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Actor David Carradine Found Dead in Bangkok

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Posted

Actor David Carradine Found Dead in Bangkok

 

The Associated Press

06/04/2009

 

BANGKOK—Actor David Carradine, star of the 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" who also had a wide-ranging career in the movies, has been found dead in the Thai capital, Bangkok.

 

A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy, Michael Turner, confirmed the death of the 72-year-old actor. He says Carradine died either late Wednesday or early Thursday, but he could not provide further details out of consideration for his family.

 

The Web site of the newspaper The Nation cited unidentified police sources as saying Carradine was found Thursday hanged in his luxury hotel room and is believed to have committed suicide.

 

Carradine was a leading member of a venerable Hollywood acting family that included his father, character actor John Carradine, and brother Keith.

____________________

 

And this, from THE NATION:

_____

 

David Carradine Found Dead in Bangkok

 

"Kung Fu" and "Kill Bill" star David Carradine was found hung himself in a closet in a hotel room in Bangkok on Wednesday, Thai police said.

 

Police believed he committed suicide.

 

Carradine, 72, was in Bangkok to shoot his latest movie, Stretch, and stayed at a Suite Room 352 of the Park Nai Lert Hotel on Wireless Road since June 2.

 

The film crew were aware of his absence when they went to dine out at a restaurant on Sathorn Road on June 3.

 

Carradine did not show up at the dinner and the team could not reach him. They assumed that he took a rest because of his age.

 

It was a hotel's maid who opened his suite on Thursday at 10 am only to find Carradine in a closet. He was described as behind half naked.

 

Police investigation showed that he hung himself with a rope, the kind that is used with curtains.

 

Police said he was dead for not less than 12 hours and found no sign of fighting and assaults.

 

His personal manager, Chuck Binder, told BBC that the news was "shocking", adding: "He was full of life, always wanting to work... a great person."

 

Aside from Quentin Tarantino's two-part "Kill Bill" in 2003 and 2004, Carradine was perhaps best known for his role as the fugitive half-Chinese Shaolin monk Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s easternwestern TV drama "Kung Fu". He also starred in Martin Scorsese's "Boxcar Bertha" in 1972, portrayed folksinger Woody Guthrie in "Bound for Glory" in 1976, acted in Ingmar Bergman's "The Serpent's Egg" in 1977 and co-starred with half brothers Keith Carradine and Robert Carradine in the 1980 western "The Long Riders".

 

His father was the noted actor John Carradine.

 

In Thai cinemas, Carradine was recently seen as a martial arts guru in the Rob Schneider comedy "Big Stan" and as a perverted elderly Chinese mobster in "Crank: High Voltage" starring Jason Statham.

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted

It's amazing how many farang suicides there are in Thailand. Were his hands tied behind his back?

Posted

Does it strike anyone besides me as just a little strange that the man would travel all the way to Thailand to make a movie, check in to his hotel, and then less than 2 days later hang himself in his hotel room, while apparently nobody close to him had even an inkling that he was suicidal?

 

Sounds to me more as if he offed the wrong boy.

Guest Oogleman
Posted

And he took the curtain rope before getting into the wardrobe to do it,

 

 

Pleaseeeeeeeeee!

 

Lets see if the hotels CCTV was working, his representatives should demand to see it.

Posted
And he took the curtain rope before getting into the wardrobe to do it,

Pleaseeeeeeeeee!

Something is rotten in the state of Bangkok.

 

Certainly I feel very badly for him, whether it was suicide or something more sinister, but where's Miss Marple when you need her?

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted
where's Miss Marple when you need her?

She and Hercule Poirot are doing the horizontal tango. No time or energy left for work.

Guest Geezer
Posted

I still remember my disappointment upon learning the Kung Fu character was played by a farang with a big nose, round eyes, bad complexion, non descript hair and gangling gait rather than a beautiful Asian.

Posted
I still remember my disappointment upon learning the Kung Fu character was played by a farang

Good point. That's right up there with American Indians being played by everyone except American Indians.

 

Meanwhile, back at the schloss, The Plot Thickens . . . .

 

Here are some more details, from the BANGKOK POST:

_____

 

'Kung Fu' Star Carradine Dead

 

By: WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM

Published: 5/06/2009

 

American actor David Carradine has been found dead in a closet in a hotel room in Bangkok.

 

Police have not confirmed whether he took his own life or was murdered.

 

The naked body of the 72-year-old actor was found by a housekeeper in a closet in room number 352 of Swissotel Nai Lert Park Hotel in the Lumpini area at 11am yesterday.

 

Lumpini police said the body of Carradine was found curled up inside the wardrobe with one end of a shoelace tied around his penis and the other end fastened around his neck.

