Kukrit Pramoj

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Mom Rajawongse
Kukrit Pramoj
คึกฤทธิ์ ปราโมช
Kukrit in 1974
13th Prime Minister of Thailand
In office
14 March 1975 – 20 April 1976
MonarchBhumibol Adulyadej
Preceded bySeni Pramoj
Succeeded bySeni Pramoj
Minister of Interior
In office
8 January 1976 – 20 April 1976
Prime Ministerhimself
Preceded bySeni Pramoj
Succeeded byBoonteng Thongsawat
12th President of the National Assembly of Thailand
In office
29 December 1973 – 7 October 1974
Preceded bySiri Siriyothin
Succeeded byPraphas Ouchai
Personal details
Born(1911-04-20)20 April 1911
Major General[3]
CommandsRoyal Thai Aide-De-Camp
Battles/warsPacific War

Rama II
, he was a member of the Thai royal family. He also portrayed the Prime Minister of the fictional country of Sarkhan in the 1963 motion picture The Ugly American with Marlon Brando.

Biography

He was born on 20 April 1911 in

Rama II.[6] He served as a corporal during the Franco-Thai War in 1940. As was common for members of Thailand's upper classes at the time, he was educated abroad; he attended school in England at Trent College, before reading philosophy, politics, and economics at The Queen's College, Oxford
.

Upon returning to Thailand, he began his career in banking, but his true

ISBN 974-8298-12-4), and in 1961, donated the Pramoj manuscript to the Southeast Asian Collection, Asian Division, Library of Congress.[8] He wrote for Siam Rath
, the newspaper that he founded.

Kukrit Pramoj (c. 1959)

As a means of showing how Thai society adjusted to life in modern society, in 1953 Kukrit began a series of stories on the life and times of fictional Mae Ploy (

The Fukuoka Asian Culture Prizes in 1990, the inaugural year for the prizes again. His works encompass many subjects from humour to drama. He was also known as a staunch royalist and served the monarchy for his entire life. He is considered one of the great statesmen of Thailand. His former home is now a heritage museum
which is preserved; paying homage to his life and Thai traditions.

He was married to M.R. Pakpring Thongyai with whom he had two children, a son and daughter. He died on 9 October 1995.[10]

Achievements

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos (right) hosts a State Dinner at Malacañang Palace for Kukrit Pramoj (left), July 1975.
  • He established the Social Action Party.
  • M.R. Kukrit founded the Progress Party in 1946 and was elected to the first post-World War II Parliament.[11]
  • Appeared on screen with Marlon Brando in the movie The Ugly American (1963), in which he played Prime Minister Kwen Sai and spoke both Thai and English.
  • As Prime Minister, established diplomatic ties with China in 1975, and supervised the withdrawal of American forces from Thailand after the Vietnam War.
  • Named National Artist in Literature 1985.
  • Received the
    Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize
    in 1990.
  • Founded the Khon Thammasat Troupe at
    Khon
    being the highest form of dance drama in Thai classical dramatic arts.

Acting career

When George Englund decided to use Thailand as the location for the fictional country portrayed in his film The Ugly American, Kukrit was appointed as cultural advisor to make sure the film accurately portrayed monarchy in a Buddhist country. Englund had difficulty casting the part of the fictional Prime Minister, but he was so impressed by Kukrit's cultural refinement and mastery of English that he offered him the part, saying, "I can't think of anyone who could play it better." Kukrit accepted, saying, according to Englund, "We are all actors anyway, and I think you're right that I could play it better than anyone." Probably because of this, after he became a real-life Prime Minister of Thailand in 1975, the word "Sarkhan" has entered the Thai language as a nickname of Thailand itself, often with a slight self-deprecating or mocking tone.

M.R. Kukrit Heritage Home

Main article: M.R. Kukrit's House

The home that M.R. Kukrit built for himself in Bangkok has been registered by the Department of Fine Arts as 'Home of an Important Person'. It is open to the public on Saturdays, Sundays and official Thai holidays. Standing in 2 acres (8,100 m2) of land, surrounded by landscaped gardens, the house is a similar concept to the

Sathon
District, Bangkok 10120.

