When I Was Young

Posted: 15 June 2009 1049 hrs

Rob Schneider

LOS ANGELES: Hundreds gathered to honour actor David Carradine at his funeral in Los Angeles on Saturday, including many of his former co-stars.

His casket was carried to Forest Lawn Cemetery in a white hearse, accompanied by a Hell's Angels on motorcycles.

Born 1936 in Hollywood, Carradine "split" the world in 2009 in Thailand, as the funeral programme describes it.

Many of the Hollywood elite turned up to say goodbye to the man best known for his role in the 1970s "Kung Fu" TV series. Among them were Michael Madsen and Lucy Liu - his co-stars in "Kill Bill", the two-part saga that gave his career another jump-start.

Lucy Liu

Others who worked with him, including Rob Schneider, Tom Selleck and Jane Seymour, were also there to say their farewells.

According to the Associated Press, the burial was private and security guards ensured only invited guests gained entry. Carradine's family stayed out of sight from reporters and cameras.

The 72-year-old actor was found hanging naked and bound in a closet in a Bangkok hotel.

Thai authorities are still investigating his death.

A private pathologist has ruled out suicide.

- CNA/il

From ChannelNewsAsia.com; see the source article here.

Posted: 07 June 2009 1610 hrs

Flowers are placed on the star of actor David Carradine on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.

BANGKOK: Thai police have defended their handling of the investigation into the death of David Carradine, after the US actor's family urged the FBI to step in and assist the probe.

Police said they suspect the star of the 1970s television series "Kung Fu" died in a sex act that went wrong after his naked body was found on Thursday in his Bangkok hotel room with rope tied around his neck and genitals.

A lawyer for the brother of the 72-year-old actor said at the weekend that the actor's family had met US Federal Bureau of Investigation officials to ask for help to discover exactly how Carradine died.

"I am confident we are working on the right track. US embassy representatives saw every step of the investigation process in the hotel room," Police Colonel Somprasong Yenthaum, who is leading the probe, told AFP.

He said Carradine's relatives had the right to seek help from the FBI, but added that the bureau would have to contact Thailand's attorney general who would then decide whether to forward the request to the police.

"We can work with FBI if they request and their request is passed. But if they don't come, we can do our jobs," he added.

Police are still awaiting the results of laboratory tests which will take between three and four weeks to come through before they can make an official conclusion about the cause of death.

Carradine was in the Thai capital to shoot a film called "Stretch" when he was found dead in the wardrobe of his luxury hotel room last week. His body was repatriated on a United Airlines flight early Saturday.

An initial autopsy report revealed that the actor died from a sudden lack of oxygen and his body showed no signs of struggle.

Mark Geragos, a lawyer for Carradine's brother, Keith, told a CNN talkshow on Friday that the actor's family rejected early reports that the actor had committed suicide and had met with FBI officials.

"They're looking into it through the FBI and trying to get to the bottom of this," Geragos said. "The family and Keith specifically doesn't for a minute think he was suicidal."

The actor was best known for his role as the fugitive half-Chinese Shaolin monk Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s TV drama "Kung Fu" and for playing the title character in Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" movies.

The roles earned Carradine a fourth Golden Globe "Best Actor" nomination. He was married five times, most recently in 2004, and was the father of two daughters.

- AFP/so

From ChannelNewsAsia.com; see the source article here.

Posted: 06 June 2009 1914 hrs

US actor David Carradine

BANGKOK: It will be four weeks until Thai police will be able to conclusively say how American actor David Carradine died, according to officials, as his body was flown back to the United States.

Thai police suspect Carradine, 72, died from a sex act that went wrong after his body was discovered Thursday morning hanging in a closet in a Bangkok hotel room, naked and with ropes attached to his neck and penis.

"(Forensic experts) will take three weeks to examine the toxicology tests and after that everybody concerned will meet to conclude the cause of death. It will take four weeks," said local police commander Somprasong Yenthaum.

The star of 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" and the hit "Kill Bill" movies was in the Thai capital to shoot a film called "Stretch."

An initial autopsy report revealed Carradine died from a sudden lack of oxygen and his body showed no signs of struggle.

Thai forensic expert Porntip Rojanasunan told AFP the death appeared to be caused by auto-erotic asphyxiation, the practice of intentionally cutting off oxygen to the brain for sexual arousal.

The actor's body was being repatriated on United Airlines flight 890 that left Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport at 6:48am (2348 GMT Friday) bound for Los Angeles and New York via Tokyo, local media and officials said.

Staff at the Nai Lert Park hotel where Carradine had been staying said the actor had entertained staff by playing a piano in the hotel lobby on three nights and seemed "very cheerful".

Several former colleagues, including director Quentin Tarantino, have given interviews since Carradine's death to quash rumours that it was a suicide.

Carradine was best known for his role as the fugitive half-Chinese Shaolin monk Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s TV drama "Kung Fu."

But he failed to find great film success outside of cult "B movies" until Tarantino called on him to play the title character in the revenge-action films "Kill Bill" and "Kill Bill II".

- AFP/vm

From ChannelNewsAsia.com; see the source article here.