OSS CBI Photobook 27 - Preparations

 

OSS CBI Photobook 26 - Demons and Warriors

 

 

 

Happy Warrior

 

Stoic Warrior

Kid Warrior with Demon Trophies

Warrior

Demon

Happy Warrior

OSS CBI Photobook 25 - Part 2 - Chess on the board, chess IRL

 

OSS CBI Photobook 24 - Goals, Gear, Guns, and Goofballs

 At Field Base near Hsin-Hsiang, negotiations about cooperation seemingly completed, missions involving rail sabotage are in the planning and preparation stage. The Chinese volunteers and their OSS mentors continue with their training and now we see them packing up arms for airdrop.  That's Cyr standing in the middle of that empty wrapper; behind all the men, up those few steps, is a pile of black duffel sacks ready to be filled for the drop.

Hey I thought you guys were spooks. Aren't you supposed to be keeping a low profile?

These two irregulars are sure living up to the designation. EJZ at left, and Berent Friele at right, are both smoking cigars. Did they get this from Robichaud/Frenchie? I wonder. We see that captured Japanese sword again; the combat knife; the pistol in scabbard with the signature leather leg-tie thing; the boots close up; a new thing: those black gaiters, which we will see again later in this post. Pretty interesting for an Orchard Lake altar boy! Friele models the captured Japanese helmet with those long chin straps they had; a Puppet army shirt worn over his USA shirt; again the gaiters.

 

Here we have Cyr trying to camouflage himself with shades, beard, and Puppet army duds. Boris Chiu, next to him, is looking pretty serious. I would too. 

 

Our Chinese language consultant sees a few words in the partially-obscured wall poster behind Paul Cyr:

I can catch some of the words on the painted wall in your picture. I see smoothly...and straight-on...and treasure (noun or verb).    Thanks, K.

So it is wartime propaganda, perhaps the equivalent of Keep Calm and Carry On. 

 

 

 

Something is exploding or exploded. What?

 

Now I wonder if the guy at left is Zarembo, the West Pointer. His diary is all in a consistantly humorous tone - see MMB55 ff - so maybe he likes organizing skits as well. For this ID I have nothing more to go on than this inference on the basis of personality. Let's all stay on the lookout for more clues.

The man on the left has excessive thoracic kyphosis and a shortened right leg. He stands with his right foot on a brick so that his back will not hurt from asymmetrical strain. Mills explains in MMB Chapter 1 the hatred of the Chinese for Tojo's sadistic invaders. The locals would get together and build an airstrip for American planes in one day (MMB Chapter 3) or they would fight if they were lame. 

 

These guys are going over the plans for a mission. Cyr, with his experience from his previous deployment in occupied France, set the parameters for map-making; Dad/our EJZ drafted maps according to Cyr's specifications. (I have a sheaf of them and will start posting them once I get them figured out.) Third from left is Boris Chiu with cigar; fourth from left is Paul Cyr with pencil. I think those black things on the table are flashlights. The window curtain is a piece of parachute, such as we can see on the back dust jacket of the MMB book. 

 

OSS CBI Photobook 23, Part 2

 Part 1 is here. 

Now we take a look at the bottom half of that page of the PhotoBook.

 

The vast, empty floodplain affords no cover.

 

See that little kid in the background? My initial scan, prior to adjustments, was so dark that he was invisible. As the image got lighter, he popped out of the darkness into view and scared me half to death. Then I laughed when for sure he said Boo!  This goes to show the truth of the Longmire quotation: Sometimes you have friends you don't know in places you've never been.

 

 Berent Friele fixes that radio again. Those distinctive and sturdy chairs are still being made. 

 

Paul Cyr is at the tailor's shop, where they measure him for some new britches that will make him completely blend in just like when he was in France, and be totally inconspicuous, invisible to the Japanese.  Right? They're only 400 miles into Japanese-held territory. And there are only 20,000 Imperial Japanese troops approaching right now. And finally, those Imperial spies in plainclothes, wandering around town looking for OSS guys, will be no problem to spot. Right?

We see an interesting table base, as well as another of those chairs.

Sturdy utility chairs with pegs are still being made in China. Friends brought some back from the mountainous country of Guangdong province:

 

 Do they spot an American plane? another drop?

 The JACKAL Team Log written up by our EJZ is in the National Archives. Robert Mills kindly sent me the bound photocopy that the MMB authors had the Archives staff make for them. We can take a look at a few pages from the .pdf version that I have converted to .jpeg in Preview.

Note that the entire Team Log is in EJZ's handwriting. As he explains on his first page, the first few pages, dated May 22 to May 30 1945, while in his handwriting, are transcribed from the Zarembo's diary, reprinted in MMB 55-65. Team Log entries after May 30 are of EJZ composition.

May 23: Boris Chiu rides off to HsienHsiang to arrange a meeting of General Sun with Paul Cyr:

May 24: Cyr takes his Bride-cart ride to the meeting.  See MMB63.

May 25:  . . . Maj. Cyr and Lt. Chiu began work on the city itself. First studying a map of the city, Lt. Chiu went out into the streetsw to "rub elbows" with the Japs and find important buildings and bombing targets . . . 

 

 May 26, 27, 28, 29: see MMB 74-76.

 

When we pick this up again we will get Welo out and EJZ in.