Douglas Osborne McClure

Douglas Osborne McClure (May 11, 1935 – February 5, 1995)

His career in film and television extended from the 1950s to the 1990s. He is best known for his role as the cowboy Trampas during the entire run from 1962 to 1971 of the NBC Western series, The Virginian, loosely based on the Owen Wister novel. McClure's acting career included such films as The Enemy Below, The Unforgiven and Because They're Young, before he landed the role of Trampas on The Virginian – a role that would make him famous. After The Virginian ended in 1971, McClure was slated to co-star with Bette Davis on a series about a parolee assisting a judge, played by Davis, by doing detective work. The pilot, produced and written by the prolific team of Richard Levinson and William Link, failed to generate interest in the series and was released as a telemovie under the title The Judge and Jake Wyler. He was cast in the lead in three World War II adventures, The Longest Hundred Miles, The Birdmen, and State Of Division or Death Race. In the 1970s and 1980s, McClure appeared in commercials for Hamms Beer. McClure also appeared as the blonde slave to Jamie Farr's character in the sequel Cannonball Run II (1984). The character of Troy McClure on The Simpsons was modeled after McClure and fellow actor Troy Donahue. Mike Reiss, executive producer of The Simpsons, said that Doug McClure's daughter informed him that Doug was a big fan of The Simpsons. On February 5, 1995, McClure died at age 59 from lung cancer in Sherman Oaks, California. He is interred at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, in Santa Monica.