Frank Johnson Popular Books

Frank Johnson Biography & Facts

Frank Minis Johnson Jr. (October 30, 1918 – July 23, 1999) was a United States district judge and United States circuit judge serving 1955 to 1999 on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. He made landmark civil rights rulings that helped end segregation and disenfranchisement of African Americans in the South. In the words of journalist and historian Bill Moyers, Judge Johnson "altered forever the face of the South." Early life, education and career Johnson was born in 1918 and grew up in Haleyville in northern Alabama, a longtime independent-minded part of the state. Winston County had opposed secession from the Union during the American Civil War. While a student, he was asked by a staunchly Democratic classmate why he insisted upon being a Republican, to which Johnson replied that there were "so few of us that one day I might be a federal judge." Another classmate George C. Wallace, future governor of the state, overheard the remark and replied, "Well, that'll be the day. I'll be governor by then." Wallace would prove to be Johnson's bête noire during the civil rights era of the 1960s. Johnson graduated from the University of Alabama and later the University of Alabama School of Law with a Bachelor of Laws in 1943, and was admitted to the bar.He married Ruth Jenkins, a classmate from the University of Alabama. Johnson served in the United States Army in Europe during World War II, while his wife Ruth served in the WAVES as an adviser to Hollywood directors making films about the war. After military service, Johnson entered private law practice in Jasper, Alabama from 1946 to 1953. Unlike most white voters of the time in Alabama, he became active in politics with the Republican Party, serving as a delegate to the 1948 Republican National Convention. He managed Alabama's "Veterans for Eisenhower" group during the 1952 campaign. Johnson was known as a foe of the Democratic Party's segregationist policies. He was appointed as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama from 1953 to 1955, during President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration. Federal judicial service Johnson received a recess appointment from President Dwight D. Eisenhower on October 22, 1955, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama vacated by Judge Charles Kennamer. He was nominated to the same position on January 12, 1956. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 31, 1956, and received his commission on February 1, 1956. He served as chief judge from 1966 to 1979. His service terminated on July 12, 1979, due to his elevation to the Fifth Circuit. Notable district court case and incidents In 1956, Johnson ruled in favor of Rosa Parks, striking down the "blacks in the back of the bus" law of the city of Montgomery Alabama, as unconstitutional. In orders issued in 1961 and 1962, he ordered the desegregation of bus depots (such as the Montgomery Greyhound station) and the Montgomery Regional Airport in Alabama's Middle judicial district. In 1961 he ordered the Ku Klux Klan and Montgomery police to stop the beating and harassment of Freedom Riders attempting to integrate interstate bus travel.In March 1965, Johnson ruled that activists had the right to undertake the Selma to Montgomery march as a means to petition the government, overturning Governor George Wallace's prohibition of the march as contrary to public safety. Thousands of sympathizers traveled to Selma to join the march, which had 25,000 participants by its last leg into Montgomery on March 25, 1965. It was considered integral to gaining passage by Congress of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Johnson received death threats and ostracism for his role in advancing civil rights, and was protected by federal marshals for nearly two decades. A burning cross was placed on his lawn in 1956 following the Rosa Parks decision, and his mother's house was bombed in 1967, although she was not hurt.Johnson was nominated by President Jimmy Carter on April 2, 1979, to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, to a new seat established by 92 Stat. 1629. He was confirmed by the Senate on June 19, 1979, and received his commission on June 21, 1979. His service terminated on October 1, 1981, due to reassignment to the Eleventh Circuit.Johnson was reassigned to the newly established United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by operation of law on October 1, 1981. He assumed senior status on October 30, 1991. He was succeeded on the bench by Judge Edward Earl Carnes. His service terminated on July 23, 1999, upon his death.Johnson additionally served on the Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals from 1972 to 1982.Johnson served more than 40 years on the federal bench. At the memorial service after his death, he was praised by former United States Senator Howell Heflin, Democrat of Alabama, who said that the judge's "unrelenting devotion to the rule of law" helped him strike down segregation laws. FBI director nomination In 1977 President Carter and Attorney General Griffin Bell asked Johnson to become FBI Director when Director Clarence M. Kelley stepped down. But, the day after Carter nominated him, Johnson was found to have an aneurysm, or abnormal swelling, of his abdominal aorta. His nomination had to be withdrawn and William H. Webster was nominated in his place. Personal life and death Johnson died at his home in Montgomery of pneumonia after being briefly hospitalized for a fall at his home the week prior. Legacy and honors 1978, Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Judge John Sirica 1979, inducted into the Alabama Academy of Honor 1992, Frank M. Johnson Jr. Federal Building and United States Courthouse, where Johnson served in Montgomery, Alabama, was named for him 1993, American Bar Association's annual Thurgood Marshall Award 1995, Presidential Medal of Freedom.The Judge Frank M. Johnson, Jr. Institute Judge Johnson's impact led to the creation of the Judge Frank M. Johnson, Jr. Institute. The Johnson Institute became a non-partisan voice that shares the stories of our Constitution and our Judiciary through programs that illuminate issues and perspectives, foster thoughtful and civil discourse, and inspire our national community in our nation’s never-ending pursuit of a more perfect union. Notable decisions Browder v. Gayle (1956)Orders the racial integration of the public transportation system of the city of Montgomery, Alabama. Gomillion v. Lightfoot (1961)Invalidated a plan by the city of Tuskegee, Alabama to dilute potential black voting strength by redrawing city boundaries so as to exclude concentrations of black voters from the city. United States v. Alabama (1961)Ordered that black persons be registered to vote if their application papers were.... Discover the Frank Johnson popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Frank Johnson books.

