Junior Johnson

Robert Glenn Johnson Jr. (June 28, 1931 – December 20, 2019), better known as Junior Johnson, was a NASCAR driver of the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966. In the 1970s and 1980s, he became a NASCAR racing team owner; winning the NASCAR championship with Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip. He produced a line of fried pork skins and country ham. He is credited as the first to use the drafting technique in stock car racing. He was nicknamed "The Last American Hero" and his autobiography is of the same name. In May 2007, Johnson teamed with Piedmont Distillers of Madison, North Carolina, to introduce the company's second moonshine product, called "Midnight Moon Moonshine".

Junior Johnson
Johnson in 1985
BornRobert Glenn Johnson Jr.
(1931-06-28)June 28, 1931
Ronda, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedDecember 20, 2019(2019-12-20) (aged 88)
Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
Achievements1960 Daytona 500 winner
6-time Winston Cup Series Owner's Champion with Cale Yarborough (1976, 1977, 1978) and Darrell Waltrip (1981, 1982, 1985)
AwardsNamed one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998)
International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee (1990)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee (1991)
NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductee (2010)
NASCAR Cup Series career
313 races run over 14 years
Best finish6th (1955, 1961)
First race1953 Southern 500 (Darlington)
Last race1966 American 500 (Rockingham)
First win1955 Hickory Motor Speedway
Last win1965 Wilkes 400 (North Wilkesboro)
Wins Top tens Poles
50 148 46
NASCAR Convertible Division career
2 races run over 1 year
Best finish64th (1959)
First race1959 Catawba 250 (Hickory)
Last race1959 Old Dominion 500 (Martinsville)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 2 0

Early life and driving days

Johnson was born in Ronda, North Carolina, the fourth of seven children of Lora Belle (Money) and Robert Glenn Johnson, Sr.[1][2] His family is of Ulster Scots descent, and settled in the foothills of North Carolina in the early 1600s. The Johnson family was involved in the whiskey business before he was born. His maternal great-grandfather served as the second highest ranking Confederate general in North Carolina.

His father, a lifelong bootlegger, spent nearly twenty of his sixty-three years in prison, as their house was frequently raided by revenue agents. His family experienced the largest alcohol raid in United States history, seizing 400 gallons of moonshine from the house.[3] Junior was arrested and spent one year in prison in Ohio in 1956-57 for having an illegal still, although he was never caught in his many years of transporting bootleg liquor at high speed.[4]

In 1955, Johnson began his career as a NASCAR driver. In his first full season, he won five races and finished sixth in the 1955 NASCAR Grand National points standings.

In 1958 Johnson won six races.

In 1959, Johnson won five more NASCAR Grand National races (including a win from the pole position at the 1959 Hickory 250); by this time he was regarded as one of the best short-track racers in the sport.

His first win at a "superspeedway" came at the Daytona 500 in 1960. Johnson and his crew chief Ray Fox were practicing for the race, trying to figure out how to increase their speed, which was 22 miles per hour (35 km/h) slower than the top cars in the race. During a test run a faster car passed Johnson. He noticed that when he moved behind the faster car his own speed increased due to the faster car's slipstream. Johnson was then able to stay close behind the faster car until the final lap of the test run, when he used the "slipstream" effect to slingshot past the other car. By using this technique, Johnson went on to win the 1960 Daytona 500, despite the fact his car was slower than others in the field. Johnson's technique was quickly adopted by other drivers, and his practice of "drafting" has become a common tactic in NASCAR races.[5][6]

In 1963 he had a two-lap lead in the World 600 at Charlotte before a spectator threw a bottle onto the track and caused a crash; Johnson suffered only minor injuries. Johnson also tried to qualify for the 1963 Indianapolis 500 but he failed to qualify.[7]

He retired as a driver in 1966. In his career, Johnson claimed 50 victories, 11 at major speedway races. He retired as the winningest driver never to have a championship.

Johnson was a master of dirt track racing. "The two best drivers I've ever competed against on dirt are Junior Johnson and Dick Hutcherson," said two-time NASCAR champion Ned Jarrett.

