Robert Glen "Junior" Johnson

Born:	June 28, 1931 (1931-06-28) (age 76)
Birthplace:	Wilkes County, North Carolina
Awards:	Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998) 1990 International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Wilkes County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. ... Official language(s) English Capital Raleigh Largest city Charlotte Area  Ranked 28th  - Total 53,865 sq mi (139,509 km²)  - Width 150 miles (240 km)  - Length 560[1] miles (901 km)  - % water 9. ... NASCARs 50 Greatest Drivers is a list of NASCAR drivers. ... The 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Season began on Sunday February 8 and ended on Sunday November 8. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... The International Motorsports Hall of Fame is a Hall of Fame dedicated to enshrining those who have contributed the most to auto racing either as a driver, owner, developer or engineer. ... car owner for six Winston Cup championships: Cale Yarborough (1976-1978) and Darrell Waltrip (1981-82, 1985) The NASCAR Championship is the championship held in NASCARs top stock car racing series. ... William Caleb Cale Yarborough (born March 27, 1939 in Timmonsville, South Carolina, near the Famous Darlington Raceway), is a former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and was one of the series engaging personalities. ... Darrell Lee Waltrip (born February 5, 1947 in Owensboro, Kentucky) is a three-time former NASCAR Winston Cup champion, the 1989 Daytona 500 winner, and current television race commentator with Fox Broadcasting Company. ... 1991 Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ... The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is a Hall of Fame and museum in Novi, Michigan for American motorsports legends. ...
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Statistics
313 races run over 14 years.
Best Cup Position:	6th - 1955 in NASCAR and 1961 (Grand National)
First Race:	1953 Southern 500 (Darlington)
Last Race:	1966 American 500 (Rockingham)
First Win:	1955 Hickory Motor Speedway
Last Win:	1965 Wilkes 400 (North Wilkesboro)
Wins	Top Tens	Poles
50	148	46

Robert Glen Johnson, Jr. (born June 28, 1931) in Wilkes County, North Carolina, known as Junior Johnson, was a legendary moonshiner in the rural South who became one of the early superstars of NASCAR in the 1950s and 1960's. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966. In the 1970s and 1980's he became a highly successful NASCAR racing team owner; he sponsored such NASCAR champions as Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip. He now produces a line of fried pork skins and country ham. Jeff Burton (99), Elliott Sadler (38), Ricky Rudd (21), Dale Jarrett (88), Sterling Marlin (40), Jimmie Johnson (48), and Casey Mears (41) practice for the 2004 Daytona 500 The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the largest sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States. ... The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series is NASCARs top racing series. ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Mountain Dew Southern 500 is a 500 mile (805 km) NASCAR Nextel Cup race. ... Darlington Raceway during the 2006 Dodge Charger 500. ... North Carolina Speedway is a racetrack located in Rockingham, North Carolina. ... Hickory Motor Speedway is a short track located in Hickory, North Carolina. ... Tyson Holly Farms 400 was a former NASCAR Winston Cup event that took place every last weekend in September or first weekend in October at the North Wilkesboro Speedway from 1950 to 1996 except 1956. ... North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short track which held races in NASCARs top three series from NASCARs inception in 1949 until its closure in 1996. ... is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Wilkes County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. ... Moonshiner may refer to: Moonshiner, one who makes moonshine Moonshiner, a traditional American folk song Moonshiner, a version of this song by Cat Power on her 1998 album Moon Pix Category: ... Jeff Burton (99), Elliott Sadler (38), Ricky Rudd (21), Dale Jarrett (88), Sterling Marlin (40), Jimmie Johnson (48), and Casey Mears (41) practice for the 2004 Daytona 500 The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the largest sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States. ... William Caleb Cale Yarborough (born March 27, 1939 in Timmonsville, South Carolina, near the Famous Darlington Raceway), is a former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and was one of the series engaging personalities. ... Darrell Lee Waltrip (born February 5, 1947 in Owensboro, Kentucky) is a three-time former NASCAR Winston Cup champion, the 1989 Daytona 500 winner, and current television race commentator with Fox Broadcasting Company. ... Pork rinds in bags, from the central United States Pork rind is the cooked skin of a pig. ... Smithfield ham or country ham is a variety of cured ham from the United States, associated with the Southern United States and Smithfield, Virginia in particular. ...

