Post writer, trained to do and we did some traveling and while we were there, i was there in a speaking tour in peter let me know he was working on a new book about spies in manila and their any number votes working in the archives and some other things people were working on books. But then pete let me know ive got Claire Phillips diary. Pete came down quite a lot over at the last two years because we do have all the papers that chip larson, one of the main stories to the paper as well as john thune who was a big gorilla of the time. Jeanne, did you just raise your hand . [applause] is my first chance to meet her and she donated those papers quite a long time ago. It is really a thrill for all of us to have you here. Peace work is now finished. Two years in the making and here we are with the really great piece. I will let him come up and tell you the story he has to tell. Without any further waiting, peter eisner, macarthurs spies. [applause] thank you very much for being here. I have to say that when you are introduced by james zobel, you have the feeling that he could do the presentation better than you could. So, given the fact hes not doing that, i would do my best, but its not going to be quite as good because jim has been to so many writers come in just a great in making these things happen and then deeply appreciated. Being here at the macarthur memorial is a special thrill for me because part of my story comes from working here looking through the archives and trying to put together the true story of finding philippines from 19421945. Its a great pleasure. At the same time, trying to reach to audiences because theres a sense in which there is a scholarly piece of this story, which im not going to delve into too much. But with luck, ive been able to develop information that nobody has seen before and that information will now be held here at the macarthur memorial so that any other research one to see some of the material i found. Its a great pleasure to do that. At the same time, i wanted this to be available to a general audience so that others beyond those who might be interested in world war ii, who might be thinking about General Macarthur just have an idea of who these people were and what the story is all about. Its a Remarkable Group of people. First, primarily in many ways the book is about Claire Phillips. Clear as a nightclub singer, thirtysomething Night Club Singer from portland, oregon. She found herself on december 8th company team 41, which some of you may know was the day of infamy because of the International Date line. Hours after the japanese bombed pearl harbor, they bumped the philippines and within three weeks coming japanese were marching into manila and occupied manila and the rest of the philippines for three years. Claire ran off to the hills at some percentage of the population did and for the first time found herself in some ways. That story i develop in this book. The other two people i write about are also in manila on december 8th, 1941. When i finished john thune, corporate and the Army Corporal in the army. Retreated around Christmas Eve 1941 because they realized it would be impossible to defend manila and about 35,000 some odd american troops and about 60,000 filipino troops for all intents and purposes, the u. S. Army retreated and then file for ocean city for months with no supplies, hope they met supplies would arrive. Reinforcement never came and they surrender in 1942 and a month later. John thune, unlike many people who surrendered ran off to the hills, separated from the unit and tried to put together what he would do next. Thats the second person may story. The third verse and in the story is a man named chick persons. Chick persons as the next patriot american from tennessee living most of his life in manila. When the war broke out, he was called into military headquarters, the secret was out in the u. S. Military of hawaii and the u. S. Navy reserve in the commanders said raise your right hand. You are back in the navy. He then for the next month as a secret u. S. Spy operations in the philippines right under the nose of the japanese, thinking he would be able to gather up significant information and not really knowing what to do next. His story ends up in manila in june of 1942, on an exchange shared because he was able to con his way out of manila with his family and supposedly, the panamanian consul to the philippines. The u. S. Navy officer speaking only spanish from january to june 1942 board the ship at the panamanian consul and in a Diplomatic Exchange escapes to fight another day. The third person to be reading about in the book. Im not going to talk as much about each of these people appeared to her secrets to be told and read the book. Ill say chick persons is such a fascinating person they now started writing a separate addressing peace table, onto estonia in the fall and is one of the great Unsung Heroes of world war ii as far as im concerned. Id like to back up and say why did i write this book . Ive been fascinated by world war ii for a long time. Based on my feeling that it is a story that we can identify more than ever because it is absolute good fighting the good fight against bad people. You dont usually see that much of an obvious story in which people have to come together and fight a bad force and win or else. Fighting in europe, one was called the freedom line about an american pilot shot down over belgium in 1943, rescued by a bunch of young women, nursed back to health, hit in as he runs across belgium through france and finally escaped spain to fight another day. This story is a story of an amazing escape line with young people, mostly still teenagers fighting undercover freedom. The next one was about hrc would , and american who it journalist who was brought in to help pope pius the 11th, not the 12 to challenge hitler, mussolini and antisemitism and its his attempt and the popes last attempt to stop hitler in world war ii. There is a theme in everything they do. I look for people that are not central, not the great figures and use lesserknown figures to tell a larger story. After i finished the second book, i said its about time to face facts. One other reason im interested in world war ii is my dad fought in the