Tor Johnson

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Tor Johnson
Johnson in Plan 9 from Outer Space
Born	Tor Johansson 19 October 1903(1903-10-19) Sweden
Died	21 May 1971 (aged 67) San Fernando, California, U.S.
Other name(s)	Super Swedish Angel Thor Johnson
Occupation	Wrestler, actor

Tor Johnson (19 October 1903 – 12 May 1971) was a Swedish professional wrestler (billed as The Super Swedish Angel) and actor. He is perhaps best remembered for his roles in a number of B-movies, including police detective turned zombie Inspector Dan Clay in Plan 9 from Outer Space.

Early life and career

Tor Johansson was born in Sweden, the son of Karl J. Johansson and Lovisa Petersson. He was a large man, weighing 400 pounds (181 kg) at his biggest. He had a full head of blond hair, but he shaved it to maintain an imposing, villainous appearance in wrestling and acting appearances. He began getting bit parts in movies upon his move to California - usually as the strongman or weightlifter - as early as 1934. His film career ended in the early 1960s after appearing in a string of poorly-rated movies. However, he continued to make appearances on television and made a number of commercials.

A number of Johnson's peers had commented that he was a very friendly man and easy to work with on movie sets. Valda Hansen, who worked with Johnson in the 1959 movie Revenge of the Dead said that "Tor was like a big sugar bun." Johnson befriended Bela Lugosi during the time both worked with director Edward D. Wood, Jr.

Death

Johnson died on 12 May 1971 at the San Fernando Valley Hospital in San Fernando, California, from heart failure, at the age of 67. He was buried at the Eternal Valley Memorial Park in Newhall, California.

Legacy

This face was turned into a Halloween Mask

Since his death, Johnson has amassed a cult following due in part to his appearances in the comics of Drew Friedman. Johnson made many appearances in these comics, all of which depicted Johnson acting like his hulking moron movie persona in real life.

A Tor Johnson Halloween mask was created and sold by famous Hollywood maskmaker Don Post. This same mask, with an eyepatch, was later used by wrestler Duke Myers to compete as the Colossus of Death, acting as Andy Kaufman's henchman during Kaufman's feud with Memphis wrestling mainstay Jerry Lawler.

George "The Animal" Steele portrayed Johnson in Tim Burton's biopic about cult director Edward D. Wood, Jr..

Filmography

External links

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