As a NASCAR owner

As a team owner, he worked with many NASCAR drivers, including Darel Dieringer, LeeRoy Yarbrough, Cale Yarborough, Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip, Neil Bonnett, Terry Labonte, Geoffrey Bodine, Sterling Marlin, Jimmy Spencer and Bill Elliott. In all, his drivers won 132 races, which is fifth to Petty Enterprises, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush Fenway Racing. His drivers won six Winston Cup Championships—three with Yarborough (1976–1978) and Waltrip (1981–82, 1985).

Junior Johnson, Darrell Waltrip, Car No. 11, Nashville 420, July 16, 1983

In 2011, Johnson announced that he would restart a race team with son Robert as driver. Junior Johnson Racing will be located in Hamptonville, North Carolina. Robert, the 2010 UARA Rookie of the Year, plans to run a 28–30 race schedule in 2011, which includes the entire K&N East Series schedule and some races in the UARA and Whelen All-American Series.[8]

Awards

Family

Johnson was briefly married in 1949 to Mary Gray.[12][13] His marriage to childhood sweetheart Flossie Clark (1929–2020) ended in divorce in 1992; they were legally married in 1975,[14] although they had been together since the early 1950s. (Racing Legends have them as married 1958).[15] His marriage to Lisa Day (b.1965)[16]in 1992 resulted in two children: daughter Meredith Suzanne (b.1995) and son Robert Glenn Johnson III (b.1993), both of whom attended Duke University.[11][17] Johnson built a new home for his family in 1997,selling in 2012 due to poor health.[18] He resided in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the time of his death in 2019. Until Flossie's death on April 9, 2020, she still resided in the family home, built by Junior in 1964 (next to Johnson's old Ingle Hollow race shop), that she kept as part of the divorce settlement.

Presidential pardon

On December 26, 1986, President Ronald Reagan granted Johnson a presidential pardon for his 1956 moonshining conviction. In response to the pardon, which restored his right to vote, Johnson said, "I could not have imagined anything better."[19]

Film

In the mid 1960s, writer Tom Wolfe researched and wrote an article about Johnson, published in March 1965 in Esquire, and reprinted in Wolfe's The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine Flake Streamline Baby. This was eventually reprinted in The Best American Sports Writing of the Century, ed. David Halberstam [1999]. The article, originally entitled "Great Balls of Fire", turned Johnson into a national celebrity and led to fame beyond the circle of NASCAR fans. In turn, the article was made into a 1973 movie based on Johnson's career as a driver and moonshiner.[20] The movie was entitled The Last American Hero (a.k.a. Hard Driver). Jeff Bridges starred as the somewhat fictionalized version of Johnson, and Johnson himself served as technical advisor for the film. The movie was critically acclaimed and featured the Jim Croce hit song, "I Got A Name".

Follow Your Dreams Productions' President and CEO, Fred Griffith, has signed a rights deal for a true life story movie about Junior Johnson.(Sports Illustrated Vault, 2006) Unlike The Last American Hero which was about a fictionalized character name Junior "Jackson". Griffith, an American actor and producer from South Carolina, is currently adapting a screenplay based largely on the book, Junior Johnson, Brave In Life, written by Tom Higgins and Steve Waid.(Big West Racing, 2006) Veteran actor and producer Chris Mulkey is a writing producer for the film. According to Griffith this film will remain true to the real life of Junior Johnson.(Morris 2006, p. C-1) Johnson had a voice role in the animated film Cars 3, as Junior "Midnight" Moon, a reference to his Moonshine Company.

Midnight Moon

In May 2007, Johnson teamed with Piedmont Distillers of Madison, North Carolina, to introduce the company's second moonshine product, called Midnight Moon. Johnson became part owner of Piedmont Distillers, the only legal distiller in North Carolina at the time. Midnight Moon follows the Johnson family’s generations-old tradition of making moonshine, and is available in all 50 states. Every batch is produced in an authentic copper still and handcrafted in small batches. The 'shine is a legal version of his famous family recipe, and is available in eight varieties that range from 70–100 proof.[21]

Death

Johnson died at a hospice care facility in Charlotte on December 20, 2019, at age 88. He had Alzheimer's disease at the time.[2]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Grand National Series

