Frenchie Podcast

Episode 20: Runways to Victory--A Cajun Engineer in the Pacific

We venture to the Pacific Theater and follow the journey of Millard Mannina, a Cajun from Jeanerette, Louisiana, who had a harrowing experience in some of the bloodiest battles of the war. His main job wasn’t fighting the enemy from a foxhole or shooting down Japanese Kamikazes—his mission was to build the critical airstrips on Saipan and Okinawa that allowed the Air Corps' powerful B-29 bombers to bring the air war deep into the heart of mainland Japan. Mannina was on Okinawa—the last major island battle in the Pacific—in 1945 and watched each day as the big four-engine bombers took off from the hastily constructed airfields and disappeared over the horizon. The sights, the sounds, and the saga of the engineers' work on these enemy-held islands left a lasting impression on him.  As we memorialize the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Okinawa, Millard Mannina’s story is a fitting tribute to those unsung heroes who helped bring an end to the war in the Pacific. We also welcome a rep from the National Museum of the Pacific War to talk about their new developments, including the Society of Sons and Daughters of WWII vets. Visit the museum for more info: www.pacificwarmuseum.org

Episode 19: From the Vault--A Tribute to WWII Veterans 2008

In observance of this upcoming Memorial Day, I dug way back into the vault of old presentations and pulled out this 2008 tribute to Iberia Parish WWII veterans for a special event at the old Sliman Theater in my hometown of New Iberia, Louisiana. The event was a grand affair, in a pack house full of veterans and their families and hosted by the Iberia Cultural Resources Association. The audio quality is not the best, but the message of gratitude to this great generation still rings loud and clear today. Unfortunately, like so many communities across the nation, there aren’t many WWII veterans left. But events like this remind us all of their sacrifice, courage, and contributions to our way of life.  

Episode 18: Finding Frenchie, Part II

Finding stories of Frenchies through letters, interviews, and family memorabilia has been a collaborative effort over many years. The families of veterans have played no small part in preserving and sharing these stories. This episode features stories of Charles Ducote, Alton Girouard, John Bacque, and Prigeon Fontenot--one of the last living Frenchies of WWII, who my son and I had the honor of interviewing in 2021.

Episode 17: Frenchie Salute from the Roy House

On this Veteran's Day, we revisit a recent Frenchie event at the Roy House, home of UL Press and the Center for Louisiana Studies. This October 3, 2024 gathering marked the official launch of the Frenchie book. Center director Josh Caffery and my son Jackson Theriot join us to talk about this memorable evening that featured special guest Shirley Guidry, one of the last Frenchie WWII veterans from Louisiana. 

Episode 16: Finding Frenchie, Part 1

In this episode titled “Finding Frenchie," we revisit the origins of this project and pay tribute to many of the families who graciously shared stories and memorabilia about their Frenchie WWII veterans. This project has had many influences over the years, perhaps none more important than a feature story written by George Morris in the Baton Rouge Advocate in Nov. 2019 titled “Cajun Frenchies helped to win the war.” That newspaper story was a catalyst for re-launching this Frenchie project, which 5-years later turned into a book, titled Frenchie: The Story of the French-Speaking Cajuns of WWII published in Sept. 2024 by UL Press. 

Episode 15: D-Day Revisited—Finding Duhon’s Grave

This June 6^th marks the 80^th anniversary of D-Day when the free world again turns its attention to the beaches of Normandy, to honor the sacrifices of so many and to pay tribute to the last of those who liberated Europe in WWII. In this episode, we reflect back on the 60^th Anniversary of D-Day when I had the honor to visit the grave of Houston Duhon, a Cajun killed at Omaha Beach on the first wave. His best friend in the service, Carroll Mestayer, jumped off the Higgins boat with him and carried his lifeless body to the shore. Carroll survived the battle and lived to tell the story of that event on Bloody Omaha Beach and about his journey across his ancestral homeland as a French-speaking Cajun.

Episode 14: Cajun Commandoes of Operational Group PEG

On August 11, 1944, a 15-man OSS Special Forces team parachuted into the mountainous region of Southern France to rendezvous with the French Underground and sabotage enemy troop movements. Roy Armentor and Claude Galley—two Cajuns from south Louisiana—were part of this Operational Group codenamed PEG. For two weeks, they conducted hit-n-run missions behind enemy lines alongside their French counterparts. Both were severely wounded and were taken in by local French people. The Cajun French language, which they had been told to forget growing up in school, proved invaluable to their experiences in WWII.

Episode 13: Frenchie of VII Corps HQ, Ned Arceneaux

Of the 450 men in US Army VII Corps HQ, only one spoke French—Ned Arceneaux, from Lafayette. As the Quartermaster for his unit, Ned was in charge of precuring all the supplies. When they landed on Utah Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944, Ned’s French-speaking abilities proved invaluable to his commanding officers and to his comrades. He served as an interpreter for Gen. J. Lawton Collins, known as “Lighting Joe,” one of the senior leaders in the European Theater during WWII.

Episode 12: Orleans Pitre, Cajun of OSS

In the mid-night hours of September 10, 1944, Captain Orleans Pitre, a Cajun from Cut-Off, Louisiana, jumped out of an airplane over France with a team of special agents from the Office of Strategic Services. Their mission: to rendezvous with the French Maquis, supply them with weapons, and coordinate attacks against the retreating Germans. Pitre was one of a handful of Cajuns recruited by the OSS because of their French. Their secret missions behind enemy lines are the stuff of legend. Listen to his amazing story, as documented by his nephew in a 1991 interview.   

Episode 11: French Acadians in WWII

The stories of the Acadians and Cajuns are intertwined and remarkably similar. In October 2022, I had the honor of traveling to the Acadian heartland in the Canadian Maritime Provinces to interview the last of the French-speaking Acadian veterans of WWII. In this special episode, you will hear stories from the veterans themselves, from family members, and from local experts. Most fought in Italy, France, Belgium, and Holland. Many did not speak good English when they joined, but they learned quickly. The Acadians were dispersed throughout nearly every branch of the Canadian Armed Forces, so learning English in the military was an imperative. Once overseas, however, their French language became valuable in communicating with locals, particularly when they came ashore in Normandy. My journey to Canada to find the last Acadian vets stemmed from the “Cajun-Acadian WWII Commemoration” event at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans in April 2022. You can watch the entire program here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynrhj8iCU48&t=274s