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Troy Donahue
Acting
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 …
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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.
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BODY OF WORK
Troy Donahue's Filmography
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No Poster
The Boys Behind the Desk
Legion
as Flemming
Merchants of Venus
as FBI Agent
Bimbo Movie Bash
as Dr. Ackerman (archive footage)
Showdown
as Police Captain
The Pamela Principle
as Troy
The Godfather Trilogy: 1901-1980
as Merle Johnson
Double Trouble
as Leonard
Deadly Diamonds
as Matt Plimpton
Shock 'Em Dead
as Record Exec
Nudity Required
as Jack
Sexpot
as Phillip
Omega Cop
as Slim
Cry-Baby
as Hatchet's Father
Click: The Calendar Girl Killer
as Alan
The Platinum Triangle
as Harold Farber
Hot Times at Montclair High
as Mr. Nichols
Dr. Alien
as Dr. Ackerman
Assault of the Party Nerds
as Sid Witherspoon
Terminal Force
as Slim
Sounds of Silence
as Larry Haughton
Blood Nasty
as Barry Hefna
American Rampage
as Police Psychiatrist
The Chilling
as Dr. Miller
Deadly Spygames
as Python
Hawkeye
as Mayor
Bad Blood
as Jack Barnes
Hard Rock Nightmare
as Uncle Gary
Deadly Prey
as Don Michaelson
Hollywood Cop
as Lt Maxwell
The Drifting Classroom
as Taggart
Cyclone
as Bob Jenkins
Fight to Win
as Rosenberg
Low Blow
as John Templeton
Grandview, U.S.A.
as Donny Vinton
Lover, Come Back to Me
Malibu
as Clint Redman
No Poster
Tin Man
as Lester
Outrage
as Daniel
The Legend of Frank Woods
as Sheriff John Baxom
No Poster
Bob Hope's World of Comedy
as (archive footage)
The Godfather Part II
as Merle Johnson
Seizure
as Mark Frost
South Seas
as Steve
Cockfighter
as Randall Mansfield
Sweet Savior
as Moon
The Phantom Gunslinger
as Bill
The Lonely Profession
as Julian Thatcher
Split Second to an Epitaph
as Father Dugan
Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon
as Gaylord Sullivan
Mondo Hollywood
Come Spy with Me
as Jill Parsons
My Blood Runs Cold
as Ben Gunther
A Distant Trumpet
as 2nd Lt. Matthew 'Matt' Hazard
Palm Springs Weekend
as Jim Munroe
Rome Adventure
as Don Porter
Susan Slade
as Hoyt Brecker
Parrish
as Parrish McLean
The Crowded Sky
as McVey
A Summer Place
as Johnny Hunter
Imitation of Life
as Frankie
The Perfect Furlough
as Sergeant Nickles
Monster on the Campus
as Jimmy Flanders
Voice in the Mirror
as Paul Cunningham
Wild Heritage
as Jesse Bascomb
This Happy Feeling
as Tony Manza
Live Fast, Die Young
as Artie Sanders / Artie Smith
Summer Love
as Sax Lewis
The Monolith Monsters
as Hank Jackson
The Tarnished Angels
as Frank Burnham
Man of a Thousand Faces
as Assistant Director (uncredited)
Man Afraid
as Reporter (uncredited)