REPORTER: Hi, Mark. Welcome to our programme.
.MARK: My pleasure.
.REPORTER: To start, tell us why you are so interested in Jim Thompson.
.MARK: Well, learning about someone from a different era, a different background or a totally different set of life experiences gi ves you a new perspective. It allows you to see the world in new ways. Two years ago, I was in Thailand on holidays, and someone told me about this man. Everything about him seemed taken out of a movie. So, I started to investigate. I was able to find out many things about his life but much remained, and will remain, a secret forever.
.REPORTER: He was American, wasn’t he? So how come he is so famous in Thailand? Tell us a bit about his life.
.MARK: Jim Thompson was born in Delaware, in the United States. He was the youngest of five children His father was a wealthy textile manufacturer. He studiearchitecture at Princeton. He lived and worked in New York and had a comfortable life there. But in 1944 he quit his job and enlisted with the Delaware National Gua rd. In 1949, he joined the Department of Strategic Services of the United States, what today we know as the CIA, to participate in different operations in the Far East. He arrived in Thailand shortly after the victory over Japan in World War II. After a se ries of "missions", he was finally assigned to Bangkok as head of American secret services, thus beginning the fabulous legend that emerges from his no less fabulous life.
.REPORTER: So, let me see if I got it right. He was a spy!!
.MARK: Exactly, notice we are referring to the 1940s. The Second World War had just ended. It’s the time of the Cold War. The United States needed information, so Thailand seemed like a great place to get it. However, oddly enough he is not remembered for his deeds as a member of CIA. He was a benefactor for Thai society and that is why he is well remembered.
.REPORTER: Right. He is linked to the silk industry, isn’t he? How did this relationship start?
.MARK: In Bangkok Thompson bought a part of the Oriental Hotel, but his great o pportunity came with the guild of silk spinners . The guild was in decline because silk had been relegated by the Thais themselves in favour of other, cheaper fabrics . Thompson was a visionary and relaunched the silk business thanks to his contacts with Eur ope. In 1948, he founded the Silk Company of Thailand.
.REPORTER: But wasn’t being a foreigner a huge inconvenience for him? I mean, did the Thais trust him? He may not have known many of their customs and ways of doing business.
.MARK: Well, at a time when the Thais preferred everything Western, Thompson was a revolutionary who recovered traditions and craftsmanship. He defended Thai art and architecture at all costs, but without losing his own Western roots. In fact, there was no party or social event of an y kind that Thompson did not attend. His presence was fundamental at any and every event, and both the Thais and the international community in Bangkok adored him.
.REPORTER: So, he was kind of a star!
.MARK: Yes, in fact, a ll the personalities that passed t hrough the Bangkok of those years sat at his table, among them his friend Truman Capote.
.REPORTER: I see. But tell us a bit about his mysterious disappearance. What happened?
.MARK: In fact, his mysterious disappearance accelerated his legend. In 1967, duri ng a vacation in Malaysia with some friends, he went for a walk and simply disappeared. This gave rise to speculations of all kinds: kidnapping, murder, all sorts of things.
.REPORTER: But people do not just disappear. I’m sure the police looked into the di sappearance.
.MARK: Yes, of course. But the fact is that he was never found, which only served to forge his legend. And to put more salt on the wound, his only sister was killed in her home in the United States soon after his disappearance and their driver and guide in Malaysia dropped out of sight and was never heard from again. You can see how all of this seems to be part of a crime novel as opposed to real life. Some people say that, in reality, he never stopped working for the CIA and that's why he left as suddenly as he had arrived.
.REPORTER: Spy or not, the truth is that he left a magnificent legacy .
.MARK: Definitely. Today the silk business that Thompson created is one of the main sources of income in the country, a thriving industry that exports silk to the whole world. In addition, the firm has diversified and has entered the restaurant business, opening restaurants and wine bars with all the glamour that always characterized this man of exquisite tastes.
.REPORTER: We are running out of time, so a las t question. Is there a place in Thailand where we can see his legacy?
.MARK: Yes, absolutely. Currently you can visit his magnificent mansion, which has been converted into a museum in Bangkok. In 1958, he began what was to be his most important architectur al achievement — the construction of a new home to display his art objects. The house is a combination of six independent Thai - style teakwood houses that have been reassembled in traditional Thai fashion — not even a single nail was used. And the museum also h ouses an excellent collection of Thai art that includes one of the best collections of traditional art from around the world.
.REPORTER: Well, Mark, it’s been a pleasure to have you here tonight.
.MARK: Thank you for inviting me.
.Adapted from: http://www.turismotailandes.com/el - misterio - de - jim - thompson - y - el - negocio - de - la - seda - en - tailandia/ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1yq9gCKnEE [30th November 2018]