| Bayard Richard Johnson | |
| Birth Date: | September 9, 1952 |
| Birth Place: | Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Nationality: | American |
| Alma Mater: | University of Puget Sound |
| Occupation: | Screenwriter, film producer, author, musician |
| Spouse: | Lyndal Johnson |
| Children: | Colter Johnson, Ronan Johnson |
| Parents: | Richard Johnson, Virginia Johnson |
Bayard Richard Johnson[1] (September 9, 1952 – February 10, 2016) was an American screenwriter and film producer. He is best known as the co-writer of Damned River in 1989, , and Tarzan and the Lost City in 1998.[2] [3]
Johnson, who was born in Seattle, graduated from the University of Puget Sound, where he studied philosophy and writing.[2] [3]
Johnson's first film was 1989's Damned River, which he co-wrote with John Crowther.[2] Damned River, which was filmed in Zimbabwe in 1988, remains on Netflix's "top 20 action movies of the 1980s," as of 2016.[3] Together with Matthew Horton, Johnson co-wrote the 1997 film adaptation of , which was released by TriStar Pictures.[2] He also co-wrote 1998's Tarzan and the Lost City, loosely based on the Tarzan stories by stories by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
In 2007, Johnson and actor Bill Duke co-produced Cover, a film which explores the HIV epidemic.[2] Duke and Johnson also wrote a television series for HBO, which did not air.[3]
Johnson co-authored the 2013 book, "If You’ve Forgotten the Names of the Clouds, You’ve Lost Your Way: An Introduction to American Indian Thought and Philosophy," with the late Russell Means, an Oglala Lakota Native American rights activist.[2] Together, John and Means directed, produced and penned Looks Twice, a short film based on a Lakota story.[3] Johnson's first novel was "Damned Right,"[4] published by Black Ice Books in 1994.
In addition to his writing, Johnson co-founded Mother Nature's Army, a band based in Southern California.[2]
Johnson died from cancer on February 10, 2016, in Los Angeles, California, on the age of 63.[2] He was survived by his parents, Richard and Virginia Johnson; his wife, Lyndal; two sons, Colter and Ronan; and three siblings, Douglas, Silver Moon and Alicia.[2] One of his sons, Colter Johnson, penned and directed the 2015 film, Man in a Cage, which has not yet been released.[2]