Larry Allen Abshier
Encyclopedia
Private Larry Allen Abshier of the U.S. Army (1943 – July 11, 1983) was one of six American soldiers to defect to North Korea
after the Korean War
.
. Private Abshier abandoned his post in South Korea
in May 1962 when he crept away from his base and crossed the DMZ
into North Korea. He was, for three months, the only American in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, until Private James Joseph Dresnok
defected in August.
In the 2006 documentary movie Crossing the Line, Dresnok recalls waking up to see a white face looking at him. "I opened my eyes. I didn’t believe myself. I shut them again. I must be dreaming. I opened them again and looked and, 'Who in the hell are you?' He says, 'I'm Abshier.' 'Abshier? I don’t know no Abshier.'"
Abshier, and three other Americans, James Joseph Dresnok
, Charles Robert Jenkins
, and Jerry Wayne Parrish
, starred in several other propaganda films like Unsung Heroes
, playing the evil Americans. Their participation in these films made them instant celebrities. Abshier and the other three became a propaganda bonanza, and carefully staged pictures were leaked outside the country of the four living in what was framed to appear as a utopian North Korea; the men always appeared successful, carefree, and happy.
in June 1965, where they lived together for several years and were forced to read and memorize passages by Kim Il Sung. Jenkins asserted that Dresnok would bully Abshier at this time, for example, by making a mess and then demanding that Abshier clean it up. Abshier was sympathetically characterized by Jenkins as "a simple, sweet, good-hearted soul who was more than a little dumb and easy to take advantage of". For a time, Jenkins and Parrish pejoratively called Abshier "Lennie" after the simpleton of John Steinbeck
's famous novel Of Mice and Men
. Abshier never stood up to the bullying until convinced to do so by Jenkins. Eventually, Dresnok "made a move" on Abshier, but Jenkins defended him by beating Dresnok, after which Dresnok permanently transferred his animosity to Jenkins. Abshier, like Dresnok, Parrish, and Jenkins, was "given" a North Korean woman to be his cook and minder, and to have sex with him. These women were thought to all be infertile, having all divorced after a number of years of childless marriage. When Abshier's woman became pregnant, however, she was taken away.
Later, Abshier married another woman. In Crossing the Line, Dresnok claims she was Korean, but in The Reluctant Communist, Jenkins claims she was a Thai woman named Anosha who was given to Abshier by the North Korean government. Jenkins claims she was a former prostitute who had been working as a masseuse in Macau
when she was abducted by North Korean agents and brought to North Korea. Shortly thereafter, in 1978, she was "given" to Abshier. Jenkins' account of her abduction was greeted with incredulity, until he produced a photograph of her in North Korea, opening up the possibility that North Korea has abducted citizens of other nations in addition to those of Japan. They had no children. After Abshier's death, Anosha was taken away, allegedly to marry a German.
. Jenkins wrote that he and Abshier were neighbors at the time, and Abshier's wife, Anosha, called on him for assistance at the time of the incident. By the time Jenkins arrived on the scene, however, Abshier was beyond rescue and soon exhaled his last breath. His funeral was funded by the state and relatively well-serviced, but Abshier was given a headstone with an incorrect date of death and the ridiculous claim that his place of birth was Pyongyang
.
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
after the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
Defecting
He was born in Urbana, IllinoisUrbana, Illinois
Urbana is the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 41,250. Urbana is the tenth-most populous city in Illinois outside of the Chicago metropolitan area....
. Private Abshier abandoned his post in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
in May 1962 when he crept away from his base and crossed the DMZ
Korean Demilitarized Zone
The Korean Demilitarized Zone is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula that serves as a buffer zone between North and South Korea. The DMZ cuts the Korean Peninsula roughly in half, crossing the 38th parallel on an angle, with the west end of the DMZ lying south of the parallel and...
into North Korea. He was, for three months, the only American in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, until Private James Joseph Dresnok
James Joseph Dresnok
James Joseph Dresnok is an American defector to North Korea, one of six American soldiers to defect after the Korean War. He was featured on the CBS magazine program 60 Minutes on January 28, 2007, as the last United States defector alive in North Korea and was the subject of a documentary film...
defected in August.
In the 2006 documentary movie Crossing the Line, Dresnok recalls waking up to see a white face looking at him. "I opened my eyes. I didn’t believe myself. I shut them again. I must be dreaming. I opened them again and looked and, 'Who in the hell are you?' He says, 'I'm Abshier.' 'Abshier? I don’t know no Abshier.'"
Abshier, and three other Americans, James Joseph Dresnok
James Joseph Dresnok
James Joseph Dresnok is an American defector to North Korea, one of six American soldiers to defect after the Korean War. He was featured on the CBS magazine program 60 Minutes on January 28, 2007, as the last United States defector alive in North Korea and was the subject of a documentary film...
, Charles Robert Jenkins
Charles Robert Jenkins
Charles Robert Jenkins is a former United States Army soldier who lived in North Korea from 1965 to 2004 after deserting his unit and crossing the Korean Demilitarized Zone.-Military service and desertion:...
, and Jerry Wayne Parrish
Jerry Wayne Parrish
Cpl. Jerry Wayne Parrish of the U.S. Army was one of six American soldiers to defect to North Korea after the Korean War....
, starred in several other propaganda films like Unsung Heroes
Unsung Heroes (film)
Unsung Heroes, also known as Unknown Heroes or more literally as Nameless Heroes, is a North Korean propaganda film series about a spy in Seoul during the Korean War. Over twenty hours long, it was filmed and released in multiple parts between 1978 and 1981...
