In 1997, Troy Donahue and Sandra Dee reunited in New York City for a revival screening of their soapy 1959 romance A Summer Place. "I was mesmerized by my own image up there. I kind of said, 'Man, that's what they were talking about.' Because you forget," Troy said. "Being that young and beautiful, both of us - that's pretty heady stuff."
The popular movie made Troy a star, but his time on the A-list didn't last long. Changing movie tastes, Troy's unwillingness to play handsome-yet-vapid characters, and a secret drinking problem would derail his career before it really started. But that wasn't the end of Troy's story. In middle age, he turned his life around and achieved the internal peace that would allow him to look back on his early years with pride.
Merle Johnson Jr., who would be christened Troy Donahue by the same agent who named Rock Hudson, came from a privileged background in New York. "Central Park was his playground," says Michael Gregg Michaud, author of Inventing Troy Donahue: The Making of a Movie Star.
His idyllic childhood ended when Troy's father became ill with ALS and died in 1947. "He absolutely adored his father. His death was something that he never, ever recovered from," says Michaud. Troy confessed that he started sneaking liquor around this time. "I started drinking when I was studying for midterms in the seventh grade. It was a functional thing," said Troy.
This story is from the October 09, 2023 edition of Closer US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 09, 2023 edition of Closer US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
I Owe Everything TO GOD
THE JEFFERSONS AND 227 ACTRESS IS GOING STRONG AT 92 YEARS YOUNG
HER RULES to Live By
THE SiLVERSSCREEN LEGEND BELIEVED IN WORKING HARD AND LIVING LARGE
Murder, She Wrote SECRETS FROM THE SET
FRIENDS AND CO-STARS SHARE BEHIND-THE-SCENES STORIES FROM THE BELOVED SERIES
We're All CONNECTED
The Touched by an Angel alum shares her thoughts on marriage, aging, faith and her new TV series, The Baxters
Amazing UNTOLD STORY
FRIENDS AND FAMILY SHARE MEMORIES OF THE ACTOR AND DANCER NEARLY 15 YEARS AFTER HIS UNTIMELY PASSING
MOTHER'S DAY Memories
OUR FAVORITE TELEVISION MOMS SHARE THEIR FAMILY CELEBRATIONS AND THOUGHTS ON MOTHERHOOD
5 WAYS TO STOP SUGAR CRAVINGS
FOLLOW THESE SIMPLE STEPS TO KEEP TEMPTATION UNDER WRAPS
Memories of My Grandfather, LARRY FINE
THE THREE STOOGES COMEDIAN WAS A COMMITTED FAMILY MAN WHO DOTED ON HIS LOVED ONES
CHRISTOPHER ATKINS - I'm Still a DREAMER
The Dallas and Blue Lagoon star shares his life today with Closer
KATE & KING CHARLES - STAYING STRONG& Carrying On
BATTLING CANCER AT THE SAME TIME HAS DEEPENED THE AFFECTION AND RESPECT BETWEEN THEM