Johnny Smith (Dead Zone)
Encyclopedia
John Smith is a fictional character
and the main protagonist
originally appearing in the Stephen King
novel, The Dead Zone
, then in the film
and the television series
of the same name.
, the only slight mar in his past being a fall on an ice rink when he was six years old in 1953 which he barely even remembered as an adult. After a date with his girlfriend Sarah to a county fair, he is caught in a car crash when sends him into a coma for four and a half years until May 17, 1975. When he regains consciousness, Johnny and his doctors swiftly discover that, apparently due to seemingly minor brain damage sustained while he was in his coma, a long-dormant part of his brain relating to touch has been reactivated, granting him the ability to touch people and objects and learn something about their pasts or futures.
While he initially desires to use these powers for good, such as to warn a woman that her kitchen is on fire, Johnny eventually denies their existence, the only exception being when he is contacted by a sheriff seeking assistance in tracking a serial killer
. After finding the killer, Johnny goes into semi-retirement once again, taking a job as a private tutor when he finds himself unable to return to his old teaching job on the grounds that he is 'too controversial' to be an educator.
During a political rally, he shakes hands with candidate Greg Stillson
and foresees an apocalyptic
future that would take place if Stillson won the election. Although reluctant to resort to murder, Johnny's hand is forced when he discovers that he has developed a tumor as a result of his accident, leaving him with a short time to live. With no hope of gathering evidence to expose Stillson's threat in the time left to him, Johnny instead attempts to shoot him at a press conference. Although Stillson survives and Johnny is killed by his security force, Stillson's reaction to the attack — trying to use a child as a shield — ruins his political career. Johnny reassures himself of this by grabbing Stillson's leg briefly before he dies.
visions, triggered by physical contact, of the future and the past; he has repeatedly used these visions to aid Penobscot County Sheriff
Walter T. Bannerman, the man who had married Johnny's own fiance, Sarah Anne Bracknell, and subsequently helped her raise Johnny's son J.J. while Johnny was comatose. Unlike his novel counterpart, Johnny is very relaxed about the use of his abilities, using them on several occasions to help his friends investigate the mysteries and dangers surrounding them.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
and the main protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
originally appearing in the Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
novel, The Dead Zone
The Dead Zone (novel)
The Dead Zone is a horror novel by Stephen King published in 1979. It concerns Johnny Smith, who is injured in an accident and enters a coma for nearly five years. When he emerges, he can see horrifying secrets but cannot identify all the details in his "dead zone", an area of his brain that...
, then in the film
The Dead Zone (film)
The Dead Zone is a 1983 horror-thriller film based on the Stephen King novel of the same name. Directed by David Cronenberg, the film stars Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen, and Tom Skerritt...
and the television series
The Dead Zone (TV series)
The Dead Zone, aka Stephen King's Dead Zone is an American-Canadian science fiction/suspense series starring Anthony Michael Hall as Johnny Smith, who discovers he has developed psychic abilities after a coma...
of the same name.
Novel
In the novel, Johnny Smith is an English teacher in New EnglandNew England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, the only slight mar in his past being a fall on an ice rink when he was six years old in 1953 which he barely even remembered as an adult. After a date with his girlfriend Sarah to a county fair, he is caught in a car crash when sends him into a coma for four and a half years until May 17, 1975. When he regains consciousness, Johnny and his doctors swiftly discover that, apparently due to seemingly minor brain damage sustained while he was in his coma, a long-dormant part of his brain relating to touch has been reactivated, granting him the ability to touch people and objects and learn something about their pasts or futures.
While he initially desires to use these powers for good, such as to warn a woman that her kitchen is on fire, Johnny eventually denies their existence, the only exception being when he is contacted by a sheriff seeking assistance in tracking a serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
. After finding the killer, Johnny goes into semi-retirement once again, taking a job as a private tutor when he finds himself unable to return to his old teaching job on the grounds that he is 'too controversial' to be an educator.
During a political rally, he shakes hands with candidate Greg Stillson
Greg Stillson
Greg Stillson is a fictional character and the primary antagonist in Stephen King's 1979 novel The Dead Zone. Played by Golden Globe-winner Martin Sheen in the film adaptation and Sean Patrick Flanery in the USA Network television series, Stillson is a rising politician and future U.S...
and foresees an apocalyptic
Apocalypse
An Apocalypse is a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of mankind in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e. the veil to be lifted. The Apocalypse of John is the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament...
future that would take place if Stillson won the election. Although reluctant to resort to murder, Johnny's hand is forced when he discovers that he has developed a tumor as a result of his accident, leaving him with a short time to live. With no hope of gathering evidence to expose Stillson's threat in the time left to him, Johnny instead attempts to shoot him at a press conference. Although Stillson survives and Johnny is killed by his security force, Stillson's reaction to the attack — trying to use a child as a shield — ruins his political career. Johnny reassures himself of this by grabbing Stillson's leg briefly before he dies.
TV Show
In the television series Johnny was introduced in the pilot episode, "Wheel of Fortune (Part 1)". Born John Robert Smith in 1967, Johnny taught Biology at Cleaves Mills High School until a horrific car crash on 6 June 1995 put him into a six-year coma from which he awoke on 1 September 2001. Since that time, he has experienced psychicPsychic
A psychic is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception , or is said by others to have such abilities. It is also used to describe theatrical performers who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot...
visions, triggered by physical contact, of the future and the past; he has repeatedly used these visions to aid Penobscot County Sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
Walter T. Bannerman, the man who had married Johnny's own fiance, Sarah Anne Bracknell, and subsequently helped her raise Johnny's son J.J. while Johnny was comatose. Unlike his novel counterpart, Johnny is very relaxed about the use of his abilities, using them on several occasions to help his friends investigate the mysteries and dangers surrounding them.