Literary works

Literary career

Kukrit Pramoj is perhaps best known in Thailand for his literary production, particularly his novel

Chakri dynasty (thus the title "Four Reigns"), and the 1932 Revolution against the absolute monarchy.[12]
Four Reigns was translated into English by Tulachandra. The Thai version of Four Reigns continues to be well known to Thais in the twenty-first century because it has been used in Thai schools, and has been produced as a well-known films.

Only two other of Kukrit's many novels, Many Lives, and Red Bamboo are translated into English. In addition, there is a compilation of a few of Kukrit's English language writings and interviews, M. R. Kukrit Pramoj, His Wit and Wisdom, compiled by Vilas Manivat, and edited by Steve Van Beek. However, Kukrit's writings in the Thai language are voluminous, and include both fiction and non-fiction. Much of Kukrit's writing was first published as either columns or serials in the Siam Rat. A number of the books serialized and later turned into books including Four Reigns.[13] A wide range of subjects were addressed in these books, including contemporary politics, Kukrit's love of dogs, Thai history, Southeast Asian history, elephants, a history of the Jews, and many other subjects.[14] A review of his book comparing feudalism in Thailand called sakdina and Britain was recently published in English. Kukrit's essay is called "Farang Sakdina." The article describes Kukrit's views about good governance, monarchy, and democracy in Thailand and Britain.[15]

Novels

Plays

Collected short stories and essays

Non-fiction
Most Thai were shocked by the portrayal of their revered nineteenth-century king,
ISBN 974-8298-12-4. Moffat donated the Pramoj manuscript to the United States Library of Congress in 1961. (Southeast Asian Collection, Asian Division, Library of Congress)

Translations

Honours

National honours

Foreign honours

Academic rank

Other awards

See also

References

  1. ^ Crossette, Barbara (10 October 1995). "Kukrit Pramoj, Thai Ex-Prime Minister, Dies at 84". The New York Times.
  2. ^ "Archives". Los Angeles Times. 10 October 1995.
  3. ^ [1] [bare URL PDF]
  4. ^ "Home of M R Kukrit Pramoj – legacy of Thailand's famous son".
  5. ^ An Impressive Day at M.R. Kukrit's Home Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine; Thailand Bibliography
  6. ISBN 0-312-12188-1
    .
  7. ^ Reference staff (30 July 2010). "Abbot Low Moffat Papers". Biographical Sketch. M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  8. ^ "Asian Collections". SOUTHEAST ASIA AND THE PACIFIC ISLANDS. The Library of Congress, Asian Reading Room. 15 November 2010. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 8 February 2011. Seni and Kukrit Pramoj, The King of Siam Speaks.
  9. ^ ""Four Reigns"".
  10. ^ Crossette, Barbara (10 October 1995). "Kukrit Pramoj, Thai Ex-Prime Minister, Dies at 84". The New York Times.
  11. ^ pp. 18-19 "Kukrit the Man a Brief Account" by Steve Van Beek in M.R. Kukirt Pramoj: His Wit and Wideom, Compiled by Vilas Manivat, Edited by Steve Van Beek. editions Duang Kamol 1983.
  12. ^ see "The Transformation of Values as Seen Through "Si Phaen Din" by Dr. Mattani Mojdara Rutnin, republished in Kukrit Pramoj, His Wit and Wisdom (1983).
  13. ^ Van Beek (1983), pp. 20-21.
  14. ^ Van Beek, Steve (1983). "Kukrit the man: A Brief Account," pp. 11-26, in Kukrit Pramoj: His Wit and Wisdom by Kukrit Pramoj. Bangkok: Editions Duang Kamol.
  15. S2CID 248547017
    .
  16. ^ Spanish: [2] BOE 6-11-14, Spanish Official Journal (accessed on January 15, 2015)
  17. ^ [3] [bare URL PDF]

External links

Political offices
Preceded by Prime Minister of Thailand
1975–1976 		Succeeded by
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