← the founders library

Kelly: More Than My Share of It All

Clarence L. Johnson with Maggie Smith

Book content checked: . What this means

Buy a copy
Amazon USAmazon UKAmazon DE

These are Amazon affiliate links. I may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Founder connections

  • Patrick CollisonRecommended
    His Labs page links Kelly Johnson’s own memoir within the recommended Skunk Works materials. No edition is established.
    Source

Summary

Clarence L. ‘Kelly’ Johnson looks back on his life and aircraft work in this autobiography, written with Maggie Smith. It follows his path into engineering and his years at Lockheed, including the P-38, Constellation, U-2 and SR-71.

The contents move from childhood and education through wartime production, the first Skunk Works and reconnaissance programs. Later chapters address national defense and future technology. The book presents the design leader’s own account of the people, aircraft and organization behind his career.

  • SourceKelly — Smithsonian Books · Product Description and Author Information
  • SourceKelly — 1985 Smithsonian Institution Press record · Title, author credits and Bibliographic information
  • SourceKelly — lawful 2012 Google Books preview · Contents: Poor But Not in Spirit; Becoming an Engineer; The Jet Age—and the First Skunk Works; Working with Spooks; Blackbirds; Defending Ourselves; Technology and Tomorrow

Why read it Our view

Study Kelly Johnson’s aircraft work and management of Lockheed’s Skunk Works. The P-38, Constellation, U-2 and SR-71 cases connect the design of technical products with the organization that builds them.

Written about

  • Kelly JohnsonAutobiography, written with Maggie Smith.
    Johnson's own account of his life, aircraft work and Skunk Works leadership; first published in 1985.
    Source