NASCAR Grand National Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 NGNC Pts
1953 Junior Johnson & Associates 75 Olds PBS DAB HAR NWS CLT RCH CCS LAN CLB HCY MAR PMS RSP LOU FFS LAN TCS WIL MCF PIF MOR ATL RVS LCF DAV HBO AWS PAS HCY DAR
38
CCS LAN BLF WIL NWS MAR ATL NA -
1954 George Miller 23 Hudson PBS DAB JSP ATL OSP OAK NWS HBO CCS LAN WIL MAR SHA RSP CLT GAR CLB LND HCY
5
MCF WGS PIF AWS SFS GRS MOR OAK CLT SAN COR DAR CCS CLT 55th 465
Paul Whiteman 7 Cadillac LAN
15
17 MAS
51
MAR
33
NWS
1955 7 TCS
17
6th 4810
B & L Motors 55 Olds PBS
14
JSP
5
DAB
35
OSP
14
CLB
7
HBO
12
NWS
18
MGY LAN
3
CLT
20
HCY
1*
ASF TUS MAR
3*
RCH
5
NCF
1*
FOR
22
LIN
1*
MCF
12
FON
1*
AIR CLT
5
PIF
19
CLB
14
AWS
15
MOR
4
ALS
1*
CLT
8
FOR
19
MAS
7
RSP
7
DAR
36
MGY
10
LAN
26
RSP
25
CLB
7
MAR LVP NWS
26
HBO
Henry Ford 303 Chrysler NYF
18
SAN
Petty Enterprises 44 Chevy GPS
2
MAS
1956 A. L. Bumgarner 55 Pontiac HCY CLT WSS PBS ASF DAB
40
PBS WIL
24
NWS
28
LAN
24
RCH CLB
25
CON GPS HCY
24
HBO MAR LIN CLT
14
MCF POR AWS
20
RSP PIF CSF CHI CCF MGY OKL 37th 1372
Jim Stephens 286 Pontiac ATL
17
Carl Kiekhaefer 502 Dodge CLT
2
POR EUR NYF MER MAS
DePaolo Engineering 296 Ford ROA
26
OBS SAN NOR PIF MYB POR
Smokey Yunick 32 Chevy DAR
15
CSH CLT LAN POR CLB HBO NWP CLT CCF MAR
DePaolo Engineering 2 Ford HCY
15
WIL
1957 A. L. Bumgarner 55 Pontiac WSS CON TIC DAB CON WIL HBO AWS NWS LAN CLT PIF GBF POR CCF RCH MAR POR EUR LIN LCS ASP NWP CLB CPS PIF JAC RSP CLT MAS POR HCY NOR LCS GLN KPC LIN OBS MYB DAR NYF AWS CSF SCF LAN CLB CCF CLT MAR NBR CON NWS
20
GBF 154th -
1958 Paul Spaulding 11 Ford FAY DAB CON FAY WIL HBO FAY CLB
30
PIF
3
ATL
20
CLT MAR
30
ODS
8
OBS
7
GPS
3
GBF
3
STR NWS
1*
BGS TRN
2
RSD CLB
1
NBS
1
REF
1*
LIN
31
HCY
2
AWS
12
RSP
54
BRR
4
CLB NSV AWS BGS MBS
7
DAR
11
CLT
19
BIR CSF GAF RCH
14
HBO
15*
SAS MAR
36
NWS
1
ATL
1
8th 6380
Dick Beaty 34 Ford MCC
6
SLS TOR BUF MCF BEL
1959 Paul Spaulding 11 Ford FAY
5
DAY
17
DAY
14
HBO
19
CON
4
ATL WIL
1
BGS CLB NWS
22
REF
1
HCY
1
MAR
3
TRN
11
CLT
18
NSV
2
ASP PIF
3
GPS
1
ATL
21
CLB
16
WIL
1
RCH
20
BGS
4
AWS
3
DAY HEI CLT
35
MBS HBO
22
MAR AWS
9
NWS
5
CON
17
11th 4864
Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford CLT
25
NSV AWS BGS GPS CLB DAR HCY
4
RCH CSF
1960 Paul Spaulding 11 Dodge CLT
28
CLB
19
7th 9932
John Masoni 27 Chevy DAY
5
DAY DAY
1*
NWS
5*
PHO CLB
8
MAR
8
HCY
23
WIL
10
DAR
24
PIF HBO
9
RCH
14
HMS CLT
59
BGS DAY
15
HEI MAB MBS
4
ATL
43
BIR NSV AWS
30
PIF
3
CLB
24
SBO
1*
BGS
3
DAR
47
HCY
1
CSF GSP
3
HBO
13
MAR
3
NWS
2
RCH
2
Wood Brothers Racing 21 Ford CLT