Best Seller Frank Johnson Books of 2024

  • The Game synopsis, comments

    The Game

    George Howe Colt

    A New York Times Notable Book A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year From the bestselling National Book Award finalist and author of The Big House comes “a wellblended narrative pa...

  • The Zinc Zoo synopsis, comments

    The Zinc Zoo

    Ed Lynskey

    Older and wiser, P.I. Frank Johnson, in his fifth outing, has moved to the Washington, D.C. suburbs where he lives with his fiancé Dreema Atkins. Times are lean. No new P.I. cases ...

  • Noel synopsis, comments

    Noel

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts the cold case homicide of 18yearold Noel Fryer, occurring three years ago in his hometown of Pelham, Virginia. She worked...

  • The Best Team Money Can Buy synopsis, comments

    The Best Team Money Can Buy

    Molly Knight

    With a new Afterword covering the 2015 season.The bestselling, insidetheclubhouse story of two tumultuous years when the Los Angeles Dodgers were remade from top to bottom, becomin...

  • Jesse James synopsis, comments

    Jesse James

    Frank Triplett

    There is no western outlaw more infamous and notorious than Jesse James. A Confederate guerilla during the Civil War, he and his brother, as the leaders of numerous gangs of the Wi...

  • Florida Bar v. Frank T. Johnson synopsis, comments

    Florida Bar v. Frank T. Johnson

    Supreme Court of Florida

    The Florida Bar having filed on June 9, 1994, Notice of Judgment of Guilt showing that Frank T. Johnson has been convicted of a felony in a court other than a court of the State of...

  • Forge synopsis, comments

    Forge

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts his first birthparents search for his gorgeous, 23yearold client, Nikki Colvin, whose adoptive parents are deceased. She ...

  • The Blue Cheer synopsis, comments

    The Blue Cheer

    Ed Lynskey

    After surviving a bad experience in his hometown, P.I. Frank Johnson moves away to Scarab, West Virginia, drawn by the promise of its leisurely days and the lure of its tranquil le...

  • Quarry synopsis, comments

    Quarry

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts a case from a distraught woman who suspects her husband of 10 years is having an affair with his female office manager. B...

  • Dead Wrong synopsis, comments

    Dead Wrong

    Richard Belzer, David Wayne & Jesse Ventura

     For years, the government has put out hits on people that they found “expendable,” or who they felt were “talking too much,” covering up their assassinations with drug overdo...

  • Children of God Storybook Bible synopsis, comments

    Children of God Storybook Bible

    Archbishop Desmond Tutu

    Creating the first truly global Bible for children of all nationalities, Desmond Tutu retells more than fifty of his most beloved Bible stories in Children of God Storybook Bible. ...

  • After the Big Noise synopsis, comments

    After the Big Noise

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts a pair of new cases just before the 2005 yearend holidays. The reader gets two mysteries for the price of one as he stays...

