Billy Johnson
Biography
Gramma Hobson was Billy Johnson’s grandmother. Played with Bob and helped him build an igloo in the garden lot between their houses. Remembered as especially good at the knife game played using a dirt marble circle. Received a brand new post-war Schwinn bicycle for his birthday, which the narrator contrasted with his own birthday gifts. Accompanied the narrator to Chicago with his unnamed mom and dad. One of two people the narrator tentatively suggests may have urged him to hit Sonny in the face. Received a Shetland pony named Gypsy, which was soon returned to its farm. Ruth and Tom subsequently arranged a trial older brother from the local orphanage as companionship for Billy; the unnamed boy was later returned to the orphanage.
Timeline
One winter
Bob and Billy build an igloo
Their igloo drew excitement and a photograph in the Moline Daily Dispatch.
Diana's ChapterWhen the narrator was about ten
Childhood visit to Chicago
The narrator traveled with Billy Johnson and his parents to visit Grandma and Grandpa Hobson. The trip included lunch at Marshall Field’s and buying a toy for Bob.
Bernie's ChapterWhen we were about eleven
Billy Johnson receives Gypsy
Neighborhood children gathered to admire Billy's Shetland pony. Ray leaped onto her back, provoking an angry reaction from Tom.
Bernie's ChapterShortly after Ray mounted Gypsy
Gypsy returns to the farm
Gypsy was returned because, as the passage quotes, 'You kids couldn’t act civilized around her.'
Bernie's ChapterAfter Gypsy's departure
A trial older brother arrives for Billy
Ruth and Tom obtained an unnamed trial older brother as companionship for Billy. He was later returned to the orphanage after spending his time pursuing neighborhood girls rather than being Billy's companion.
Bernie's Chapter
Stories mentioning Billy
- Visits and Stories with Gramma HobsonTrips to Geneseo Illinois brought visits with Gramma Hobson, Billy Johnson’s grandmother, whom Barbara remembers as tall and very charming. They loved hearing her stories about Diana’s time in Children’s Hospital in Chicago.
- Seven Children, Shared Adventures, and Sisterly MischiefDiana remembers Iris cutting hair, Bernie rescuing her from punishment and playing records, and Bob driving four younger sisters to school and building an igloo with Billy Johnson. Carol served as a second mother, led 4-H meetings, and accompanied Diana to the State Fair. Dee was a card-playing companion and peacekeeper. Diana and Barb shared sleeping space, television suppers, prank calls, forbidden games, and adventures with Carol’s car. Family outings included the drive-in, ice cream, carnival rides, and drag races.
- First Jackknives and Fierce Games in the DirtAt about seven or eight, the narrator and Bob each received a small bone-handled pocketknife from Daddy and immediately learned Mumblety-peg. They also played a competitive knife-throwing game in their dirt marble circle, claiming territory according to where their blades landed. Billy Johnson excelled at this game. The girls protested and reported them to Mom, especially when the players showed off by rapidly jabbing knives between their fingers.
- Small Gifts, Family Pride, and Big DreamsA modest tenth-birthday gift made Bernard feel poor, especially beside Billy Johnson's new bicycle. His parents encouraged hard work and ambition, while Mom insisted the children should be proud of themselves and dreamed of travel. Inclusion in Jenny Swanson's luncheon for poor children wounded his pride. In high school he hid his modest home from wealthy friends, a choice he later regretted.
- A Chicago Visit and a Lasting Lesson in ThanksBernard visited Grandma and Grandpa Hobson in Chicago with Billy Johnson and Billy’s parents. They ate lunch at Marshall Field’s, ordering from a huge giraffe-shaped children’s menu, and Bernard bought Bob a toy roller coaster. After they returned home, Tom Johnson scolded Bernard for not thanking others for their kindness. Bernard kept the embarrassing incident from his parents and never liked Tom afterward, but never forgot to thank anyone again.
- A Lost Friendship and a Lifelong LessonBernard remembers Sonny Joiner as a giggling childhood friend living with his working mother. Although Bernard doubted accusations that Sonny watched girls bathing, he chased and punched Sonny after another accusation one late-fall evening. Sonny cried without resisting, and Bernard immediately stopped in remorse. A few days later, Sonny’s mother told Bernard that Sonny had undergone surgery that very day and had fresh stitches. Bernard says the lost friendship and her warning haunted him, and he never struck anyone again.
- Billy's Wonderful Pony and One Wild MountBilly Johnson acquired Gypsy, an old brown-and-white Shetland pony that was blind in one eye, missing patches of fur, swaybacked, and fat. The children nevertheless admired her as a luxury. While Tom Johnson watched, Billy rode around the peony bushes and then invited everyone to pet her. Ray Rohrer leaped onto her back, alarming the pony and angering Tom. Gypsy was soon returned to her farm because the children could not act civilized around her.
- A Trial Brother for BillyRuth and Tom arranged for an older boy from the local orphanage to be Billy's trial brother, hoping companionship would address what they regarded as a discipline problem. The narrator says the Guilds considered their rules absurdly strict. The boy made realistic crepe paper roses but was more interested in neighborhood girls than in staying home with Billy. He was eventually returned to the orphanage, a parallel the narrator draws to Gypsy's departure.
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