|
|
|
|
Bill Gordon (right) with Senri Nagasue (left)
in Fukuoka City (June 13, 2004)
|
|
|
Acknowledgments
Senri Nagasue, former member of the Kamikaze Special
Attack Corps Yashima Unit and author of several books on kamikaze, provided invaluable support for this project. He made all of
the arrangements for me to meet with his classmates and others in the Imperial
Japanese Navy, most of whom are former members of the Kamikaze Special Attack
Corps. During my 2004 trip through Japan, these men escorted me to museums and
monuments, told me about their wartime experiences, and gave me books and other
valuable written information related to Japan's kamikaze operations. These men
include Sunao Azemoto, Yoshitaka Fujioka, Akira Fujishima, Mototsugu Gotō, Shigeo Gotō,
Keiji Hada, Saneyuki
Hida, Kenya Hiraoka, Tetsumi Hirashima, Ryōichi Iimori, Kiyoshi Iwamoto, Shōji Jikuya,
Noriaki Kamura, Ryōhei
Kawakaze, Toshimitsu Kijima, Tatsuya Koizumi, Iwao Miura, Hiroshi Nagata,
Toshiyuki Nagahama, Masatoshi Ōsugi, Kesaharu
Ōta, Tamori Ono, Masaru Satō, Shōji
Sugiyama, Katsumi Suzuki, Noriaki Tamura, Moriji Tsuruta, Shōichi Tsutsui,
Toyokazu Uchikoshi, Isao Uchiyama, Teruhiko Yamada, Seizō Yasutake, and Masami Yukitoki.
Senri Nagasue also arranged meetings with the following family members of
kamikaze pilots who died in the war: Shigehiko Fukuda, Masatoshi Kirihata, Taeko
Kumamoto, and Masako Narazaki. I greatly appreciate Senri Nagasue's answers to
my e-mail questions, advice on my web site, and permission to translate stories
and letters on his web site.
Michael Roy,
former Director of
Academic Computing Services at Wesleyan University, served as my formal
advisor for this project. He provided several very useful suggestions on the
design for this web site. In the fall semester of 2000, he taught a graduate
course on "Reading and Writing Hypertext," which provided me an
overview of the literary theory of hypertext, along with the examination of
many examples of web sites and hypertext. That course gave me the
opportunity to develop my first web site, which covers the history of the
Friendship Dolls exchanged between Japan and the U.S. in 1927 and more
recent years.
The following museums have kindly provided permission to use materials on this web
site: Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots, Etajima Museum of
Naval History, Hotaru Museum, Kaiten Memorial Museum, Kanoya Air Base
Museum, Bansei Tokkō Peace Museum (formerly known as Kaseda Peace Museum), Mizobe Town (Kokubu No. 2 Air Base Exhibit), and
Yokaren Museum in Ōita City. Several museum directors and employees provided
valuable assistance, including Muneshige Fuchigami, Shōichirō Hatakeyama, Noriaki Kamitomo,
Haruhiro Inoue, Kiichi Kawano, Takeshi Kawatoko, Takumi Takamatsu, Shizuya
Tanaka, and Hatsuyo Torihama. I want to especially recognize the help of Sachio Matsunaga,
Kanoya Air Base Museum Director, who took me by car to several places
inside the base not normally accessible to visitors.
Gene Brick of the Drexler Survivors Reunion Association has provided
valuable assistance for several articles included on this web site. My sincere
appreciation also goes to the following other members of the Drexler
Survivors Reunion Association: Bob Anteau, Red Brantley, Bartt Brick, Sam Brick,
Charlie Brown, Henry
Christiansen, Joe Curgino, Joe Haas, Robert Hunt, Bob McIntyre, Fred
Mitchell, Duke Payne, and Roseann Viola.
Yūko Shirako deserves a special thanks for her
contributions of materials for this site, insights into Japanese views about
kamikaze, and answers to my many questions.
The following individuals and organizations have provided
materials, suggestions, and other valued assistance for this web site: Scott
Aalgaard, Yuki Akiyama,
James Bond, Mel Brown,
Wayne Brown, Rev. C.H. Cooper, Bob Cooper (USS Callaghan Survivors
Association), Dr. Rex Davis, Daniel Dizon, Kevin Gordon,
Johnnie Johnson Hafernik, Fumiko Hattori, Isako Imamura, Seiichi Inoue, Leo
Jarboe (USS Callaghan Survivors Association), Bill Johnston, Barry
Joseph, Shingō Katayama, Daniel A. Kitchen, Aya Kōda, John Laughton, Steve
Laughton, Jim Long, Risa Morimoto, Mieko Morita, Masato Muranaga,
Emiko Nagayama, Kanako Nakayama, Shinobu Nishida, Kimie Nutahara, Kensho
Ōta, Constance O'Keefe,
Jim Owens, Peter Rutland, Yoshiko Samuel, Mark Schreiber, Kenji Sekiyama, Jenni Sipe, Kan Sugahara, Yusushi Takahata, Tony Teal,
Minoru Tokuda, Stephanie Vandrick, and Hisahide Yamamoto. Their kind support for this collaborative project is
very much appreciated.
The
Chiran Speech Contest
Committee and Yūko Shimaki coordinated getting
permission to publish English translations of speeches from the following former
contest prize winners: Hiroyuki Beppu, Rimi Hamasaki, Rika Imahori, Hideki Jinnai, Ai Kamisono,
Tomoyo Kawasaki, Tomomi Kimura, Sumio Koike, Nozomi Kuwashiro, Takao
Nagasaka, Miki Nagatomo, Eri Nakahara, Shōko Nakama, Rina Natsusako, Hiromi
Nomura, Kenji Ojima, Masako Suzuki, Ayaka Tanaka, Ayumi Tominaga, Mitsuo
Yamamoto, and Noe Yonamine.
My deepest gratitude goes to my wife Noriko
for her loving support. I appreciate very much her
checking the many Japanese e-mails and letters that I wrote as part of my research
for this project. Without her backing and understanding, this work could not
have been completed.
|
