William Stanford Davis, who plays custodian Mr. Johnson on Abbott Elementary, is writing a memoir. The book is called Don’t Mess With the Fat Kid, and BenBella Books will publish it in hardcover, e-book and audiobook.
The book will cover a lot of ground. Davis plans to write about his life and career, including addiction and years of rejection, and about landing his breakout role on the ABC comedy at age 70.
A Life In Three Parts
The book is split into three sections. The first goes back to Davis’ childhood in the 1960s in the Ville, a predominantly Black neighborhood in St. Louis. The second follows him as a young man fresh off the bus in Jefferson City, Missouri, in the early 1970s, a town the book’s official description calls “country-ass.”
The final section tracks Davis well into his forties as he went from addict to working actor, through the years of perseverance and rejection that eventually led him to Mr. Johnson.
“I’ve wanted to write this memoir for a long time, to honor the road I’ve taken to get here and to connect with folks who are still on their way,” Davis said in a statement to Variety. “People know me as Mr. Johnson from ‘Abbott Elementary,’ and while that’s the biggest role of my career so far, it’s not the whole story. I’m excited to finally share the full story: the struggles, the setbacks, the second chances and the perseverance it took to keep going and get to where I am today. It took me a long time to get here, and the beautiful thing is, I’m just getting started.”
From Lincoln Heights To Abbott
Davis has played Mr. Johnson since the first season of Abbott, Quinta Brunson’s comedy about the staff of a Philadelphia public school. Before Abbott, Davis built a long list of credits, including HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, Showtime’s Ray Donovan, Apple TV’s Swagger, the Wanda Sykes film Undercard and ABC’s Lincoln Heights.
The memoir news lands during a busy stretch for the show. Abbott Elementary‘s sixth season premiered on ABC on October 7, and the cast recently filmed its 100th episode at Disneyland, set to air in December as the Season 6 fall finale.
Glen Yeffeth, editor and CEO of BenBella, an independent publisher based in Dallas, acquired the book from Miles Blim at Aevitas Creative Management, in association with Innovative Artists. BenBella has not announced a release date.
Abbott Elementary airs on ABC and streams on Hulu.
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