One of the hardest scenes for me to write in War Remains involved a military funeral. Having never been to one, other than two repatriation ceremonies on Knight Field in the Yongsan Military Garrison, I tried to recreate the funeral as best I could from movies I had seen. However, I just couldn’t seem to capture [...]
Archive | April, 2012
Christine Yoo Speaks at SolBridge International Hallyu Symposium
Korean-American filmmaker Christine Yoo talked about her upcoming film Wedding Palace and Hallyu at the first SolBridge International Hallyu Symposium this past weekend at SolBridge International School of Business in Daejeon, South Korea. Hallyu is sometimes known as the Korean Wave which is the cultural export of Korean TV dramas and K-Pop around Asia.
Johnny Thunders — July 15, 1952-April 23, 1991
It’s been 21 years since Johnny Thunders was found dead in a New Orleans hotel room; some say from drug-related causes while others point to foul play (his passport, clothes, and make up were gone). Known for his work with The New York Dolls and The Heartbreakers with the classic punk rock anthem as “Born [...]
North Korean Army Threatens to Turn Seoul into Ashes
In 1994, at the height of the nuclear crisis, the first nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula, a North Korean official turned to his counterpart and said, “Seoul will be awash in a sea of flames.” Now, the Norks are talking ashes: North Korea’s military Monday threatened “special actions” soon to turn parts of the [...]
Interview in Big Al’s Books and Pals
I’m honored and humbled to have been interviewed for Big Al’s Books and Pals’ Author Series. Without question, Big Al’s is the online place to be for book reviews and interviews. How exclusive and important is it? I had to wait for almost a year for my book to be reviewed–the waiting list is that [...]
Welcome Home, Sgt. 1st Class Eddie A. Viers
Another soldier has come home. More than 60 years after an early Korean War battle, Sgt. 1st Class Edris “Eddie” A. Viers is returning home to Iowa. Viers, a 32-year old Swan, Iowa native serving with Battery A, 555th Field Artillery Battalion, 24th Infantry Division, U.S. Army, was last seen Aug. 12, 1950 as his [...]
Serpico in Laos
There’s nothing like a person being proud of what they do, even when it comes to driving a tuk-tuk or songthaew for a living. And to show that pride, not to mention showing off to your friends, a little help from Serpico a.k.a. Al Pacino wouldn’t hurt. Back in 2010, Aon, Jeremy Aaron and I went shopping [...]
Support Force 21 at Changbong-ni — North of “Massacre Valley”
People who have read my Korean War novel War Remains have often asked me, “why did you choose this particular battle? I never heard of it.” Well, that’s one of the reasons. Unless you are well-read and up on your history of Korean War, you’ve probably never heard of the battle which took place here on February [...]
On the road to Pakxe
Tonight I attended a ceremony and dinner to commemorate an honorary Lao Consul on the Woosong University campus. During dinner, when it was learned that I am the author of four books, I was asked when I was going to write a book about Laos, which got me thinking. I really should at some point. [...]
The rich get richer–and stingier
There’s a great article in this month’s Scientific American™ which talks about how less compassionate people become the more money they have. But why would wealth and status decrease our feelings of compassion for others? After all, it seems more likely that having few resources would lead to selfishness. Piff and his colleagues suspect that [...]
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