Driving Days

Johnson is the son of Lara Belle Money and Robert Glenn Johnson, Sr.^[1] He grew up on a farm and, like many of the pioneers of stock car racing, developed his driving skills running moonshine as a young man. He consistently outran and outfoxed local police and federal agents in auto chases, and was never caught while delivering moonshine to customers. Johnson became something of a legend in the rural South, where his driving expertise and "outlaw" image was much admired. Johnson is credited with inventing the "bootleg turn", in which a driver escapes a pursuer by sharply putting his speeding car into a 180-degree turn on the highway, then speeding off in the opposite direction before his pursuer can turn around. Johnson was also known to buy and use police lights and sirens to fool policemen who had set up roadblocks into thinking that he was a fellow policeman; upon hearing his approach the police would quickly remove the roadblocks, allowing Johnson to escape with his moonshine. Look up Moonshine in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Legendary (disambiguation). ... A bootleg turn is a radical type of U-turn intended to reverse the direction of travel of a forward-moving automobile by 180 degrees in a minimum amount of time while staying within the width of a two-lane road. ...

In 1955, Johnson decided to give up delivering moonshine for the more lucrative (and legal) career of being a NASCAR driver. He found that he was able to easily translate his "moonshiner" driving skills - hard-won on mountain roads - to the highly-pitched racing tracks of NASCAR. In his first full season, he won five races and finished sixth in the 1955 NASCAR Grand National points standings. If NASCAR had a "Rookie of the Year" award at the time, Johnson surely would have won it. Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ...

In 1956, federal tax agents found Johnson working at his father's moonshine still in Wilkes County; they arrested him. Many local residents believed the raid was done in revenge for the agent's inability to catch Johnson delivering moonshine on local highways. Johnson was convicted of moonshining and was sent to prison in Chillicothe, Ohio. He served 11 months of a two-year sentence. Nickname: Ohios First Capital Location in the state of Ohio Coordinates: Country United States State Ohio Counties Ross Mayor Joseph P. Sulzer (D) Area    - City 25. ...

Johnson returned to the NASCAR scene in 1958 and picked up where he left off, winning six races. In 1959, he won five more NASCAR Grand National races; by this time he was regarded as one of the best short-track racers in the sport. Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

His first win at a "superspeedway" came at the Daytona 500 in 1960. It was in practicing for that race that he discovered the concept of "drafting," running close behind another car and taking advantage of its slipstream to gain additional speed. Using that technique he won the race, despite the fact that his car was slower than others in the field. The practice of "drafting" has become a common tactic among NASCAR drivers. The Daytona 500 is a 200-lap, 500 mile (805 km) NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the racing technique. ... dddeath ...

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 Junior to crash; he suffered only minor injuries. Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Coca-Cola 600 (formerly World 600) is a six hundred mile stock car race held annually at Lowes Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) in Charlotte, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend. ... Lowes Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) is a speedway in Concord, North Carolina, north of Charlotte. ...

He retired in 1966. In his career he claimed 50 victories as a driver, and 11 of these wins were at major speedway races. Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ...

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. Dick Hutcherson (born November 30, 1931) is an American businessman and a former racecar driver. ... Ned Jarrett (born October 12, 1932 in Newton, North Carolina) was a two-time NASCAR champion. ...

As a NASCAR owner

As a team owner, he worked with some of the legendary drivers in NASCAR history, including Darel Dieringer, LeeRoy Yarbrough, Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip, Neil Bonnett, Terry Labonte, Geoffrey Bodine, Sterling Marlin, Jimmy Spencer, and Bill Elliott. In all, his drivers won 139 races, which is second only to Petty Enterprises. His drivers won six Winston Cup Championships -- three with Yarborough (1976-1978) and Waltrip (1981-82, 1985). Darel Dieringer (born June 1, 1926 - died October 28, 1989) is a former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup driver. ... LeeRoy Yarbrough (born September 17, 1938 in Jacksonville, Florida, died December 7, 1984) was a NASCAR auto driver. ... William Caleb Cale Yarborough (born March 27, 1939 in Timmonsville, South Carolina, near the Famous Darlington Raceway), is a former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and was one of the series engaging personalities. ... Darrell Lee Waltrip (born February 5, 1947 in Owensboro, Kentucky) is a three-time former NASCAR Winston Cup champion, the 1989 Daytona 500 winner, and current television race commentator with Fox Broadcasting Company. ... Neil Bonnett (July 30, 1946 - February 11, 1994) was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. ... Terry Labonte, on the right, shows the frame of a race car in 2005, courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard. ... Geoffrey Bodine (born April 18, 1949 in Chemung, New York) is the oldest of the three Bodine brothers (Brett Bodine and Todd Bodine) who are all NASCAR drivers. ... Sterling Marlin (born June 30, 1957 in Columbia, Tennessee) is a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series driver who drove the #14 Waste Management Chevrolet Monte Carlo for Ginn Racing until being replaced by Regan Smith July 17, 2007. ... Jimmy Spencer Jimmy Spencer (born February 15, 1957 in Berwick, Pennsylvania) is an American NASCAR driver and commentator. ... Bill Elliott car that set the record for the fastest recorded time in a stock car - 212. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Awards

