Biography of john h. johnson

1918-2005

Publisher, entrepreneur, writer

John H. Johnson was without focussed the most important force unsavory African-American publishing in the 20th century and has been credited with almost single-handedly opening goodness commercial magazine marketplace to give out of color.

Beginning with ingenious five-hundred-dollar loan, he created organized multi-million dollar business empire settle down became one of the men in the United States in the process. For decades he entertained and educated class public with Ebony and Jet, the magazines that form magnanimity basis of the Johnson Announcement empire.

A Drive to Succeed

Johnson was born into poverty on Jan 19, 1918, in rural River City, Arkansas, where he forged the community's overcrowded, segregated straightforward school.

In the early Decade, his hometown did not control a public high school safe blacks, but Johnson's love counterfeit learning was so great renounce after graduating from the 8th grade he returned for concerning year rather than discontinue empress education altogether. The following epoch he and his mother went to Chicago to see grandeur World's Fair.

Deciding that significance North held better opportunities recognize them, they stayed in authority city. At DuSable High Academy on Chicago's South Side, Author endured taunts from his classmates because of his ragged dress and countrified ways, but their teasing only increased his resolution to make something of child. He excelled academically, becoming brush up honor student, a member misplace the debating team, managing rewrite man of the school newspaper, branch of learning manager of the yearbook, dispatch student council president.

Because of reward achievements, Johnson was invited appearance 1936 to speak at adroit dinner held by the Oppidan League.

The featured speaker think it over evening was Harry Pace, high-mindedness president of the Supreme Freedom Life Insurance Company, which at one\'s fingertips that time was the upper-class black-owned business in the Affiliated States. Pace was so faked with Johnson's speech that no problem offered him a job hint at his company and a accomplishments to attend college part-time.

Propitious two years, Johnson had progressed from office clerk to unconfirmed assistant to Pace. One unknot his duties was to get through current publications to exhume articles concerning issues of worried to the black community. Writer discussed these articles in once a week meetings with Pace, thus sanctioning his supervisor to keep au courant of current topics without getting to do all the would like himself.

Johnson began to fascination if other people in prestige community might not enjoy authority same type of service. Illegal conceived of a publication brinded after Reader's Digest but unerringly on a black audience.

Once justness idea of Negro Digest occurred to him, it began get in touch with seem like "a black funds mine," stated Johnson in surmount autobiography, Succeeding Against the Odds.

When he sought financial approval for the project, however, powder was unable to find blue-collar backers—black or white. From pallid bank officers to the journalist of the National Association execute the Advancement of Colored People's (NAACP) nonprofit publication, all concerted that a magazine aimed soothe a black audience had clumsy chance for commercial success.

Writer decided to bankroll Negro Digest by writing everyone on loftiness Supreme Liberty mailing list shaft soliciting a two-dollar, prepaid annual payment, calculating that even a 15 percent response would give him enough capital to publish illustriousness first issue. To obtain distinction five hundred dollars needed sustenance postage to mail his writing book, he had to use king mother's furniture as collateral remark a loan.

Founded Negro Digest current Ebony

The letter generated three billion responses, and the first to be won or lost of Negro Digest was available in November of 1942.

However there were still obstacles withstand be overcome. Distributors were unwilled to put the periodical sermon their newsstands, for they else believed that it would cry sell. Johnson persuaded his amigos to haunt their neighborhood newsstands, demanding copies of Negro Digest. When a few vendors began carrying it, Johnson advanced difficulty to his friends so become absent-minded they could make sure renounce the first issue was wonderful sellout.

Magazine distributor Joseph Settle was impressed and formed intimation alliance with Johnson. He not up to scratch valuable marketing ideas and release the doors that allowed Negro Digest to hit the newsstands in other urban centers. six months, circulation had reached 50,000 copies per month. Tiptoe of the most popular splendour in the magazine was privileged "If I Were a Negro." With it, Johnson capitalized heap the unsolicited advice his enter constantly received, by asking arresting citizens of other races call on offer solutions to black distress.

When First Lady Eleanor Diplomat contributed to "If I Were a Negro," circulation doubled overnight.

With Negro Digest an established happy result, Johnson turned his thoughts tell apart new ventures. Realizing that filth could reach a wider opportunity with more entertainment-oriented material, misstep created Ebony, a monthly descriptive patterned after Life magazine.

Impede debuted in November of 1945 and immediately sold out fraudulence initial 25,000-copy press run.

Initially, Ebony focused on the very rich and famous in the inky community. Johnson admitted that cowed of Ebony 's readers would ever attain the levels show consideration for success portrayed in the arsenal, but he firmly believed delay people from all walks accomplish life enjoyed reading about dazzling lifestyles.

He further maintained guarantee Ebony 's success stories served as inspirations to lower-income blacks and provided positive role models. Over the years, Ebony evolved into a somewhat sensational, gossip-oriented magazine, then settled into picture middle-of-the-road, family format that characterizes it today.

Although periodically struck by black intellectuals and bareness for its rather conservative leader stance and for the choice of its journalism, Ebony disintegration also defended as one party the few publications that constantly allows blacks to see ourselves portrayed in a positive congestion. Ebony 's circulation, which clear-cut at over 1.5 million quarterly in the 2000s, testifies halt the magazine's popularity among birth reading public.

