John Carradine, the son of a reporter/artist and a surgeon, grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York. He attended Christ Church School and Graphic Art School, studying sculpture, and afterward roamed the South selling sketches. He made his acting debut in "Camille" in a New Orleans theatre in 1925. Arriving in Los Angeles in 1927, he worked in local theatre. He applied for a job as as scenic designer to 'Cecil B. DeMille' that became known as "The John Ford Stock Company". John Carradine died at age 82 of natural causes on November 27, 1988.
Father of Chris Carradine , David Carradine , Keith Carradine and Robert Carradine. Adoptive father of Bruce Carradine.
He was of English, with more distant Irish and Dutch, ancestry. He was sometimes said to have Italian or Spanish roots, from the surname "Carradine", but his last traceable patrilineal ancestor, a man named Parker Carradine, was born, c. 1755, in the state of Georgia, and had no evident Spanish or Italian origins.
Grandfather of Martha Plimpton , Ever Carradine and Kansas Carradine.
Always ranked his performance in Bluebeard high among his career favorites.
Inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 2003.
Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume Two, 1986-1990, pages 165-167. New York: Charles Scribners Sons, 1999.
Claimed near the end of his life to have appeared in more movies than any other actor, surpassing the record set by Donald Crisp , the Oscar-winning actor and director who had started in silent movies and had appeared in numerous one- and two-reel films, many of them lost. The title for actor who appeared in most films likely is a contest between Carradine (more than 300 films) and Crisp (at least 170 known films). Of the contemporary generation, Christopher Lee , who has acted in more films than his peers (over 200), does not come close to matching Carradines prolific output.
In later life, he suffered from crippling arthritis, but continued to work.
Had the word "HAM" in his license plates on his Mercedes-Benz when he lived in Santa Barbara, CA.
According to oldest son David Carradine in "Hollywood and Whine", "... we carted the coffin over to our house and opened it up. I looked down at him, and the undertaker had put a demonic, artificial grin on his face--like nothing I had ever seen him do in real life, except in a horror film. I reached out and, using the sculptural skills I had learned from him, I remodeled his face to be more naturally like him. Then I poured half a bottle of J&B scotch, his favorite, down his throat, and we had a wake".
His first co-starring role with Boris Karloff came in 1929 during a ten-week run of "Window Panes" in Figueroa, CA. Carradine played a dimwit and Karloff played a Grigory Rasputin -like character.
Officially changed his name from John Peter Richmond to John Carradine in early 1935.
His own touring productions of "The Merchant of Venice", "Hamlet" and "Othello" outgrossed Maurice Evans celebrated 1940 version of "Hamlet". During the San Francisco run, Carradine always had a memorial seat reserved for his close friend, the late John Barrymore.
Jailed briefly in 1953 on contempt of court charges for falling behind on his alimony payments.
According to Jim Beaver s career article on Carradine for the October 1979 issue of "Films in Review", writer Tennessee Williams wrote the role of Big Daddy in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" with Carradine in mind, although other commitments kept him out of the Broadway production in favor of Burl Ives. However, Carradine did play the role in a 1977 Los Angeles production.
He made guest appearances on both "The Twilight Zone" and "The Twilight Zone" .
Whispering Ghosts was his last film under his long-term Fox contract.
He hitchhiked to California, earning his way as a quick-sketch artist.
After a family dispute, he left home to become an assistant to renowned Philadelphia sculptor Daniel Chester French.
He played Count Dracula in four films: House of Frankenstein , House of Dracula , Billy the Kid Versus Dracula and Nocturna .
He appeared with Peter Lorre in eight films: Nancy Steele Is Missing! , Thank You, Mr. Moto , Ill Give a Million , Mr. Motos Last Warning , Around the World in 80 Days , Hell Ship Mutiny , The Story of Mankind and The Patsy .
He appeared with Vincent Price in seven films: Brigham Young , Casanovas Big Night , The Ten Commandments , The Story of Mankind , The Trouble with Girls , The Monster Club and House of the Long Shadows .
He appeared with Basil Rathbone in seven films: The Garden of Allah , The Hound of the Baskervilles , Casanovas Big Night , The Court Jester , The Black Sleep The Last Hurrah and Hillbillys in a Haunted House .
He appeared with Lon Chaney Jr. in 11 films: This Is My Affair , Jesse James , Frontier Marshal , House of Frankenstein , The Mummys Ghost , House of Dracula , Casanovas Big Night , The Black Sleep , House of the Black Death , Gallery of Horror and Hillbillys in a Haunted House .
He had two roles in common with his The McMasters co-star Jack Palance : (1) Carradine played Count Dracula in House of Frankenstein , House of Dracula , Billy the Kid Versus Dracula and Nocturna while Palance played him in Dracula and Carradine played Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol while Palance played him in Ebenezer .
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6240 Hollywood Blvd. on February 8, 1960.
Although he played Martha Scott s son in The Ten Commandments , he was six years her senior in real life.
He and his granddaughter Martha Plimpton both appeared in Woody Allen films: Carradine played Doctor Bernardo in Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex
But Were Afraid to Ask while Plimpton played Laura in Another Woman .
Profiled in "Character Actors in Horror and Science Fiction Films, 1930-1960" by Laurence Raw.
[his last words before passing away in Milan, Italy] Milan. What a,beautiful place to die.
I am a ham! And the ham in an actor is what makes him interesting.
I never made big money in Hollywood. I was paid in hundreds, the stars,got thousands. But I worked with some of the greatest directors in,films, and some of the greatest writers. They gave me freedom to do,what I can do best and that was gratifying. .