4
AWS
15
Bob Welborn 14 Chevy BGS
15
W. T. Coppedge 50 Chevy GPS
12
John Masoni 27 Pontiac CLT
5
ATL
24
1961 Rex Lovette CLT
18
JSP
22
DAY
10
DAY DAY
47
PIF
10*
AWS
11
HMS ATL
27
GPS
16
HBO
4*
BGS
8
MAR
6
NWS
22
CLB HCY
1*
RCH MAR
1*
DAR CLT CLT
9
PIF
19
BIR GPS
25
BGS
3
NOR HAS
5
STR
1
DAY
17
ATL
31
CLB
4
MBS
22
BRI
22*
NSV
19
BGS
19
AWS
1*
RCH
1*
SBO
1*
DAR
14
HCY
20
RCH
2
CSF ATL
2
MAR
3*
NWS
4*
CLT
9
BRI
24*
GPS
1
HBO
12
6th 17178
John Masoni 3 CLT
2
RSD ASP
1962 Rex Lovette 27 CON
24
AWS
26
DAY
5
DAY DAY
34
CON RCH
3
CLB NWS
3
GPS MBS MAR
22
BGS
15
BRI
30
RCH HCY
14
CON NWS
4
20th 11140
Buck Baker Racing 86 Chrysler AWS
21
SVH HBO
Nichels Engineering 39 Pontiac DAR
31
PIF
Owens Racing 6 Pontiac CLT
38
ATL
9
BGS AUG RCH SBO DAY
2
CLB ASH GPS AUG SVH MBS BRI
29*
Fox Racing 3 Pontiac CHT
17
NSV HUN AWS STR BGS PIF VAL DAR
2
HCY
21
RCH DTS AUG MAR
17
CLT
1*
ATL
36
1963 Chevy BIR GGS THS RSD DAY
1
DAY DAY
42
PIF
17
AWS
3
HBO
1*
ATL
42
HCY
1*
BRI
3
AUG RCH
5*
GPS SBO BGS MAR
33
NWS
27
CLB THS DAR
25
ODS RCH CLT
2*
BIR
2
ATL
1*
DAY
17*
MBS SVH DTS
10
BGS
17*
ASH
15
OBS BRR BRI
22
GPS NSV CLB
17
AWS
15
PIF BGS
1*
ONA
20
DAR
20
HCY
1*
RCH
25
MAR
21
DTS NWS
28
THS CLT
1*
SBO
15*
HBO
13
12th 17720
Bill Stroppe 26 Mercury RSD
5
1964 Fox Racing 3 Chevy CON
19
AUG
21
JSP SVH RSD 14th 17066
Dodge DAY
1
DAY DAY
9
RCH
4
BRI
15
GPS BGS
13
ATL
4
AWS
2
HBO
9
PIF CLB NWS
4
Matthews Racing 00 Ford MAR
3
SVH
27 DAR
3
LGY CLT
34
GPS ASH ATL
27
CON NSV CHT BIR VAL PIF DAY
24
ODS OBS BRR ISP GLN LIN BRI
18
NSV MBS AWS
3*
DTS ONA
2
CLB
14*
BGS
1*
STR
1*
DAR
23
HCY
22
RCH
8*
ODS HBO MAR
3
SVH NWS
13*
CLT
34
HAR AUG JAC
Holman-Moody 28 Ford HCY
17
SBO
1965 Junior Johnson & Associates 27 Ford RSD
2
DAY DAY
1*
12th 18486
26 DAY
28
PIF
11
ASW
12
RCH
1*
HBO
2*
ATL
27
GPS NWS
1
MAR
22
CLB BRI
1*
DAR
1*
LGY
16
BGS
1*
HCY
1
CLT
24
CCF ASH
1*
HAR NSV BIR ATL
4*
GPS MBS VAL DAY
26
ODS
1*
OBS
1
ISP
14
GLN
15
BRI
23
NSV
8
CCF AWS
18
SMR PIF AUG CLB
17
DTS BLV BGS
1*
DAR
44
HCY
4*
LIN ODS RCH
3
MAR
1*
NWS
1*
CLT
32
HBO
15
CAR
32
DTS
1966 AUG RSD DAY DAY DAY CAR BRI ATL HCY CLB GPS BGS NWS MAR DAR LGY MGR MON RCH CLT DTS ASH PIF SMR AWS BLV GPS DAY ODS BRR OXF FON ISP BRI SMR NSV ATL CLB AWS
19*
BLV BGS DAR HCY
11
RCH
15
HBO
20
MAR
14
NWS
28
CLT 49th 3750
47 CAR
5
Daytona 500
Year Team Manufacturer Start Finish
1959 Paul Spaulding Ford 33 14
1960 John Masoni Chevrolet 9 1
1961 Rex Lovette Pontiac 43 47
1962 Pontiac 9 34
1963 Fox Racing Chevrolet 3 42
1964 Dodge 3 9
1965 Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 2 28

