John Carradine

John Carradine
Carradine in Blood and Sand (1941)
Born	Richmond Reed Carradine (1906-02-05)February 5, 1906 New York City, New York, United States
Died	November 27, 1988(1988-11-27) (aged 82) Milan, Italy
Cause of death	Multiple organ failure
Resting place	St. Thomas The Apostle, Hollywood
Other names	Peter Richmond
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1930–1988
Spouse(s)	Ardanelle McCool Cosner (1935–1944) Sonia Sorel (1944–1956) Doris Rich (1957–1971; her death) Emily Cisneros (1975–1988; his death)
Children	5 (including David, Ketih & Robert)
Parent(s)	William Reed Carradine Genevieve Winifred Richmond

John Carradine (born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, best known for his roles in horror films, Westerns, and Shakespearean theatre. 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. He was married four times, had five children, and was the patriarch of the Carradine family, including four of his sons and four of his grandchildren who are or were also actors.

Carradine was born in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, the son of William Reed Carradine, a correspondent for the Associated Press, and his wife, Dr. Genevieve Winnifred Richmond, a surgeon. He was primarily of Irish descent. William Carradine was the son of evangelical author Beverly Carradine. The family lived in Peekskill and Kingston, New York. William Carradine died from tuberculosis when his son John was two years old. Carradine's mother then married "a Philadelphia paper manufacturer named Peck, who thought the way to bring up someone else's boy was to beat him every day just on general principle." Carradine attended the Christ Church School in Kingston and the Episcopal Academy in Merion Station, Pennsylvania, where he developed his diction and his memory while memorizing portions of the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer as a punishment.