Jim Thompson was one of the most famous Americans in Southeast Asia in the 1950s and 60s. He rose from Private to Lt. Col. in the OSS in WWII. He resurrected the Thai silk industry, amassed a huge art collection and entertained movie stars and celebrities every night in his house-museum. In March 1967 he went for a short walk in the high jungles of Malaysia and was never seen again. The resulting ground search was the largest in Southeast Asia and generated headlines around the world. Not a trace was found. Dr. Lew Toulmin will describe Jim's exotic life and analyze the case from a scientific search and rescue point of view - this has never been done before. Dr. Lew Toulmin grew up in Thailand, and later worked on public administration reform and emergency management consulting projects in Thailand and 30 other developing countries, sponsored by the World Bank, USAID and other donors. He has led searches for missing persons, aircraft, plantations, battlefields and POW camps, often sponsored by The Explorers Club or the Royal Geographical Society. This event costs $25.