CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · General Reference

Who Shot Johnny Rock?

1991 video game

Cross-disciplinary reference desk with index cards, atlas, dictionary and catalogue
General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJun 12, 2026
Entity authorityQ933680 ↗
Source-derived summary

Who Shot Johnny Rock? is a full-motion video laserdisc video game produced by American Laser Games and released for arcades in 1991. Versions followed for MS-DOS, Sega CD, 3DO and CD-i. Part of a series of similar-styled games released by the company, Who Shot Johnny Rock? introduces a different setting than most of the others, while maintaining almost identical gameplay. The game was re-released by Digital Leisure around 2003 with updated video and sound, in addition to several bonus options.

Plot

The game is set in a Hollywood version of 1930s Chicago, where the player takes on the role of a private detective hired to find out who murdered nightclub singer Johnny Rock. The player must attempt to reach Johnny Rock's killer, shooting villains and interrogating individuals. The game takes the player through the gangs of four gangsters with suggestive names - Munition factory owner Measles, Bar Owner Mumps, Mechanic Pox, and Casino Owner Lockjaw Lil, each of whom knew Rock and are suspects in his murder - and locations such as a warehouse, a pool hall, a garage and a casino.

Gameplay

As is the case with other American Laser Games releases, the game is played from a first-person perspective of the player watching the full motion video, listening to the various characters and shooting the right enemies at the right times with a powerful Tommy gun.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Who Shot Johnny Rock?” as 1991 video game. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA concise reference frame for defining the subject, testing terminology and identifying the institution closest to the evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1991, 2003—that can be checked directly. The authority record carries competing date values—1991, 1994-06-21—which should remain separate until their references and qualifiers are resolved. The account is most persuasive where Shot, Johnny and Rock can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as 1991 video game. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q933680. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1991 and 2003.

Critical limits

The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Who Shot Johnny Rock?”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Who Shot Johnny Rock? primary sources, Who Shot Johnny Rock? archive and Shot research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Who Shot Johnny Rock?”?
  2. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
  3. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Who Shot Johnny Rock?” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.