Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr. on January 27, 1936 in New York City ) was an American actor who, while studying journalism in Columbia University, acted in summer stock before moving to Los Angeles. There, he was introduced to notorious talent agent, Henry Willson, who helped him acquire his first big break a role in 1959 Warner Bros' film A Summer Place. Not only did he become a celebrity overnight, especially among teenage audiences, he also landed a contract with the studio, where he also released a handful of singles for Warner Bros. Records. His most memorable role, however, was the title role in the drama Parrish (1961), an independent young adult navigating through his family's business dealings. As he battled drug and alcohol addiction and legal issues, his career declined and he declared bankruptcy. He later became sober and continued to act in smaller roles in both film and television. The 2000 independent film The Boys Behind the Desk was his final movie.
On September 2, 2001, he died at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California after suffering two heart attacks in two days. His long career served as one of the inspirations for the name and certain character aspects of Troy McClure on The Simpsons.
A Summer Place (1959) as Johnny Hunter
Surfside 6 (1960-1962) as Sandy Winfield II
Parrish (1961) as Parrish McLean
Susan Slade (1961) as Hoyt Brecker
Rome Adventure (1962) as Don Porter
Hawaiian Eye (1962-1963) as Philip Barton
Palm Springs Weekend (1963) as Jim Munroe
A Distant Trumpet (1964) as 2nd Lt. Matthew 'Matt' Hazard
My Blood Runs Cold (1965) as Ben Gunther
The Godfather: Part II (1974) as Merle Johnson