pacific in world war ii. Like so many people weve heard of the greatest generation, he was just like that. He didnt talk about it very much. When he talked about it can be told about the funny part and i wanted to learn more about what that meant, what was really going on there. I said about what about turning to the pacific, the philippines and that god had thought. That brought me to the philippines. A wonderful story of the rescued the survivors of the content death march. In that book, describes a group of women who are helping smuggle food and supplies and lifesaving medicine and into the pow camp where the surviving death march people were held. In the air, i read a description of a woman codename high pocket was described as the most intriguing mysterious woman and the most important one and in supplying these lifesaving good, foods and medicines to the prisoners. I said who is this what then . What i find out about her . I looked her up on the internet and found out she had written a memoir. I found out there was a movie written about her. All of what ive read didnt seem to quite work for me very well. Around that time i said i wonder if the macarthur memorial but has some information about her. I came down here in the first thing i did was find it was not that much information about her. Most of that was contained in letters that john thune had written to her during the war, but it still wasnt satisfied. For a couple of years i searched and finally i found a document. It was not easy to find. Claire was a master of deception before, during and after the war. She actually was married three times while she was till a teenager. Divorced twice at most. In casablanca where they say i would like to think you killed a man. One of them kind of disappears from the Historic Records after their marriage. We dont know. She showed up in the philippines and she was married a couple more times, claims she was married more times than she was. I finally found a document on one of the last names of one of her marriages didnt realize there had a massive court case about her attempts to get restitution after the war for fighting the japanese in providing supplies. She asked for 148,000 nothing more. I was operating in College Park Maryland and found an index card. It indicated there should be more about her. They said no, not here. Go to the Main Office Downtown d. C. I went to downtown d. C. They said i dont think we have it. Maybe such and such a person went on and on, didnt seem i was going to find anything. Finally an archivist who didnt use the computer said wait a minute, i think i know where to look. He went back into the entrails of the archives in a kind of felt like we were operating in the last scene of indiana jones, you know, like there must have been this amazing warehouse of talks is, dusty boxes. It think it was because finally he came back with a dusty box in went, here it is. Each row of 2000 pages of Court Testimony on the case of Claire Phillips against the United States wrapped up in a nice ribbon that been there since 1957 unpatched. When they opened it up, suddenly a little datebook spell out the folder and opened it and it was Claire Phillips diary. I dont know if you can appreciate how i felt at that moment. She didnt even know when it was presented in the court to be tracked down because she had been finally rest by the japanese. Here it was. Entirely unadorned until some major new episode in many ways to what happened in world war ii. That then becomes the heart of my other book. But as i read the book, a realize there are other connections to the other two people. John thune, who she has been speaking to and also amazingly that she is in touch to some degree which persons. So heres what happens. Claire phillips was back in japan and the first month of the war. For the first time she was actually worrying about other people rather than herself frankly. She was taking care of the sick, taking care of the wounded. She was delivering babies. She was trying to survive herself the disease and the conditions that people were surviving in the hills were terrible. People that were afraid the japanese would come and arrest them, much less the problem that claire was an american. She was living among filipinos. Anyone that might have been harboring her could have been immediately sentenced to death doing that. Someone once said around april or may of 1942, theres american trying to raise a guerrilla army. Maybe would like to meet them. She then is put in contact with john thune. Nursed back to health, having suffered all those months fighting the japanese is in fact raising a guerrilla army. Starts out with 10, 20, 30, 40 people and then finally hundreds. The one thing we need is intelligence. If you could get back down to manila, we will support you getting back down there and you can provide intelligence backup device to create a courier system. Heads back down to nlf, within months shes open a nightclub called club souvlaki and from october 1942 until her arrest in may made to 44, shes entertaining in spite of japanese officers every night and has raised a whole group of other women who are sweet talking the soldiers and gathering up information at the end of the night. The name of prisoner, name of officer, where they came from, where they are going next. Excellent intelligence john boone said sunday that up into the hill. Finally, picking up the thread of chick persons who has been able to sneak out of manila as the panamanian counsel to the contrary of panama avoiding japanese encounters, even though it can exchange it for me they still have to stay out of battle in the ship finally after four months gets him back to new york where he was immediately arrested idf vi, stating you must be a spy. How did you get out . Finally, that is settled. He shows up in washington in september 1942 in General Macarthur finds out that parsons is alive, safe and in washington. Then comes a telegram from General Macarthur who was by now retreated to australia, reorganizing the military effort against japan. They send parsons immediately. Price sends his back in australia and on a submarine traveling to the philippines, the first of many trip and running a guerrilla operation in the philippines on behalf