Craig Johnson (author)
Encyclopedia
Craig Allen Johnson is an American novelist and playwright. He has written seven novels. His Sheriff Walt Longmire novels include The Cold Dish, Death Without Company, Kindness Goes Unpunished, Another Man's Moccasins, Junkyard Dogs, and The Dark Horse, which received starred reviews from Kirkus, Booklist
, Publishers Weekly
, and Library Journal
, and was named one of Publisher's Weekly's best books of the year (2009). The Cold Dish and The Dark Horse were both Dilys Award
finalists, and Death Without Company was named the Wyoming Historical Association's Book of the Year. Another Man's Moccasins received the Western Writer's of America Spur Award for best novel of 2008 as well as the Mountains and Plains award for fiction book of the year. The next Walt Longmire novel, Hell Is Empty, will be released by Viking on June 2, 2011.
A television series based on Johnson's protagonist from the Viking/Penguin novels, Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire, is in development with A&E. "Longmire" stars Robert Taylor ("The Matrix")
as Walt Longmire, the charismatic, dedicated and unflappable sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming. Widowed only a year, he is a man in psychic repair but buries his pain behind his brave face, unassuming grin and dry wit. With the help of a young, attractive female cop, Longmire becomes reinvigorated about his job and is committed to run for re-election because he knows what everyone else in his community knows: he's the only man that can get the job done.
"Longmire" also stars Katee Sackhoff
as Vic Moretti, one of Walt's deputies. Sackhoff is a veteran of "Battlestar Galactica"
and is coming off a recurring role as Detective Frankie Reed on "CSI".
Golden Globe and Emmy Award–winning Greer Shephard and Michael M. Robin (The Shephard/Robin Company) are executive producing alongside Hunt Baldwin and John Coveny, who are adapting the novel for the screen. Greg Yaitanes is attached to direct. Shephard and Robin are currently executive producers on The Closer (TNT). Among other projects, they executive produced Nip/Tuck (FX) and Trust Me (TNT), the latter created and produced by Baldwin and Coveny. Yaitanes is an executive producer and Emmy Award-winning director on House (Fox).
Johnson is a board member of the Mystery Writers of America
(MWA). He lives in Ucross, Wyoming
, population 25.
Bibliography (Books occur in published order):
Booklist
Booklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...
, Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
, and Library Journal
Library Journal
Library Journal is a trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey . It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practice...
, and was named one of Publisher's Weekly's best books of the year (2009). The Cold Dish and The Dark Horse were both Dilys Award
Dilys Award
The Dilys Award have been presented every year since 1992 by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. It is given to the mystery title of the year which the member booksellers have most enjoyed selling. The Independent Mystery Booksellers Association is an association of retail businesses...
finalists, and Death Without Company was named the Wyoming Historical Association's Book of the Year. Another Man's Moccasins received the Western Writer's of America Spur Award for best novel of 2008 as well as the Mountains and Plains award for fiction book of the year. The next Walt Longmire novel, Hell Is Empty, will be released by Viking on June 2, 2011.
A television series based on Johnson's protagonist from the Viking/Penguin novels, Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire, is in development with A&E. "Longmire" stars Robert Taylor ("The Matrix")
The Matrix
The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving...
as Walt Longmire, the charismatic, dedicated and unflappable sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming. Widowed only a year, he is a man in psychic repair but buries his pain behind his brave face, unassuming grin and dry wit. With the help of a young, attractive female cop, Longmire becomes reinvigorated about his job and is committed to run for re-election because he knows what everyone else in his community knows: he's the only man that can get the job done.
"Longmire" also stars Katee Sackhoff
Katee Sackhoff
Kathryn Ann "Katee" Sackhoff is an American actress known mainly for playing Captain Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on the Sci Fi Channel's television program Battlestar Galactica. In 2004 she was nominated for a Saturn Award in the "Best Supporting Actress in a Television Series" category for her work in...
as Vic Moretti, one of Walt's deputies. Sackhoff is a veteran of "Battlestar Galactica"
Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)
Battlestar Galactica is an American military science fiction television series, and part of the Battlestar Galactica franchise. The show was developed by Ronald D. Moore as a re-imagining of the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series created by Glen A. Larson...
and is coming off a recurring role as Detective Frankie Reed on "CSI".
Golden Globe and Emmy Award–winning Greer Shephard and Michael M. Robin (The Shephard/Robin Company) are executive producing alongside Hunt Baldwin and John Coveny, who are adapting the novel for the screen. Greg Yaitanes is attached to direct. Shephard and Robin are currently executive producers on The Closer (TNT). Among other projects, they executive produced Nip/Tuck (FX) and Trust Me (TNT), the latter created and produced by Baldwin and Coveny. Yaitanes is an executive producer and Emmy Award-winning director on House (Fox).
Johnson is a board member of the Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
(MWA). He lives in Ucross, Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
, population 25.
Bibliography (Books occur in published order):
- The Cold Dish 2004 Wyoming
- Death Without Company 2006 Wyoming
- Kindness Goes Unpunished 2007 Wyoming and Philadelphia
- Another Man’s Moccasins 2008 Wyoming
- The Dark Horse 2009 Wyoming
- Junkyard Dogs 2010 Wyoming
- Hell is Empty 2011 Wyoming
External links
- "Craig Johnson makes crime pay", Los Angeles Times, July 20, 2008
- "Le cow-boy du Wyoming", le Nouvel Observateur, July 16, 2009
- "Television series based on Craig Johnson’s Wyoming sheriff in the works", The Buffalo Bulletin, July 26, 2010
- "With a Little Help from His Friends: The Functions of Diversity in Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire Series" by Rachel Schaffer, Clues: A Journal of Detection 28.2 (2010)