 

Both of his hands were bound with a cord which was also tied around his neck, said an officer at the station who requested anonymity.

 

Forensic experts said Carradine had probably died between 12 and 24 hours before his body was found.

 

They said there were no injury marks on his body and no evidence of a struggle having taken place in the room. Mysteriously, a footprint found on the bed did not match the shoes worn by Carradine.

 

There was a glass of water in the room. Experts were checking to see if the drink had been tampered with.

 

Police refused to give further details, saying they needed to gather more evidence to determine the cause of death.

 

Carradine was in Bangkok to star in a new movie, Strand.

 

He arrived with a film crew in Bangkok and checked in at the hotel a few days ago.

 

He rose to fame in the TV series Kung Fu, which ran from 1972 to 1975, playing Kwai Chang Caine, a monk and martial arts expert who roamed the American West.

 

He went on to win a Golden Globe best actor award for his role in the movie Bound for Glory, the life story of folk singer Woody Guthrie, in 1976.

 

He also starred in the Quentin Tarantino films Kill Bill: Vol. 1 and Kill Bill: Vol. 2, made in 2003 and 2004.

Posted
Both of his hands were bound with a cord which was also tied around his neck, said an officer at the station who requested anonymity.

 

 

If true, rather debunks the suicide theory (well, at least in places where there are competent cops).

Guest gay_grampa
Posted
Does it strike anyone besides me as just a little strange that the man would travel all the way to Thailand to make a movie, check in to his hotel, and then less than 2 days later hang himself in his hotel room, while apparently nobody close to him had even an inkling that he was suicidal?

 

Sounds to me more as if he offed the wrong boy.

 

 

Lumpini police said the body of Carradine was found curled up inside the wardrobe with one end of a shoelace tied around his penis and the other end fastened around his neck.

 

Both of his hands were bound with a cord which was also tied around his neck, said an officer at the station who requested anonymity.

 

Let's not jump to conclusions ... Auto-Erotic Asphyxiation

Posted
If true, rather debunks the suicide theory

Actually, I don't rule out the possibility of suicide. Accidental suicide. Every once in a while I read about people who get some sort of sexual satisfaction from being strangled almost to the point of unconsciousness, and they'll often do something to induce it themselves, if they don't have someone to do it for them. I've even read of bizarre incidents in which they accidentally kill themselves. Have a look at the link gay_grampa posted above about Auto-Erotic Asphyxiation.

 

Of course, I know absolutely nothing about Mr. Carradine or whether he was into anything like that, but from the reports being published, despite it being a farfetched possibility, it's still a possibility. Although, the article does say both his hands were bound, I could still envision him having a prostitute in his room with him, requesting that kind of "service," and then the prostitute simply walking out the door and leaving him there, helpless, like that. Considering how weird the whole incident is, that's as good a possibility as any.

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted

Since his hands were tied with cord around his neck and a shoelace tied around his penis and neck, I think it is 100% safe to say it was not suicide.

Posted

The auto-eroticism/asphyxiation deal has been around for a while (though one doesn't hear about it much lately) and, yes, there were accidental deaths by boys trying it out. I guess (but have no desire to give it a try) the orgasm is supposed to be enhanced if experienced when one is about to pass out.

 

But.....I'm still puzzled about the hands tied around his neck. Never heard of that before and, at least on first blush, it's difficult for me to believe he did that himself. But, then again, difficult to accept that the Thai press or cops report anything accurately.

Guest Soi10Tom
Posted

I think that I can shed some light on this mystery. Today I was talking to a good friend, that several of the posters on here also know, who is a prominent Hollywood entertainment/business attorney and producer. He said that the victim had a long history of heavy drug use...and that his "suicide" was "no doubt" the result of a drug deal gone wrong. Makes sense to me when you look at the strange method of "suicide."

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted
Makes sense to me when you look at the strange method of "suicide."

While this is certainly a possibility I wouldn't take it as gospel. I knew an HIV pos American guy many years ago (more than 30 years) who lived in Puerto Vallarta. He claimed that Elizabeth Taylor had helped him because of his disease. He also said she had AIDS and was in bad shape. This obviously was not true. I have no idea why he would say such a thing.

Guest laurence
Posted

Instead of all this speculation by forum members I suggest someone should test out the method of David Caradine's death and report on it, that is, if you survive. No, I am not volunteering.

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted

Based on this it might be a good idea to delete this pic.

 

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY

,

AP

 

LOS ANGELES (June 7) - David Carradine's family members, dissatisfied with Thai investigators and "profoundly disturbed" by the publication of a forensics photo in a Bangkok tabloid, are seeking help from the FBI and an independent pathologist and have threatened legal action against any media outlet that reprints images of the actor in death.

