Raymon Lee Cramton (June 11, 1937 - July 24, 2012), known professionally as Chad Everett, was an American actor who appeared in more than 40 films and television series. Everett was born Raymon Lee Cramton on June 11, 1937 in South Bend, Indiana, to Virdeen (née Hopper) and Harry Clyde "Ted" Everett.
Everett's father was a racecar driver as well as a racing mechanic and an auto parts salesman. He was raised in Dearborn, Michigan, where he attended Fordson High School. While there, he played on the football team as a quarterback and began acting in stage plays at age 14. During his junior year at Wayne State University in Detroit, he joined a State Department-sponsored acting troupe that toured India. "I went into acting because I'm easily bored", Everett once said.
Everett's first notable role came in an episode of the 1960-1962 detective series Surfside 6. His first major role came a year later in the film Claudelle Inglish, and he played a deputy in the short-lived 1963 ABC Western television series The Dakotas. After appearing in a number of movies and television series in the later 1960s, he got his big break, landing the role of Dr.
He appeared in numerous films and television series, including The Singing Nun, Centennial, Hagen, Airplane II: The Sequel, Star Command, and Mulholland Drive. In 1987, Everett supplied the voice of Ultraman Chuck in the English version of the animated movie Ultraman: The Adventure Begins and voiced several characters in the animated television series The New Yogi Bear Show. In 2001, Everett played one brief scene with Naomi Watts in David Lynch's Mulholland Drive.
Chad Everett in "Medical Center" (1974)
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Marriage and Family Life
Everett married actress Shelby Grant in Tucson, Arizona on May 22, 1966. Everett was on location in Tucson filming the 1967 movie Return of the Gunfighter at the time of their wedding. They had two daughters, Katherine and Shannon.
The couple remained married for 45 years until her death after a brain aneurysm on June 25, 2011. Everett credited his family with being a stabilizing force in his life, stating that even in the worst of times, Grant "never threatened to leave. She would tell me that she was there for me. If not for my family, I would have been in big trouble." Grant noted his romanticism; he sent her so many flowers during their courtship that "my balcony looked like a burial ground." He also often wrote sentimental poems to Grant throughout their marriage, as well as to his daughters.
During an appearance on The Dick Cavett Show that aired on March 31, 1972, Everett notoriously listed his animals as "three horses and three dogs and a wife" and that his wife was " ... the most beautiful animal I own." Fellow guest Lily Tomlin gasped, "You own? I have to leave!" and walked off the set.
Battles with Alcoholism
After Medical Center ended, Everett became frustrated when no movie roles were forthcoming and television roles were not working out. A long-time social drinker, he began drinking heavily. He was consuming a quart of vodka a day by the time he quit drinking in 1986. "I was a functional alcoholic." Shelby noted his alcohol-related mood swings and has said, "[F]inally I confronted him. I came into the bedroom with a big pot of coffee one morning and said 'we have a major problem to deal with here.'"
A month later, Everett caught sight of himself on a video and did not like what he saw. "'Finally,' I said, 'I am really in trouble'. I stepped outside and I looked up and said 'Father, you take it. I can't handle it anymore.'" The next day, he told his daughters (who were living at home at the time), "I am addicted to alcohol, and I am not going away to detox.
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Paternity Suit
Beginning in 1973, actress Sheila Scott initiated court proceedings against Everett three times, claiming her son Dale (born 1973) was fathered by him. The lengthy and complicated paternity suit ended in 1984 when a California Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Everett. "From the evidence adduced, the jury concluded that Everett was not Dale's father despite the 94.67 percent probability of paternity from the HLA test"... Everett refused to take any more tests regarding paternity.
He entered into a private financial settlement with Scott in 1973 but steadfastly maintained he was not Dale's father. In 1991, Scott was sentenced to three months' probation following a guilty verdict of "harassing" Everett for 18 years, including death threats against him and his wife.
Chad Everett as Older Dean Winchester
Chad Everett in Supernatural
Supernatural 5x07 “The Curious Case of Dean Winchester” Review
One of Everett's most memorable later roles was his guest appearance in the Supernatural episode "The Curious Case of Dean Winchester" (Season 5, Episode 7). In this episode, Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) discover a he-witch (guest star Hal Ozsan) is running a high-stakes poker game where the currency is life years instead of money. Bobby (Jim Beaver) sees the game as a chance to get out of the wheelchair and bets 25 years, but loses. As Bobby begins to age rapidly, Dean steps in to save him but also ends up turning into an old man, leaving Sam holding the bag for their survival. Robert Singer directed the episode with teleplay by Sera Gamble and story by Sera Gamble & Jenny Klein.
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The casting director chose veteran television actor Chad Everett to step into the role of the older Dean Winchester. Everett, who is most well known for his role as Dr. Joe Gannon on the highly successful 1970’s hospital drama series Medical Center, was playing a medical drama heartthrob long before anyone ever heard of Dr. McDreamy so I knew he had the looks and physical build to pull it off. Chad Everett’s portrayal of Dean Winchester was nearly flawless and the best part of all was it never seemed like he was “forcing it”. Part of what made this version of Dean Winchester so believable was the use of an older actor who could more organically play the limitations and issues that happen to even the healthiest of men, as they get older.
I loved the way the older version of Dean interacted with Sam and Sam not treating him any different than normal. The brother dynamic was still very much in place and that is a testament not only to the talent of Chad Everett but also to the talent of Jared Padalecki as well. Sam believed it was Dean so we believed it too.
The Curious Case of Dean Winchester was a very powerful episode and part of what made it work so well as such was the talent of Jim Beaver as Bobby Singer who is now trapped in a wheelchair. There’s a war going on and Bobby feels like he’s no longer able to be useful in it. Bobby wants out of that chair and back into action or he just wants to be dead, which is what prompts him to play the he-witch’s game.
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