Thai actress to file charges against an American author over 'hooker' book

[Choonpon]

I am on the side of this guy being an idiot.

His website for a start "Gods of Thailand" - that'll be gone soon.

As for the man himself - writing under the name "Kings of Thailand" - he'll either end up in Jail or deported very soon.

He could very well be on the next flight outta Thailand now.

[JesseFrank]

All I can say :

She's HOT

[pedro01]

It is well known that many Thai actresses are available for the evening, for the right price. Of course that is a high price, ranging from 10,000 baht to 60,000 baht, from what I am told by reliable sources who partake of this action. Of course this particular woman may not be a participant. It is essentially the same in the US. But, in the US , for many beautiful women, of a certain age range, it is an undeterminable quantity of cash, gifts, cars, apartments, and other prizes required to get to the action part. This relates to both actresses and civilians. What is the difference one may ask?

Son, the only actress you are gonna get for 300 bucks is Lassie's great grandmother. You couldn't even get Whoopy Goldberg or Rosie O'Donnell--not that you'd want to--for ten times that.

I said Thai actresses, and that is for short time. And son, these are facts. Why would anyone in their right mind want an American actress? For any price. Or even for free?

No - these are myths.

This one has been doing the rounds for 15 years and more.

You are basically saying that all Thai women are prostitutes. Shame on you.

[kerrysum]

So what purpose does this have in life? Just my thought....

1. So is there some hidden secret here?

2. No there is no human trafficking going on, unless it makes me look bad...

3. We are all virgins until you marry us, that is why you pay a dowry....

4. The real Thais were from years ago....

5. Virginity can be bought at any price......

6. The old ways ere the good ways, but somehow they just don't pay the same anymore....

7. Understanding the history and talking....

8. That is what I do and I am happy with it......

9. Thailand is the best kept secret in the world.....

10... Are you so sure that this is true?

Well just a thought, but LOS , sometimes I have my doubts.....

kilosirra

[Camilo Diaz]

My pictures was use once on the Bangkokpost on an articule about man hookers in Bangkok, I try to contact the Bangkokpost and talk to many lawyers about it, there was nothing I could do.... wellcome to Thailand.

I do feel a bit sorry for her but if Thais are allow to do as they want farangs should too I say.

[fatdrunkandstupid]

Hmmm a person that gives himself a nickname , lives in thailand , likes to write and has little respect for thai people , must be one of the thaivisa members

Is this The Blether's book?

[NoBrainer]

I think that you might find somewhere in the small print under the terms of service of many photo sharing sites, that once the picture has been uploaded to the site, it becomes public domain.

[geoman1976]

Hey, I know her. Isn't she the one I saw on Craigslist offering her "talented" services to VIP business men and claiming to be a Thai TV star?

Edited May 7, 2014 by geoman1976

[chrisrazz]

Interesting subject matter for a book, only that there is a potential market for this kind of stuff. On my first visit in '87, the taxi from the airport took me straight to a brothel, then in my innocence, I used the excuse that none took my fancy, so he said 'you want high class? and off we went to another brothel. I went to the Oriental Hotel on my first evening for dinner, on the way out I was approached/accosted by a guy who offered me literally every sexual deviance and drug known to me, after I had declined all his offers he went on to exclaim 'why you come Thailand? So, my point is, why the need for a book? just come here and learn first hand, surely that's all part of the adventure.

Edited May 7, 2014 by chrisrazz

[chooka]

How many foreigners watch Thai soaps?

How many Thai read foreign books?

How many books are sold on Amazon?

How exactly did she "come across" this section and this book?

Maybe her acting career is drying up and she was researching an alternate career.

just kidding

[edgarfriendly]

I think that you might find somewhere in the small print under the terms of service of many photo sharing sites, that once the picture has been uploaded to the site, it becomes public domain.

Exactly!!

Public domain, property of everyone.... Silly 32 yr old little girl.

but but but, mun mun mun.....etc

[GaryAdriaenssens]

Bad boy/author!!

[rubl]

Nice photo, at any rate. Thanks for the mammaries.

Instead of thanking her mother maybe thank her doctor for those?

[yankee99]

Sue the pants off him, as an American he should know better, the litigation in his own country would be crippling. In a country where face is important, seeing your image on the cover of a book about prostitution has got to be the biggest insult.

Guess they should sue you for using a copyrighted avatar.

[marko kok prong]

Ye gods as if there are not already enough books,blogs etc on this very subject,it not a very original idea.

[stephen tracy]

Yet another idiotic book by yet another sad, pathetic sexpat loser...

[NanLaew]

"I am not particularly angry by the photo on the cover, because this is not the first time my photo has been abused for commercial purpose. What angers me a lot is the text on the cover and the contents of the book which greatly insult Thai women," the celebrity said.

So it is not the use of the photo but the book itself that angers her because it insults Thai women.

Well Miss Wattatana, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but Thailand itself has been building the reputation of Thai women for decades. You can't blame the farangs for Thailand's reputation.

And all the misogynists say, "Aye!"

[geoman1976]

The books author is liable for fraudulently representing what the average hooker looks like as they sure don't typically look like her (farang market)

Didn't a well known massage place in bkk emmanuelle have to remove the huge billboard of the baywatch girl after she took legal action.

completely off of the subject, is that your work in the profile pic? I like it a lot!

[spermwhale]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

He's in serious trouble if he's still in Thailand.

