They all went on a sail-- it was called a "houseboat honeymoon." [2], "I can remember always being exposed to Broadway and theater people", he added in 1984. No evidence the film was completed or released. Donahue would go on to stay busy as an actress, appearing in hit shows, such as “Star Trek” and “The Odd Couple,” just to name a few. I made one film in Europe playing a Victorian astronaut, but no one ever saw it. "I spent a lot of time judging beauty contests and opening banks", Donahue said of this period. I was crafty. Survived by his daughter Janine, her husband and three grandchildren, as well as a son, Sean (born 1970). [27], There was talk of a TV movie, Return to a Summer Place, but it was never made. |  Suffered a heart attack on August 30, 2001. Please print that. Relevance. They preferred something more stable—doctor, lawyer, Indian chief, anything. Donahue signed with Universal Studios in October 1956. Donahue had a son, Sean, by a woman with whom he had a brief relationship in 1969. On a personal note, he was married four times and fathered a child. How come you have grown a moustache? sandra dee. However, none of his recordings entered the Billboard Hot 100 list. Then by the time I could get work again, it was too late because my type was already out of fashion. 1/23/05: Ranked #10 in TV Guide's list of "TV's 25 Greatest Teen Idols". Lv 6. [29] Donahue's final film role was in the 2000 comedy film The Boys Behind the Desk, directed by Sally Kirkland. [3], In 1958, Donahue was jailed for 15 days for speeding. photo. [38] In 1961, his one-time fiancée Lili Kardell sued him for damages, claiming he had hit her without provocation. He only found out about the son in the early 1980s when he ran into the woman again. Born in New York City, Donahue was the son of a retired stage actress and the manager of the motion-picture department of General Motors. Troy co-starred with some amazing women during his lifetime, eight of whom are profiled here. I looked and across the room I saw a 13-year-old spitting image of what I looked like when I was young. Ed Stephan , Other Works Answer Save. He guest starred in top-rating 1950s Westerns including Wagon Train, Rawhide and Maverick, plus a wide range of comedies, mysteries, dramas and game shows in the decades to follow.. LOS ANGELES (AP) – Actor Troy Donahue, a blond, blue-eyed heartthrob of the 1950s and '60s who starred in teen romances like "A Summer Place" and "Parrish," died Sunday. Ever since I can remember, I've studied and read plays. His death was confirmed by his spouse, Allan Glaser, who said the cause was cardiac arrest after a blood clot moved from Hunter’s leg to his lung. When Donahue was 18, he moved to New York and got a job as a messenger in a film company founded by his father (who had died when he was 14). One summer, he was homeless and lived in Central Park. He was married to Margaret Cooney in 1958. Look over there, Troy." A Summer Place was a hit and made Donahue a name, especially among teenaged audiences. [5][29] After his father's death, at age 14 Troy was sent to military school. Donahue became a popular male sex symbol of the 1950s and 1960s. This was followed by parts in This Happy Feeling, Wild Heritage, Voice in the Mirror, The Perfect Furlough, and Monster on the Campus (billed fifth). His contract with Warner Bros. ended shortly thereafter—although it ran until early 1968, Donahue asked to be released from it in January 1966. Well, don't tell his family, but less than ten years later he'd be headlining this ultra-scummy Charles Manson rip-off, with the once clean-cut Troy essaying the title role of a crazed Jesus Freak leader named Moon. His character was named Merle Johnson, a nod to Donahue's real name. Donahue was married four times and had one child, Sean. In 1960, he was named by Film Daily as one of the five "finds" of the year. Donahue died three days after suffering a heart attack at the age of 65. He trained briefly with Ezra Stone, and then moved to Hollywood. But the marriage was not … In 1974, Francis Ford Coppola cast him in a small part in The Godfather Part II as the fiancé of Connie Corleone. Later, the young Elinor got minor roles in "Winter Wonderland," "Three Daring Daughters," and "Love Is Better Than Ever." [18] Donahue later claimed: Jack Warner called every studio I used to work for and used his muscle to keep me busted. Now I'm free to call my own shots. After suffering a heart attack on August 30, 2001, he underwent successful angioplasty surgery upon his arrival at the hospital, but then suffered a second heart attack the following day and was given a heart bypass operation. What ever happened to Troy Donahue the Actor? Received his movie name of "Troy Donahue" from the same person who invented the screen names of. I was crafty. Donahue stated in a 1959 interview: They made a fourth film, Rome Adventure (1962), a romance starring Suzanne Pleshette. I already had my head turned; turning back was easy. Former co-star and long-time friend Connie Stevens visited Donahue while he was in the hospital recovering from a … Pleshette's 1964 marriage to her Rome Adventure and A Distant Trumpet co-star Troy Donahue ended in divorce after just eight months. Desmond Donahue's birth name is Dehz Donahue. I had a house, seven black Cadillac convertibles, and two wrecked marriages. He appeared in the feature film Grandview USA which was shot in Pontiac, Illinois. actress. [3] In his final years, Donahue was in a long-term relationship with mezzo-soprano Zheng Cao, to whom he was engaged and with whom he lived in Santa Monica, California. They had been married for 8.1 months. Knee injury at a track meet of Helen of Troy, in a 1959 interview: Acting all! 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