Mitr Chaibancha (Thai มิตร ชัยบัญชา (pronunciation), 28 January 1934 in Phetchaburi, Thailand - 8 October 1970) was a Thai film actor who acted 266 films from 1956 to 1970.
He died on 8 October 1970 at Dongtan Beach, Jomtien, South Pattaya, after falling from a helicopter during the filming of a stunt for the final scene of Insee thong (Golden Eagle).

At the height of his career in the 1960s, Mitr, along with Petchara Chaowarat, made a string of hit films that packed cinemas. Of the 75 to 100 films produced each year by the Thai film industry during this period, Mitr starred in nearly half of them.

Early life
Mitr was born into poverty, named Bunting ("abandoned by destiny"), which was the name given to him by a monk. His parents separated when he was an infant. His father was a non-commissioned police officer. His mother came to Bangkok for work as a greengrocer and a better financial position. At age 8, Mitr moved to Bangkok's Nang Loeng neighborhood to live with a newly married mother, where he took the surname Phumhem. This was the surname of his stepfather. He was then enrolled in a Thai boxing school. He became the lightweight boxing champion for his school in 1949 and 1951, and went on to win three lightweight division titles. After finishing secondary school, he studied at Pranakhon College. He was then accepted into the Royal Thai Air Force aviation school, where he was trained as a pilot. After graduation, he worked as a flight instructor at Don Muang Royal Thai Air Force Base.

In 1956 some friends showed his photograph to journalist Kingkaew Kaewprasert, who introduced him to Surat Pukkawet, the editor of a movie magazine. Before long Mitra starred in his first film, Chart Sua (Tiger Instinct). It was then he decided to change his name from Pichet Pumhem to Mitr Chaibancha. He caught the attention of movie fans after starring in Chao Nakleng (Gangster Lord), using the character name Rom Ritthikrai from author Sake Dusit's Insee Daeng (Red Eagle) series of novels.

He married his wife, Jaruwan, in 1959. In 1961 a son, Yuthana, or Ton, was born. However, the marriage ended in a divorce.

Height of fame
In 1961 Mitr starred in Banthuk Rak Pimchawee (Love Diary of Pimchawee), his first film with Petchara Chaowarat. This was the beginning of the most celebrated hero-heroine partnerships in Thai cinematic history. The Mitr-Petchara duo made about 165 films together.

One of the pair's most famous films was 1970's Monrak luk thung (, or Magical Love of the Countryside), a musical romantic comedy rhapsodizing Thai rural life.

Mitr was an extremely busy actor and was always on the move, going from set to set and sleeping as little as a two or three hours per night.

Another of his best-known movies, Pet Tad Pet (Operation Bangkok), was shot in both Bangkok and Hong Kong, and featured Kecha Plianvitheee and Luecha Naruenart as the villains, as well as Hong Kong's then top actress, Regina Piping.

Monrak luk thung was one of Mitr's last films. It played in Bangkok cinemas for a solid six months in 1970 and took in 6 million baht, its popularity spurred by the best-selling soundtrack album and Mitr's accidental death while filming Insee Thong.

His last film
Insee Thong was the first film that Mitr produced himself, and it featured the return of his popular character, the masked crime-fighter, Insee Daeng (Red Eagle), the secret alter ego of alcoholic detective Rom Rittikrai.

On the last day of shooting, the script called for Mitr, having vanquished the villains, to fly off into the sunset in a helicopter. As the camera rolled, Mitr leapt from the ground to grab a rope ladder hanging from the aircraft, only managing to reach the lowest rung. Unaware of this, the helicopter pilot flew higher and higher, and Mitr finally lost his grip and fell to the ground. The accident was all caught on film and was actually left in the final theatrical release. The fatal fall has since been removed from DVD versions of the film, with Mitr simply flying off into the distance and some onscreen text paying tribute to the star.

It was another death that would make 1970 a difficult year for the Thai film industry, as months earlier pioneering director Rattana Pestonji collapsed while giving a speech urging government officials to support the domestic film industry. He died several hours later.

