Escape From Davao: The Forgotten Story of the Most Daring Prison Break of the Pacific War, is a non-fiction, military history book written by John D. Lukacs. The book is the story of the only large-scale group of American prisoners of war to escape from a Japanese prison camp in the Pacific Theater during World War II.[1] The ten escaped POWs were the first to break the news of the infamous Bataan Death March and other atrocities committed by the Japanese to the world.[2][3]
The ten POWs, after two months of planning and preparation, escaped from Davao Penal Colony on Mindanao in the Philippines on April 4, 1943, and were led by Lt. William Dyess and assisted by two Filipino convicts. The American prisoners spent a year in captivity, and after escape spent several months on the run. The group underwent unspeakable conditions, and once rescued were able to convey the realities of Japanese POW camps to the U.S. government, eventually prompting increased U.S. military action in the Pacific.[4]
Lukacs constructed the book's narrative – including the grim details of the three-week-long Bataan Death March, the grisly treatment of the prisoners of war by the Japanese, and the difficult escape itself – through interviews with surviving characters, archival research, personal correspondence, and periodicals. He also visited the battlefields of Bataan and Corregidor, as well as the prison itself, which remains in use by the government of the Republic of the Philippines.[3][5]
The book was reviewed favorably by publications including Pittsburgh Magazine,[1]World War II Magazine,[3]Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,[4]Arizona Republic,[6]San Angelo Standard-Times,[2] and Seattle Weekly.[7]Booklist[5] and Kirkus Reviews[8] also gave the book plaudits. Lukacs presented a one-hour talk about the book televised by C-SPAN at the MacArthur Memorial in June 2010.[9] The author also received the 2011 Senator John Heinz Community Advocate Award from the Veterans' Leadership Program of Pittsburgh, for the book.[10] A documentary film helmed by Lukacs, 4-4-43, was created about the book's subject matter.[11][12]
^ abMelada, Geoffrey W. (August 2010). "A Great Escape". Pittsburgh Magazine.
^ abDromgoole, Glenn. "TEXAS READS: 10 American POWs fled Japanese prison camp" Archived 2013-08-29 at archive.today. San Angelo Standard-Times. May 6, 2010.
^ abcMuller, Richard R. (September 30, 2010). "Escape From Davao by John D. Lukacs". World War II Magazine.
^ abAltschuler, Glenn C. (August 8, 2010). "Breakout: Tale of Yanks' WWII escape from Japanese is inspiring". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
^ abTaylor, Gilbert. "Escape from Davao". Booklist Reviews, 2010. Reprinted at Alachua County Library District.
^Finley, Cory (June 21, 2011). "6/25: Author John D. Lukacs Talks Escape From Davao". Arizona Republic.
^McKagan, Duff. "Again, My Summer Movie Agenda Is Derailed ... By John D. Lukacs, Donald Ray Pollack, and Co." Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine. Seattle Weekly. September 8, 2011.
^Kirkus Reviews, April 1, 2010. Reprinted at Ingram Content Group
^Book Discussion on Escape From Davao (video). C-SPAN. June 5, 2010.
^"A Tribute to Veterans". KDKA-TV. Pittsburgh CBS. September 15, 2011.
^4-4-43 – Official site.
^Bethel, Brian (December 22, 2012). "In search of William E. Dyess, documentary filmmaker comes to Abilene". Abilene Reporter-News.
1989, 16 inmates at the Davao Metropolitan District Command Center (Davao Metrodiscom), who had previously escapedfrom the Davao Penal Colony, captured...
Printing. ISBN 978-1-258-20630-7. OCLC 1168285. Lukacs, John D. (2010). EscapefromDavao. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-7432-6278-1. OCLC 464593097...
and evolution of the Australasian biota. Lukacs, John D. (2011). EscapeFromDavao: The Forgotten Story of the Most Daring Prison Break of the Pacific...
Davao Prison and Penal Farm, formerly the Davao Penal Colony (DaPeCol), was established on January 21, 1932, in Panabo City, Davao del Norte, Philippines...
been sentenced to Davao for murder, were taken into the escape plot to act as guides, and on April 4, 1943, the 12 slipped away from their working parties...
Infantry Regiment. He is known for securing the safety of POWs who escapedfromDavao Penal Colony. When Colonel Wendell Fertig merged all guerilla forces...
The Davao Death Squad (DDS) is a vigilante group in Davao City, Philippines. The group is alleged to have conducted summary executions of street children...
Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott, 1963; Pocket Books, 1965. Lukacs, John, 2010, EscapeFromDavao: the forgotten story of the most daring prison break of the Pacific...
One-Eleven bound fromDavao to Manila. They surrendered. On October 7, 1975, one hijacker on a Philippines Airlines BAC One-Eleven bound fromDavao to Manila...
Spokane. List of American guerrillas in the Philippines Ray C. Hunt EscapeFromDavao: The Forgotten Story of the Most Daring Prison Break of the Pacific...
fire started at the New City Commercial Center (NCCC) shopping mall in Davao City, Philippines. At least 38 people were trapped inside the mall, mostly...
Japanese Invasion of Davao (Filipino: Paglusob ng mga Hapones sa Davao, Jolo at Arkipelago ng Sulu, Cebuano: Pagsulong sa Hapon sa Davao, Jolo ug Kapuloan...
February 14, 1990) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Davao Occidental Tigers of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He...
portion of the island, from just south of Parang on Illana Bay in the west to Digos on Davao Gulf in the east and then north to Davao. The other, Sayre Highway...
"Jeff" Jeffries (Jennifer Gan) is set up by her boyfriend, Rudy (Charlie Davao). Jeff does not realize that Rudy runs a ship-board prostitution, gambling...
transferred to Davao Penal Colony "Dapecol." Of the 2,009 estimated total number of POWs that were in Dapecol during its existence from October 1942- June...
Sergio "Serge" Osmeña III respectively, along with Dina Bonnevie, Ricky Davao, Mark Anthony Fernandez, Eric Fructuoso, and Romeo Rivera. The film was...
base (Liloan) Naval Base Malalag Bay PT boat and small naval base in Davao Gulf Davao field small base Pacific War Theater Areas map 1942 US Naval Station...
boo-DOTS) is a grassroots electronic dance music (EDM) genre that originated in Davao City, Philippines, and is considered as street style hiphop[clarification...
be from the Visayas region with various accounts saying that she came from either Iloilo, Capiz, or Sorsogon. It was rumored that Labo came to Davao in...
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