James Veneris
James Veneris | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 1922[1] |
| Died | 2001 (aged 78–79) [1] |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States (until 1953) China (Defector; 1953–2004) |
Branch |  United States Army |
Service years | Unknown–1953 (defected) |
Rank |  Private |
| Nickname | Lao Wen (老温) |
Conflicts | World War II Korean War |
| James Veneris | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 詹姆斯·乔治·温纳瑞斯 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 詹姆斯·喬治·溫納瑞斯 | ||||||
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| Lao Wen | |||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 老温 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 老溫 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Old Wen | ||||||
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James George Veneris (March 30, 1922 – December 18, 2001)[1] was an American soldier during the Korean War who was captured by the Chinese and was one of 21 American soldiers at the start of the armistice who decided they would rather stay in China than return to the United States.
Early life and education
[edit]James Veneris was born into a Greek immigrant family,[2] in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, and grew up in Detroit, Michigan. He dropped out of high school and for the most part was involved in petty crime to survive. When given the option of joining the U.S. Armed Forces or going to jail, he decided to enter the Army in hopes of getting education and learning a trade.[3]
Career
[edit]Veneris had served in the South Pacific during World War II and said he re-enlisted because he couldn't find anything else to do and hoped Army life would provide security.
Defection
[edit]At the end of military action, all POWs in Korea were given the option by their captors of returning to their home countries or remaining with the Chinese. Veneris elected to stay in China since during his time in the prison camp he was treated well and learned Chinese. He was promised employment and education if he remained in China, so he decided to remain.
Life in China
[edit]Veneris and fellow former POW Howard Gayle Adams stayed in Jinan through the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution, sheltered by their factory co-workers and an announcement by Premier Zhou Enlai calling them "international freedom fighters". In 1963, he was allowed to study at the People's University of China. After graduation, Veneris returned to the same factory. His first Chinese wife died from lung disease after ten years of marriage. In 1967, Veneris married a Chinese divorcee. Together they had 2 children.[4][5][6][7] In 1977, he became an English professor at Shandong University. Veneris returned to the United States twice, first in 1976 to celebrate the Bicentennial and again sometime in the late 1990s. He was one of the subjects of the 2005 documentary They Chose China which was directed by Shui-Bo Wang and produced by the National Film Board of Canada.
Personal life
[edit]After he chose to live in China, the U.S. Army gave Veneris a dishonorable discharge and refused to provide back pay for his time in prison camp. The Chinese gave him a stipend and moved him to Shandong province, where he was given a job in a state-run pulp factory in Jinan that turned discarded cloth shoes into toilet paper for export to Hong Kong. He adopted the Chinese name Lao Wen (老温). Veneris had 2 daughters and 4 sons who were raised in China and 1 biological son and 1 biological daughter moved to the United States in the 1990s(The other children were born to his wife and her ex-husband).[citation needed]
Military awards and decorations
[edit]During his time in the Army, James received the following awards for his service
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| Badge | Combat Infantryman Badge
with star denoting second award | |||
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| 1st row | Bronze Star Medal | Prisoner of War Medal | ||
| 2nd Row | Good Conduct Medal | American Defense Service Medal | American Campaign Medal | |
| 2nd row | Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
with at least one campaign star |
World War II Victory Medal | National Defense Service Medal | |
| 3rd row | Korean Service Medal
with one campaign star |
United Nations Service Medal Korea | Korean War Service Medal | |
| Unit awards | Korean Presidential Unit Citation | |||
Death
[edit]Veneris died in Jinan in 2001 and is buried in a cemetery in the outskirts of that city.[1]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 Higgins, Andrew (2026-10-11). "Where Every Tree Hides 'an Enemy': How I Watched China's Paranoia Grow". The New York Times. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ Haruki, Wada (2018-03-29). The Korean War: An International History. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 289. ISBN 978-1-5381-1642-5.
- ↑ 1978, talk at the US People's Friendship Association meeting, Hilo, Hawaii-personal communications
- ↑ Globe, Ross H. Munro The; Mall. ??? (1976-07-15). "Ex-G.I, a Defector to China, Will Visit U.S." The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
- ↑ Pomfret, John (1989-03-26). "'Old American Soldier' of Korean War Finds Good Life in China". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
- ↑ Weisskopf, Michael (July 10, 1982). "Korean War Defector Calls Himself Envoy Who Beat Nixon to China". The Washington Post.
- ↑ "Interview With Korean War POW: I Went To China To Build Friendship". The Veteran: Vietnam Veterans Against the War. 6 (5): 6. 1976. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
External links
[edit]- They Chose China, NFB documentary (2005) on American POW's who chose to stay in China
- Where are they now? New lives, old secrets Archived 2007-01-14 at the Wayback Machine
- 1922 births
- 2001 deaths
- United States Army soldiers
- United States Army personnel of World War II
- United States Army personnel of the Korean War
- American defectors to China
- American prisoners of war in the Korean War
- People from Vandergrift, Pennsylvania
- American people of Greek descent
- Military personnel from Pennsylvania
- Korean War prisoners of war held by China
- American people imprisoned in China
- Academic staff of Shandong University
- Sinophilia
- Renmin University of China alumni
- Naturalized citizens of China
- Chinese people of American descent
- Chinese people of Greek descent
