David Carradine Net Worth in 2023 (Biography, Net Worth, Career, Personal Life, Age, etc.)

David Carradine Net Worth. David Carradine was an actor from the United States who was best known for his work in martial arts films.

He is most remembered for his role as Kwai Chang Caine, a peace-loving Shaolin monk traveling through the American Old West, in the 1970s television series Kung Fu. David Carradine Net Worth is estimated to be approximately $500 thousand.

David Carradine Net worth and profile in one glance

Biography of David Carradine

Early years

Carradine was born in Hollywood, California, on December 8, 1936, as the eldest son of actor John Carradine (1906–1988) and his wife Ardanelle Abigail Carradine.

Bruce, Keith, Christopher, and Robert Carradine were his half-brothers, while Ever Carradine and Martha Plimpton were his uncles, all of whom were performers.

He was a great-grandson of Methodist evangelical author Beverly Carradine and a grandnephew of artist Will Foster. He was primarily of Irish heritage. Carradine, nicknamed “Jack” by his family, had a difficult childhood.

His parents divorced and remarried several times; he was born to his mother’s third of three marriages and his father’s first of four marriages.

Carradine’s mother had a son by her first husband at the time of his parent’s marriage, whom John adopted.

John Carradine had hoped to have a large family, but after a series of losses, he found his wife had undergone several abortions without his knowledge, rendering her unable to carry a child to term.

Stepping stone into David Carradine Net Worth (Career)

Service in the army

Despite his best efforts to avoid the draught, Carradine was drafted into the US Army in 1960, where he produced illustrations for training aids. That Christmas, he married Donna Lee Becht, his high school love.

He helped organize a theatre company known as the “entertainment unit” when stationed at Fort Eustis, Virginia.

Larry Cohen, a fellow inductee, later cast him in Q, The Winged Serpent. He was also charged with shoplifting and faced a court-martial.

Donna gave birth to their daughter, Calista, in 1962. After two years of active duty, Carradine was honorably discharged.

Primary source of David Carradine Net worth (Acting)

He made his television debut in the episode “Secret Document X256” of Armstrong Circle Theatre.

Following that, he appeared on Wagon Train, East Side/West Side, Arrest and Trial, The Virginian, Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre, and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, among other shows.

In the episode “The Intruders” of The Virginian in 1964, Carradine played “The Utah Kid.” Universal signed Carradine to a deal.

Taggart (1964), a western based on a Louis L’Amour novel, marked his feature picture debut for the studio. In addition, he was cast in Bus Riley’s Back in Town (1965).

Kung Fu

Carradine featured as Kwai Chang Caine, a half-Chinese/half-American Shaolin monk, in the ABC blockbuster TV series Kung Fu (1972–1975) for three seasons. The role received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations.

Kung Fu, along with Bruce Lee’s films, aided in the popularisation of martial arts and Eastern philosophy in the west. Carradine’s character also popularized the term “grasshopper,” which refers to an apprentice.

Kill Bill

Carradine’s career was revived when he was cast in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill films, Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003) and Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2005).

“Carradine practically steals every scene he’s in with confident gusto, and he gives a soulful performance that should all but ensure a spot on next year’s Oscar ballot,” said Scott Mantz of The Mediadrome, who thought his portrayal of Bill, the assassin extraordinaire, would earn him an Academy Award nomination.

Kill Bill Vol. 2 was on both Roger Ebert’s and Richard Roeper’s top ten lists of Academy Award predictions. Despite the fact that the films received no Academy attention, Carradine was nominated for a Golden Globe and won a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his depiction of Bill.

Carradine had a good role in American Reel (2003), but his roles in Dead & Breakfast (2004), Last Goobye (2004), Max Havoc: Curse of the Dragon (2004), Brothers in Arms (2005), Miracle at Sage Creek (2005), Final Move (2006), Saints Row (2006), and The Last Sect (2006) did not improve his overall quality.

In 2005, David Carradine took up hosting duties for the History Channel’s Wild West Tech from his brother Keith. In the same year, he appeared in an episode of the NBC TV show Medium as both himself and the ghost of a dead man.

David Carradine Personal life

Carradine proposed to Donna Lee Becht (born September 26, 1937), whom he had met while they were both students at Oakland High School, shortly after being inducted into the Army in 1960.

That year, they married on Christmas Day. While he was stationed at Fort Eustis, she lived with him off-base in Virginia.

Calista, their daughter, was born in April 1962. Carradine and his family relocated to New York after his discharge, where he pursued his acting career, performing on Broadway in The Deputy and Royal Hunt of the Sun.

After the marriage ended in divorce in 1968, Carradine returned to California to pursue his television and film ventures.

While filming on the film Heaven with a Gun in 1969, Carradine met actress Barbara Hershey. Until 1975, the couple shared a home. Martin Scorsese’s Boxcar Bertha was one of their past collaborations.

Hershey gave birth to their son. The couple’s romance ended around the time of Carradine’s burglary arrest in 1974, when he began an affair with Season Hubley, a Kung Fu guest star. Hubley and Carradine were engaged for a time, but they never married.

Death

Carradine was found dead in his room at the Swissôtel Nai Lert Park Hotel on Wireless Road, near Sukhumvit Road, in central Bangkok, Thailand, on June 3, 2009, at the age of 72.

He was in Bangkok for the filming of his new flick, Stretch. Carradine was discovered naked, hanging by a rope in the room’s closet, prompting instant speculation that he committed suicide, according to a police official.

According to the evidence, his death was unintentional and caused by autoerotic asphyxiation. Both autopsy, one of which had famous pathologist Pornthip Rojanasunan, ruled that the death was not a suicide. “Accidental asphyxiation” was commonly regarded as the cause of death.

Conclusion

David Carradine is a well-known and brilliant actor from the Hollywood film business. The David Carradine Net Worth is a source of motivation and inspiration. Also, check out – James Franciscus Net Worth.