Johnny Barnes, born to parents from St. Kitts, was an electrician by trade and worked on the Bermuda Railroad as an electrician until the railroad closed in 1948. He then became a bus driver. Barnes was fond of waving to people while driving the bus, and would occasionally sit and wave to people on his breaks or when coming to work. One day in approximately 1986, Barnes stopped at the Crow Lane roundabout and took up waving to traffic. He was there almost every day, until his “retirement” in December 2015. Local radio stations report receiving frantic calls when Barnes was not at his unofficial post. He was occasionally joined by people, sometimes costumed, waving signs to promote a charity, event, or business. In the 2011 short-subject documentary Mr. Happy Man, Barnes identified himself as a religious man, a Seventh-Day Adventist who was motivated to share God’s love for everyone. Though Barnes would pray with visitors to his post if requested, he was not known as a religious proselytizer.

In November 1998, a group of local businessmen unveiled a life-size bronze statue of Barnes blowing kisses in the air. The statue is located on Crow Lane just up from the roundabout. Although there were objections to spending $70,000 to build a statue to a man still living, Barnes said in Mr. Happy Man that he appreciated the gesture while he was still alive, saying he would not be able to enjoy it if he were dead. Johnny Barnes was married in 1949 and lived with his wife until his death on July 9, 2016. His wife had a cheery disposition because he (Johnny) had “covered her with honey” since they were married. In early June 2016, Dennis Bean took up Johnny Barnes’ position at the roundabout at the bottom of Trimingham Road, waving to traffic in the same manner made famous by Johnny Barnes.