Kathryn Jones Ben Johnson Biography Tall in the Saddle review and information book on Hollywood’s Real Cowboy. University Press of Mississippi will publish in the Hollywood Legends Series the biography of the American actor Ben Johnson, written by Kathryn Jones on March 31, 2026. Here you can read information about the content of the book, the author, the actor and the publication.

Kathryn Jones Ben Johnson Biography reviews and information

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• “Back when I worked with Ben Johnson on The Sacketts, he told me that the great director John Ford’s dying words to him were, ‘Johnson, always stay real.’ Well . . . that was never gonna be a problem. Ben was as real as daylight. But that being said, I have to admit that gravity seemed to take a holiday when Ben Johnson was around. And while I know he’d be embarrassed if he knew I called him a mentor, the fact is, I went to the school of Uncle Ben. Honesty and respect were his watchwords, and he was never afraid of modesty. In the very best sense, he was an ordinary man who did extraordinary things. He was a world champion roper, he earned an Academy Award, and nobody sat a horse like Ben Johnson.” (Tom Selleck)
• “Tall in the Saddle: The Life of Ben Johnson, Hollywood’s Real Cowboy is rich with research by the author, interviews, and telling, behind-the-scenes detail about the making of key movies in Johnson’s career, as well as his other career as a world-champion roper.” (Joseph B. Atkins, author of Harry Dean Stanton: Hollywood’s Zen Rebel)
• “Kathryn Jones’s Tall in the Saddle: The Life of Ben Johnson, Hollywood’s Real Cowboy is an instant classic. Jones spent years employing her great skills as a researcher and reporter to piece together the complicated life of a complex man, then used her sublime gift as a storyteller to produce this compelling, exquisitely written book. Even people who think they know everything about the Oscar-winning actor and world-champion rodeo cowboy will come away from Tall in the Saddle with a much deeper understanding of Johnson. I highly recommend it.” (W.K. Stratton, author of The Wild Bunch: Sam Peckinpah, a Revolution in Hollywood)

Tall in the Saddle

The Life of Ben Johnson, Hollywood’s Real Cowboy

• Author: Kathryn Jones (United States)
• Book type: Biography, movie book
• Publisher: University Press of Mississippi
• Series: Hollywood Legends
• To be released: March 31, 2026
• Length: 432 pages
• Format: hardback / ebook
• Prize: $ 35.00
• Buying options >

Blurb of the biography Ban Johnson the American western actor

From the rodeo arena to the silver screen—Ben Johnson’s true Western tale.

Tall in the Saddle: The Life of Ben Johnson, Hollywood’s Real Cowboy is the definitive biography of Ben Johnson (1918–1996), the only man to win both an Academy Award and a world rodeo championship. Born on a historic Oklahoma ranch, Johnson could rope cattle before he could read, and his horsemanship took him straight to Hollywood when tycoon Howard Hughes needed horses for The Outlaw in 1943. What started as a behind-the-scenes gig turned into an acting career that spanned six decades.

Discovered by legendary director John Ford, Johnson became a fixture in classic Westerns alongside John Wayne, before stepping into more complex roles with filmmakers like Sam Peckinpah, Steven Spielberg, and Peter Bogdanovich—who guided him to his Oscar-winning performance in The Last Picture Show. Though he worked with Hollywood greats like Steve McQueen, Marlon Brando, and Clint Eastwood, Johnson remained rooted in the authenticity of the American West, both on and off screen.

Drawing from a wealth of interviews with costars, directors, and rodeo companions, Kathryn Jones captures the grit, grace, and enduring legacy of a man who didn’t just play a cowboy—he was one. Tall in the Saddle is a rich, cinematic portrait of a Hollywood legend whose real-life story is as unforgettable as any role he played.

Kathryn Jones is a journalist, essayist, and poet whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Texas Monthly, and other publications, and in numerous anthologies, including A Uniquely American Epic: Intimacy and Action, Tenderness and Violence in Sam Peckinpah’s “The Wild Bunch.” She is author of two volumes of poetry about the beauty and brutality of nature. She was born in Hollywood and grew up in Texas, where she lives on a ranch southwest of Fort Worth. Jones was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters in 2016.

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