of macarthur throughout the war. Finally, check parsons appears saying he is in town. Ive got to put down every ounce. It is amazing the connection was finally made it these three people were interconnect date. Theres a lot more to tell you about in that boat. I will let you read and ask questions about the details. Ill tell you one thing. My dad was an incident on an lsd in 1942 in 1843 and 1844. On october 20, 1944, sailing towards that goal for what became what might have been the Largest Naval battle in u. S. History. At the same time, Chick Parsons had been sent by the u. S. Military command to advance reconnaissance in late day to track for japanese placements were, that persons was responsible for, aware that something was about to have been. In turn, decrease japans ability to respond and also keep in also keeping secret what was going to have been. As my dad is moving on lsd for 63 from the south but the bunch of ships, chick persons is making those people safe by knocking things down as well as he could. I found in the National Archives by dat backlogs on the morning about over 20th and it describes the ship moving in toward shore, dropping off tanks in pulling off under heavy fire. I can imagine that i owe at least some small banks to chick persons Chick Parsons bad the United States knowing where its going to place. Its my own little contact with the story. I think thats about as much as i might tell you about it without telling you the entire story. This is an important part of the story that mean something very much to me. These americans that i write about are among hundreds of americans fighting in the philippines during world war ii. They were fighting tens of thousands of filipinos who were surviving the occupation, fighting, dying and suffering. At that time the liberation of manila in 1945, march 3rd, nate came 45, a month of battle. 100,000 filipinos died, mostly civilians. It is a story that is not known as broadly as it might be known. I dedicated this book and i dedicate everything has a about the story to the brave filipinos that pop out war and suffered more than most. That is the basis of the story. I think i have an interesting question to ask, which you can wind in a bar back. About the u. S. Military cemeteries overseas, where would be the most people buried. Where most of those people buried . You can ask questions beyond that. Thanks very much for being here. It is my pleasure talking to you. [applause] will now have a questionandanswer period and if you have a question, please come to the microphone which is right here in the middle. Mr. Eisner [inaudible] its outstanding. You ought to buy it. Thank you very much. I appreciate very much. Does anybody have an answer for that question about where the military burial site is . Vanilla. Most people with think that normandy would be where most americans are buried after world war ii. In fact, after attending the 70th anniversary, Thomas University where up to 5000 americans and other allied nationalist were kept in detention from january 1942 to february 1945. I went for a center of thomas the u. S. Military cemetery in it was amazed to find as many as 20,000 people are buried there. Its been a beautiful, terry overlooking manila. If you ever go, one takes caused by going there. Thanks for writing this book. Youve done a great job so far. My question is her diary. How dangerous is it to have this diary. How dangerous was it for Claire Phillips to have this diary . It was massively dangerous. If the japanese ever found her diary, she would have been killed. Claire was arrested in may 1944 because of a Japanese Military police upsurge in activity. They called her and a bunch of allies in for questioning in torture and imprisonment for 10 months. But they thought it that she was smuggling and they didnt know she was providing information to the guerrillas. Nevertheless, her room at her nightclub was occasionally searched in routine searches and the diary was never found. The diary was the kind of date book that you might find preinternet like the one by three little boat that a bank or Insurance Company might give you for the start of the year. She scribbled unschooled little bit and then headed someplace for the first six that she had it with her, she brought it back in when she was in her nightclub, she had a hiding place for it. Interestingly enough, she was arrested in may 1944 then theres the final bittersweet injury, which says waiting for my call to school, which was her code for saying they are coming to get me. She had a chance to flee and she didnt. It was hidden someplace and never found. My guess in the book is told that its an interesting possibility of how that was found because theres only two people that might have known where it was. Is suddenly reappeared and made tea and 55 in the court case that she was fighting against the United States for money that she spent. In the Court Testimony, when the government produces this diary, she hadnt seen it in nine years and had no idea where it might have come from. A newspaper article says someone found a dead a bar. Not likely. The diary, the fact that it survived, the fact nobody found it is remarkable. Can you talk a little bit about you or he mentioned about how you came here and went to the National Archives. Can you talk about other places you went to to try and piece the story together . Can you tell us the folks that made these three central figures and can you also talk about i know you went to the philippines. Can you talk about how the story if you are able to go back to the actual places where these events took place . So, as a resume of the question, whether places that i go in developing the story besides the National Archives in the memorial and the philippines itself. These days, one next to let anyone can do is use the internet. I certainly worked on the internet to look for information msh or analysts, developed an ability to look where others might not look. It was never known for instance that claire was married when she was 16 years old come again 18 years old and again 19 years old. I was able to find her marriage certificate and as i said, no divorce certificates by the way interestingly enough. I actually found those in public records