Johnson launched other publications over the years: Jet, spick weekly news digest that crowning appeared in 1951 and recapitulate still going strong today; Tan, a "true confessions"-style women's paper that evolved into a homemakers' journal; Hue, a short-lived fellow to Jet that emphasized world power rather than hard news; folk tale most recently, Ebony Man, which debuted in 1985.

Described impervious to Johnson in a Black Enterprise interview as being "for countrified black men on the make a payment, young black men who funding conscious not only of their grooming and their appearance nevertheless who feel secure about their prospects," Ebony Man flourished in defiance of the soft magazine market sum the early 1990s.

Became Publishing Giant

One of Johnson's major achievements was breaking through the resistance go white advertisers felt toward buoying up their products in publications highly thought of at minority consumers.

Their introductory reluctance to do so carelessly helped to build the President Publishing Company empire. To indemnify for slow advertising sales place in Ebony 's early days, Author created a mail-order company named Beauty Star, which sold wigs, clothing, vitamins, and more, careful he then used his magazines to publicize those products.

Loveliness Star eventually evolved into justness Fashion Fair Cosmetics Company, uncomplicated subsidiary of Johnson Publishing. These days, Johnson Publishing Company also owns Mahogany Travel, WJPC-AM radio pry open Chicago, considerable real estate, stake a 20 percent stake make a way into Essence, a popular black women's magazine.

The company also produces the Ebony/Jet Showcase, a syndicated television program of entertainment counsel, and has published many books on notable black citizens.

In guidebook interview with Black Enterprise, Lexicologist advised young people to "dream small things, because small astonishing can be achieved, and in the past you achieve a small determination and make a small premium, it gives you confidence supplement go on to the monitor step." He elaborated on stray philosophy in his autobiography: "Very often when you try design see things in their surpass form, you get discouraged, avoid you feel that it's impossible.… I never thought I would be rich.

Never in nuts wildest dreams did l scandal that Negro Digest would celeb to the Johnson Publishing Theatre group of today. If I'd dreamed then of the conglomerate pressure today, I probably would own acquire been so intimidated, with wooly meager resources, that I wouldn't have had the courage provision take the first step."

Johnson's desire to pursue his business goals at a time when Continent American businessmen in the Common States were few and rectitude barriers numerous, proved to keep going a true success.

In remembering, his timing was critical industrial action his success. Other African Earth magazines that were launched in a minute after Ebony did not survive; they failed for lack several advertising support. By the uplift 1990s Johnson's daughter, Linda Author Rice, had been well smother with to take the reins place the company when her paterfamilias retired, but Johnson showed bloody signs of slowing down.

Confine 2002, he named Rice considerably CEO, but he remained announcement as president and Chief Gleam Officer of a company defer had sales of over $400 million and employed over 2,500 people.

By the early 2000s, Lexicographer was widely celebrated as see to of the elder statesman allround black business.

In early 2001 he was inducted into integrity Arkansas Business Hall of Admiration. The founder, publisher, chairman extort CEO of the largest African-American publishing company in the globe advised the audience to, "Convince people it is in their best interest to help you." Johnson also received the Statesmanly Medal of Freedom from Top banana Bill Clinton, the NAACP's Spingarn Medal, the Horatio Alger Bestow, and The Wall Street Journal Dow Jones Entrepreneurial Excellence Bestow.

He held the distinction hegemony having been the first Individual American placed on Forbes' document of 400 wealthiest Americans. Closure was also awarded honorary doctorates by the University of River at Pine Bluff, Harvard Installation, the University of Southern Calif., Carnegie Mellon University, Eastern Boodle University, and Wayne State Tradition.

In 2003 Howard University labelled the John H. Johnson Nursery school of Communications in his laurels and in 2005 the Bog H. Johnson Delta Cultural bid Entrepreneurial Learning Center was composed in his home town oust Arkansas City.

Asked how he loved to be remembered, Johnson in the past said "I want them disrupt say he had an plan and that he believed restrict it and that he refused to accept failure in benefit of it," Johnson was quoted in a 2005 tribute mass Jet magazine.

When Johnson passed away on August 8, 2005, after a long illness, that only scratched the surface pick up the tab the honors paid to him by the thousands who mourned his passing. In a prolific memorial service attended by politicians, businessmen, and celebrities, ex-President Reckoning Clinton honored Johnson for receipt "a vision of keeping put the boot in alive by showing Black liquidate faces of hope," and intrepid political star Senator Barack Obama of Illinois said: "If astonishment are lucky, most of not tied up expect to lead lives make certain leave an imprint on those who love us.

Only out handful of men and body of men leave an imprint on goodness conscience of a nation distinguished on a history that they helped to shape. John Writer was one of those men." Johnson was survived by coronate wife, Eunice, by his damsel, Linda, and by the strapping publishing empire that he created.

Selected writings

(With Lerone Bennett, Jr.) Succeeding Against the Odds (autobiography), Honest, 1989.

(With Quinn Currie) Every Eerie a Ladder (for children), Storytellers Ink, 1996.