Elmer Bradley "Brad" Johnson (July 23, 1924 â€" April 4, 1981), was an
American film and television actor, best remembered for his role as
the deputy Lofty Craig on the 1950s Western series, Annie Oakley.
After his last television appearance, in a 1967 episode of CBS's
Gunsmoke, Johnson spent the remainder of his life as a real estate
developer in Los Angeles, California.Of Swedish extraction, Johnson
was born on his paternal grandparents' 100-acre peach farm between
Marysville in Yuba County and Yuba City in Sutter County in northern
California. His father, Carl Elmer Johnson (1901-1924), died shortly
before his son's birth and is interred at the nearby Yuba City
Cemetery. His mother, the former Eula Ball Bradley, a native of
Michigan, reared Brad through her work as a teacher. When Brad was
thirteen, he received his eighth-grade certificate from his
mother-teacher's one-room school.Johnson was thereafter reared for
several years in Auburn and attended Placer High School there. He
relocated to Sacramento in his senior year. There he worked as a
receiving clerk while taking acting classes. During World War II,
Johnson served as a pilot with the United States Army Air Corps. He
flew B25s in the South Pacific. At the end of the war, he was
stationed in Japan, where he worked at a military radio station as
announcer, disc jockey, and writer.On returning from the Army, he
enrolled and later graduated from the University of Southern
California, where the drama department was headed by William De Mille,
brother of screen producer Cecil B. De Mille. He worked at the
university radio station. He became an announcer and stage manager
with KTLA.
American film and television actor, best remembered for his role as
the deputy Lofty Craig on the 1950s Western series, Annie Oakley.
After his last television appearance, in a 1967 episode of CBS's
Gunsmoke, Johnson spent the remainder of his life as a real estate
developer in Los Angeles, California.Of Swedish extraction, Johnson
was born on his paternal grandparents' 100-acre peach farm between
Marysville in Yuba County and Yuba City in Sutter County in northern
California. His father, Carl Elmer Johnson (1901-1924), died shortly
before his son's birth and is interred at the nearby Yuba City
Cemetery. His mother, the former Eula Ball Bradley, a native of
Michigan, reared Brad through her work as a teacher. When Brad was
thirteen, he received his eighth-grade certificate from his
mother-teacher's one-room school.Johnson was thereafter reared for
several years in Auburn and attended Placer High School there. He
relocated to Sacramento in his senior year. There he worked as a
receiving clerk while taking acting classes. During World War II,
Johnson served as a pilot with the United States Army Air Corps. He
flew B25s in the South Pacific. At the end of the war, he was
stationed in Japan, where he worked at a military radio station as
announcer, disc jockey, and writer.On returning from the Army, he
enrolled and later graduated from the University of Southern
California, where the drama department was headed by William De Mille,
brother of screen producer Cecil B. De Mille. He worked at the
university radio station. He became an announcer and stage manager
with KTLA.
Share this
SUBSCRIBE OUR NEWSLETTER
SUBSCRIBE OUR NEWSLETTER
Join us for free and get valuable content delivered right through your inbox.