Obituaries - Aug. 8, 1999

* Rodney Ansell; Inspired ‘Dundee’

Rodney Ansell, 44, a rancher whose feats of survival in the Australian outback inspired the movie character “Crocodile” Dundee. Twenty years ago, Ansell was almost drowned when a large crocodile overturned his boat on a remote river. He survived in the wilderness for nearly two months by living on wild berries. At other times, he said, he drank warm buffalo blood straight from the animal’s neck and liked the sweet, salty taste. He turned these exploits into a successful book, “To Fight the Wild.” The story inspired Paul Hogan, the Australian actor and writer, and two partners to write a film about Ansell’s experiences. “Crocodile Dundee,” which starred Hogan in the title role, became an international comedy hit in 1986, and earned its three writers an Academy Award nomination for the screenplay. Ansell was able to buy a cattle station with the profits from the book and film. He married and had two sons. His fortunes fell sharply in the past decade, however. He was forced to sell his ranch and he blamed the government of the Northern Territories for not compensating him properly after a disease eradication program cost him 3,000 head of cattle. In 1992, he was convicted to stealing cattle and fined for assaulting another rancher. Ansell was killed Tuesday after shooting to death a police officer at a roadblock near the northern city of Darwin.

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Puey Ungphakorn; Ex-Thai Official

Puey Ungphakorn, 83, a former official of Thailand’s central bank and one of the country’s leading intellectuals in the postwar era. Puey never held high political office but greatly influenced those who did, from military strongmen in the 1950s to current democratic leaders, many of whom were once his students. He was part of the Free Thai resistance movement during Japanese occupation in World War II. He joined the central bank in the 1950s as an economist, eventually becoming governor. He was credited with turning the Bank of Thailand into one of the most independent, competent financial institutions in Asia. In 1964, Puey became dean of the economics department at Thammasat University. He eventually became rector. In the polarized politics of the time, the university became the center of left-wing student protest. When the elected government was overthrown in October 1976, rightists backed by the military invaded the campus to crush student protests. Scores died. Puey went into self-imposed exile in London, where he remained for the rest of his life. He will be cremated in accordance with Buddhist ritual, and his ashes will be flown to Thailand. On Friday in London. Cause of death was not announced.

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Joseph Zaleski; TV Executive

Joseph D. Zaleski, 66, a prominent executive in television syndication. A native of Buffalo, N.Y., Zaleski began his rise in the television sales business in 1967 when he became vice president and sales manager (television) for National Telefilm Associates. But it was as president of domestic syndication for Viacom Enterprises in the mid-1980s that he saw his career flourish. Zaleski created and implemented a landmark syndication plan for the “The Cosby Show” that became a standard by which all other distribution deals have been measured. Basically, he created a bidding war for the series and stations paid a then-unprecedented $600 million for the rights to air reruns of 100 “Cosby” episodes over a 3 1/2-year period. The record was later surpassed by other shows, including “Seinfeld.” After leaving Viacom in 1990, Zaleski ran his own sales and marketing consultancy firm before joining Carsey-Werner Domestic Distribution in 1995. At Carsey-Werner he handled the successful launch of “Grace Under Fire” and record sales for “3rd Rock From the Sun.” On Friday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles of cancer.