'Kung Fu' star found dead

[Rumble In the Jungle]

[quote][img]http://l.yimg.com/eb/ymv/us/img/hv/photo/movie_pix/cannes/cannes_film_festival_2004_photos/david_carradine/cannes.jpg[/img][img]http://blog.ugo.com/images/uploads/kungfu_davidcarradine.jpg[/img]

BANGKOK - Actor David Carradine, a born seeker and cult idol who broke through as the willing student called "grasshopper" in the 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" and decades later as leader of an assassin squad in "Kill Bill," was found dead Thursday in Thailand. Police said he appeared to have hanged himself.

The officer responsible for investigating the death, Teerapop Luanseng, said the 72-year-old actor was staying at a suite at the luxury Swissotel Nai Lert Park Hotel.

"I can confirm that we found his body, naked, hanging in the closet," Teerapop said. He said police suspected suicide.

A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy, Michael Turner, said the embassy was informed by Thai authorities that Carradine died either late Wednesday or early Thursday, but he could not provide further details out of consideration for his family.

Carradine came from an acting family. His father, John, made a career playing creepy, eccentric characters in film and on stage. His brothers Keith, Robert and Bruce also became actors. Actress Martha Plimpton is Keith Carradine's daughter.

"My Uncle David was a brilliantly talented, fiercely intelligent and generous man. He was the nexus of our family in so many ways, and drew us together over the years and kept us connected," Plimpton said Thursday.

Carradine was in Bangkok shooting the movie "Stretch," said his manager, Chuck Binder.

"We're very saddened, he was a wonderful guy," said Lori Binder, a partner in the agency that represented Carradine.

"It is shocking to me that he is no longer with us," said Michael Madsen, who played an assassin in "Kill Bill."

"I had been thinking about calling him for the last several days. ... I have so many great memories of David that I wouldn't even know where to begin. He has a very special place in my heart."

The Web site of the Thai newspaper The Nation said Carradine could not be contacted after he failed to appear for a meal with the rest of the film crew on Wednesday, and that his body was found by a hotel maid Thursday morning. It said a preliminary police investigation found that he had hanged himself with a cord used with the suite's curtains. It cited police as saying there was no sign that he had been assaulted.

Police said Carradine's body was taken to a hospital for an autopsy that would be done Friday.

Carradine appeared in more than 100 feature films with such directors as Martin Scorsese, Ingmar Bergman and Hal Ashby. One of his early film roles was as folk singer Woody Guthrie in Ashby's 1976 biopic, "Bound for Glory."

But he was best known for his role as Kwai Chang Caine, a Shaolin priest traveling the 1800s American frontier West in the TV series "Kung Fu," which aired in 1972-75.

"I wasn't like a TV star in those days, I was like a rock 'n' roll star," Carradine said in an interview with Associated Press Radio in 1996. "It was a phenomenon kind of thing. ... It was very special."

Actor Rainn Wilson, star of TV's "The Office," tweeted about Carradine's death on Twitter: "R.I.P. David Carradine. You were a true hero to so many of us children of the 70s. We'll miss you, Kwai Chang Caine."

Carradine reprised the role in a mid-1980s TV movie and played Caine's grandson in the 1990s syndicated series "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues."

He returned to the top in recent years as the title character in Quentin Tarantino's two-part saga "Kill Bill." Bill, the worldly father figure of a pack of crack assassins, was a shadowy presence in 2003's "Kill Bill - Vol. 1." In that film, one of Bill's former assassins (Uma Thurman) begins a vengeful rampage against her old associates, including Bill.

In "Kill Bill - Vol. 2," released in 2004, Thurman's character catches up to Bill. The role brought Carradine a Golden Globe nomination as best supporting actor.

Bill was a complete contrast to Caine, the soft-spoken refugee from a Shaolin monastery, serenely spreading wisdom and battling bad guys in the Old West. He left after three seasons, saying the show had started to repeat itself.

"David's always been kind of a seeker of knowledge and of wisdom in his own inimitable way," his brother, actor Keith Carradine, said in a 1995 interview.

After "Kung Fu," Carradine starred in the 1975 cult flick "Death Race 2000." He starred with Liv Ullmann in Bergman's "The Serpent's Egg" in 1977 and with his brothers in the 1980 Western "The Long Riders."

But after the early 1980s, he spent two decades doing mostly low-budget films. Tarantino's films changed that.

"All I've ever needed since I more or less retired from studio films a couple of decades ago ... is just to be in one," Carradine told The Associated Press in 2004.

"There isn't anything that Anthony Hopkins or Clint Eastwood or Sean Connery or any of those old guys are doing that I couldn't do," he said. "All that was ever required was somebody with Quentin's courage to take and put me in the spotlight."

One thing remained a constant after "Kung Fu": Carradine's interest in Asian herbs, exercise and philosophy. He wrote a personal memoir called "Spirit of Shaolin" and continued to make instructional videos on tai chi and other martial arts.

In the 2004 interview, Carradine talked candidly about his past boozing and narcotics use, but said he had put all that behind him and stuck to coffee and cigarettes.

