The end of a big era for anyone growing up in the 80's.
The King of Nerds is no more.
Actually, I don't think I ever really followed the Nerd movies. I was aware of Robert Carradine from my study of television production which along with that came an interest in certain Hollywood families.
Among them were both the Carradine family as well as the Barrymore family, who were both close friends to each other.
The Barrymore family of course really beginning with Lionel Barrymore and John Barrymore, which lead to John Drew Barrymore. John Drew was a really good but eccentric actor. I first became aware of him because he was blackballed by Hollywood in 1967 for not showing up and meeting his contract to appear in an original episode of Star Trek (#20 The Alternative Factor). They had to bring another actor in at the last minute to fill the role. John Drew did not work again in Hollywood until the mid-70s (1974) when David Carradine had him on his 'Kung Fu' TV series as a guest, in the episode 'A Dream Within A Dream.'
And of course, John Drew lead to son John Blyth Barrymore, a minor actor whose first role in television at the age of 15 was also as a guest on TV by David Carradine to star in the final 4-part episode of 'Kung Fu' in the series closer where Kwai Chang finally finds his brother. Which of course leads to daughter Drew Barrymore, which is all the Barrymore most people today associate with the name.
But the Carradine family was a rather broken family as well, most of the kids coming from several different marriages with John Carradine whom, through a bitter custody battle, John kept with him after the divorce, including Bruce Carradine (adopted), David Carradine, Keith Carradine, and Robert Carradine. Of the four, David and Keith had the biggest careers. Keith Carradine even made a few guest appearances on 'The Big Bang Theory' as Penny's father.
But back to 'Kung Fu', on the TV series, star of the series David had his whole family on: Older brother Bruce made a couple of appearances in minor roles, usually as a sheriff or something, younger half-brother Keith appeared mainly as a younger version of Kwai Chang Caine growing up in the temple, father John Carradine appeared three times, once each season reprising the same character of 'Serenity Johnson,' and Robert Carradine appeared once in one of his very first acting roles as 'Sonny Jim'; this is where I first saw Robert Carradine.
In the 2nd made for TV episode of Kung Fu, both John Carradine, David Carradine and Robert Carradine all appeared together; it was the episode where essentially, Kwai Chang first learns having come to America that he has a half-brother here from another marriage, which became the basis of the series, seeking to find his American half-brother.
David Carradine committed suicide back in around 2009 I think when he accidentally hung himself in Thailand as I recall while attempting some lone weird sex thing involving strangulating himself, and now his younger half-brother Robert, best remembered for his roles in the Revenge of the Nerds thing committing suicide after a long battle with bipolar disorder.
That pretty much leaves the Barrymores with Drew, whom I think might have left the country because of Trump (mutant TDS), and Keith Carradine, apparently the most normal and balanced of the Carradines.
Small world.
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