Carradine family
Encyclopedia
The Carradine family are the family of American actor John Carradine
, who had five sons, four of whom became actors.
The family includes:
John Carradine
(1906–1988), married four times including: Ardanelle McCool (marriage 1935–1944)
Sonia Sorel (marriage 1944–1956), later married artist Michael Bowen
and had a son actor Michael Bowen
(born 1957)
John Carradine appeared with his son David in The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1969) and co-starred with him in Boxcar Bertha
(1972) which was produced by Roger Corman
and directed by Martin Scorsese
. He also appeared in three episodes of the 1970s television series Kung Fu
, in which David starred. David's brothers Bruce, Keith and Robert also appeared in the series, with Keith playing David's character as a teenager for a brief period.
Bruce Carradine also appeared with David in Q, The Winged Serpent (1982) and in David's directorial "labor of love", Americana
.
David and his half-brothers Keith and Robert appeared together as the Younger brothers
in Walter Hill's 1980 film The Long Riders
and the three of them appeared in a humorous cameo on The Fall Guy
, on an episode on which their father co-starred. Robert also "shot David to death" in a cameo in Scorsese's Mean Streets
. Keith was in another of David's directorial attempts, You and Me, while Robert co-starred with David in the unreleased musical which David directed, A Country Mile.
David and Keith each hosted the History Channel's Wild West Tech
and appeared in at least two additional films together, Last Stand at Saber Creek (for which Keith won an award) and The Outsider.
David's daughter, Calista, appeared in a recurring role on Kung Fu: The Legend Continues
. She also had a role in Project Eliminator, with her father. She was the star of the unreleased epic, Mata Hari, which David directed. In addition, she sang the theme to Americana, a song that David wrote called Around. David appeared with his niece, Ever, in Dead and Breakfast.
John Carradine
John Carradine was an American actor, best known for his roles in horror films and Westerns as well as Shakespearean theater. A member of Cecil B DeMille's stock company and later John Ford's company, he was one of the most prolific character actors in Hollywood history...
, who had five sons, four of whom became actors.
The family includes:
John Carradine
John Carradine
John Carradine was an American actor, best known for his roles in horror films and Westerns as well as Shakespearean theater. A member of Cecil B DeMille's stock company and later John Ford's company, he was one of the most prolific character actors in Hollywood history...
(1906–1988), married four times including: Ardanelle McCool (marriage 1935–1944)
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- Bruce John Carradine (born April 10, 1933), adopted, son from previous marriage of Ardanelle
- David CarradineDavid CarradineDavid Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
(1936–2009), married five times and had three children and four step-children:
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- Calista Carradine (born April 1962), by Donna Lea Becht (1st wife)
- Tom Carradine (born 1972), by domestic partnerDomestic partnershipA domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are neither joined by marriage nor a civil union...
Barbara HersheyBarbara HersheyBarbara Hershey , also known as Barbara Seagull, is an American actress. In a career spanning nearly 50 years, she has played a variety of roles on television and in cinema, in several genres including westerns and comedies...
(at birth, given name was "Free"; later changed to "Tom") - Kansas Carradine (born May 1978), by Linda Gilbert (2nd wife)
- His fifth wife Annie Bierman (neé Anne Kirstie Fraser) had four other children from two previous husbands
- Amanda Fraser Eckelberry (born November 29, 1989) by first husband Marc Duke Eckelberry (Born in 1954 in CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
). - Madeleine Rose (born April 4, 1995) by second husband Dana Richard Bierman (Born on September 8, 1952 in San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
and died 9 December 2000 at age 48 of pancreatic cancerPancreatic cancerPancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
in Tarzana, Los Angeles, CaliforniaTarzana, Los Angeles, CaliforniaTarzana is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. The neighborhood is located on the site of a former ranch owned by author Edgar Rice Burroughs, who named it Tarzana after his jungle hero character Tarzan.-Geography:Tarzana, a district...
). - Olivia Juliette (born 1998), twin sister of Max, also by second husband Dana Richard Bierman.
- Max Richard (born 1998), twin brother of Olivia, also by second husband Dana Richard Bierman.
- Amanda Fraser Eckelberry (born November 29, 1989) by first husband Marc Duke Eckelberry (Born in 1954 in California
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Sonia Sorel (marriage 1944–1956), later married artist Michael Bowen
Michael Bowen (artist)
Michael Bowen was an American fine artist known as one of the co-founders of the late 20th and 21st century Visionary art movements...
and had a son actor Michael Bowen
Michael Bowen (actor)
Michael Bowen is an American actor. Films he has appeared in include Jackie Brown, Magnolia, and Less Than Zero. Bowen also had a recurring role as Danny Pickett on the ABC television series, Lost....
(born 1957)
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- Christopher Carradine (born 1947), architect who became Vice President of Walt Disney ImagineeringWalt Disney ImagineeringWalt Disney Imagineering is the design and development arm of the Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation and construction of Disney theme parks worldwide...
- Keith CarradineKeith CarradineKeith Ian Carradine is an American actor who has had success on stage, film and television. In addition, he is a Golden Globe and Oscar winning songwriter. As a member of the Carradine family, he is part of an acting "dynasty" that began with his father, John Carradine.-Early life:Keith...
