David Carradine’s Family Asks For FBI’s Help
The FBI has offered its assistance to Thai authorities investigating Thursday’s death of actor David Carradine, agency officials tell PEOPLE.
After Carradine’s half-brother, Keith Carradine, met Friday with FBI officials in Los Angeles, those officials contacted the FBI’s legal attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok “to determine if the Thai authorities are requesting or would welcome FBI assistance in this matter,” FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimilller tells PEOPLE. She adds there is no word yet as to whether Thai authorities will invite the FBI to join their investigation.
The FBI has no jurisdiction in other countries, but occasionally offers assistance investigating the deaths of Americans when foul play is suspected or when the family requests such intervention.
Keith Carradine, 59, “wants authorities to investigate his brother’s death, and to determine if anyone else was involved,” says Keith Carradine’s attorney, Mark Geragos, who arranged Friday’s meeting with the FBI.
Geragos tells PEOPLE that Keith and other family members are finding the grieving process even more difficult because they keep getting conflicting details regarding the condition of Carradine’s body when it was discovered.
Thai police had confirmed that a maid found Carradine, 72, nude in the closet of his luxury suite with a rope tied around his neck and one around his genitals. “It is unclear whether he committed suicide or not, or he died of suffocation or heart failure,” said police Lt. Gen. Worapong Chewprecha, the Associated Pres reported. An autopsy was ordered because of the “unusual circumstances” surrounding the death, said Dr. Nanthana Sirisap, director of Chulalongkorn Hospital’s Autopsy Center.
For those who knew Carradine well, Geragos says the possibility that Carradine’s death was a suicide seems unlikely – he had a lust for life, a busy career and even a new sports car.
“The information keeps evolving, and that’s troubling them,” Geragos tells PEOPLE. He adds that although it has been reported that surveillance footage indicates no one entered or left David Carradine’s hotel room during the time he likely died, the family would like the FBI to review that evidence as well.
“It’s hard to start the grieving process when you don’t have all the information on what happened,” says Geragos. “Family members, including Keith and Hayley (DuMond, Keith’s companion), are frustrated and in shock.”
An autopsy has already been conducted on David Carradine in Bangkok, but a second might be done in the United States by the family, sources say.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:12 pm
I am a blogger on the scene in Bangkok at the hotel where Carradine died and am blogging about this on http://magickpapers.com/blog
ICON OF AN AMERICAN FILM DYNASTY
BY ANTONIO PINEDA
The announcer for the BBC breaks the story on TV. David Carradine was found dead in the Swiss Hotel on Soi Nailert. The film star was found in the closet of his room bound by curtain rope around his neck, and the inference is that his genitals were bound as well. The news ran through the Bangkok film colony like a forest fire.
I consult investigative journalist David Walker. He is also a screenwriter and author of the cult classic book, Hello My Big Big Honey. Walker is at the hotel. He has already led a CBS crew to legendary film producer-director David Winters penthouse office. Winters is a dear friend of Carradine from their glory days in Hollywood. Walker wants to see the surveilance tapes. No chance Bagger Vance. Dr. Pornthip, a colorful Thai forensic scientist is on the scene at the hotel. Walker says Pornthip, who is famous for sporting many hued punk hair styles and is a bit of a celebrity,delares the case to be death by auto sexual strangulation.
I roll up to Winters penthouse office. He is devastated by the tragic loss of a dear friend. He has not slept. CBS and People Magazine have already come by to solicit intelligence. David is shocked by the tawdry inferrences. He has spoken to 3 of Carradines agents. The agents declare that Carradine was on the roll of a lifetime. Quentin Tarantino redefined the 72 year old actor in Kill Bill. Carradine recieved a Golden Globe nomination for his work with Tarantino. The actor of the classic cult TV series Kung Fu had starred in 13 motion pictures since Kill Bill. His salary was in the stratosphere.
The strange circumstances of the verdict by auto- sexual strangulation trouble Winters. It takes two to tango. Why indeed would a man of his talent take his own life alone. Bangkok is known as a city with love for sale. Film people come here to shoot and avail themselves of the pleasures to be found in the gilded city of sin. Kinky sex is no big deal. Could this be a coverup for a sex robbery murder. The Royal Thai Police have shut the door on this case all too quickly. The tourist industry has been severely damaged by the recession and political instability. The murder of a famous film star would be a final nail in the coffin of the tourism industry. Winters says that Carradine, son of John , iconic members of an American cinema dynasty were above the fray. David Carradine was according to Winters a consumate gentleman, a brilliant actor, and a man for all seasons.
I run into local film producer Tom Waller at a reception hosted by the Italian Embassy. Tom does not believe in the verdict of death by auto-sexual strangulation. He concludes that it was a sex robbery gone wrong, and that to cover the motives the body had been arranged to fit the profile of death by auto- sexual strangulation, a theory once confined to the genre of novels classified as psychological thrillers. The denizens of the film colony in Bangkok are incredulous at the grisly circumstances of the sad demise of this brilliant talent.
The reception is attended by beaucoup des artistes and cineastes. Film critic Nick Palevski and I schmooze at the bar. Between glasses of vino rosso and spumante Nick expresses his distaste for the tawdy belching of the media and press. He is the critic for Auteur, a web site devoted to film criticism. He can not believe the shabby and sensational manner in which this case is being exploited.
In no way is this story meant to impugn the reputation of the Royal Thai Police, their meritorious service is well known. Nor is it meant to slander the bereaved Carradine family. The American Embassy has issued a statement wishing the family the best in this tragic moment, embassy staff have no other conclusion re this case except the finding of the body. Aristotelian logic might conclude that something is rotten in Denmark. Western countries would conduct a far more sophisticated investigation.
The epilogue is delivered by my dear friend in Santa Monica Martin Zweiback. He is a writer- producer director with 50 years of credits in Hollywood. Martin scrpted the original Kung Fu series and is a close friend of David Carradine. Martin is a gentleman of class and distinction. He often graces the Bangkok film colony with his presence. It is fitting that a cineaste of his stature have the final word in this affair. I recieved this e mail from Martin, and with all due respect to this fine bloke it is represented here below as a final testament to this sordid affair.
Antonio, my friend,
Sorry I\’ve been neglectful about keeping in touch of late.
Thinking about Carradine this day, I recall when writing the Kung Fu show, how often his image inspired the words, and how much depth he brought to them. They sometimes had to pour him onto the set but he never read a line wrong. He was a gifted and underrated actor. I saw him at a screening of Kill Bill not too long ago. He seemed vibrant and clearly excited by the \"second chance\" Tarantino\’s film had given him. Suicide in the middle of shooting a movie at this point in his life just doesn\’t compute — but it does remind us to count our Blessings, Gifts, and Challenges — and be careful what we wish for.
With All Good Thoughts,
Martin
more to follow on http://magickpapers.com/blog