"I didn't like the way I looked, for one thing. You're kind of out of control emotionally when you drink that much. I was quicker to anger."

"You're probably witnessing the last time I will ever answer those questions," Carradine said. "Because this is a regeneration. It is a renaissance. It is the start of a new career for me.

"It's time to do nothing but look forward."[/quote]

[Go Tory Go!]

[quote]A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy, Michael Turner, said the embassy was informed by Thai authorities that Carradine died either late Wednesday or early Thursday, [b]but he could not provide further details out of consideration for his family.[/b][/quote]

Wouldn't want any embarrassing and superfluous details to get out.

[quote]"I can confirm that we found his body, naked, hanging in the closet," Teerapop said.[/quote]

Oh.

[BengalBrandon]

[quote]"I can confirm that we found his body, naked, hanging in the closet," Teerapop said.[/quote]

Uhhhh, dude hung himself.........nude?

[ThurmanMunster]

his life long work is ruined because he killed himself. what he did goes against all things he taught and focused on his entire life.

[BengalBrandon]

[quote name='ThurmanMunster' post='780526' date='Jun 4 2009, 06:48 PM']his life long work is ruined because he killed himself. what he did goes against all things he taught and focused on his entire life.[/quote]

I never understand people who kill themselves. Unless you have some sort of mental issues where you aren't able to think clearly it's unacceptable. There is always someone, somewhere going through worse than you are and because of that are a stronger individual. So many innocent and good lives lost because they can't handle reality, or don't seek help in handling it. Extremely heart breaking.

[STRAYCAT]

RIP David......hope you found it.

[#22]

[quote name='Go Tory Go!' post='780519' date='Jun 4 2009, 06:43 PM']Wouldn't want any embarrassing and superfluous details to get out.



Oh.[/quote]
I think this whole thing will wind up being lost in translation. What our Thai friend meant to say, I think, was that he was found naked in the closet, and also happened to be very well hung.

[-GoBengals-]

[quote name='BengalBrandon' post='780607' date='Jun 4 2009, 10:03 PM']I never understand people who kill themselves. Unless you have some sort of mental issues where you aren't able to think clearly it's unacceptable. There is always someone, somewhere going through worse than you are and because of that are a stronger individual. So many innocent and good lives lost because they can't handle reality, or don't seek help in handling it. Extremely heart breaking.[/quote]

depends how your life was growing up. .. someone like paris hilton or *insert random billionaire child name here* lost their parents and ALL of the fortune, and say had no status to make money off simply being alive, could easily be drawn to kill themselves over simply being forced to work a 9-5 30k a year job. .. never taught to deal with adversity, unfair life circumstances, etc.

if you grew up with hardships from day one, and had them with peers, school, lack of money for food, clothes, etc... a little personal life issues arent going to ruin your mind.

I kinda wonder if i didnt have children, if it would be possible for me to give up, cash in, and leave the earth by my own decision.

Not a chance I could with my boys, no matter what their faces, and minds, and having a feeling that they need me every day to make them better people in this world makes it impossible.

If i didnt have my family, I dont know what there really is to live for? Humans have a huge need to be/feel needed.

If no one would miss you at work, no family, it would be tough to stay sane...not to mention life situations that can haunt your thoughts for a long time.

[Sox]

[img]http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/459/horatio.jpg[/img]

[|Lucid|]

"Hanged by a rope around his neck and genitals"... (heard this on CNN today)


GENITALS??

Why the fuck, if someone were going to hang themself, would one tie the rope around their genitals??


This sounds EXTREMELY fishy. Either he was blitzed out of his mind, or something beyond suicide happened... Or maybe this is erroneous?

[esjbh2]

[url="http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20090605/ENT02/306050006/1055/NEWS/Police++Actor+s+death+may+be+accident"]Carradine's Death Maybe Auto-erotic Asphyxiation[/url]

Thai police: Actor David Carradine's death may be accidental

The Associated Press • June 5, 2009

BANGKOK (AP) — Police are speculating that accidental suffocation, not suicide, may have caused the death of American cult actor David Carradine, whose body was found in a hotel closet in the Thai capital with a rope tied to his neck, wrist and genitals.

Celebrity blogs and social networking Web sites were abuzz with news of the death of Carradine — best known for the 1970s TV series "Kung Fu." The circumstances under which he died have led to speculation that the 72-year-old actor may have been engaged in a dangerous form of sex play known as auto-erotic asphyxiation.

The practice involves temporarily cutting off the supply of oxygen to the brain to heighten the effects of a sexual climax.

Carradine's body was discovered Thursday morning in his luxury suite by a chambermaid at Bangkok's Swissotel Nai Lert Park Hotel, said its general manager, Aurelio Giraudo. Police embassy representatives while preparations were being made for its repatriation to the United States, expected to be in the next few days. Under U.S. privacy laws, the embassy is not allowed to release further details without permission of the family of the deceased.

Dr. Nanthana Sirisap, director of Chulalongkorn Hospital's Autopsy Center, told reporters that the autopsy was conducted because of the "unusual circumstances surrounding Carradine's death," but did not elaborate.

