Donald Conroy

Col. Donald "The Great Santini" Conroy (USMC-Ret.) (April 4, 1921 - May 9, 1998) was a U.S. Marine Corps colonel and a member of the famed Black Sheep Squadron during the Korean War. Conroy was also a veteran of World War II and of two tours of duty in Vietnam. He was the father of novelist Pat Conroy and the inspiration for the ficticious character Marine Lt. Col. "Bull" Meechum in The Great Santini. Col. Conroy is interred at Beaufort National Cemetery, South Carolina.