Editing Arte Johnson (section)

===Early life===
Johnson was born January 20, 1929, in [[Benton Harbor, Michigan]], the son of Abraham Lincoln and Edythe Mackenzie (Goldberg/Golden) Johnson. His father was an attorney. Johnson graduated from [[Austin Community Academy High School|Austin High School]] and received a bachelor's degree in radio journalism from [[University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign]] in 1949, where he worked at the campus radio station and the University of Illinois Theater Guild with his brother Coslough "Cos" Johnson.<ref name=Slotnik>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/03/arts/television/arte-johnson-dead.html |title=Arte Johnson, 'Very Interesting' Comic Actor, Is Dead at 90 |first=Daniel E. |last=Slotnik |date=July 3, 2019 |access-date=July 5, 2019 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

Following brief military service in [[Korean War|Korea]] (he was discharged due to a [[Duodenum|duodenal]] [[ulcer]] he had suffered since childhood),<ref name=erickson>[https://books.google.com/books?id=4HQwCgAAQBAJ&dq=arte+johnson+military+service&pg=PA74 "From Beautiful Downtown Burbank": A Critical History of ''Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In'', 1968–1973.] [[Hal Erickson (author)|Erickson, Hal]] (2000). Jefferson, North Carolina: [[McFarland & Company|McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers]], page 74, {{ISBN|978-0-7864-4049-8}}.</ref> he sought employment in Chicago advertising agencies but was unsuccessful and left for New York City to work for [[Viking Press]]. In early 1954, Johnson performed in several New York nightclubs, including Le Ruban Bleu and the [[Village Vanguard]].<ref>''Weekly Variety'', January 20, 1954; April 7, 1954.</ref> His first job in show business came when he impulsively stepped into an audition line and was cast in ''[[Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (musical)|Gentlemen Prefer Blondes]]''. Johnson appeared in [[Ben Bagley]]'s ''The Shoestring Revue'', which opened [[off-Broadway]] on February 28, 1955, at the President Theater in New York. <ref name=Slotnik />