Drusilla Tanaka
Stories from This Author
Exposing America’s “Secret Weapon” — Part 2
Aug. 14, 2023 • Drusilla Tanaka
Read Part 1 >> With their service as linguists no longer classified, the MIS veterans’ stories about their unusual military experiences began emerging in oral history interviews and in several publications. As a young man, Hawai‘i-born Ben I. Yamamoto attended several schools in Japan, including prestigious Waseda University. After returning to Hawai‘i and enrolling at the University of Hawai‘i, he was drafted in November 1941, one month before Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. While serving with the newly formed 100th …
Exposing America’s “Secret Weapon” — Part 1
Aug. 13, 2023 • Drusilla Tanaka
My high school yearbook is a well-worn treasure. After leafing through it all these years, the binding along its spine has fallen off. The faces and names evoke smiles, chuckles and tears. Some gained fame and fortune, built successful businesses or have talented offspring. But what if your yearbook contained no photos and only the last name and first initial of your schoolmates? That is the unimaginable reality for graduates of the World War II-era Military Intelligence Service Language Schools. …
