John was the son of Jim C. Dye, a furniture manufacturer, and Lynn Maree (Duvall), a homemaker. They raised him and his two younger brothers, Jamey and Jerre, as devout Methodists. Jerre Dye, also an actor, is the artistic director of a local theatre group called Voices of the South. John Dye never married or sired children. His favorite TV show as a child was
Jonny Quest (1964) and his favorite movie was
The Wizard of Oz (1939).