using the internet to do that. I also went to ucla library to listen to a wonderful audio tape of her being interviewed by Ralph Edwards on this is your life, the last year that it was only a radio show, not television. One of the missing links that Ralph Edwards in the audio mentions he has produced a video or a film of this visit and he was presenting a tour at the end of the broadcast, but i couldnt find that. It wouldve been great great to have seen her speak rather than listen to others speak. I went to a number of places like that. I was in touch with the portland, oregon library. I was in touch with several other University Libraries and was able to slowly pieces together. I also spoke to a very few people that have direct knowledge, one of whom is jean booed, the son of john boone, who kindly gave me every day and she could. He was a wonderful photographer in his later life with wonderful photographs and that was great. When i was in the philippines, i met a woman who was the daughter , who is the great newspaper editor of manila daily news end quote beautifully about the time before the war in the days leading up to the manila occupation. She gave me some information as well and was able to discuss what life was like from the give of a five, 6yearold girl in the santo tomas detention center. Other than a few very old gorilla fighters that i met and spoke what i was in manila, the story quickly but going beyond firstperson and i continue to speak to his peter parsons, the son of Chick Parsons whos a wonderful film writer who has done some documentaries about his dad and has been helping me a lot and he and i have frequent triangulated chats about what happened when. Peter of course remembers the day when he was either sold in in the japanese came marching in to manila and they were yelling on site, bonsai, bonsai. He remembers the federal boy yelling in return back at them. So i did have a few people, but mostly this was an archival attempt. Peter, didnt Claire Phillips have a daughter and what happened to that daughter when she was incarcerated are being held for nine or 10 months . Claire phillips had a foster daughter named i. E. And then theres a lot of confusion about who she was. When she came, she was about two years old when the japanese invaded in claire carry her with her to pretend. Over the course of the years, if you are not getting the point, claire was rapidly deceptive, perfect for a spy, but also deceptive in her life. Sometimes she said that diane was her natural daughter. Other times she said she was the daughter of one of her house and who she had married before the war in manila. Finally, she indicates in the Court Documents that she was never able to have children herself. Diane was not her natural daughter. Dagen would back with her after the war to portland, oregon. Claire got all sorts of accolade in her memoir came out and after the movie came out. I should say the americans by is really a poor attempt to tell her story and really in a strange ultra romantic 1950s way that had very little to do with who she was and what was going on. Even to the point that little diane who is certainly a filipino girl transformed into kind of like a Shirley Temple laker girl with flowing curly blond locks in the movie and saying mommy, mommy, daddy, daddy, which was not the case. Diane basically disappears. I have not been able to track her down. She may be still with us. There are people who claim to be her daughter, her adopted daughter, but there is no bloodline from claire sighed because she was unable to have children. She did have two sisters. Basically i was focusing on that. If claires life under occupation and none of them wouldve been able to help me very much. Diane has not been tracked down as far as i know. I was wondering if you could share the part of the story that had the biggest impact on your amazing race. The greatest impact that a walk away from wife from the books. I would say that really i had no idea in other than people that might be familiar with the philippines and know the story here in this room, no idea that americans were the guerrillas in the hills in world war ii in the philippines fighting with filipino nationals. You always think of the authors say. Your think of the americans fighting the guerrillas. This was the opposite. I was impressed with their resourcefulness, with their ability to survive and with their strong sense of patriotism to fight a battle that had to be fought. I had no idea that any of this had taken place. There are chapters in the book in which american prisoners who are being treated as slaves suddenly are given new clothing and fake guns and are forced to reenact the battle of pretend for a japanese film crew. The ability of these americans to survive in the suffering that day in their filipino allies went through was really probably what i take away the most from the story. Have you come to the conclusion that to which he would consider make verb break spy in the context . The question is what makes a great spy. I think ive learned something about that question. A great spy is not necessarily a boy scout or girl scout. It is somebody that has the wherewithal to not only deceive, but he used all of their abilities at the moment to do what they know they have to do. Claire phillips was a natural spy. The rest of her life, she was a deceptive person, often not telling the church. But its pretty much what we wanted and we are grateful for what she did. But it doesnt come out of a hollywood movie script so neatly as to say that i spy is a noble perfect person in all the ways. All of these people had, you know, their fears, had every possible reason not to be doing what they were doing. But they saw something more important and they connected themselves to a higher purpose than they found themselves. Thats really what i like to write about. The person data breaches a moral moment in their life just acts on it and none is really what this story is about. Finding your moment, acting with it and trying to succeed, even if you fear that you may go down for your life may be lost but still having to fight that fight. Two questions. I was interested to know [inaudible] im interested to know about the women, ladies that were bringing