Vintage Hunk: Doug McClure

When I was growing up Westerns ruled television. There was Gunsmoke, Maverick, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Bonanza and numerous other sagebrush epics. But I always liked The Virginian and the main reason was sexy blonde hunk Doug McClure who starred as the trusty sidekick Trampas for all nine years (1962-1971) of this long-running series.

McClure was born in Glendale, California in 1935 , which at the time was a small section of Los Angeles not far from the growing TV and movie industry in Burbank. Once he'd made it into the business he didn't have to go far to find TV fame in a number of series. He first showed his hot body in such fun films as Gidget and South Pacific, where he was one of the sexy sailors in the homo erotic number "There Is Nothing Like a Dame." He then went on to star in the cult fave Checkmate for two years playing one of the show's hot detectives, and then went on to The Virginian.

On The Virginian, McClure's character was the polar opposite of dour star James Drury who played the title role. McClure made Trampas funny, sexy and rather endearing during the show's run. While McClure was not a great actor he had enough talent and charm— plus that dreamy blond, curly hair— to make him a household name for several decades. It didn't hurt that he was often seen shirtless in personal publicity photos, such as one provocative shot with him in short shorts wrestling up-and-coming actor Clint Eastwood (see below).

Unfortunately, McClure's private life was not quite so fun. He was married 5 times, had three daughters, and died from lung cancer in 1995 at only 59 years old. But for those of us who remember The Virginian, McClure will always be the incredibly sexy cowboy with an infectious grin, a mop of golden curls and a body to lust after. Doug McClure was definitely one of the 1960's hunky golden boys.