
Troy Donahue
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1936-01-27
Day of Death
2001-09-02 (65 years old)
Place of Birth
New York City, New York, U.S.
Troy Donahue
Biography
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.
Acting
(2000)
(1998)
Merchants of Venus
as FBI Agent
(1998)
Legion
as Flemming
(1997)
Bimbo Movie Bash
as Dr. Ackerman (archive footage)
(1993)
Showdown
as Police Captain
(1992)
Double Trouble
as Leonard
(1992)
The Pamela Principle
as Troy
(1991)
Shock 'Em Dead
as Record Exec
(1991)
Deadly Diamonds
as Matt Plimpton
(1990)
Cry-Baby
as Hatchet's Father
(1990)
Omega Cop
as Slim
(1990)
Nudity Required
as Jack
(1990)
Sexpot
as Phillip
(1990)
(1989)
Terminal Force
as Slim
(1989)
Dr. Alien
as Dr. Ackerman
(1989)
Assault of the Party Nerds
as Sid Witherspoon
(1989)
Hot Times at Montclair High
as Mr. Nichols
(1989)
Sounds of Silence
as Larry Haughton
(1989)
Blood Nasty
as Barry Hefna
(1989)
American Rampage
as Police Psychiatrist
(1989)
The Chilling
as Dr. Miller
(1989)
The Platinum Triangle
as Harold Farber
(1989)
Deadly Spygames
as Python
(1988)
Bad Blood
as Jack Barnes
(1988)
Hawkeye
as Mayor
(1988)
Hard Rock Nightmare
as Uncle Gary
(1987)
Deadly Prey
as Don Michaelson
(1987)
Fight to Win
as Rosenberg
(1987)
Cyclone
as Bob Jenkins
(1987)
The Drifting Classroom
as Taggart
(1987)
Hollywood Cop
as Lt Maxwell
(1986)
Low Blow
as John Templeton
(1984)
Grandview, U.S.A.
as Donny Vinton
(1984)
Katy Caterpillar
as Gilbert (voice, English version)
(1983)
Tin Man
as Lester
(1983)
Malibu
as Clint Redman
(1983)
(1981)
The Godfather 1901–1959: The Complete Epic
as Merle Johnson
(1977)
The Legend of Frank Woods
as Sheriff John Baxom
(1977)
Outrage
as Daniel
(1974)
The Godfather Part II
as Merle Johnson
(1974)
Cockfighter
as Randall Mansfield
(1974)
Seizure
as Mark Frost
(1974)
South Seas
as Steve
(1971)
Sweet Savior
as Moon
(1970)
The Phantom Gunslinger
as Bill
(1969)
The Lonely Profession
as Julian Thatcher
(1968)
Split Second to an Epitaph
as Father Dugan
(1967)
Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon
as Gaylord Sullivan
(1967)
Come Spy with Me
as Jill Parsons
(1965)
My Blood Runs Cold
as Ben Gunther
(1964)
A Distant Trumpet
as 2nd Lt. Matthew 'Matt' Hazard
(1963)
Palm Springs Weekend
as Jim Munroe
(1962)
Rome Adventure
as Don Porter
(1961)
Susan Slade
as Hoyt Brecker
(1961)
Parrish
as Parrish McLean
(1960)
The Crowded Sky
as McVey
(1959)
Imitation of Life
as Frankie
(1959)
A Summer Place
as Johnny Hunter
(1958)
Monster on the Campus
as Jimmy Flanders
(1958)
Live Fast, Die Young
as Artie Sanders / Artie Smith
(1958)
Wild Heritage
as Jesse Bascomb
(1958)
The Perfect Furlough
as Sgt. Nickles
(1958)
This Happy Feeling
as Tony Manza
(1958)
Summer Love
as Sax Lewis
(1958)
Voice in the Mirror
as Paul Cunningham
(1957)
Man of a Thousand Faces
as Assistant Director (uncredited)
(1957)
The Tarnished Angels
as Frank Burnham
(1957)
The Monolith Monsters
as Hank Jackson
(1957)
Man Afraid
as Reporter (uncredited)