Russell Johnson

After Gilligan's Island he appeared in several other movies and televsion shows, perhaps most notably the miniseries Vanished, based on a novel by Fletcher Knebel (1971), uncredited in the Robert Redford spy thriller, Three Days of the Condor (1975), and on the NBC soap opera Santa Barbara.
. Unlike fellow cast member Tina Louise, who was equally typecast as retro-glamourous movie queen Ginger Grant, he has willingly participated in all reunion movies, cartoons, and other events related to the program. He was 67 years old. He is still instantly recognizable to the show's legions of fans, but his ability to be cast in other sorts of roles has been quite limited. According to the paramedics who were called, Troughton died before he even fell back on his bed. Johnson was typecast in this sort of role, and seems to have regarded his stint as The Professor as a mixed blessing. Troughton suffered his final, fatal, heart attack at 7:25 AM, the next day, March 28, 1987, just after he had ordered his breakfast from the hotel staff.

The Professor was a genius who could build and devise ways of doing almost anything, except something which would get himself and the other castaways off of the island. Some attendees said later that Troughton looked clearly unwell to them, although he appeared to be in good spirits throughout the day's panels and was apparently looking forward to a belated birthday celebration that was planned for the Saturday night and a screening of the Doctor Who story The Dominators, which Troughton had requested personally, on the Saturday afternoon. However, he is by far best known to the public as "The Professor" (a/k/a "Roy Hinckley") on the CBS television sitcom Gilligan's Island, which was in first-run from 1964 to 1967 but has been shown in reruns essentially continuously since that time. On March 27, 1987, Troughton was a guest at the Magnum Opus Con II science fiction convention in Columbus, Georgia. He also appeared in a Ma and Pa Kettle vehicle. Troughton also continued to smoke heavilly and declined to commit himself to any real physical exercise despite his worsening health and his early death was predicted as an inevitable consequence by his doctors. Johnson's Hollywood career began in 1952, and his early roles were primarily in westerns and science fiction. Following each of these attacks, his doctor's warnings were again ignored as Troughton committed himself to a heavy TV and film schedule.

He became a close friend of Audie Murphy and later appeared with him in one of his films. He suffered two major heart attacks in 1978 and 1984 which knocked him out of acting for several months both times. He had a very distinguished record and was higly decorated for his service. Troughton's health was never that robust and late in his life he flatly refused to accept his doctor's advice that he had developed a serious heart condition through overwork and stress. Mister Johnson joined the Army Air Corps in World War II and served as a gunner on bombers. Troughton's sons, David and Michael are both well-known actors on stage and screen. Johnson (born November 10, 1924) is an American television and film actor. Apprehensive at first, Troughton was later so delighted at the prospect of appearing in support of the show that he readily agreed to appear one more time as the Doctor with Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor in The Two Doctors (1985).

Russell D. Troughton agreed, and also went along with Nathan-Turner to appear on behalf of the series at conventions the world over. In 1983, Troughton was asked by then-series producer John Nathan-Turner to appear in the 20th anniversary story The Five Doctors. He was also seen in the movie Jason & the Argonauts, in The Box of Delights, and as Father Brennen in the movie The Omen (1976). He is probably best known as the second actor to play the lead role of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who, which he did from 1966 until 1969.