Police Lt. Teerapop Luanseng had said Thursday that Carradine's body was found "naked, hanging in a closet," and police at that time suspected suicide. However, no suicide note has been found.

Carradine's friends and associates insisted he would not kill himself.

"All we can say is, we know David would never have committed suicide," said Tiffany Smith of Binder & Associates, his management company. "We're just waiting for them to finish the investigation and find out what really happened. He really appreciated everything life has to give ... and that's not something David would ever do to himself."

Pornthip Rojanasunand, director of Thailand's Central Institute of Forensic Science, said the circumstances suggested that Carradine may have died performing auto-erotic asphyxiation, which is said to result in a form of giddiness and euphoria — similar to alcohol or drug intoxication — that enhances the sexual experience.

"In some cases it can suggest murder, too. But sometimes when the victim is naked and in bondage, it can suggest that the victim is doing it to himself," said Pornthip, who is considered the country's top criminal forensics expert but who did not take part in the autopsy. "If you hang yourself by the neck, you don't need so much pressure to kill yourself. Those who get highly sexually aroused tend to forget this fact."

Carradine had flown to Thailand last week and began work on a film titled "Stretch" two days before his death, Smith said. He had several other projects lined up after the action film, which was being directed by Charles de Meaux.

Carradine was in good spirits when he left the U.S. for Thailand on May 29 to work on "Stretch," his manager Smith said by phone from Beverly Hills.

Monica Donati, a spokesman for the French film company MK2, which was making "Stretch," said in statement from Paris that the film crew in Bangkok was "clearly shocked" by Carradine's death but would finish shooting. Carradine only had three more days of filming left in Bangkok, she said.

"David was apparently very happy about this new role and about filming again," she said.

Hotel manager Giraudo described Carradine as "very much a person full of life" who chatted with the staff.

"He was a great piano player and played a few nights in the hotel lobby," he said, "He also played the flute and the guests really enjoyed it. I mentioned to him that I had seen (the movie) 'Crank' with my family and that was the last smile he gave me."

Carradine, a martial arts practitioner himself, was best known for the U.S. TV series "Kung Fu," which aired in 1972-75. He played Kwai Chang Caine, an orphan who was raised by Shaolin monks and fled China 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." Bill, the worldly father figure of a pack of crack assassins, was a shadowy presence in 2003's "Kill Bill — Vol. 1." In that film, one of Bill's former assassins (Uma Thurman) begins a vengeful rampage against her old associates, including Bill.

[Rumble In the Jungle]

[quote name='esjbh2' post='780831' date='Jun 5 2009, 11:57 PM'][url="http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20090605/ENT02/306050006/1055/NEWS/Police++Actor+s+death+may+be+accident"]Carradine's Death Maybe Auto-erotic Asphyxiation[/url]

Thai police: Actor David Carradine's death may be accidental[/quote]

i swear that crossed my mind.

[|Bunghole|]

[quote name='Rumble In the Jungle' post='780837' date='Jun 6 2009, 12:00 AM']i swear that crossed my mind.[/quote]
Was he listening to INXS?

[Rumble In the Jungle]

[quote name='Bunghole' post='780842' date='Jun 6 2009, 01:34 AM']Was he listening to INXS?[/quote]

hey, i liked INXS way back in the dayay

[|Bunghole|]

[quote name='Rumble In the Jungle' post='780936' date='Jun 6 2009, 07:30 PM']hey, i liked INXS way back in the dayay [/quote]
Me too, but their singer Michael Hutchence died in a similar way. What's up with people that try to asphyxiate themselves to achieve orgasm? Not saying Carradine was doing this, btw. Just weird.

[|Bunghole|]

[quote name='Sox' post='780660' date='Jun 5 2009, 01:14 AM'][img]http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/459/horatio.jpg[/img][/quote]
For fans of the show, which I reluctantly call myself one (on occasion), that is hilarious.

[ThurmanMunster]

[quote name='Sox' post='780660' date='Jun 5 2009, 02:14 AM'][img]http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/459/horatio.jpg[/img][/quote]


ahahahahahahahah that is the single greatest thing i have ever seen.

[Go Tory Go!]

[quote name='Bunghole' post='780942' date='Jun 6 2009, 10:09 PM']Me too, but their singer Michael Hutchence died in a similar way. What's up with people that try to asphyxiate themselves to achieve orgasm? Not saying Carradine was doing this, btw. Just weird.[/quote]

He's in the capital city of a nation full of cheap and plentiful whores, and he's in the closet of his hotel room, wanking. With his money (or even mine), he could've bought himself the cleanest call-girl this city's ever seen.

[Actium]

[quote name='Bunghole' post='780942' date='Jun 6 2009, 09:09 PM']Me too, but their singer Michael Hutchence died in a similar way. What's up with people that try to asphyxiate themselves to achieve orgasm? Not saying Carradine was doing this, btw. Just weird.[/quote]

His kung-fu grip isn't what it used to be, so he needed a little push over the hill?