Johnny Ramensky, also known as John Ramsay and Gentle Johnny (April 6, 1905 – November 4, 1972) was a Scottish career criminal who used his safe-cracking abilities as a commando during World War II. A popular song about him, The Ballad Of Johnny Ramensky, was written by Labour MP Norman Buchan and recorded by singer Enoch Kent, Buchan's brother-in-law. Though a career criminal, Ramensky received the nickname "Gentle Johnny" due to the fact he never used violence when being apprehended by the law. [1]

Ramensky was born Jonas Ramanauckas, the son of Lithuanian immigrant parents, at Glenboig, a mining village in North Lanarkshire, near Coatbridge. He initially worked down the coal mines, as his father had, and it was there he became familiar with the uses of dynamite. During the depression of the 1920s following the first world war Ramensky's family were forced to move to the slums of the Gorbals, in the south side of Glasgow.