J.J. Johnston (born James William Johnston, October 24, 1933 – November 4, 2022) was an American theatre and film actor, boxing historian and writer. Johnston served eighteen months in prison for drug-related offenses before turning to acting. Johnston died on November 4, 2022, at the age of 89. Books Johnston, a former amateur boxer, was the author of several books on the history of boxing. Babyface and Pop, with Nick Beck (2011) Chicago Boxing (Images of Sports), with Sean Curtin and David Mamet (2005) Chicago Amateur Boxing (Images of Sports), with Sean Curtin (2006) Stage work Johnston performed in the original 1975 production of David Mamet's American Buffalo in Chicago and subsequently performed in the 1983 Broadway production opposite Al Pacino. Filmography Awards 1983-84 New York Theatre World Award for Outstanding New Talent in "American Buffalo" 1986 Bay Area Critics Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance by an Actor in the play Glengarry Glen Ross. References External links 1933 births 2022 deaths American male film actors American male stage actors American people convicted of drug offenses Male actors from Chicago