Keith Carradine is a well-known American actor, a representative of the popular Hollywood acting dynasty. He achieved success first on the Broadway stage, and then in the cinema and on television. He is best known for his roles in the TV series Nashville and Dexter. In addition, he is a songwriter and winner of the Golden Globes and Oscars.
Family and a brief biography of Keith Carradine
The future actor was born on August 8, 1949 in San Mateo (California). He is the son of actress and artist Sonya Sorel (née Genius) and actor John Carradine. Keith has two stepbrothers on his father (David and Bruce), as well as two relatives - Christopher and Robert Carradine.
According to Carradine himself, his childhood was difficult. In an interview, he admitted that his father often drank, and his mother was a depressed woman with signs of manic schizophrenia. His parents divorced in 1957 when he was eight years old. Custody of Keith and his brothers, Christopher and Robert, the court ordered the father. This happened after the children spent three months in the house for abused children. Keith Carradine said: “It was like a prison. There were bars on the windows, and we were only allowed to see our parents through the glass doors. It was very sad. We stood there on both sides of the glass door and cried. " His upbringing was mainly engaged in by his grandmother, he rarely saw his parents.
After high school, Carradine wanted to become a forester, but enrolled at Colorado State University. He left him after the first semester and returned to California. His older half brother David (pictured above) encouraged him to continue his studies, paid for his acting and vocal lessons, and helped hire a personal agent.
Personal life
Playing in the late 1960s in the Broadway musical "Hair", Keith Carradine met actress S. Plympton. They started a romance. At that moment, Plympton was still married to actor Steve Curry, although she no longer lived with him. After Carradine left the show, he returned to California. Later he learned that Shelley was pregnant and made peace with her husband. The actor met his daughter only after their divorce, when the baby was four years old.
The first wife of the actor was actress Sandra Will. The lovers got married on February 6, 1982, in 1993 they broke up, and officially divorced six years later. Carradine and Will have two children in common: Cade Richmond (1982) and Sorel Johanna (1985).
In November 2006, actor Keith Carradine married a second time. The colleague in the acting workshop - Haley Dumond again became the chosen one. The wedding ceremony took place in Turin, Italy.
Theatrical career
In his youth, Keith appeared on the stage of the theater in the productions of Shakespeare with his father, John Carradine. By the time he was invited to the Broadway musical “Hair” (1972), he already had some work experience. We can say that the role in this project was a successful start to his career.
“I really did not plan to take part in the audition. I simply agreed to play the piano for my brother David and his girlfriend while they were singing, but the staff were interested in me, ”Carradine later admitted.
On stage, he achieved success and was nominated in 1991 for the Tony Award in the category "Best Actor in a Musical".
Movie career
The first major film job was the role in the 1971 revisionist western, McCabe and Mrs. Miller, directed by Robert Altman. This was followed by the adventure film “The Emperor of the North” (1973) and the film “Thieves Like Us” (1974).
The breakthrough happened in 1975. Keith Carradine in Robert Altman's Nashville film, which is a multi-figure film mural, played one of the leading roles. The prototype of his character was the famous American country singer, actor and composer Chris Christofferson.
In 1977, Carradine starred with Harvey Keitel in Ridley Scott's first full-length film, The Duelists. He also took part in several unusual projects by Altman Alan Rudolph, playing the lunatic in Choose Me (1984), the incompetent petty criminal in Insanity (1985) and the American artist in the 1930s in Modernists ( 1988). In total, from 1970 to 2000, the actor took part in more than twenty projects.
Music
The family of Keith Carradine, like himself, in addition to acting talent, is also gifted musically. Actor’s brother David said in an interview that Kit could play any instrument if he wanted, including a bagpipe and a French horn. Like David, Keith combined his acting and musical talent.
In 1976, he performed the song I'm Easy, which he himself wrote in the movie Nashville. She became a hit and Carradine won the Golden Globes and Oscars in the Best Movie Song nomination. This success led to a short singing career, he signed with Asylum Records and released two albums: I'm Easy (1975) and Lost & Found (1978). In the early 1990s, he played a major role in the musical Rogers Victory.
TV career
Carradine appeared on television in 1972, taking part in the filming of the first season of the series "Kung Fu", which starred his brother David. Then came the project “Lovely Child”. In 1983, he appeared in several mini-series based on the novel by Stuart Woods. His role in the TV series Sheriffs earned him an Emmy Award nomination.
However, the most successful work of Keith Carradine on television was the role in the HBO series "Deadwood". The plot of this dramatic project with western elements was based on legends and real stories regarding the founding of the city of the same name in South Dakota during the “gold rush”. The pilot series was shown in March 2004. The actor played one of his best television characters - the hero of the Wild West, the scout and shooter James Butler Hickock, nicknamed Wild.
He has appeared repeatedly in Showtime’s iconic television series Dexter as FBI Special Agent Frank Lundy. In 2014, Keith took part in four series at once: “Raising Hope”, “Followers”, “Naval Police: Special Department”, “Fargo”.