred in theMurder, She Wrote episode "No Laughing Murder" (1987). He also appeared in an episode ofNight Court (1990). From 1991 to 1992, Johnson appeared in multiple episodes ofGeneral Hospital asFinian O'Toole. He played the old laboratory head of a team of scientists working on a serum of youth inSecond Chance (1996).

Johnson performed more than 80 audiobook readings, including Gary Shteyngart'sAbsurdistan (2006) andCarl Hiaasen'sBad Monkey. He appeared in theJustice League Unlimited episode "The Ties That Bind" (2005) as the voice ofVirman Vundabar, which was his final acting role before his retirement in 2006.

Johnson lived inSouthern California with his wife, Gisela. They had four children: Antonia, Joanna, Danny, and Dae. He was previously married to choreographerTexie Waterman.

Johnson was anon-Hodgkin's lymphoma survivor, which was diagnosed and successfully treated in 1997. Johnson died at his home inLos Angeles, on July 3, 2019, just three years after being diagnosed withbladder andprostate cancers.^[9] He was 90. His ashes were scattered off Hawaii. Gisela Johnson survives him.

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Wikimedia Commons has media related toArte Johnson.

• Arte Johnson atIMDb
• Arte Johnson at theInternet Broadway Database
• Arte Johnson discography atDiscogs

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