  • Tales from the Los Angeles Dodgers Dugout synopsis, comments

    Tales from the Los Angeles Dodgers Dugout

    Rick Monday, Ken Gurnick & Tommy Lasorda

    It took something truly remarkable to save the 1981 Major League Baseball season from being remembered only as the year of the players’ strike. It took the Los Angeles Dodgers: Fer...

  • Matter Claim Frank B. Baranowski Et Al. v. Endicott Johnson Corporation synopsis, comments

    Matter Claim Frank B. Baranowski Et Al. v. Endicott Johnson Corporation

    Supreme Court of New York

    Appeal from a decision of the Workmen's Compensation Board fixing attorneys' fees in the sum of $500, on the ground of inadequacy therefor. When the Referee rendered a decision tha...

  • The Gay Revolution synopsis, comments

    The Gay Revolution

    Lillian Faderman

    “This is the history of the gay and lesbian movement that we’ve been waiting for.” The Washington Post The sweeping story of the struggle for gay and lesbian rightsbased on amazing...

  • Metaphysical Poetry synopsis, comments

    Metaphysical Poetry

    Colin Burrow

    A key anthology for students of English literature, Metaphysical Poetry is a collection whose unique philosophical insights are some of the crowning achievements of Renaissance ver...

  • Michael Collins synopsis, comments

    Michael Collins

    Dr James Mackay

    The most charismatic figure to emerge during the struggles for the independence of Ireland was undoubtedly Michael Collins. This remarkable biography, which draws on much hitherto ...

  • Madge synopsis, comments

    Madge

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson takes up the missingperson case of Knox Yowell, a machinist who operates a metal lathe in a job shop. One August morning, Knox le...

  • Evil Summer synopsis, comments

    Evil Summer

    John Theodore

    In 1924, fourteenyearold Bobby Franks was abducted while walking home from school, killed by a chisel blow to his head, and later found stuffed in a culvert in a marshy wasteland a...

  • Architect synopsis, comments

    Architect

    Ruth Peltason & Grace Ong-Yan

    In this completely revised and uptodate edition, the world's most accomplished architects Gehry, Pei, Meier, Nouvel, Piano, and 37 moreexpress their views on creativity, inspirati...

  • Captain Cook synopsis, comments

    Captain Cook

    Vanessa Collingridge

    A uniquely woven story encompassing three separate centuries and three different lives. Captain Cook, best known for his heroic voyages through the Pacific Ocean, is brought to lif...

  • The Baseball 100 synopsis, comments

    The Baseball 100

    Joe Posnanski

    NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Winner of the CASEY Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year“An instant sports classic.” New York Post “Stellar.” The Wall Street Journal “A true maste...

  • Grits synopsis, comments

    Grits

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts the cold case homicide of Grits Wigfall, a 55yearold Black man, in his hometown of Pelham, Virginia. Grits works as the f...

  • Thanks For Nothing synopsis, comments

    Thanks For Nothing

    Jack Dee

    Comedian Jack Dee's hilarious account of how he became quite such a miserable git and a stand up comedian.'A brilliant book. So funny. It's my bible' Paul O'GradyIn this hilariousl...

  • Bent Halo synopsis, comments

    Bent Halo

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts a homicide case when Kitty Lovejoy seeks out his assistance in solving the grisly murder of her husband, Sloane, a retire...

  • The Boston Celtics synopsis, comments

    The Boston Celtics

    Michael D. McClellan & Volk Jan

    Since the team’s inception in 1946, the Boston Celtics have been at the heart of the culture and history of the city they call home. And as Boston has transformed over the years, t...

  • Roz synopsis, comments

    Roz

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson takes up investigating the violent death of Roz Fleming. A local prostitute, she's been found dead from two headshots behind the ...

  • Snatch synopsis, comments

    Snatch

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson takes up investigating to find the vintage 1977 Music Man StingRay bass guitar stolen from the home of his client, Sybil Gleason....

  • The Truth About Rudolf Hess synopsis, comments

    The Truth About Rudolf Hess

    Lord James Douglas-Hamilton

    Rudolf Hess's flight to Britain in May 1941 stands out as one of the most intriguing and bizarre episodes of the Second World War. In The Truth About Rudolf Hess, Lord James Dougl...

  • The Dirt-Brown Derby synopsis, comments

    The Dirt-Brown Derby

    Ed Lynskey

    PI Frank Johnson is hired by Mary Taliaferro, a wealthy aristocrat owning a horse estate near Middleburg, Virginia. Mary's teenage daughter Emily has died in a riding tragedy. The ...

