Casey Donovan

Casey Donovan, born John Calvin Culver on November 2, 1943, in East Bloomfield, New York, was an American actor, model, and adult film performer who died on August 10, 1987, in Inverness, Florida, at the age of 43. He grew up in East Bloomfield alongside his parents and older brother Duane. Culver attended the State University of New York at Geneseo, where he was active in both the drama club and Phi Sigma Epsilon fraternity, graduating in 1965.

After graduation, Culver took a teaching position in Peekskill, New York, later moving to a role at the private Ethical Culture Fieldston School on Central Park West in New York City. He was dismissed during his second year following an incident in which he physically disciplined a female student, reportedly the daughter of actor Eli Wallach. Following his dismissal, he pursued acting through summer stock theatre with the Peterborough Players. He also secured representation with the Wilhelmina Models agency, earning an hourly rate of sixty dollars. In 1969, he landed an understudy position in the Off-Broadway production And Puppy Dog Tails, and in 1970 made his Broadway debut in Brave, a Native American-themed production, while also appearing that same year in the Off-Broadway play Circle in the Water.

Culver's adult film career began in earnest with Boys in the Sand in 1971, directed by Wakefield Poole, for which he adopted the stage name Casey Donovan — combining the name of the title character from an earlier adult film in which he had appeared with that of Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. The film became a landmark of male erotic cinema and established Donovan as a prominent figure in gay adult film during the Golden Age of Porn. Despite meetings with directors including John Schlesinger and Raymond St. Jacques and discussions about mainstream film projects, a crossover into mainstream cinema did not materialize. He continued performing in adult films for approximately fifteen years, with credits including Score, The Back Row, L.A. Tool and Die, The Other Side of Aspen, Boys in the Sand II, Inevitable Love, and The Opening of Misty Beethoven.

Donovan's stage career ran concurrently with his adult film work. In 1972, he was cast in a Broadway revival of Captain Brassbound's Conversion, with star Ingrid Bergman describing him as possessing the same kind of charisma as Robert Redford. The following year he appeared in a Lincoln Center production of The Merchant of Venice, which received praise for its vivid appeal. In 1974, Donovan took the starring role of Brian, a gay bathhouse attendant, in Tubstrip, written and directed by Jerry Douglas. The production played in Los Angeles and San Francisco before transferring to Broadway. In 1983, he both produced and appeared in a Broadway revival of Terrence McNally's The Ritz, though the production was not a commercial success. His Broadway career thus spanned from 1972 to 1983.

Beyond performing, Donovan wrote an advice column titled "Ask Casey" for Stallion magazine beginning in 1982, in which he urged readers to reduce their number of sexual partners and to seek HIV testing once it became available. He also worked as a theatre producer and manager, appeared as himself in the television series The Emerald City, and conducted all-gay international tours in partnership with Star Tours to destinations including Italy, China, and Peru. In 1973 he began a relationship with actor-turned-writer Tom Tryon, which lasted until 1977. In 1978 he purchased a house in Key West, Florida, which he operated as a bed and breakfast called Casa Donovan until the business failed.

By 1985, Donovan's health had declined after he contracted HIV. He died on August 10, 1987, of an HIV-related pulmonary infection, aged 43.