After more than 70 credits and decades in the industry, actorTom Troupehas died at the age of 97. According to CBS, the actor hailed from Kansas City, Missouri, before journeying to New York City in the late ‘40s to become a serious actor. His Broadway debut was in 1957 in a stage production of “The Diary of Anne Frank.” Fans will likely know him, however, from the iconic television productions he appeared in during the 1960s.
Among some of his many credits were the original television series,Mission: Impossible,andStar Trek: The Original Series.Star Trek, of course, came from the mind ofGene Roddenberry,about a utopian society in the future that endeavored to explore the stars and find strange new worlds. The incredibly optimistic sci-fi series created iconic characters like Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, catapulting its respective performers,William ShatnerandLeonard Nimoy,into the pop culture zeitgeist. Troupe appeared in one episode ofStar Trekas Lt. Harold in 1967. In the episode “Arena,” Harold was a communications officer in Starfleet who initially survived an attack by the Gorn but had sustained traumatic physical injuries. In a typical standalone episode of the series, Troupe furthered the narrative for the Enterprise to save the day, but would go on to be in many more projects.
Tom Troupe Appeared In More Franchise Favorites
Tom Troupe increased his ‘60s era television credits with appearances in other series that would go on to be franchises. In addition toStar Trek, he also acted in the originalMission: Impossibletelevision series as David Day in the episode “Action!” The series would go on to be rebooted again in the ‘80s before reaching pop culture heights with theTom Cruisefeature film franchise that has gone on for decades.
Troupe also appeared in single episodes ofThe Man From U.N.C.L.E.andThe Fugitive,which both got feature film treatments decades later. The actor also had writing credits to his name when he wrote the 1968 filmSofi, which he also starred in. The film was an adaptation of the play inspired byDiary of a MadmanbyNikolai Gogol. Troupe was also a prolific stage actor, married to the late actorCarole Cooke. The two had a son, Christopher, who now survives his father with his wife Becky Coulter. Fans can relive many of the star’s television credits on multiple platforms.
