Biography

Merritt Russell Yohnka was born on April 1, 1958 in Chebanse, Illinois to Marilyn and Norm Yohnka. He attended Western Illinois University in Macomb, Illinois, where he joined Delta Sigma Phi. In 1982, he was hired to work at Knott's Berry Farm in southern California as the star in the "Wild West Stunt Show". He also took a job as a security guard at nights. The long-running soap opera Days of Our Lives (1965) filmed an episode (with actor Josh Taylor) at Knott's Berry Farm, centering on "The Wagon Camp Stunt Show". Yohnka was later given a recurring role on the soap era as Joey on Days of Our Lives (1965) from 1984-92. He did stunts on numerous TV shows and films in the 1980s and early 1990s. He was nominated for several awards and was honored when he received the Emmy Awards in 2008 and 2009 for his stunt coordination on the television series Chuck (2007).

He met his future wife, Cindy Yohnka, in 1992, when, ironically, they played husband and wife on a car commercial. They married in real life in 1996, later welcoming three children: Emily, Steven and Garrett, and living in Sherwood Forest, Los Angeles County, California. After 24 years of marriage, Merritt died in 2020 in Los Angeles County following a valiant battle with cancer. He was 62 years old, and was survived by his wife, children, parents, siblings, and a large extended family.
- IMDb mini biography by: RM Sieger