, playing the evil Americans. Their participation in these films made them instant celebrities. Abshier and the other three became a propaganda bonanza, and carefully staged pictures were leaked outside the country of the four living in what was framed to appear as a utopian North Korea; the men always appeared successful, carefree, and happy.
Life in North Korea
Charles Jenkins wrote in his book The Reluctant Communist that Abshier had difficulty conversing in Korean, but was fascinated by words and would spend hours studying high level vocabulary from newspapers. Jenkins reported that the four were moved in a one-room house in Mangyongdae-guyokMangyongdae-guyok
Man'gyŏngdae-guyŏk, or Man'gyŏngdae District is one of the 19 guyŏk that constitute Pyongyang, North Korea....
in June 1965, where they lived together for several years and were forced to read and memorize passages by Kim Il Sung. Jenkins asserted that Dresnok would bully Abshier at this time, for example, by making a mess and then demanding that Abshier clean it up. Abshier was sympathetically characterized by Jenkins as "a simple, sweet, good-hearted soul who was more than a little dumb and easy to take advantage of". For a time, Jenkins and Parrish pejoratively called Abshier "Lennie" after the simpleton of John Steinbeck
John Steinbeck
John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer. He is widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden and the novella Of Mice and Men...
's famous novel Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men is a novella written by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California, USA....
. Abshier never stood up to the bullying until convinced to do so by Jenkins. Eventually, Dresnok "made a move" on Abshier, but Jenkins defended him by beating Dresnok, after which Dresnok permanently transferred his animosity to Jenkins. Abshier, like Dresnok, Parrish, and Jenkins, was "given" a North Korean woman to be his cook and minder, and to have sex with him. These women were thought to all be infertile, having all divorced after a number of years of childless marriage. When Abshier's woman became pregnant, however, she was taken away.
Later, Abshier married another woman. In Crossing the Line, Dresnok claims she was Korean, but in The Reluctant Communist, Jenkins claims she was a Thai woman named Anosha who was given to Abshier by the North Korean government. Jenkins claims she was a former prostitute who had been working as a masseuse in Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
when she was abducted by North Korean agents and brought to North Korea. Shortly thereafter, in 1978, she was "given" to Abshier. Jenkins' account of her abduction was greeted with incredulity, until he produced a photograph of her in North Korea, opening up the possibility that North Korea has abducted citizens of other nations in addition to those of Japan. They had no children. After Abshier's death, Anosha was taken away, allegedly to marry a German.
Death
Abshier died suddenly, shortly after midnight on July 11, 1983 at the age of 40 from a heart attack in PyongyangPyongyang
Pyongyang is the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. The city was...
. Jenkins wrote that he and Abshier were neighbors at the time, and Abshier's wife, Anosha, called on him for assistance at the time of the incident. By the time Jenkins arrived on the scene, however, Abshier was beyond rescue and soon exhaled his last breath. His funeral was funded by the state and relatively well-serviced, but Abshier was given a headstone with an incorrect date of death and the ridiculous claim that his place of birth was Pyongyang
Pyongyang
Pyongyang is the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. The city was...
.
See also
- List of American and British defectors in the Korean War: the 21 Americans and 1 Briton who refused repatriation during Operation Big SwitchOperation Big SwitchOperation Big Switch was the repatriation of all remaining prisoners of the Korean War. Ceasefire talks had been going on between Communist and UN forces since 1951, with one of the main stumbling blocks being the Communist insistence that all prisoners be returned home, with the UN insisting that...
in 1953 (to remain in ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
) - James Joseph DresnokJames Joseph DresnokJames Joseph Dresnok is an American defector to North Korea, one of six American soldiers to defect after the Korean War. He was featured on the CBS magazine program 60 Minutes on January 28, 2007, as the last United States defector alive in North Korea and was the subject of a documentary film...
(born 1941) of Richmond, VirginiaRichmond, VirginiaRichmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
, deserted on August 15, 1962 at age 21 - Jerry Wayne ParrishJerry Wayne ParrishCpl. Jerry Wayne Parrish of the U.S. Army was one of six American soldiers to defect to North Korea after the Korean War....
(1944–1996) of Morganfield, KentuckyMorganfield, KentuckyMorganfield is a city in Union County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 3,494 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Union County...
, deserted in December 1963 at age 19 - Charles Robert JenkinsCharles Robert JenkinsCharles Robert Jenkins is a former United States Army soldier who lived in North Korea from 1965 to 2004 after deserting his unit and crossing the Korean Demilitarized Zone.-Military service and desertion:...
(born 1940) of Rich Square, North CarolinaRich Square, North CarolinaRich Square is a town in Northampton County, North Carolina, United States of America . The population was 931 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, deserted on January 5, 1965 at age 24 - Roy ChungRoy ChungRoy Chung is widely believed to be the fifth of six United States Army servicemen to have defected to North Korea after the Korean War.- Life and disappearance :...
, deserted in June 1979 - Joseph T. WhiteJoseph T. WhiteJoseph T. White born in St. Louis, Missouri, was a private in the United States Army who defected to North Korea on August 28, 1982. A member of 1/31st Infantry, he shot the lock off one of the gates leading into the Korean Demilitarized Zone and was witnessed surrendering to North Korean troops...
(1961–1985) of St Louis, Missouri, deserted in August 1982 at age 20