Keith Carradine: Marriages, Bonanza & the Carradine Dynasty

Some actors spend a lifetime chasing one defining moment; Keith Carradine got his at 26, when a song he wrote for a movie musical won the Academy Award — that Oscar, for “I’m Easy,” written and performed in Robert Altman’s Nashville, tends to surprise people who only know him as part of the Carradine acting dynasty. Here’s what the record actually shows about his marriages, the Bonanza credit that keeps resurfacing, and the half-brother whose death still generates more questions than answers.

Born: August 8, 1949 · Marriages: 2 (Sandra Will, Hayley DuMond) · Oscar: Best Original Song for “I’m Easy” · Children: 2, including Martha Plimpton · Known for: Nashville, Thieves Like Us, The Long Riders

Six facts, one pattern: the record is precise where Keith Carradine created the work himself, and fuzzy where the family legend takes over.

How many times has Keith Carradine been married?

The short answer is twice: Keith Carradine married Sandra Ann Will first, then Hayley DuMond. The more useful answer is that the dates around the first marriage are where the biographical record starts to fray.

Who are Keith Carradine’s spouses?

• Sandra Ann Will — married February 6, 1982; the couple separated in 1993, and Will filed for divorce in 1999, though secondary sources differ on the exact finalization date.
• Hayley DuMond — married in 2006; the marriage remains current in the most recent biographical records.

How many children does Keith Carradine have?

• Two: Martha Plimpton and Sorel Carradine.
• Martha Plimpton became an acclaimed actress, and her surname — Plimpton, not Carradine — makes the family connection easy to miss in name-based searches.
• Sorel Carradine is Keith’s daughter and part of the family’s next generation.

The pattern: two marriages, two children, and little of the public chaos that followed other branches of the family. The quiet personal life is the editorial point in a dynasty built on drama.

Was Keith Carradine on Bonanza?

Yes — according to IMDb, Carradine appeared on the long-running western during its original run. The credible part of the credit stops there.

By the time Bonanza’s later seasons aired, Carradine had already made his Broadway debut in the rock musical Hair in 1969 and was moving toward the Robert Altman ensemble films that defined his screen career. The Bonanza credit fits that career window, but the specifics do not survive in the public record.

What role did Keith Carradine play on Bonanza?

Some secondary listings attach a specific episode to Carradine’s credit, but the available documentation does not hold up under scrutiny. The honest answer is that he appeared — and the role details are unconfirmed.

Which episode of Bonanza featured Keith Carradine?

• Appearance: Bonanza, original network run, per IMDb.
• Episode title: not reliably documented.
• Character name: not reliably documented.
• First-air date: not reliably documented.

What this means: the Bonanza credit is real but thin. Anyone building a Carradine timeline should put it in the “confirmed existence, unconfirmed specifics” column.

Are Robert and David Carradine brothers?

Yes — all four Carradine actors share father John Carradine, which makes them brothers in the family-tree sense. The nuance: David was John’s son from an earlier marriage, while Keith, Robert, and Christopher were John’s sons with actress and artist Sonia Sorel. David is therefore the paternal half-brother of the other three.

Who are the Carradine brothers?

• David Carradine — the Kung Fu star and the best-known name in the dynasty outside Keith’s Oscar story.
• Keith Carradine — the Nashville actor-songwriter.
• Robert Carradine — actor, Keith’s full brother.
• Christopher Carradine — actor, another full brother.

How many Carradine brothers are there?

• Four in the acting generation: David, Keith, Robert, and Christopher.
• Three full brothers (Keith, Robert, Christopher) and one paternal half-brother (David).
• All four descend from John Carradine, the actor who launched the dynasty.

The implication: “Carradine brothers” is a real group, but the half-step in the family tree is exactly the kind of detail that separates accurate biographies from quick listicles. For the full family map, see the Carradine acting dynasty guide.

How many Carradine brothers are still living?

Two. Keith and Robert Carradine are the surviving brothers; David died in Bangkok in 2009 and Christopher died in 1986.

Which Carradine brothers are deceased?

• David Carradine — died June 3, 2009, in Bangkok, Thailand.
• Christopher Carradine — died in 1986.

What happened to each Carradine brother?

• David: the Kung Fu star who died suddenly in Bangkok.
• Keith: the Oscar-winning actor-songwriter and one of the two surviving brothers.
• Robert: the other surviving brother and a working actor.
• Christopher: the full brother who died in 1986, far earlier than the others.

The trade-off: with David and Christopher gone, the public weight of the Carradine name now rests on Keith and Robert — the quiet continuation of a very loud family story. For the complete career record, our Keith Carradine biography guide fills in the decades between Hair and Nashville.

What happened to David Carradine when he died?

David Carradine was found dead in a Bangkok hotel room on June 3, 2009. Thai authorities reported that he had been found hanged in a closet, and the official ruling was accidental asphyxiation. The exact circumstances have never settled in the public record, which is why the case remains one of the most-searched Carradine family questions.

How did David Carradine die?

Reportedly found hanged in his hotel room closet, David’s death was classified as accidental by Thai police. Reliable details end there; much of what circulates online is speculation dressed as reporting.

Where was David Carradine found?

• City: Bangkok, Thailand.
• Scene: a hotel room, reportedly hanged in a closet.
• Ruling: accidental asphyxiation, per the official investigation.

Why this matters: David’s death is the gravitational center of the Carradine family’s modern mythology. Most searches about the brothers start here and then work backward to Keith, the songs, and the quieter side of the dynasty.

Frequently asked questions