• He was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998.
• He was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1991.
• Johnson joined N.C. greats Michael Jordan, Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty by having a stretch of highway named in his honor in 2004. An 8.5.-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 421 from the Yadkin and Wilkes county line to the Windy Gap exit is named "Junior Johnson Highway." ^[2]

NASCARs 50 Greatest Drivers is a list of NASCAR drivers. ... The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America is a Hall of Fame and museum in Novi, Michigan for American motorsports legends. ... For other persons named Michael Jordan, see Michael Jordan (disambiguation). ... This article is about the elder Dale Earnhardt. ... Richard Lee Petty (born July 2, 1937) is an American former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver. ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... U.S. Highway 421 is a spur of U.S. Highway 21. ... Yadkin County is a county located in the state of North Carolina. ... Wilkes County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. ...

Family

His first marriage ended in divorce in 1992. His marriage to current wife Lisa in 1994 has resulted in two children, daughter Meredith Susanne, and son Robert Glen Johnson III. He lives on a 278-acre estate in the Hamptonville area of Yadkin County. ^[3] Hamptonville is an unincorporated community located in southwestern Yadkin County, North Carolina, United States. ... Yadkin County is a county located in the state of North Carolina. ...

Subject of The Last American Hero movie

From 1964-65 writer Tom Wolfe researched and wrote an article about Johnson; it was published in March 1965 in Esquire magazine. 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. 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." Thomas Kennerly Wolfe (born March 2, 1931 in Richmond, Virginia), known as Tom Wolfe, is a best-selling American author and journalist. ... Esquire is a magazine for men owned by the Hearst Corporation. ... The Last American Hero (also known as Hard Driver) is a 1973 sports drama film based on the true story of American NASCAR driver Junior Johnson. ... Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949 in Los Angeles, California) is an Academy Award-nominated American actor. ... James Joseph Croce (January 10, 1943 – September 20, 1973), popularly known as Jimmy C. (pronounced JHIM-ee SEE), was an American singer-songwriter. ...

Presidential pardon

On December 26, 1986, President Ronald Reagan granted Johnson, a lifelong Democrat, a presidential pardon for his 1956 moonshining conviction. Johnson called the pardon, which restored his right to vote and hold a passport, "one of the greatest things in my life."^[4] Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 - June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981–1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975). ... Federal courts Supreme Court Circuit Courts of Appeal District Courts Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Atlas  Politics Portal      Further information: Politics of the United States#Organization of American political parties The Democratic... Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Footnotes

1. ^ http://www.wargs.com/other/johnsonrg.html
2. ^ "Racing legend 'owns' the road," The Tribune (Elkin, North Carolina), May 26, 2004
3. ^ Nascar.com article, July 31, 2006
4. ^ "SPORTS WORLD SPECIALS; Rough Road," New York Times, February 10, 1986

References

• Driver's statistics at racing-reference.info
• Owner's statistics at racing-reference.info
• CanadianDriver.com Article on Junior Johnson

External links

• Official website for Junior Johnson

c Lee Petty (March 14, 1914 (near Randleman, North Carolina) - April 5, 2000) was an American stock car driver in the 1950s and 60s. ... The Daytona 500 is a 200-lap, 500 mile (805 km) NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Marvin Panch (born May 28, 1926, in Menomonie, Wisconsin) is a former NASCAR driver. ...