Lamont Johnson | TV-movie director, 88

Lamont Johnson, 88, an Emmy-winning director who was honored for his work on the TV programs

Gore Vidal's Lincoln

and

Wallenberg: A Hero's Story

during a wide-ranging career in television, film, and theater, died of congestive heart failure at his Monterey, Calif., home Sunday, his son, Chris, said.

He was known for his sensitive treatment of controversial subjects in made-for-TV movies. He dealt with interracial romance in My Sweet Charlie (1970), homosexuality in That Certain Summer (1972), blacklisting in Fear on Trial (1975), and the civil rights movement in Crisis at Central High (1981).

He also made his mark with stories about World War II, including The Execution of Private Slovik, a 1974 TV movie starring Martin Sheen as an American soldier executed for desertion.

Wallenberg, a 1985 miniseries starring Richard Chamberlain, told the dramatic story of Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, who helped save the lives of an estimated 100,000 Hungarian Jews during the Holocaust and disappeared after the Soviet army took control after the fall of Nazi Germany.

Mr. Johnson got his start in the business as an actor. Born Sept. 30, 1922, in Stockton, Calif., he grew up in Pasadena, Calif., and attended Pasadena City College, where he performed in radio dramas.

- Los Angeles Times