David Carradine

David Carradine (born John Arthur Carradine December 8, 1936 in Hollywood, California) is an American actor and former Marine.

Trivia

• He studied drama at San Francisco State University.
• He began studying the Martial Arts after getting cast in Kung Fu.
• Originally, Bruce Lee was supposed to be the lead for "Kung Fu," but the TV station for which the show was to be aired on deemed Lee's looks "too Oriental ." Hence, Carradine was chosen instead.
• He was convicted of drunk driving in October 1998. He subsequently served 48 hours in jail and did community service.
• Has a lifelong fascination with Eastern philosophies and culture which resulted in his writing the book Spirit of the Shaolin about the philosophy of Kung Fu.
• Has a devotion to music - has recorded 60 tracks from various musical genres and has sung in several movies.
• Has been married and divorced four times:
• Donna Lee Becht (December 1960 - ?) (divorced) 1 child
• Linda Gilbert (1977 - 1983) (divorced) 1 daughter
• Gail Jensen (4 December 1988 - 1997) (divorced)
• Coco d'Este (20 February 1998 - 12 December 2001) (divorced)
• Carradine also played a recurring role in seasons two and three on the television show Alias.
• He currently lives in L.A. with girlfriend Annie, her four kids and their three dogs.
• Carradine appeared in an episode of Disney's Lizzie McGuire. A yet-untitled Jet Li picture was auditioning boys Matt's age for a sidekick role, and Carradine played an old friend of Lizzie's father who taught Matt a few karate moves for his audition tape. When asked how he knew David, Mr. McGuire replied cryptically, "He's like a brother to me"--an in-joke, since Robert and David are real-life brothers. A large part of the episode, too, parodies Kung Fu, Carradine's most famous project.