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted
Ok, pic deleted. Besides, that picture looks like a fake to me anyhow.

I agree since Bangkok Post said he was curled up in the wardrobe and the pic showed the body hanging from a rod.

Posted
I agree since Bangkok Post said he was curled up in the wardrobe and the pic showed the body hanging from a rod.

Maybe not a fake after all, according to AP. Nevertheless the family made it clear that they are quite upset over publication of the photo, so I did remove it to avoid being caught up in a lawsuit and out of respect to the family's wishes.

_____

 

Carradine Family Takes Action on Probe, Photos

 

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY, AP Entertainment Writer

 

LOS ANGELES – David Carradine's family members, dissatisfied with Thai investigators and "profoundly disturbed" by the publication of a forensics photo in a Bangkok tabloid, are seeking help from the FBI and an independent pathologist and have threatened legal action against any media outlet that reprints images of the actor in death.

 

Keith Carradine has filed reports with the FBI that could lead to the agency's involvement, said Mark Geragos, attorney for the "Kung Fu" actor's half-brother. The FBI confirmed that Carradine's family had contacted the agency.

 

The family will also seek an independent autopsy by famed forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden to determine whether another person could have been involved, Geragos said. Results of an autopsy performed Friday in Bangkok were not expected for at least three weeks.

 

A chambermaid found Carradine's body Thursday at Bangkok's Swissotel Nai Lert Park Hotel. Thai authorities said they have all but ruled out foul play, based on surveillance footage and interviews with hotel staff that indicate no one was in Carradine's room before he died, said Col. Somprasong Yenthuam, who is heading the investigation.

 

A grainy photo published on the Saturday cover of the tabloid Thai Rath shows a naked body suspended from a clothes bar in a hotel closet, hands apparently bound together above the head and feet on the floor. The face is blacked out and other areas are obscured.

 

The paper did not indicate the source of the image, but Thai police said they believed it was a picture of Carradine's body taken by a forensics team.

 

Keith Carradine said in a statement that the family was "profoundly disturbed by the release in Thailand of photographs taken at the scene of David Carradine's death," and threatened legal action against further distribution.

 

"The family wants it understood that, per attorney Mark Geragos, any persons, publications or media outlets will be fully prosecuted for invasion of privacy and causing severe emotional distress if the photos are published," the statement read.

 

The actor's family hopes the body will arrive in Los Angeles by Monday, Geragos said, but he did not give specifics.

 

Geragos said the family decided to intervene because of conflicting information about Carradine's death and a lack of direct information from Thai authorities.

 

"All we really know is not much more than what the public knows, and that's disturbing," Geragos said.

 

Agents were checking with the FBI's legal attache at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok to see if Thai authorities "are requesting or would welcome FBI assistance in this matter." FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said the agency generally only gets involved in death investigations overseas if a crime is suspected.

 

Investigators initially said Carradine's body was found "naked, hanging in a closet," causing them to suspect he had taken his own life. But his family, friends and representatives have said they doubt the 72-year-old actor would have killed himself.

 

Police later said the actor may have died from accidental suffocation or heart failure after revealing that he was found with a rope tied around his wrist, neck and genitals — leading to speculation that Carradine may have engaged in a dangerous form of sex play known as auto-erotic asphyxiation.

 

But Geragos said he expects the examination by the New York-based Baden, a celebrity among forensic pathologists who frequently consults on high-profile cases, will clear up many unanswered questions.

 

"It's an amazing thing what a good pathologist can accomplish," Geragos said.

 

Carradine flew to Thailand last week and began work on a film titled "Stretch" two days before his death. His friends and associates told CNN's Larry King he had a happy marriage, recently bought a new car, and had several films lined up after he finished work in Bangkok.

 

A martial arts practitioner himself, Carradine was best known for the U.S. TV series "Kung Fu," which aired from 1972-75. He played Kwai Chang Caine, an orphan who was raised by Shaolin monks and fled China for the American West after killing the emperor's nephew in retaliation for the murder of his kung fu master.

 

Carradine also appeared in more than 100 feature films with such directors as Martin Scorsese, Ingmar Bergman and Hal Ashby. He returned to the top in recent years as the title character in Quentin Tarantino's two-part saga "Kill Bill."

 

Funeral arrangements have not been announced.

 

 

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted

There have been so many conflicting reports it is hard to know what is real and what is fake at this point.

Guest lvdkeyes
Posted

His kinky sexual appetite is coming to light from his divorce papers to one of his ex wives. She, respectfully, isn't talking about it.

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