James Joseph Dresnok
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James Joseph Dresnok (born 1941 in Richmond, Virginia, currently resides in Pyongyang, North Korea) is an American defector to North Korea. He was featured on CBS' magazine program 60 Minutes on January 28, 2007, as the last US defector alive in North Korea.
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[edit] Name
James Joseph Dresnok [1] refers to himself as "Joe Dresnok" and is referred to as both "James Dresnok" [2] [3] and "Joe Dresnok" in news reports, sometimes as both in the same report. [4]
[edit] Family
He was the son of Joseph Dresnok I (1917-1978), and has a brother Joseph Dresnok II (1946- ). [5] In 1951 when Joe was 5 and James was 9, the family split up while living in Richmond, Virginia. Joe said he stayed with his father, and moved with him to Pennsylvania and lost contact with his mother and James. [6]
[edit] Defection
Dresnok was a Private First Class with a U.S. Army unit along the Korean Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea in the early 1960s. At one point, shortly after his wife in the United States had divorced him, and he was facing a court martial for leaving base without permission, he deserted his post.[4] On August 15, 1962 at noon, while his fellow soldiers were eating lunch, he ran across a mine field in broad daylight into North Korean territory and was quickly apprehended by enemy soldiers. He was taken by train to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, and interrogated.[4]
Dresnok met other American defectors soon after. Over time, four of them, including Dresnok, tried to leave North Korea by seeking asylum at the Soviet embassy in Pyongyang, but were immediately turned over to North Korean authorities by the embassy.[4] After that experience, Dresnok decided to settle in North Korea and assimilate. He was cast in several North Korean films in roles as American villains beginning in 1978, and became a celebrity in the country as a result. He also translated some of North Korean leader Kim il-Sung's writings into English. [4]
During his life in North Korea, where he still lives, he married two other women. His second wife was an Eastern European woman and they had two sons.[4] She died young. He then married his third wife, the daughter of a Korean woman and an African diplomat, with whom he had a son in 2001.[4] They live in a small apartment provided by the North Korean government in Pyongyang, along with a monthly stipend.[4] Today, Dresnok is in failing health, by his own estimation from smoking and drinking too much[4], and told 60 Minutes he was moved by the fact that the North Korean government continued to provide for him and his family while over a million of its citizens starved to death in the famine which lasted in that country from the mid-1990s to about 2001.[4]
Dresnok intends to spend the rest of his life in North Korea, saying that no amount of money can entice him back to the West.[4] Currently in retirement, Dresnok occasionally gives lectures in North Korea and spends his time fishing "just to pass the time."[4]
His eldest son from his second marriage, James Dresnok, was a student of the elite Foreign Language College in Pyongyang, where Dresnok taught English in the 1980s.[4] James speaks English with a Korean accent and considers himself Korean although he reportedly does not wish to marry a Korean woman.[4] James intends to enter the diplomatic service.[4]
[edit] Crossing the Line documentary film
Dresnok is also the subject of a documentary film entitled Crossing the Line by British filmmakers Daniel Gordon and Nicholas Bonner, which was shown at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.[7] The film, which was narrated by actor Christian Slater[3], was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the festival.[8]
[edit] Quotes
- "On August 15th, at noon in broad daylight when everybody was eating lunch, I hit the road. Yes I was afraid. Am I gonna live or die? And when I stepped into the minefield and I seen it with my own eyes, I started sweating. I crossed over, looking for my new life." [1]
[edit] Other defectors to North Korea
- Charles Robert Jenkins (1940– ) of Rich Square, North Carolina deserted on January 5, 1965
- Larry Allen Abshier (1943– ) of Urbana, Illinois deserted in May of 1962 at age 19
- Jerry Wayne Parrish (1944– ) of Morganfield, Kentucky deserted in December 1963 at age 19
- List of American defectors in the Korean War
[edit] External links
- The World: Crossing the line audio report
- Telegraph: US defector says he is happier in North Korea
- CBS: Defector Won't Leave N. Korea For $1B
- CBS: N. Korea's Last U.S. Defector
[edit] References
- ^ Frederick, Jim; "In from the Cold", Time (magazine), November 4, 2004. Accessed January 28, 2007.
- ^ Russell, Mark "An American in North Korea, Pledging Allegiance to the Great Leader", New York Times, October 19, 2006. Accessed January 28, 2007.
- ^ a b Full Cast and Crew for Crossing the Line, IMDb profile. Accessed January 28, 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "An American in North Korea," 60 Minutes, CBS Television. Produced by Robert G. Anderson and Casey Morgan. Reported by Bob Simon. First Broadcast on January 28, 2007.
- ^ Joseph Dresnok I (1917-1978) was born on February 3, 1917 and died in March of 1978 according to the Social Security Death Index
- ^ Man Hopes His Brother Alive; Thursday, January 18, 1996
- ^ World Documentary Competition, "Crossing the Line" (2006) 2007 Sundance Film Festival. Accessed January 28, 2007.
- ^ Awards for Crossing the Line (2006), IMDb profile, Awards & Nominations section. Accessed January 28, 2007.
