John Carradine

Birth Name: Richmond Reed Carradine

Date of Birth: February 5, 1906

Place of Birth: Manhattan, New York City, New York, U.S.

Date of Death: 27 November, 1988

Place of Death: Milan, Lombardy, Italy

Ethnicity: English, some Irish and Scottish, distant Welsh, German, and French

John Carradine was an American actor. A prolific character actor, he appeared in over 200 films from the 1930s on, particularly sci-fi, horror, and western productions. His roles included the films White Fang, Mary of Scotland, Daniel Boone (1936), Captains Courageous, Of Human Hearts, Jesse James, Stagecoach, The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939), Drums Along the Mohawk, The Grapes of Wrath, Brigham Young (1940), Swamp Water, Whispering Ghosts, I Escaped from the Gestapo, Hitler’s Madman, Revenge of the Zombies, Voodoo Man, The Adventures of Mark Twain, The Invisible Man’s Revenge, Return of the Ape Man, The Mummy’s Ghost, Alaska, Bluebeard (1944), House of Frankenstein, Captain Kidd (1945), House of Dracula, The Kentuckian, The Black Sleep, Around the World in 80 Days, The Ten Commandments (1956), The Unearthly, The Cosmic Man, The Oregon Trail (1959), The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1960), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Cheyenne Autumn, The Wizard of Mars, Psycho A-Go-Go, House of the Black Death, Billy the Kid Versus Dracula, Dr. Terror’s Gallery of Horrors, Hillbillys in a Haunted House, The Astro-Zombies, Blood of Dracula’s Castle, The Mummy and the Curse of the Jackals, Hell’s Bloody Devils, Bigfoot (1970), Blood of Ghastly Horror, Silent Night, Bloody Night; Terror in the Wax Museum, The House of Seven Corpses, The Shootist, The Sentinel (1977), Satan’s Cheerleaders, Shock Waves, Nocturna: Granddaughter of Dracula, Monster, The Boogeyman (1980), The Howling (1981), The Monster Club, House of the Long Shadows, Evils of the Night, Peggy Sue Got Married, Monster in the Closet, and Evil Spawn; and the shows The Munsters and The Green Hornet.

He was the son of Genevieve Winifred (Richmond), a surgeon, and William Reed Carradine, a correspondent for the Associated Press. His father was from Mississippi. His mother was from New York. He was partly raised in Peekskill, and Kingston, New York.

John had two children, including actor David Carradine, with his former wife Ardanelle Abigail McCool; and three children, actors Christopher Carradine, Keith Carradine, and Robert Carradine, with his former wife, actress Sonia Sorel. John was then married to Doris Grimshaw, until her death; and then to Emily Cisneros, until his death. Among his grandchildren are actress Kansas Carradine, who is David’s daughter; actresses Martha Plimpton and Sorel Carradine, who are Keith’s daughters; and actress Ever Carradine, who is Robert’s daughter.

John’s paternal grandfather was The Rev. Beverly Francis Carradine (the son of Henry Francis Carradine and Mary Caroline Hewitt). The Rev. Beverly was born in Altamont Plantation, Yazoo County, Mississippi, and was a Methodist minister, author, and leading evangelist for the holiness movement. Henry was born in Yazoo County, and was a planter. He possibly was the son of George Rapalje Carradine and Susannah. Mary was born in Bel Air, Harford, Maryland, the daughter of James Hewitt and Caroline Ann Grayson, whose father was a minister; and whose maternal grandfather was English.

John’s paternal grandmother was Laura Green Reid/Reed (the daughter of David Reid and Martha Goss). Laura was born in Washington, D.C. Martha was the daughter of Benjamin Goss and Martha Patricia Harbin.

John’s maternal grandfather was Horace Culver Richmond (the son of Killian Van Rensselaer Richmond and Emily Culver). Horace was born in West Oneonta, Otsego, New York. He fought in the Civil War, including in the battles of Spottsylvania, Wilderness, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg. Killian was born in Broome, Schoharie, New York, the son of Benjamin Richmond and Mary Bull. John’s great-grandmother Emily was born in New Hampshire, the daughter of Abner Culver and Catharine.

John’s maternal grandmother was named Winifred/Winnie Ryan (the daughter of Martin Ryan and Catherine). Winifred was born in Otsego County, New York, to Irish parents.

The surname Carradine is sometimes said to have an Italian or Spanish origin. John’s last traceable patrilineal ancestor is believed to have been a man named Parker Carradine, who was born in Georgia, in North America, c. 1755. There is no evidence that Parker had Italian or Spanish ancestry.

Sources: Genealogies of John Carradine – https://famouskin.com
https://www.geni.com
http://www.familytreecircles.com
https://www.findagrave.com
https://www.wikitree.com