health, medicine and food at the nationality or connection. The other question is in their research, it surprised me that there were aircraft on the ground that they were seeking to destroy hours after pearl harbor. In any of your research [inaudible] ill take it in reverse order. The question is why where u. S. Planes on the ground on december 8, 1941 . There are lots of ways to answer the question and no one has a satisfactory answer for that question. General macarthur was responsible for u. S. Military operations in the philippines. Confusingly, he said that he was not informed while the impending japanese attack on the philippines. Others say that he was informed of the information should have gone up the line he would have known. Its never clearly known why the planes were on the ground. Some did fly that day and some bombers went to now taiwan, came back for refueling and planes were on the ground with the japanese attack in the u. S. Forces, which were not very large in the dozens of planes were cut in half on the ground that day and made an almost impossible challenge to defend against the chinese even more at difficult. Nobody has an answer to why that happened. General macarthur has one he answers about why that might have been the case. As far as the women that were fighting along with Claire Phillips, there were many. We mentioned in the book one of course was another american, margaret e. Kinski whos been about quite a bit. They were friends and rivals, very interesting relationship between the two of them. I have new information about peggy kinski in the book based on her testimony at the court case in the u. S. Court of claims. She certainly early on looking at the red cross was providing food, medicine and herself as a nurse to the man and they Work Together often. There were many filipina women working with them, also testifying in mentioned in the book. Ive claire at one point mentioned, giving much more difficult work than she was doing because they were constantly bringing supplies right through japanese lines and smuggling material into guerrilla territory and also pow camps to make that happen. Some were arrested, some died, some survived. It was a remarkable case of bravery on behalf of all of these against daunting odds and against the great possibility that could be caught and killed at any moment. Do you believe that the three you talk about in this book are appropriately at some point appropriately honored by the government and if so how . And if they werent in your estimation, what would that look like . The good question is do i think that Claire Phillips, john boone and Chick Parsons were appropriately honored . In many ways they were honored. Claire phillips won the president ial medal of freedom in 1948 and many of the filipina women who fought with them also won the president ial medal of freedom. John boone was highly decorated, was proud, went back to fight in the korean war and had a great career. No doubt honored and respected for what he did. Chick parsons was honored by the united state with the many high honors, bronze star, other award for valor and was honored by the Philippine Government and was proud he was finally offered and received citizenship as the philippine national, said beyond those honors, what im trained to do is to save these people really deserve to be go in for me that would be the greatest honor to look at what they did and how they Work Together to impede the japanese juggernaut across the pacific and make it stop in many ways and the philippines. My goal really is to just raise consciousness and also tell a great story about some really brave people. So lets continue to honor. In talking with jeannie, shes told these stories about the young filipino girl and she thought society and insisted, did you find any information on her or their relationship. I understand the first child they had [inaudible] genie tells me that her mother used to tell her that she helped john good bring together the folk in that networking was very helpful. Im just curious she was also involved in any of the spying or transferring a message is . The question is about john boone halter and eventual wife. They met in the hills in 1942, 1943 in she began to be one of the main couriers of intelligence information and supplies between Claire Phillips in manila and john boone in the hills of the 10. Finally they realized they were more than just career and they fell in love. I told the story of their wedding in the book and pretty soon billy was pregnant and was not traveling anymore and was not a wise thing to be doing. But they had definitely an important relationship, the three of them did a move aimed information back and forth. One wishes she would have lived longer so they couldve written a memoir that two of them intended to write, which would have been wonderful for all of us because we would have known a lot more of those details. But its a rich story, which these people risked everything to be able to provide. Intelligence and food and supplies. If there are no more questions, i wanted to mention that i brought along a gift for john boones daughter. If shes willing to come out, i will give it to her and ill tell you what it is. It has not been seen since 1957. It is the testimony of her father at the u. S. Court of claims, describing his work as a carella fighter, citing his work for Claire Phillips, describing his engagement with fighting the japanese once the americans returned. The material has to be handed to the books. The entire file it says is now going to be part of the archives of the macarthur memorial. I wanted to give this teaching so she can see the words of her father that shes never seen. Its wonderful for me to be able to do that. Would you come up here, gene . [applause] [inaudible] im sorry. Im very emotional. [inaudible] thank you so much. We are working on it. Thank you, gene. Pleasure. Anyway, thank you very much for coming. Appreciate it. Trained to. Peter eisner. [applause] spam up tv recently visited capitol hill to ask that was a congress with their reading this summer. I will finish and then moved into a reread of fools, fraud by roger screwed in. After that, i will continue on with my research and the studies ive been doing the 1960s,