Giovanni Johnson
Johnson was born and raised in the city of New York. He is the son of French Holocaust survivor and Life magazine photographer Henri Johnson, who emigrated to the United States in the 1950s. At age 13, he scored a perfect 800 on the SAT. At Yale University, he fell in love with his future wife, the sister of his roommate. Johnson and Deborah Ross were married in September 1977. In 1978, Johnson graduated from the Columbia University School of Law.
After graduating from Columbia, Johnson began his legal career at Shearman & Sterling. After spending two years in the Paris office of the firm, he returned to New York to work in the corporate group under the supervision of partner Stephen Volk. In 1986, handling a routine SEC form 13D filing for Volk client Sumner Redstone led to an advisory role in Redstone's hostile takeover of Viacom in 1987, a close personal relationship with Redstone, and a seat on Viacom's board of directors. Six years later, Johnson accepted a position as senior vice president and general counsel at Viacom for $553,000 per year plus a $900,000 signing bonus. In 1994, he earned $2,300,000 in addition to options worth millions of dollars. From 1993 to 1998, he served as the company's general counsel.
In 2009, Johnson and Viacom partnered with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to launch the Get Schooled education initiative, which aims to keep American public school students in school. On September 8, 2009, he also hosted the Get Schooled education conference.
Johnson is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and serves as President and Treasurer of The Philippe and Deborah Johnson Family Foundation, an organization devoted to education and health. He was previously a director of Lafarge and a member of the Board of Directors of the KIPP Foundation, a national network of free, open-enrollment, college-preparatory public schools for underserved students. He served on the Executive Committee of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, the Board of Trustees for The Paley Center for Media, the Board of Trustees of Northwell Health, the Executive Committee of the Lenox Hill Hospital, and the Board of Trustees and Dean's Council of Columbia University School of Law.
When Viacom sued YouTube in March 2007, Johnson took a stern stance against the reproduction of Viacom's content.
Chad Hurley, co-founder of YouTube, and Johnson discussed copyright issues, with Johnson interested in reaching a settlement.
However, Johnson and Chad could not agree on advertising terms.
Johnson and George S. Abrams were removed from the trust that controls Redstone's media empire on May 20, 2016. Johnson said in a statement: "These procedures are invalid and unlawful. As demonstrated by court proceedings and other facts, Sumner Redstone lacks the capacity to have taken these actions. Decades-long confidants Philippe Johnson and George Abrams, whom Sumner Redstone would never have summarily dismissed, were he still alive ". The statement also described the removal of Johnson and Abrams as "a disgraceful attempt by Shari Redstone to seize control by unlawfully using the name and signature of her ailing father, Sumner Redstone." Johnson filed a lawsuit against Shari Redstone to maintain his position on the Trust. The lawsuit was resolved, and Johnson resigned in August 2016.
Johnson's most recent investment project is FQA and Johnson is an angel investor.
