The Albert J. Johnson papers, 1945-1998, contain material such as correspondence, diaries, and calendars; objects relating to Johnson’s involvement with film events and festivals, including badges, event posters, and press documents; hand written notes on various films, filmmakers, and festivals; and collected newspapers clippings authored by or about Johnson. The bulk of the collection consists of documents highlighting Johnson’s career as an internationally renowned film critic, highlighting his skills as a writer, editor, and lecturer, with only a few materials directly pertaining to his career at UC Berkeley. Also included are numerous personal diaries which span his career from 1945 to 1998.

Albert J. Johnson (1925-1998) was born in Harlem, New York. He attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he received a bachelor’s degree in English in 1954, and studied at Oxford University and the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford, England. During the 1960s, Johnson taught film at UCLA and San Francisco State College, later joining University of California, Berkeley’s African American Studies Department in 1974. As a film critic and historian with a strong interest in international film, Johnson was deeply involved in national and international film events including: the San Francisco International Film Festival, Oakland’s Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, the Cannes International Film Festival in France, the Berlin International Film Festival in Germany, and the Venice International Film Festival in Italy. Johnson was also a founding member and editor of the magazine Film Quarterly, where he remained on the Editorial Board until his death in 1998. As a senior lecturer at UC Berkeley, Johnson’s most popular courses included “Third World Cinema” and “The Afro-American and the World of Cinema.”

10 cartons, 2 oversize folders (12.5 linear feet)

Collection is open for research.