Johnny Burns

"You can help your delicate sensibilities by turning the fuck away." This article contains spoilers for all three seasons of Deadwood and Deadwood: The Movie. Discretion is advised.

Johnny Burns
Biographical information
Eye color	Blue
Hair color	Brown
Height	6'1"
Nationality	American
Professional information
Occupation	Right-hand-man to Al Swearengen Barman at Gem Saloon
Residence	Deadwood, South Dakota
Allegiance	Al Swearengen † Jan † Dan Dority Silas Adams
Affiliation	Gem Saloon
Last known status	Alive
Behind the scenes
Actor	Sean Bridgers
First appearance	"Deadwood"
Last appearance	Deadwood: The Movie
Episode appearances	This character is a regular. See Episodes
Season appearances	S1 - S2 - S3
Movie appearance	Deadwood: The Movie

"If there's anyone who can fuck up the gathering of a bell, it's Johnny."

―Dan Dority

Johnny Burns is a barman at the Gem Saloon, who served as one of owner Al Swearengen's most trusted enforcers and closest friends until Swearengen's death in 1899. Alongside Dan Dority and later Silas Adams, Johnny worked as an enforcer and errand boy for Al, fiercely loyal to his boss. Unlike the dangerous and violent Dan, Johnny is a more kind-hearted, simple-minded man, of sometimes questionable intelligence. Burns also spent much of his time working as a regular bartender and caretaker at the saloon, during which he was in a relationship with Gem whore Jan who he was teaching to read using articles of the Deadwood Pioneer. Dority, Burns and Adams were vital in protecting Swearengen and Sheriff Seth Bullock during the fight against George Hearst, the power-hungry mining executive who threatened to bring laws to Deadwood to get his hands on its gold. Burns' loyalty was put to the test when, after Al's favorite whore Trixie made a botched attempt on Hearst's life and Hearst in turn ordered her killed, Al decided to show him Jan's corpse instead. Johnny protested and even tried to stop Al from killing her, but he was restrained by Dan and, even after Jan was killed and the ruse payed off, remained loyal to Swearengen to the end. His loyalty was again proven when he was later shot by one of Hearst's agents while defending Al, surviving the encounter. On the night Hearst was defeated and arrested, Johnny was in the Gem bar with Dan when they heard Al singing in his final moments upstairs.

Behind the scenes

Johnny Burns was played by Sean Bridgers in all three seasons of Deadwood, appearing in every episode. Bridgers reprised his role in Deadwood: The Movie.

Appearances

• Deadwood
  • Season 1
    • "Deadwood" (First appearance)
    • "Deep Water"
    • "Reconnoitering the Rim"
    • "Here Was a Man"
    • "The Trial of Jack McCall"
    • "Plague"
    • "Bullock Returns to the Camp"
    • "Suffer the Little Children"
    • "No Other Sons or Daughters"
    • "Mister Wu"
    • "Jewel's Boot Is Made for Walking"
    • "Sold Under Sin"
  • Season 2
    • "A Lie Agreed Upon: Part I"
    • "A Lie Agreed Upon: Part II"
    • "New Money"
    • "Requiem for a Gleet"
    • "Complications"
    • "Something Very Expensive"
    • "E.B. Was Left Out"
    • "Childish Things"
    • "Amalgamation and Capital"
    • "Advances, None Miraculous"
    • "The Whores Can Come"
    • "Boy-the-Earth-Talks-To"
  • Season 3
    • "Tell Your God to Ready for Blood"
    • "I Am Not the Fine Man You Take Me For"
    • "True Colors"
    • "Full Faith and Credit"
    • "A Two-Headed Beast"
    • "A Rich Find"
    • "Unauthorized Cinnamon"
    • "Leviathan Smiles"
    • "Amateur Night"
    • "A Constant Throb"
    • "The Catbird Seat"
    • "Tell Him Something Pretty"
• Deadwood: The Movie