Nelson Johnson
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Nelson C. Johnson (born 1948) is an American author and former judge, lawyer and historian, best known for his 2002 ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' bestseller, ''Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City''. His book served as the basis for the popular and
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-winning
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period
political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...
crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...
drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...
TV series ''
Boardwalk Empire ''Boardwalk Empire'' is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter for the premium cable channel HBO. The series is set chiefly in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era of the 1920s. The series sta ...
''."Book review: Boardwalk Empire by Nelson Johnson"
. ''The Scotsman'', 28 January 2011.


Early life

Born in 1948, Johnson is a life-long resident of
Hammonton, New Jersey Hammonton is a Town (New Jersey), town in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, that has been referred to as the "Blueberry Capital of the World". As of the 2020 United States census, the town's populati ...
, a small town in the southern part of the state. He attended St. John's University where he earned a bachelor's degree in
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
. He also went on to earn a JD from the
law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
of
Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...
. He served in the Air National Guard for a year after college.


Legal career

Johnson was admitted to the New Jersey Bar in 1974. He was elected to the
board of education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...
of the Hammonton Public Schools in 1972. From 1975 to 1980, Johnson was elected as a Democrat to the Atlantic County Board of Chosen Freeholders, and he was a candidate for the
New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...
in 1979. He represented the Atlantic City Planning Board in the early 1980s. Over the course of his legal career, Johnson also represented the ''
Press of Atlantic City ''The Press of Atlantic City'' is the fourth-largest daily newspaper in New Jersey. Originally based in Pleasantville, New Jersey, Pleasantville, it is the primary newspaper for southeastern New Jersey and the Jersey Shore. The Designated marke ...
'', K. Hovnanian, Renault Winery, Ole Hansen & Sons, the Hamilton Township Planning Board, the Mullica Township Planning Board, and the Greater Atlantic City Hotel-Motel Association. Johnson became a partner in Johnson & Bertman. In explaining his motivation to write ''Boardwalk Empire'', Johnson explained " ity Hallwas dysfunctional and corrupt. I thought, in order to do my job here, I have to find out how it got this way. I didn't set out to write a book. I just wanted a better understanding." His research eventually encompassed many aspects of old
Atlantic City Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of the Atlantic City- Hammonton metropolitan sta ...
: "The history was fascinating.
Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 18 and 28. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is judged on competition segments with scoring percentages: ''Priva ...
, the Monopoly board, casino gambling, the ocean, the Boardwalk... Nucky was just the most interesting part of it, though. I don't think there was anyone in the 20th century who wore both hats—
organized crime Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a f ...
and the Republican Party. He was able to cross back and forth between those two worlds." In 2006, Johnson was appointed to serve as a
New Jersey Superior Court The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with statewide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The New Jersey Constitution of 1947 establishes the power of the New Jersey courts: under Article Six of the State Consti ...
judge for
Cape May Cape May consists of a peninsula and barrier island system in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is roughly coterminous with Cape May County and runs southwards from the New Jersey mainland, separating Delaware Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. Th ...
and
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counties. He presided over more than 200 jury trials. Johnson retired from his position as a New Jersey Superior Court Judge in September 2018 at the mandatory retirement age of 70. As of 2023, Johnson serves "as 'of Counsel' at the law firm of Hankin, Sandman, Palladino, Weintrob & Bell, P.C., in Atlantic City. His practice is limited to mediation and arbitration of commercial litigation, general equity matters, and other civil disputes generally filed in the Law and Chancery Divisions, as well as federal court, excluding claims arising out of automobile accidents."


Writing career

Nelson's 2002 book ''Boardwalk Empire'' was the basis for the
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
drama series ''
Boardwalk Empire ''Boardwalk Empire'' is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter for the premium cable channel HBO. The series is set chiefly in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era of the 1920s. The series sta ...
''.
Terence Winter Terence Patrick Winter (born October 2, 1960) is an American writer and producer of television and film. He was the creator, writer, and executive producer of the HBO television series '' Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2014). Before creating ''Boar ...
, the show runner of ''Boardwalk Empire'', described the book as "the history of Atlantic City from when it was literally a mosquito-infested swamp until the present day." Its sequel is ''The Northside: African Americans and the Creation of Atlantic City''. During Johnson's historical research for ''Boardwalk Empire'' he surfaced "the indispensable nature of the black community. If you remove the black experience from Atlantic City’s history the town never even comes to exist. Ninety-five percent of the hotel workforce from 1880 to 1930 was African American. Pull them out of the picture and what do you have?" In 2010, Nelson was asked by the New Jersey State Superior Court to cease promoting the book and the series in order to preserve the ethical neutrality of his position as a judge. His third book, published by
Rutgers University Press Rutgers University Press (RUP) is a nonprofit academic publishing house, operating in New Brunswick, New Jersey under the auspices of Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Pub ...
, is ''Battleground New Jersey: Vanderbilt, Hague and Their Fight for Justice'', and is about Jersey City Mayor Frank Hague and Arthur T. Vanderbilt, first chief justice of New Jersey's modern Supreme Court. His interest in
Clarence Darrow Clarence Seward Darrow (; April 18, 1857 – March 13, 1938) was an American lawyer who became famous in the 19th century for high-profile representations of trade union causes, and in the 20th century for several criminal matters, including the ...
, subject of his fourth book, dates to childhood, when "my mother introduced me to ''Darrow for the Defense'' by Irving Stone."


Selected works

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References


External links

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''Boardwalk Empire''

''Nelson Johnson Presentation January 6, 2022''
Historical Society of Hammonton
''Nelson Johnson On'' Living Darrows Nightmare
NJ Criminal Podcast {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Nelson 1948 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century New Jersey politicians 21st-century American historians 21st-century American judges 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American writers American male non-fiction writers Boardwalk Empire County commissioners in New Jersey Historians from New Jersey New Jersey Democrats Lawyers from Atlantic County, New Jersey New Jersey state court judges People from Hammonton, New Jersey School board members in New Jersey St. John's University (New York City) alumni Villanova University School of Law alumni Writers from Atlantic County, New Jersey