Trivia

A prize belt buckle that he won for calf roping was stolen from his car when he visited Houston in 1976; on a repeat visit a decade later, he was an on-air guest on radio station KIKK when a caller returned the buckle to him.

Had initially turned down the role of Sam the Lion in The Last Picture Show (1971) when it was first offered to him by Peter Bogdanovich because he thought the script was "dirty", and he did not approve of swearing and nudity in motion pictures. Bogdanovich appealed to John Ford, who got Johnson to change his mind as a favor to him. With the permission of Bogdanovich, Johnson rewrote his role with the offensive words removed. Johnson went on to win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for playing the role.

Johnson and his father, Ben Johnson, Sr., were champion steer ropers. The senior Johnson was also a cattleman and rancher who was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1961. The younger Johnson was inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1982.

Died of a heart attack while visiting his mother in the retirement community where, not only she, but he himself lived.

Had appeared with John Wayne in eight films: Tall in the Saddle (1944), Three Godfathers (1948), Fort Apache (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), Rio Grande (1950), The Undefeated (1969), Chisum (1970) and The Train Robbers (1973).

Johnson got his first big break as a member of John Ford's stock company in the late 1940s. However, during the making of Rio Grande (1949), Johnson and Ford had a brief verbal argument. All seemed well afterward, and nothing further was said of it, so Ben assumed it was completely blown over. However, Ford didn't use Johnson again in another picture for 14 years, when Ben played a small role in Cheyenne Autumn (1964). Johnson's lifelong friend Harry Carey Jr. said he believed the reason was that when Ford was casting The Sun Shines Bright (1953), Johnson's agent heard that Ford wanted him for the role, called Ford--without Johnson's knowledge--and demanded a hefty salary. Outraged at having been squeezed like that, Ford held it against Johnson, and used that and the argument they had during "Rio Grande" as an excuse not to use him again. They did manage to maintain a friendly relationship nonetheless.

Had appeared with Harry Carey Jr. in eight films: Three Godfathers (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), Rio Grande (1950), Wagon Master (1950), Cheyenne Autumn (1964), The Undefeated (1969), Wild Times (1980), The Shadow Riders (1982) and Cherry 2000 (1987).

Had appeared in three movies where his first name was Travis: She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), Sergeant Travis Tyree; Wagon Master (1950), Travis Blue; Rio Grande (1950), Trooper Travis Tyree.

Also doubled for Randolph Scott.

Ben's great grandfather Calvin C. Johnson (1840-1915) served in the Confederate States Army with the 14th Arkansas Infantry.

Since both he and his father were named "Ben", the younger Johnson was known as "Son" at home. The road marker to the actor's ranch near Shidler, Oklahoma declares it as Ben "Son" Johnson's ranch.

His wife, Carol, was the daughter of Clarence Young "Fats" Jones, owner of Fats Jones Stables, who supplied horses to many movies and television series.

His father, Ben Johnson, Sr., was inducted into the Rodeo Hall of Fame of the Rodeo Historical Society (a support group of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum) in 1961. The Ben Johnson Memorial Award, in honor of his father, is awarded annually to prominent representatives of the western character and spirit (since 1998).

He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7082 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on June 2, 1994.

Had Cherokee and Irish blood.

He has appeared in five films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: Shane (1953), Oklahoma! (1955), One-Eyed Jacks (1961), The Wild Bunch (1969) and The Last Picture Show (1971).

Johnson, his father, and nephew have Belt-Buckle awards for team roping.

Appeared in two films nominated for Best Picture Oscar: Shane (1953) and The Last Picture Show (1971).

Harry Carey Jr., was surprised by Johnson's only phobia. Ben had an intense fear of flying in an airplane. Carey mentioned it in the book, "Company of Heroes.".

Ben Johnson served in the Pacific theater as a Marine in World War II. He was involved in the Guadalcanal campaign, and other operations. He got out of the service as a Private First Class.

Was Johnny Weissmuller's riding double in the movie Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943).

Ben was also in The Rare Breed (1966) with Harry Carey Jr..