Mitr’s death was ruled as a tragic accident. For safety, there should have been two shots for the final scene. The first would have been of Mitr grabbing the ladder and flying off at low altitude. Then, a stunt double would have performed a second shot at a higher altitude.

Funeral and memorial shrine

On the day of his funeral, the streets leading to the Buddhist temple were packed, with tens of thousands trying to attend his cremation rites. On the DVD of Insee Thong, release in 2005 in Thailand, one of the special features is footage of the cremation ceremony. Mitr's body is held up so the throngs of onlookers could catch a last glimpse of the dead star. He was survived by his former wife and one son.

A memorial shrine to Mitr is situated on a small street in Jomtien, off Jomtien Road in front of the Amphoe Bang Lamung Revenue Department, behind Jomtien Palm Beach Hotel. The shrine is open from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily. Inside the spirit house is a statue of Mitr holding a pistol in his right hand, reminiscent of his numerous roles as an action movie star. The walls are lined with photographs and other memorabilia. Fortune seekers visit the shrine, shake Kau Cim sticks and then check for the corresponding fortune on tablets hung on the shrine. If wishes have been granted, fortune seekers return and purchase a small offering to leave at the shrine.

Partial filmography
 Operation Bangkok (Pet Tad Pet) (1966)
 Top Secret (1967)
 Monrak luk thung (Magical Love of the Countryside) (1970)
 Insee thong (Golden Eagle) (1970)
 The Tiger and the Dragon (1971)

References

 Tupchai, Suchada (2005) Adoring fans remember famous Thai film star Mitr Chiabancha, Pattaya Mail. Retrieved 23 December 2005.
 Rithdee, Kong (2005) Fallen idols, Bangkok Post. Retrieved 23 December 2005.
 Fleshman, Erich (2005) A Brief History of Thai Cinema, Notes from Hollywood. Retrieved 23 December 2005.
 Saenkhum, Tanita (2003)  Remembering Mitr, The Nation. Retrieved 23 December 2005.
 The Cremation of Mitr Chaibancha, special features, Insee thong DVD, 2005.

External links

Mitr Chaibancha at the Thai Film Database
Review of Insee thong at Rotten Tomatoes

1934 births
1970 deaths
Mitr Chaibancha
Mitr Chaibancha
Mitr Chaibancha
Mitr Chaibancha
Accidental deaths from falls
Mitr Chaibancha
Mitr Chaibancha
Filmed deaths of entertainers
Mitr Chaibancha
밋 차이반차( 1934년 1월 28일 ~ 1970년 10월 8일) 은 태국의 영화 배우이다.

초기 생애 
밋 차이반차는 피쳇 품헴 (พิเชษฐ์ พุ่มเหม)으로 빈곤에서 태어났다. 부모는 그가 어렸을 때 헤어졌다. 8세 때 밋 차이반차과 그의 어머니는 방콕로 이사했고 그는 태국 권투 학교에 등록했다. 그는 1952년 학교에서 복싱 챔피언이 되었고 3개의 가벼운 부문 타이틀을 획득했다. 중등 학교를 마치고 프라나콘대학에서 공부한 다음 태국 왕실 공군항공 학교에 입학하여 조종사 훈련을 받았다. 졸업 후 그는 태국 왕실 돈므앙 공군 기지에서 비행 강사로 일했다.

1956년에 어떤 친구들은 그의 사진을 기자 낑깨우 깨우쁘라섯 (กิ่งแก้ว แก้วประเสริฐ) 에게 보여 주었다. 그를 쑤랏 푹까웻 (สุรัตน์ พุกกะเวส) 에게 영화 잡지 편집자 소개했다. 밋 차이반차은 그의 첫 번째 영화 "호랑이 본능" (ชาติเสือ)에서 타르를 찍었다. 그때 그는 그의 이름을 피쳇 품헴에서 밋 차이반차로 바꾸기로 결정했다. 그는 "갱스터 군주" (จ้าวนักเลง)에 출연한 후 영화가 팬들의 관심을 끌었다. 작가 쎅 두씻 (เศก ดุสิต) "붉은 독수리" (อินทรีแดง) 시리즈의 소설 롬 릿티끄라이 (โรม ฤทธิไกร) 을 사용한다.