See also

References

  1. Correspondent, Lee Montgomery Special. "NASCAR legend Junior Johnson dies at 88". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved 2019-12-20.
  2. Goldstein, Richard (December 20, 2019). "Junior Johnson, Good-Old-Boy Auto Racing Star, Is Dead at 88". The New York Times. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  3. "Information". johnsoninfo.weebly.com. Retrieved 2016-04-19.
  4. Menzer, Joe (2001). The Wildest Ride: A History of NASCAR. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 59. ISBN 9780743205078.
  5. Aumann, Mark (October 2, 2012). "The art of the draft". NASCAR. Archived from the original on October 5, 2012.
  6. "Raymond Lee Fox, Sr". Archived from the original on January 17, 2006. Retrieved 2008-02-25.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), legendsofnascar.com; Retrieved February 20, 2008
  7. "Double dippers: Those who have competed in NASCAR and the Indy 500". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  8. Hall of Famer Johnson launches new racing team
  9. Junior Johnson at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
  10. "Racing legend 'owns' the road". The Tribune (Elkin, NC). May 26, 2004.
  11. "Junior Johnson's son to postpone racing career while attending Duke University". Archived from the original on 2013-11-02.
  12. https://www.bendbulletin.com/sports/remembering-junior-johnson-the-last-american-hero/article_ed064286-23ac-11ea-a9f2-cb5ad1b81f70.html
  13. https://www.greensboro.com/moonshining-carries-lifelong-debt-junior-johnson-keeps-paying-long-after/article_c9da3c70-6150-5bdf-976b-52d8526f7a5b.html
  14. https://www.greensboro.com/the-johnsons-legal-feud-ends-on-friendly-terms-flossie-gets/article_0fee031d-2a70-5856-8a2b-6027f6d4def6.html
  15. https://www.tradingcarddb.com/Images/Cards/Racing/142005/142005-9339973Bk.jpg
  16. http://www.espn.com/espn/eticket/story?page=110906/JuniorJohnson
  17. "Track no longer home Junior Johnson: Life for 66-year-old auto racing legend now centers on his wife and two young children". tribunedigital-baltimoresun. Retrieved 2018-11-28.
  18. https://www.journalpatriot.com/news/dream-estate-up-for-sale/article_0e2f99da-d103-11e1-b08e-0019bb30f31a.html
  19. For Junior, A Presidential Pardon Was A Great Start To The 1986 Season
  20. https://www.journalnow.com/sports/national/ed-hardin-junior-johnson-was-a-national-treasure-but-he/article_574ebc43-c782-59a3-bc25-2bfeb7cff4af.html#1
  21. http://www.juniorsmidnightmoon.com/legacy
Achievements
Preceded by
Lee Petty
Daytona 500 Winner
1960
Succeeded by
Marvin Panch
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