Tor Johnson

Tor Johnson
File:PlanNine 10.jpg Johnson in Plan 9 from Outer Space
Born	Karl Oscar Tore Johansson (1903-10-19)19 October 1903 Kalmar län, Sweden
Died	San Fernando, California, U.S.
Other names	Super Swedish Angel Thor Johnson
Occupation	Professional wrestler, actor
Years active	1934–1961

Tore Johansson (19 October 1903 – 12 May 1971), better known by the stage name Tor Johnson, was a Swedish professional wrestler (billed as The Super Swedish Angel) and actor.

Early life

Johnson was born in Kalmar län, Sweden, the son of Karl J. Johansson and Lovisa Petersson.

Career

File:BeastofYuccaFlatts004.jpg

Johnson in The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961)

Johnson weighed 181 kilograms (400 pounds) at his heaviest. He had a full head of black hair, but shaved it to maintain an imposing and villainous appearance in his wrestling and acting work. He began getting bit parts in films upon moving to California, usually as the strongman or weightlifter, as early as 1934. His film career ended in the early 1960s, after he appeared in a string of poorly rated films. However, he continued to make appearances on television and made a number of commercials.

During his career as an actor, Johnson befriended director Ed Wood, who directed him in a number of films, including Bride of the Monster and Plan 9 from Outer Space. He was very friendly to work with; actress Valda Hansen, who worked with Johnson in 1959's Night of the Ghouls, described him as "like a big sugar bun." During this period, Johnson appeared as a guest contestant on the quiz show You Bet Your Life, during which he showed the show's host, Groucho Marx, his "scariest face." Marx ran off the stage in mock terror, then returned and pleaded: "Don't make that face again!"

Death and legacy

In 1971, Johnson died from heart failure at the San Fernando Valley Hospital in San Fernando, California. He was buried at the Eternal Valley Memorial Park in Newhall, California.

Johnson was portrayed by wrestler George "The Animal" Steele in Tim Burton's film Ed Wood (1994).

Johnson was featured extensively in the early work of cartoonist Drew Friedman. The comics supposedly follow Johnson as he becomes involved in various seedy adventures, although he is depicted as a slow-witted, white-eyed lummox based on Johnson's persona in Ed Wood's films.

In popular culture

In the film Mad Max (1979), the title character, played by Mel Gibson, can be seen wearing a Tor Johnson mask in an effort to cheer up his wife, while preparing to leave for a day's work.

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1934	Registered Nurse	Sonnevich	Uncredited
1934	Kid Millions	Torturer	Uncredited
1935	Man on the Flying Trapeze	Tosoff	Uncredited
1936	Under Two Flags	Bidou	Uncredited
1941	Shadow of the Thin Man	Jack the Ripper	Uncredited
1943	The Meanest Man in the World	Vladimir Pulasky	Uncredited
1943	Swing Out the Blues	Weightlifter	Uncredited
1944	Ghost Catchers	Mug	Uncredited
1944	The Canterville Ghost	Bold Sir Guy	Uncredited
1944	Lost in a Harem	Majordomo	Uncredited
1945	Sudan	Slaver	Uncredited
1947	Road to Rio	Sandor	Uncredited
1948	State of the Union	Wrestler	Uncredited
1948	Behind Locked Doors	The Champ	Uncredited
1950	Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion	Abou Ben
1950	The Reformer and the Redhead	Guest At Finnish-American Rally	Uncredited
1951	The Lemon Drop Kid	Super Swedish Angel
1951	Dear Brat		Uncredited
1951	Angels in the Outfield	Wrestler On TV	Uncredited
1952	The San Francisco Story	Buck
1952	Lady in the Iron Mask	Renac	Uncredited
1953	Houdini	Strong Man	Uncredited
1955	Bride of the Monster	Lobo
1956	Carousel	Strongman	Uncredited
1956	The Black Sleep	Mr. Curry
1957	Journey to Freedom	Giant Turk
1957	The Unearthly	Lobo
1959	Night of the Ghouls	Lobo
1959	Plan 9 from Outer Space	Inspector Daniel Clay
1961	The Beast of Yucca Flats	Joseph Javorsky / The Beast

Television

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1953–1954	You Are There		2 episodes
1954	General Electric Theater	Bald Man	1 episode
1954	Rocky Jones, Space Ranger	Naboro	1 episode
1956	The Adventures of Hiram Holliday	Bandini the Strongman	1 episode
1960	Adventures in Paradise	Miko in "Once Around the Circuit"	1 episode
1960	Peter Gunn	Bruno	1 episode
1960	Bonanza	Busthead Brannigan	1 episode
1961	Shirley Temple's Storybook	Strong Man	1 episode

External links

• Tor Johnson at the Internet Movie Database
• Tor Johnson at AllMovie
• Tor Johnson at Find a Grave