Gary Johnson
Gary Johnson is vice president of Ace Clearwater Enterprises of Torrance, California. His company makes high-tech metal components for advanced aircraft like the Joint Strike Fighter.
"I was born in a small farming town in Minnesota, and was always fascinated by photography and the visual arts. I left college to be a civilian photographer in the U.S. Air Force. I worked for two years at Davis Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. Then I moved into radio, corporate video, commercials and media. I was a reporter and producer. I got a job at KEZY AM/FM radio in Anaheim, California as an on-air correspondent and public affairs director. I did that for three years.
In 1984 the government of Indonesia asked me to design and produce the Indonesian Worlds Fair exhibits in Tsukuba, Japan, and Canada. I lived in Indonesia and led a team of inexperienced but highly talented Indonesian artists and craftsmen, working together to promote the tourism industry in the mid 80s. They were just building a tourism industry there.
I came back and took a job as a Creative Director for a small boutique graphic design company, working primarily on annual reports and promotional media. From there I went to work as a Creative Director/Producer for Mattel Toys Hot Wheels division. That was fun. I traveled a lot and did media promotion for Mattel. It was a Hollywood-type job – I would start work at around noon and finish at one o’clock in the morning. I had to do a lot of socializing – that’s Hollywood.
By this time I had met Kellie and we were married. We weren’t seeing each other much because of our schedules. So she suggested that I come over to ACE. I’m good with customers, and Kellie likes to take care of the internal side of the business, the operations. We work really well in this partnership. We’re good together.
I'm not an engineer but I understand design and I work well with them. I love design and visual things. We make extremely hi-end parts for the most advanced aircraft in the world. There is a beauty in the design – even in the materials.
I also use the math and science training that I had in school. Math and science are the basics. You need those skills. Then you can be trained, you can do anything.
I also like serving our clients, keeping them happy. Last year I booked over $12 million dollars in new business. My father-in-law no longer consideres me a gold digger."
