- Jamie Johnson
:"Jamie Johnson is also the former name of a curler who now goes by
Jamie Haskell ."Infobox_Person
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name = Jamie Johnson
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birth_date = 1979
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occupation =filmmaker
education =New York University
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relations =James Wittenborn Johnson (born 1979) is one of the great-grandsons of the founder of
Johnson & Johnson Inc. and an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker.Johnson received attention when he made a documentary in 2003 called "
Born Rich " which was purchased byHBO . The film was described as "a documentary on children of the insanely rich, directed by one of their own, Johnson & Johnson, Inc., heir Jamie Johnson." It consists primarily of Johnson interviewing his friends and peers about the experience of living life free of financial constraints. These interviews are offset by Johnson's exploration of his own experience and family. Jamie's uncle is screenwriter and novelistDirk Wittenborn , whom Jamie credits with encouraging him to make a documentary about the experience of wealthy children.The documentary was nominated for two
Emmy Award s including 'Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming' for the director. The other nomination was in the category 'Outstanding Nonfiction Special' for the producers:Sheila Nevins (executive producer), Wittenborn (produced by) and Johnson (producer).Johnson's newest project, "
The One Percent ", had its world premiere at theTriBeCa Film Festival onApril 29 ,2006 . The 80-minute feature discusses the challenges America faces as a society in which one percent of the people control nearly half the total wealth. The film featuresRobert Reich , Bill Gates Sr.,Milton Friedman , and many others, coming from varioussocioeconomic strata, including residents of Chicago's infamousCabrini Green housing project andHurricane Katrina victims. The film was co-produced by Johnson andNick Kurzon and will air on cable television in the first quarter of 2008.Both "
Born Rich " and "The One Percent " were promoted onOprah Winfrey 'stelevision show . He was showcased along with Nicole Buffett, adopted granddaughter of billionaireWarren Buffett .Johnson is a graduate of the
Pingry School , a prep school located inMartinsville, New Jersey . [Johnson, Jamie. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E2DE153FF931A25753C1A9659C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2 "Biting the Silver Spoon That Feeds Him, on Film"] , "The New York Times ",October 12 ,2003 . AccessedNovember 3 ,2007 . "I was pretty shocked by what some of the other kids had to say," said Mr. Newhouse, who met Mr. Johnson at Pingry, a private school in Martinsville, N.J."] He attendedNew York University , where he majored in American History.Personal life
The films "Born Rich" and "The One Percent" strained Johnson's relationship with other members of the New York elite, who he has used his connections with to secure interviews. "Born Rich" sparked a lawsuit and accusations from a few of the subjects, Johnson's friends, that Johnson portrayed them unfairly. The films also cooled the relationship with his own family, including his father, James Loring Johnson. Later, while developing "The One Percent", Johnson discovered his father, who otherwise led a quiet life of reading and painting landscapes, had helped fund a documentary about
apartheid and economic unfairness inSouth Africa . Though his father refused to talk about it, Johnson learned from his mother that his father had been reprimanded for the film by Johnson & Johnson and by members of his family and never made another film.Robert Frank, [http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB120371859381786725-DY5mxQWks_hwxrc5QMaKsB8XWvk_20090222.html?mod=rss_free The Rich Man's Michael Moore] , "The Wall Street Journal", February 23, 2008.]When Johnson interviewed
Milton Friedman , the Nobel Laureate conservative economist, Friedman accused Johnson of advocating socialism and abruptly ended the interview.Robert Frank, [http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB120371859381786725-DY5mxQWks_hwxrc5QMaKsB8XWvk_20090222.html?mod=rss_free The Rich Man's Michael Moore] , "The Wall Street Journal", February 23, 2008.]References
External links
*imdb name|id=1282156|name=Jamie Johnson
* [http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/born_rich/index.html Born Rich] at HBO
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