James Joseph Dresnok
American defector to North Korea / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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James Joseph Dresnok (Korean: 제임스 조새프 드레스녹, November 24, 1941 – November 2016) was an American defector to North Korea, one of seven U.S. soldiers to defect after the Korean War.
James Joseph Dresnok | |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | Jim, Joe, Arthur |
Born | November 24, 1941[1] Norfolk, Virginia, U.S. |
Died | November 2016 (aged 74–75) Pyongyang, North Korea |
Allegiance | United States (1958–1962) North Korea (1962–2016) |
Service/ | United States Army (1958–1962) |
Years of service | 1958–1962 (defected) |
Rank | Private first class |
Spouse(s) |
|
Children | 3 |
Other work | Teacher, actor, translator |
After defecting, Dresnok worked as an actor in propaganda films, some directed by Kim Jong Il,[2] and as an English teacher in Pyongyang. He was featured on the CBS magazine program 60 Minutes on January 28, 2007, as the last U.S. defector alive in North Korea.[3] He was also the subject of a documentary film, Crossing the Line, by British filmmakers Daniel Gordon and Nicholas Bonner, which was shown at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.[4][5]
Dresnok most often called himself Joe Dresnok[3] but was also referred to as "James"[6][7][8] or "Jim" Dresnok[9] in media reports. He was known by most North Koreans as "Arthur", from his starring role in the miniseries Unsung Heroes (1978).