
Troy Donahue
Born January 27, 1936 · New York City, New York, U.S.
Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr., January 27, 1936 – September 2, 2001) was an American film and television actor and singer. He was a popular sex symbol in the 1950s and 1960s. His father was Merle Johnson, the manager of the motion-picture department of General Motors. His mother, Edith Johnson, was a retired stage actress. Donahue attended a New York military academy, where he met Francis Ford Coppola. When Donahue was 18, he moved to New York and got a job as a messenger in a film company founded by his father. He was fired, he says, because he was too young to join the union. He attended Columbia University and studied journalism. He trained briefly with Ezra Stone, and then moved to Hollywood. The big break of Donahue's career came when he was cast opposite Sandra Dee in A Summer Place, made by Warner Bros. in 1959. The director was Delmer Daves. Warner signed him to a long-term contract. They put him to work guest-starring in episodes of their Western TV series, such as Colt .45 (1959), Maverick (1959), Sugarfoot (1959), The Alaskans (1960), and Lawman (1960). In 1968, Donahue signed a long-term contract with Universal Studios for films and TV. This lasted a year and saw him get four roles: guest shots on Ironside (1968), The Name of the Game (1968), and The Virginian (1969), and an appearance in the TV movie The Lonely Profession (1969). Donahue declared bankruptcy in 1968 and eventually lost his home. In 1969, Donahue moved from Los Angeles to New York City. By this time, Donahue's drug addiction and alcoholism had ruined him financially. In May 1982, he joined Alcoholics Anonymous, which he credited for helping him achieve and maintain sobriety. Donahue continued to act in films throughout the 1980s and into the late 1990s. Donahue's final film role was in the 2000 comedy film The Boys Behind the Desk, directed by Sally Kirkland. On August 30, 2001, Donahue suffered a heart attack and was admitted to Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica. He died three days later, on September 2, at the age of 65.
Notable Appearances
Movies

The Godfather Part II

Cry-Baby

A Summer Place

Imitation of Life

Grandview, U.S.A.

The Godfather: The Complete Epic 1901–1959

The Godfather Trilogy: 1901-1980

Merchants of Venus

Bimbo Movie Bash

Double Trouble

The Monolith Monsters

South Seas

The Chilling

Man of a Thousand Faces

The Tarnished Angels

Seizure

A Distant Trumpet

Live Fast, Die Young

Deadly Spygames

Monster on the Campus

The Perfect Furlough

Legion

Parrish

This Happy Feeling
TV Shows

Ironside

The Bob Hope Show

Maverick

Rawhide

Surfside 6

The Ed Sullivan Show

Laverne & Shirley

The Name of the Game

Hawaiian Eye

Matt Houston

Sugarfoot

77 Sunset Strip

Monsters

Vega$

Bronco

The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries

The Patty Duke Show

CHiPs

Ellery Queen

Bourbon Street Beat

Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television

The Alaskans

The Eddie Capra Mysteries

Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story
More Movies

Assault of the Party Nerds

Shock 'Em Dead

Outrage

The Pamela Principle

Terminal Force

Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon

Cyclone

Hard Rock Nightmare

Palm Springs Weekend

Cockfighter

Susan Slade

Deadly Prey

The Drifting Classroom

Come Spy with Me

Low Blow

Rome Adventure

The Phantom Gunslinger

Click: The Calendar Girl Killer

Summer Love

The Crowded Sky

Mondo Hollywood

Man Afraid

Split Second to an Epitaph

Hot Times at Montclair High

Dr. Alien

American Rampage

Wild Heritage

Sounds of Silence

Malibu

My Blood Runs Cold

Hollywood Cop

The Lonely Profession

Fight to Win

Nudity Required

Voice in the Mirror

Omega Cop

Showdown

The Legend of Frank Woods

The Platinum Triangle

Sweet Savior

Sexpot

Lover, Come Back to Me

Bad Blood

Blood Nasty

Hawkeye




