The Warrior and the Sorceress

In the 60’s Roger Corman also became famous for a whole series of film adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe’s literature whose basic ideas he tried to incorporate into horror movies. In the year 1970 Roger Corman created with “von Richthofen and Brown” his last directing work for two decades. With his production company New World Pictures, which in 1983 was rebranded under the name Concorde – New Horizons Corp., he appeared exclusively as a film producer. He created movies like 1972 “Boxcar Bertha” by Martin Scorsese, 1975 “Capone” by Steve Carver or 1978 “Piranha” by Joe Dante. In the year 1990 he returned to the director’s chair for a short stint with “Frankenstein Unbound“. After that he continued his activity as a producer to realize such successful movies as the “Death Race“-series. Altogether Corman produced more than 200 movies.

Among the movies in which he appeared himself are the thriller “Silence of the Lambs” (1990), the social drama “Philadelphia” (1993) or “The Manchurian Candidate” (2004). In 1998 he was honoured with the first award for a producer at the Cannes film festival and in 2010 he received the Honorary Oscar Award for his life’s achievements. Roger Corman is married to Julie Ann Halloran with whom he has four children.

About John Arthur Carradine:

John Arthur Carradine was born on 8 December 1936 in Los Angeles. He came from a family of actors whose careers extended over many decades. David’s acting career lasted nearly sixty years. First he attended a high school in Oakland, then went to junior college and finally studied acting and music theory at San Francisco State College, where he became a member of a Shakespearean troupe which increased his interest in acting. Although he steadfastly tried to avoid conscription, he was drafted into the US Army in 1960. Two years later, after the birth of his daughter Calista, he was discharged honorably. He began to put his attention more seriously towards acting and made his TV debut in 1963 in “Armstrong Circle Theatre“. Further TV roles followed, which finally led to a contract with Universal and his film debut in the Western “Taggart” in 1964. He went to Broadway and appeared in Rolf Hochmuth‘s play “The Deputy“, but appeared again for Universal in front of the TV cameras. But it should be another Broadway play that really started his career: In Peter Shaffer’s “The Royal Hunt of the Sun” he impersonated the Inca ruler Atahualpa who tries to defend himself against the Spanish conquistador Pizarro – played in the play by Christopher Plummer. With 261 performances, the play was not only a great success, Carradine’s performance also convinced audiences and critics all along the line and he was awarded the 1965 Theatre World Award for “Best Newcomer“ for his role.

In 1966 he left Broadway again and took over the leading role in the western series “Shane“. Despite good reviews, the series was cancelled after only 17 episodes, but it made Carradine a coveted supporting actor, especially in Western films. After a role in the TV movie “Johnny Belinda“, which Carradine called the “rescue of his career”, followed several more or less imprtant supporting roles in “Young Billy Young” (1969), “The Good Guys and the Bad Guys” (1969) and “The MCMasters” (1970). After various TV roles he appeared in 1972 as Big Bill Shelly in “Boxcar Bertha”, one of the first films by master director Martin Scorsese, alongside Barbara Hershey.

Four more movies followed, then he got the role that should make him an international star: Between 1972 and 1975 he slipped into the role of the Shaolin monk Kwai Chang Caine in ABC‘s TV series “Kung Fu“. Beside the movies of Bruce Lee (1940 – 1973), “Kung Fu” made the Far Eastern martial art and philosophy an integral part of Western popular culture. The series earned Carradine an Emmy and a Golden Globe nomination and eventually led to his first leading role in “Death Race 2000” (1975), a science fiction film directed by Paul Bertel and produced by Roger Corman, now one of New World Pictures‘ cult films. A year later, the trio reunited for “Cannonball” and Carradine got behind the wheel of a racing car again. That same year, he was named “Best Actor“ by the National Board of Review for his portrayal of Woody Guthrie in “Bound for Glory“, nominated for the Golden Globe, and honored with the New York Film Critics Award. In 1977 he played a third time for Roger Corman, this time the racing driver in “Thunder and Lightning“, and appeared in “The Serpent’s Egg” for the Swedish directing legend Ingmar Bergman.

In 1978 another supporting role followed in “Gray Lady Down“, this time alongside Charlton Heston, and with “Deathsport” – the unofficial successor of “Death Race 2000” – another Corman film. His role in “The Long Riders” from 1980 is one of his most remarkable appearances. In the film about the gang of revolver hero Jesse James, he played the outlaw Cole Younger along with his half-brothers Keith and Robert. Carradine remained a sought-after actor, especially for action films, and in the early 1980s even sat on the director’s chair for “Americana“. He also took on the leading role, but although the film appealed to the audience, there was no great financial success. His last directing work “Mata Hari“, with his daughter Calista in the leading role, has remained unpublished until today.

In the 1980s, however, his fame as a film actor faded somewhat and film roles became rarer. From then on he found most offers on TV or in action films which appeared directly on video, and so he became Chuck Norris‘ opponent in “Lone Wolf McQuade” in 1982, appeared as warrior Cain in “The Warrior and the Sorceress” (1984) and returned in 1986 as Caine in “Kung Fu“. His career found a new success with his role as the vicious Justin LaMotte in the cult series “North and South“, which earned him another Golden Globe nomination.

In the 1990s his career was marked by further appearances in TV movies and B-action flicks, as for example between 1993 and 1997 when he slipped into the role of Cain again in the series “Kung Fu – The Legend Continues“. Shortly thereafter he was honored with a star on the Walk of Fame, but his career was on a downslide. This changed in 2003 when Quentin Tarantino entrusted him with the role of Bill in Kill Bill (2003/2004). A big favorite for the Oscar, Carradine was denied the golden boy, but again he was nominated for the Golden Globe and received the Saturn Award as “Best Supporting Actor“. Despite a solid performance in “American Reel” (2003), the quality of his role offerings hardly improved and the last years of the 2000s were – like the 1990s – characterized by hardly worth mentioning roles in TV and cheap productions. Nevertheless, Carradine is still considered one of Hollywood’s hardest working actors after more than 230 appearances. On 3 June 2009 he was found strangled in his hotel room in Bangkok. Although suicide was initially assumed, two autopsies revealed an accident caused by autoerotic strangulation as the cause of death.

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