Frank Fujita (October 20, 1921 – December 11, 1996) was a Japanese American soldier of the US Army who, during his service in World War II became one of only two Japanese American combat personnel (the other being Richard Sakakida) to be captured by the Japanese. Part of the 2nd Battalion, 131st Field Artillery of the 36th Infantry Division (which was later known as the "Lost Battalion"), Texas National Guard, he was captured during the Battle of Java when the Dutch surrendered.
A prisoner held in Japan for three and a half years, Fujita later published a memoir of his experience, Foo: A Japanese-American Prisoner of the Rising Sun. His work, along with those of John David Provoo and W. F. Matthews, fellow "Lost Battalion" prisoners of war, has served as a useful historical reference for the experience of American prisoners of war held in Japan.
Biography
Early years
Fujita's father was born in a village near Nagasaki, Japan, and after learning English while at school he was sent to the United States to learn American methods of agriculture. Arriving in June 1914, he took a Western name and became embroiled in gambling in Los Angeles. He worked for the Salvation Army before training as a chef on the Rock Island Rail Road. He met his future wife, Isa Pearl Elliott, at a hotel in Rock Island, Illinois, and the two were married in 1919.
Fujita was the second of five children, born on October 20, 1921, in Lawton while his father worked in the food industry in Oklahoma, enhancing his income further with gambling wins and moonlighting in artistry and sign painting. Fujita and his siblings were encouraged to absorb the culture of the United States and become "one hundred percent American". Fujita joined the American Boy Scouts upon moving to El Reno, and survived well under his father's healthy income during the Great Depression. It was at this time that he earned the nickname "Foo", based on a childhood pet. His drawings of this cat attracted local media interest from The Abilene Reporter News in 1937, a local newspaper from Abilene, Texas. He obtained work as a cartoonist for a local school newspaper and as a stage hand in various theatre plays.
Enlistment
Fujita became interested in joining the military after hearing of his friend's enjoyment of the Texas National Guard. He enlisted after a lengthy debate between the National Guard and the civics teacher of the local high school debating the legitimacy of his claim to American citizenship, as well as questions over his weight, height and age, all three of which were below the minimum level. Made a PFC and a chauffeur for the battalion officers, Fujita progressed well in the National Guard though struggled at home with his studies. After accepting an ultimatum from his father to work harder or leave, Fujita chose to hitch-hike to Oklahoma and became an artist and illustrator. On the outbreak of war in 1939, he returned to his National Guard unit, taking part in training manoeuvres through 1940.
Come November, with Fujita by now a sergeant, the unit was mobilized and sent to San Francisco and then Louisiana. In 1941, he was shipped overseas aboard the Republic.
Battle of Java
Japanese landings
During the Battle of the Java Sea on 27 February 1942, the Allied navies suffered a disastrous defeat at the hand of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDA) Strike Force commander—Admiral Karel Doorman—was killed. What followed was several landings on the island of Java on March 1. The Allied forces were commanded by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) commander, General Hein ter Poorten. Although the KNIL forces had, on paper, 25,000 (mostly Indonesian) well-armed troops, many were poorly trained. The Japanese troops landed at three points on Java on 1 March. The West Java invasion convoy landed on Bantam Bay near Merak and Eretan Wetan, having defeated HMAS Perth and USS Houston at the Battle of Sunda Strait, a few hours prior to landing. The East Java invasion convoy landed on Kragan.
Land campaign
Japanese troops, mainly from the 48th Division, landed at three points on Java on March 1.
The Dutch and other Allied forces were organized in four sub-commands: Batavia (Jakarta); North Central Java; South Java and East Java.