(born 1949)
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- Martha PlimptonMartha PlimptonMartha Campbell Plimpton is an American actress and singer and former model. Plimpton is a screen, stage and television actress. She first appeared as Jonsy in the feature film River Rats before rising to prominence in the Richard Donner film The Goonies portraying the character Stef...
(born 1970), by Shelley PlimptonShelley PlimptonShelley Plimpton Carradine is an American former actress and Broadway performer.Plimpton was born in Roseburg, Oregon, to a father who ran an auto parts store. She is a "very distant" cousin of writer George Plimpton. She moved to New York with her researcher mother when she was 14, after her... - Cade Richmond Carradine, (born 1982)
- Sorel Johannah Carradine (born 1985), both by Sandra WillSandra Will CarradineSandra Will Carradine is an American film and television actress.She is an ex-wife of actor Keith Carradine. They wed 6 February 1982, and had two children: Cade Richmond Carradine, born on July 19, 1982, and Sorel Johannah Carradine, born on June 18, 1985...
(1st wife)
- Martha Plimpton
- Robert CarradineRobert CarradineRobert Reed Carradine is an American actor. The youngest of the Carradine family of actors, he made his first appearances on television western series such as Bonanza and his older brother David's Kung Fu. Carradine's first film role was in the 1972 film The Cowboys opposite Roscoe Lee Browne and...
(born 1954)
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- Ever CarradineEver CarradineEver Dawn Carradine is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Tiffany Porter on Once and Again and as Kelly Ludlow on Commander in Chief.-Early life:...
(born 1974), by Susan Snyder - Marica Reed Carradine (born 1990)
- Ian Alexander Carradine (born 1992), both by Edie Mani (his wife since 1990)
- Ever Carradine
- Christopher Carradine (born 1947), architect who became Vice President of Walt Disney Imagineering
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John Carradine appeared with his son David in The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1969) and co-starred with him in Boxcar Bertha
Boxcar Bertha
Boxcar Bertha , director Martin Scorsese's second film, is a loose adaptation of Sister of the Road, the fictionalized autobiography of radical and transient Bertha Thompson as written by Ben Reitman...
(1972) which was produced by Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
and directed by Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
. He also appeared in three episodes of the 1970s television series Kung Fu
Kung Fu (TV series)
Kung Fu is an American television series that starred David Carradine. It was created by Ed Spielman, directed and produced by Jerry Thorpe, and developed by Herman Miller, who was also a writer for, and co-producer of, the series...
, in which David starred. David's brothers Bruce, Keith and Robert also appeared in the series, with Keith playing David's character as a teenager for a brief period.
Bruce Carradine also appeared with David in Q, The Winged Serpent (1982) and in David's directorial "labor of love", Americana
Americana (film)
Americana is a 1983 American drama film starring, produced, edited and directed by David Carradine. The screenplay and story, written by Richard Carr, was based on a portion of the 1947 novel, The Perfect Round, by Henry Morton Robinson...
.
David and his half-brothers Keith and Robert appeared together as the Younger brothers
James-Younger gang
The James-Younger Gang was a notable 19th-century gang of American outlaws that included Jesse James.The gang was centered in the state of Missouri. Membership fluctuated from robbery to robbery, as the outlaws' raids were usually separated by many months...
in Walter Hill's 1980 film The Long Riders
The Long Riders
The Long Riders is a 1980 western film directed by Walter Hill. It was produced by James Keach, Stacy Keach and Tim Zinnemann and featured an original soundtrack by Ry Cooder. Cooder won the Best Music award in 1980 from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards for this soundtrack...
and the three of them appeared in a humorous cameo on The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy is an American action/adventure television program produced for ABC and originally broadcast from November 4, 1981 to May 2, 1986. It starred Lee Majors, Douglas Barr, and Heather Thomas. Majors and Barr are the only two actors to appear in all 112 episodes of the series...
, on an episode on which their father co-starred. Robert also "shot David to death" in a cameo in Scorsese's Mean Streets
Mean Streets
Mean Streets is a 1973 drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Scorsese and Mardik Martin. The film stars Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro. It was released by Warner Bros. on October 2, 1973...
. Keith was in another of David's directorial attempts, You and Me, while Robert co-starred with David in the unreleased musical which David directed, A Country Mile.
David and Keith each hosted the History Channel's Wild West Tech
Wild West Tech
Wild West Tech was a program that aired on The History Channel in the United States. The show was originally hosted by Keith Carradine , but his brother, David Carradine took over hosting duties for season 2 and subsequent seasons...
and appeared in at least two additional films together, Last Stand at Saber Creek (for which Keith won an award) and The Outsider.
David's daughter, Calista, appeared in a recurring role on Kung Fu: The Legend Continues
Kung Fu: The Legend Continues
Kung Fu: The Legend Continues is a spin-off of the 1972-1975 television series Kung Fu. David Carradine and Chris Potter starred as a father and son trained in kung fu - Carradine playing a Shaolin monk, Potter a police detective. This series aired in syndication for four seasons, from January 27,...
. She also had a role in Project Eliminator, with her father. She was the star of the unreleased epic, Mata Hari, which David directed. In addition, she sang the theme to Americana, a song that David wrote called Around. David appeared with his niece, Ever, in Dead and Breakfast.