Liver Eating Johnson

The Wild West Extravaganza

Wild West Josh

Education, History

4.8 • 667 Ratings

🗓️ 6 June 2023

⏱️ 77 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

John “Liver Eating” Johnson was the inspiration behind 1972’s Jeremiah Johnson but the real man’s life was even more extraordinary than portrayed on film. Johnson/Johnstone was a sailor, soldier, fur trapper, prospector, scout, Indian fighter, and lawman. Sometimes a good guy, sometimes a bad guy, and always larger than life. Dubbed "Liver-Eating" due to a chilling tale of vengeance, he allegedly killed Crow warriors and consumed their livers, but are these stories true? Later in his life, Johnston assumed the role of constable in Coulson, Montana, and served as a town marshal in Red Lodge. However, his journey came to an end in 1900 when he passed away in a veteran's hospital in Los Angeles. Decades later his remains would be relocated to Cody, Wyoming, where they now rest alongside other legendary figures of the Old West. Top of Form Top of FormCheck out the website for more true tales from the Old West https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest Free Newsletter! https://wildwestjosh.substack.com/ Join Patreon for ad-free and bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/wildwestextra Merchandise! https://www.teepublic.com/user/wild-west-extravaganza Book Recommendations! https://www.amazon.com/shop/wildwestextravaganza/list/YEHGNY7KFAU7?ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d The Never Ending Lives of Liver-Eating Johnson by D.J. Herda – https://www.amazon.com/dp/1493074423?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=1493074423&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin Crow Killer, New Edition: The Saga of Liver-Eating Johnson by Thorpe, Bunker, & Bender – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FIYWNIY?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=B01FIYWNIY&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.2H6WTE0CNW87P&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin Mountain Man by Vardis Fisher - https://www.amazon.com/dp/0893012513?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=0893012513&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.2H6WTE0CNW87P&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin The Avenging Fury of the Plains by Dennis J. McLelland – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08T8THVDS?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=B08T8THVDS&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin Liver-Eating Johnston: The Dust Never Settles On A Legend by Dennis J. McLelland – https://www.amazon.com/dp/1694786447?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=1694786447&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin I Buried Hickok: The Memoirs of White Eye Anderson – https://www.amazon.com/buried-Hickok-memoirs-White-Anderson/dp/0932702074/ref=sr_1_1?crid=37PK7ONM1TY1Q&keywords=i+buried+hickok&qid=1686027582&s=books&sprefix=i+buried+hickok%2Cstripbooks%2C156&sr=1-1 My Life As An Indian by James W. Schultz – https://www.amazon.com/dp/0486296148?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=0486296148&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin My Sixty Years On The Plains – https://www.amazon.com/My-Sixty-Years-Plains-Trapping/dp/1695768930/ref=pd_bxgy_vft_none_img_sccl_2/131-5929166-2843024?pd_rd_w=aMzMc&content-id=amzn1.sym.26a5c67f-1a30-486b-bb90-b523ad38d5a0&pf_rd_p=26a5c67f-1a30-486b-bb90-b523ad38d5a0&pf_rd_r=2G4YK0C7TGNVQGY20DW5&pd_rd_wg=VSzZE&pd_rd_r=d6dd0333-1490-4b37-bdbd-2e7d55ba1e1e&pd_rd_i=1695768930&psc=1 Liver-Eating Johnson’s Hawken Rifle and Bowie Knife - https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/outdoors/2017/09/12/legend-liver-eating-johnson-keeps-getting-taller/657762001/ Dorman Nelson Website - http://johnlivereatingjohnston.com/ EHUNTR Podcast - https://hodwxv.podbean.com/ Chief Joseph & the Nez Perce War - https://www.wildwestextra.com/chief-joseph-the-nez-perce-war/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Liver-eaten Johnson was blood-kin to the grizzly that bit Jim Bridger's ass, and you are molesting my
0:06.1	podcast. The man known today as Crow Killer was many things. Fur trappers, scout, guide, hunter,
0:13.1	soldier, sailor, so-called Indian fighter, sometimes a good guy, sometimes a bad guy, possibly a
0:19.0	cannibal, and always larger than life.
0:21.9	Whole lot of tall tales surrounding this giant of a man whose life would inspire one of the greatest
0:27.2	movies of all time, Jeremiah Johnson.
0:30.3	So please join me today as we attempt to separate fact from fiction on this newest,
0:34.7	elf don't know how many legs a horse got.
0:36.8	Watch your top knot yep you watch
0:38.7	yorn episode of the wild west extravaganza
0:43.5	john livery and john livery and johnson was born in New Jersey in 1824. Maybe. Or maybe it was 1831. Either way, he first came west to the Rocky Mountains in 1843. Uh, wait, or was it 1862? Oh boy. Lots of information and misinformation to wade through on this episode. Lots of layers to peel before you can get to the real liver eating Johnson. By the early 1860s, the liver eater was in Montana. And for the next four decades of the man's life, we got a pretty good idea what he was up to. During those years, he prospected for gold, he served as a guide and a scout,
1:29.2	he peddled whiskey, fought in the Civil War, and did a whole lot of fur trapping and hunting and fighting.
1:34.7	It's Johnson's early life that's still pretty fuzzy. So please keep that in mind. Before we get to
1:39.6	all those adventures in Montana, I will attempt to share a couple of different versions of
1:43.9	John's younger years. And I know this episode's going to share a couple of different versions of John's younger
1:44.8	years. And I know this episode's going to hurt a few feelings. We all love our heroes and our
1:49.5	legends, but I do strive to get as close to the truth as possible on this podcast. That said,
1:55.4	let me just go ahead and state for the record that Jeremiah Johnson never existed in real life.
2:02.0	He's a made-up character for a movie.
2:04.1	I'll be it a great movie.
2:05.2	One of my favorites.
2:06.3	I just watched it for about the hundredth time a few days ago.
	...

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