Kenneth and his fellow travelers had a brief stop in Maidan, and Kenneth talked to the consul. He then flew to Singapore, and from Singapore to Bangkok.
Will asks if Kenneth visited Borobudur on this trip, a site of ancient ruins in Java, but Kenneth is not sure, though he thinks so. He remembers climbing the monument, one of the earliest Buddhist monuments in Southeast Asia.
Kenneth also arranged for a police assistance program for the police general and a military assistance program for Sarit "because", as Sarit said, "if you're going to give forty-some million dollars of aid to General Pao, the police chief, you ought…
Kenneth retells the story of his encounter with Prime Minister Sarit. This includes that, while traveling in 1960, he was personally invited to breakfast with Sarit. Again, he tells of Sarit speaking highly of him and recounting their dinner in which…
Kenneth recounts the rest of his 1960 tour through Southeast Asia. He hears of the government in Laos being overthrown the night after he left. After a brief tour he travelled back to Bangkok and briefed the Prime Minister on what he saw.
Kenneth discusses his travels to Burma. He explains the difference in government, as U Nu described a broken government which was fragile--something he didn't associate with government officials speaking of their own system.
In a recounting of a humorous story, Kenneth tells of a Burmese man being arrested. He was being charged with a traffic violation and defecating in public. However there was a double charge for both defecating and urinating. The man argued that it…
Upon sending the reports of the arrested Burmese man to Gordon Gray, the National Security adviser to President Eisenhower, the stories were immediately relayed to the President himself! Kenneth exclaims he had never reported so quickly and directly…
Kenneth traveled from Bangkok to Singapore. In Singapore, he got a visit from Ko Geng Hsui. Ko Geng Hsui had come to consult Kenneth about establishing a research group for the study of Southeast Asian affairs. Kenneth found it humorous that he…
Bill Godel had gotten into some trouble. They talked with Kenneth about testifying on his character. Kenneth exclaimed that he figured Godel innocent, as he wouldn't piddle around with anything less than $10,000--more than that, though, he might have…
Kenneth encountered Bill Godel once again while in Singapore. Bill had been getting involved with the gun industry there, and thought Kenneth might join in. Kenneth explained that he could not, yet spent a nice evening with Bill.
Kenneth explains his encounter with Ko Geng Hsui. He also discusses briefly the program at American University which he set up with a focus on Southeast Asian studies.
Kenneth tells of the time when he was to be the political adviser to Admiral Edwin Layton. The Admiral was taking a tour around the Pacific countries and was particularly interested in Japan. Kenneth was asked what he would be drinking on the trip,…
Kenneth tells of Admiral Layton going out on the town. As he had drank quite a bit, he ended up in the hotel late. Upon waking, he found eel in front of his door. He suspected the Japanese girls were being kind, when in reality it was leftovers of…
Kenneth tells of the return trip with Admiral Layton. He recalls the plethora of items that the Admiral and Bill Godel were returning with, including a three-wheeled bicycle taxi! Kenneth also tells that this was his first encounter with a to be…
Kenneth talks of the Layton party once more. They now travel to Saigon. They met Colonel Ed Lansdale here, who was later to become a general. Admiral Layton by this time was quite impressed, as Kenneth had friends in Hong Kong and was now also known…
Kenneth recalls meeting with an old friend, the Consul General by the name of Drumwright. Drumwright had him over for the evening, taking him out to a wonderful party with orchestras, food, and fine Scotch whiskeys. Drumwright wanted to see and be…
Kenneth tells of his first encounter with General Lyman Lemnitzer. At this point he was a two star General. Kenneth spoke quite boldly to Lemnitzer, explaining to him that he would be funding even when the General may have opposed the plan.
While Donovan was in Thailand, he'd go on lengthy walks daily. He would walk during the heat of the day, wearing down even the marines who would guard him. When asked about it, he merrily responded that he wasn't fearing death--he wouldn't ask anyone…
During work in Thailand, Donovan was to create an aid program for General Pao. Kenneth, however, realized that General Sarit was a rising power, and that Donovan should also pay attention to him. Donovan created a plan for Sarit as well, this being a…
While traveling, Kenneth came upon a seller of peacock feather hats. The seller required the buyer to provide the pheasants which might be used in the making of the hat. Kenneth, however, found a premade hat in the house, tried it on and, finding…
Upon returning from his trip, Kenneth wanted to get his newly acquired hat blocked. He took it to his usual New York man, Lewis Saltz, and had him block the hat. Saltz made a large ordeal of the hat, displaying it for some time. Saltz took great…
While in Bangkok, Kenneth decided that he wanted to buy a fine watch. The Thai would have gladly given him a watch, however Kenneth wanted to buy one. The Thai took him to a jewelry store, showing him the finest watch in the store, stating that he…
Kenneth had good relations with the Thai. As such, he was to be honored with the Order of Exalted White Elephant award. However, as he was not a general, he wasn't able to receive the same ranking of White Elephant as the generals in the group. As…