Actually he is in serious financial trouble in the U.S. and I hope she proceeds with her lawsuit against him. Someone else posted that he hopes the judge throws the book at him... Well in the U.S. not every civil infraction is a criminal infraction like in Thailand. Nobody goes to jail for stuff like this, nor should they. But hopefully, if the case goes to trial, he'll be hit with large punitive damages. If it's true, what he did is so wrong.

And all of those making jokes. How would you feel if it was your daughter or sister whose pic was used on the cover of a book about whores in your country.

[keestha]

I think that you might find somewhere in the small print under the terms of service of many photo sharing sites, that once the picture has been uploaded to the site, it becomes public domain.

Willing to believe that, but suppose your picture, taken from such a site, appears on the cover of a book titled 21th century crooks, wouldn't it in most countries be possible to successfully undertake legal action?

[oztaurus]

... and in other news today:

"US officials to help Thailand improve copyright protection"

Hopefully those same US officials will leap to K. Usanee's aid and help her track down and prosecute against this flagrantly unautorised use of her image...

.... except that their mission is actually to punish Thailand for its (fully legal) laws licensing generic versions of expensive US pharmaceuticals

[Thai at Heart]

The "author" is an idiot, he should have hired a "model" and gotten a signed release for the photo. I do find it funny that the sentence she cited as offensive stated,,," you don't have to look good or have a lot of money" the implication being that this is false (about her). pretty funny.

Maybe his publishers did!!

Let's not believe 100% that this is an entirely legal use of this picture, as distasteful as it may appear.

[zeichen]

since the photo comes from a shoot, he could have easily bought the rights to the photo from the agency and no, they don't have to inform her at all. Models, actresses, etc don't hold the rights to their image. There are many cases of teenage models doing shoots and selling their photos to teen magazines. Sometimes these photos end up next to stories about STD's or other not so flattering stories.

When you do a shoot commercially, you are signing your rights away.

However, if he didn't buy the rights to the photo, the model still cannot sue him in a US court. The agency that holds the right to the image can though.

She may have a defamation of character/libel suit here in Thailand though.

Edited May 7, 2014 by zeichen

[pedro01]

I think that you might find somewhere in the small print under the terms of service of many photo sharing sites, that once the picture has been uploaded to the site, it becomes public domain.

And I think you'll find that they also have a commercial use clause that specifically excludes commercial use without a license.

[InsideOut]

"You don't need to look good or have a lot of money, but you can still find Thai women to sleep with you"

Well certain Thai girls are obviously in need of money, and some of them are fascinated by the whole "whitey" thing. So wether or not she likes it, it is true.

​Certain Thai ladies are not particularly picky about who they pick as a date/customer...

[HeavyDrinker]

I think it's pushing a point calling this bloke an "author"

[SparklingCascades]

"I am not particularly angry by the photo on the cover, because this is not the first time my photo has been abused for commercial purpose. What angers me a lot is the text on the cover and the contents of the book which greatly insult Thai women," the celebrity said.

So it is not the use of the photo but the book itself that angers her because it insults Thai women.

Well Miss Wattatana, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but Thailand itself has been building the reputation of Thai women for decades. You can't blame the farangs for Thailand's reputation.

Thats correct - I am Thai & studied overseas. The view among many colleagues was:-

Switzerland is the watch factory of the world, Belgium the chocolate factory, Edam the cheese-makers, France the kitchen of the world, Britain the bankers of the world, America the gun-slingers of the world........ and Thailand the brothel of the world. Many truths are spoken in jest.

In Thailand at every level from the top to the very bottom of society and again from grandparents to parents to children - the world's oldest profession gets eagerly encouraged and passed on - albeit this applies to a chunky 25% - at the minimum - of our population.

Not sure why this actress protests about the book's contents. Perhaps home truths hurt.

A shallow woman. Anyone with depth would be upset at getting ones face on the cover of such a book and express an eagerness to help clean up the country. Not so this pretty face. Her comments explain in part whats wrong with Thailand & Thai-ness. How do we fit in let alone compete in the AEC with so much baggage we carry.

Edited May 7, 2014 by SparklingCascades

[american12bthai]

It would be more helpful if the article told us how much Ms. Usanee charges.

For using her photo without her consent? Much I guess.

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

well if you compare how much she gets paid as an actress... not that much.

maxim thailand, has a hotel, where you can meet your monthly girl. .. a hotel...

i didnt say anything.

but seriously.... if your in the industry where you have to lower your standards. YOU HAVE SOLD YOURSELF ALREADY.

thats kind of the mentality they brainwash into many magazine girls.

I am a leader, so i like my girls strong will and beautiful. i have yet to encounter one in thailand. any date i go on, if she responds "whatever you want" that means she is only waiting for the man with a house and car and job and....well. .. shes got no opinion.

boooooooooooo... (well some guys like that i guess.)

[mojorison]

She's fantastic...does it come as an ebook?

[Mister Fixit]

It is a fact that there are many more hookers in Thailand than most counties in the world. Thai people should learn to accept it and live with it. Sex is cheap and plentiful here.

And most of it perpetrated by Thai men ... I read somewhere that something like 97% (sounds high) of prostitution in Thailand is Thai man on Thai women - the rest are foreigners. Eve Marco Polo apparently wrote of the ease of shagging Thai women 600 -odd years ago!

If what is said is correct, every little town has its knocking shop, or a hairdressers, massage place, restaurant, Karaoke bar ... I've been propositioned by a couple of waitresses while just having a a meal - 'What time you stay? I finish 10 o'clock' type of thing ...