in  at the age of  johnson abandoned politics and journalism and enrolled in the harvard graduate school of design where he studied with marcel breuer and walter gropius in  johnson designed and actually built his first building a house still existing at  ash street in cambridge massachusetts the house strongly influenced by mies van der rohe has a wall around the lot which merges with the structure after the united states entered world war ii in december  johnson enlisted in the army he was investigated by the fbi for his contacts with the german government and his support for coughlin who opposed american intervention in the war but he was cleared for service and entered the army he spent his army service during the war in the united states