Tad Devine obit

Tad Devine, Son of Prolific Character Actor Andy Devine, Dies at 88

He got to work alongside his dad and brother in 'Canyon Passage,' a 1946 Western starring Dana Andrews.

 

He was not on the list.

Tad Devine, who appeared alongside his father, the popular raspy-voiced character actor Andy Devine, and younger brother in the Dana Andrews-starring 1946 film Canyon Passage, has died. He was 88.

Devine died March 22 in Newport Beach, his family announced.

In Universal Pictures’ Canyon Passage, directed by Jacques Tourneur and also starring Susan Hayward and Brian Donlevy, Andy Devine portrayed an Oregon homesteader with sons played by his real-life boys, Tad and Denny. (The kids even got billing on the movie poster.)

Andy Devine, who appeared with John Wayne in John Ford’s Stagecoach (1939) and was Roy Rogers’ sidekick, Cookie, in 10 movies and the deputy marshal Jingles on the 1950s CBS show Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok, died in 1977 at age 71. He had a rather distinctive voice.

Tad was born Timothy Andrew Devine in Los Angeles on Nov. 26, 1934. “His childhood on the family ranch was filled with characters and adventures, from horseback rides and hunts to tall tales and travels on set with his father,” his family noted. At age 17, he became one of Santa Monica’s youngest lifeguards.

After graduating from high school in Van Nuys, Devine set swimming records at Stanford University and competed in the U.S. Olympic trials in 1956. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a member of its underwater demolition team and achieved the rank of lieutenant commander before completing his service.

He later owned a property management company.

In addition to his brother, survivors include his wife, Donna, whom he married in 1963; children Debra and Drew; grandchildren T.J., Margaret, Ava and Andi; and niece Patricia.