그는 1959년 아내 짜루완과 결혼했다. 1961년에 아들 윳타나 또는 똔가 태어났다. 그러나 이혼으로 하였다.

명성의 높이 
1961년 밋 차이반차은 "핌처위의 사랑 일기" (บันทึกรักของพิมพ์ฉวี) 에 출연 펫차라 차오와랏 (เพชรา เชาวราษฎร์) 와 그의 첫 번째 영화 이것은 태국 영화사에서 가장 유명한 영웅-여 주인공 파트너십의 시작이었다. 밋과 펫차라 듀오는 약 165 편의 영화를 함께 만들었다.

이 쌍의 가장 유명한 영화 중 하나는 1970년대 "시골의 마법의 사랑" (มนต์รักลูกทุ่ง - 몬락룩퉁) 태국의 시골 생활을 뮤지컬하는 로맨틱 코미디이다.

밋 차이반차는 아주 바쁜 배우였고 항상 움직였다. 하루에 2~3 시간 정도만 자고 설정에서 자고.

그의 가장 유명한 영화 중 하나 인 "방콕 작전" (เพชรตัดเพชร) 방콕과 홍콩에서 총에 맞은 악당으로 르차 나르낫와 께차 프리안위티을 홍콩의 유명 여배우 인 레지나 파이핑도 마찬가지이다.

"몬락룩퉁" (시골의 마법의 사랑) 밋 차이반차의 마지막 영화 중 하나였다. 1970년에 6개월 동안 방콕 영화관에서 6백만 바트를 썼으며 그 인기는 베스트셀러 사운드 트랙 앨범과 "황금 독수리" (อินทรีทอง)를 촬영하는 동안 밋 차이반차 우발적 인 죽음

그의 마지막 영화 
"황금 독수리" (อินทรีทอง)는 밋 차이반차이 직접 제작한 첫 번째 영화였다. 그의 인기 캐릭터의 귀환 마스크 범죄자 "인씨댕" (붉은 독수리 - อินทรีแดง) 알콜 탐정 롬 릿티끄라이의 비밀 변경 자아

촬영 마지막 날에 대본은 밋 차이반차이 악당을 정복하고 헬리콥터에서 일몰으로 날아가도록 요구했다. 카메라가 굴러 감에 따라 밋 차이반차은 비행기에서 매달린 밧줄 사다리를 움켜 쥐기 위해 뛰어 내렸다. 가장 낮은 렁에 도달하는 것만 관리 이것을 모르고 헬리콥터 조종사가 점점 더 날아 밋 차이반차는 밧줄 사다리를 놓쳐 땅에 떨어졌다. 사고는 모두 필름에 잡힌 실제로 최종 극장 개봉에 남아 있었다. DVD 버전의 영화에서는 치명적인 추락이 제거되었다. 밋 차이반차는 단순히 멀리서 날아가고 별에 대한 찬사를 바치는 화면상의 텍스트로 등장했다.

태국 영화 산업에서 1970년을 어려운 해로 만들었던 것은 또 다른 죽음이었다. 몇 달 전 파이오니아 선구자 인 랏 페스탄지 (รัตน์ เปสตันยี) 가 무너지면서 정부 관료들이 국내 영화 산업을 지원할 것을 촉구하는 연설을 하면서 그는 몇 시간 후에 죽었다.

밋 차이반차의 죽음은 비극적인 사고로 통치되었다. 안전을 위해 최종 장면에는 두 가지가 필요했다. 첫 번째는 밋 차이반차이 사다리를 잡고 낮은 고도에서 날아온 것이었다. 그런 다음 스턴트 더블은 더 높은 고도에서 두 번째 샷을 수행했을 것이다.

부분 영화 

 1966년 - เพชรตัดเพชร (방콕 작전 - Operation Bangkok)
 1967년 - Top screet (기밀)
 1970년 - มนต์รักลูกทุ่ง (시골의 마법의 사랑 / 몬락룩퉁)
 1970년 - อินทรีทอง (황금 독수리 / 인씨통)

각주 

1934년 출생
1970년 사망
펫차부리주 출신
태국의 남자 배우
추락하여 죽은 사람