  • Pawn synopsis, comments

    Pawn

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts another infidelity case, this time Bunny Weld suspects her loutish husband, Joe Vic Sackett, is having an affair with his...

  • Troglodytes synopsis, comments

    Troglodytes

    Ed Lynskey

    When American diplomat Sylvester Mercedes flies into Ankara, Turkey on what is supposed to be a normal business trip, he mysteriously vanishes from his hotel room. With her husband...

  • The Boston Celtics synopsis, comments

    The Boston Celtics

    Michael D. McClellan & Volk Jan

    Since the team’s inception in 1946, the Boston Celtics have been at the heart of the culture and history of the city they call home. And as Boston has transformed over the years, t...

  • Wild Thing synopsis, comments

    Wild Thing

    Bernard O'Mahoney & Lew Yates

    Everybody in the unlicensed fight game knows that only one man has the honour of being titled 'Guv'nor' and that man is Lew 'Wild Thing' Yates. Yates began boxing at the age of si...

  • Kidstory synopsis, comments

    Kidstory

    Tom Adams

    Learn about fifty amazing kids who changed the world in this beautifully illustrated collection of inspiring short biographies sure to empower and motivate in equal measure.You don...

  • The Dodgers synopsis, comments

    The Dodgers

    Michael Schiavone

    In 1957, the Dodgers left their home of Brooklyn, New York, where they had been since their inception in 1884, for the sunny hills of Los Angeles, California. Since arriving in LA,...

  • The Last Equation of Isaac Severy synopsis, comments

    The Last Equation of Isaac Severy

    Nova Jacobs

    Wall Street Journal’s “Mysteries: Best of 2018” Book of the Month Club Selection Edgar Award Nominee: Best First Novel by an American Author A “hugely entertaining” (Wall Street Jo...

  • Death Car synopsis, comments

    Death Car

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts an infidelity case where Webb Lohr believes his wife Danica is having an affair. Then Webb is found murdered in his car a...

  • Lure synopsis, comments

    Lure

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts a missing person case when Cain Milsap seeks out Frank's assistance to find Milsap's 28yearold daughter, Brett. Of course...

  • People State Michigan v. Frank Johnson synopsis, comments

    People State Michigan v. Frank Johnson

    Court of Appeals of Michigan

    Following a threeday trial by jury, defendant was convicted April 7, 1983, of two counts of armed robbery, MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797, and possession of a firearm during commission of...

  • Me Moir - Volume One synopsis, comments

    Me Moir - Volume One

    Vic Reeves

    Vic Reeves' vivid, enchanting, and utterly hilarious childhood memoir is a comic masterpiece.Before there was Vic Reeves, there was a boy called James Moir who was much the same as...

  • The Platoon Commander synopsis, comments

    The Platoon Commander

    John O'Halloran & Ric Teague

    John O'Halloran was a country boy from Tamworth, NSW, who was called up for national service not long after the start of the Vietnam War. As a tough and determined 21yearold, he gu...

  • Pelham Fell Here synopsis, comments

    Pelham Fell Here

    Ed Lynskey

    "Ed Lynskey's new novel PELHAM FELL HERE is a delight. With a plot as complex as your grandmother's crocheted doilies, Mr. Lynskey creates a portrait of the rural hill country that...

  • Wein aus Harlem synopsis, comments

    Wein aus Harlem

    Frank Freimuth

    In Wein aus Harlem präsentiert Frank Freimuth Gedichte von Countee Cullen, Georgia Douglas Johnson, Langston Hughes und Claude McKay, den bekanntesten Poeten der HarlemRenaissance....

  • American Like Me synopsis, comments

    American Like Me

    America Ferrera

    INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERFrom awardwinning actress and political activist America Ferrera comes a vibrant and varied collection of firstperson accounts from prominent figur...

  • Nymph synopsis, comments

    Nymph

    Ed Lynskey

    For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson takes up investigating the violent death of Lark Turnbull. A local prostitute, she has drowned in her motel room bathtub while in...

  • American Dictators synopsis, comments

    American Dictators

    Steven Hart

    One man was tonguetied and awkward around women, in many ways a mama's boy at heart, although his reputation for thuggery was well earned. The other was a playboy, full of easy cha...