[ambient music] [gentle strumming music] ♪ I'd rather die young than grow old without you ♪ ♪ So don't ever leave me, whatever you do ♪ ♪ To see someone's picture where my picture hung ♪ ♪ Believe me, my darling, I'd rather die young ♪ ♪ Don't leave me- ♪ - Sometimes I wish I could belong someplace.

But I feel safer, you know, if I don't get close to anything.

When you get close to somebody and something happens, it takes something away from you.

Sometimes you can't get close to people 'cause you never know what's gonna happen to 'em.

Last time I saw L.V.

was in the hospital.

[helicopter blades rumbling] [people chattering] [helicopter blades rattling] They medevaced us out on the same chopper.

We went to the same hospital.

I looked all the way down.

That's L.V.

He's a good friend.

He took a lot of shrapnel in his face.

I mean, he got shot through the leg, the arm, and everything.

He asked me, "Hey Nak, you all right?"

I says, "Yeah, I'm all right."

[laughs] - [Interviewer] Did you say goodbye?

- Well, I didn't know, I thought we were gonna all get well in that hospital right there, but that was the last time I saw him.

[gentle strumming music] Yeah.

Well, when I woke up outta my surgery, bed was empty.

I just asked, "Where's L.V.?"

That moment on, you know, I kept thinking about him all the time, you know.

Well, he saved my life.

[gentle strumming music] [gentle strumming music continues] - With Bruce, well, I worry about depression and loneliness.

But- - You ready?

- [Chris] He's been digging in his heels about- - Good kitty.

- Hunkering down and not leaving home very often.

In one conversation we had, he said, "Sorrow and pain is what he wants."

- It seems to just always be right there and anchored from way down deep.

We all have our skeletons, and I said, "I think it's better to kind of like get it out, 'cause that stuff will mess you up.

It'll make you sick.

I don't wanna see you get sick."

But he's a closed guy.

- I'm a solitary man.

I want to detach from everything.

Maybe I'm not a good soldier, I feel guilty for what I did.

Shame man.

Nobody would understand, except L.V.

But I've been trying to get ahold of him for a long time, but I never got a response.

So I'm thinking, oh, he's passed.

I get really depressed over this, thinking about him.

I'll never see or hear from L.V.

again.

[gentle strumming music] - [L.V.]

I know I had dreamed about Bruce one time, I think.

- [Interviewer] What was the dream?

- He was dead, he had passed.

I don't know why I did that or how it happened.

I ain't seen him in 50 some year.

I've been looking for him.

- My picture of Bruce was tall, husky, you know, like L.V.

I just always thought that he was African American.

And when L.V.

was looking for him, he never said his last name.

There's a nickname, he called him Naki, or- - I said Nakashimia, I called him Nak.

"What's up, Nak, how you doing, Nak?"

- What can you get outta Nak?

You know, really nothing.

[men shout] - I met Bruce in Fort Benning.

I did ask him, "Was he Chinese?"

And he said, "No, Japanese."

- I remember he is a big old Black kid.

Big, strong.

Until I got in the service, I never was in contact with Black people, never.

- [L.V.]

I didn't really meet Asian peoples.

You know, I know that they existed, but I didn't really meet none.

I seen none in Alabama.

- I said, "What's the L stand for?"

"L." "What's the V stand for?"

"V." "What's your last name?"

"Hendking."

"Tell you what, from now on, I'm gonna call you Hindu."

- It seemed like me and Nak hit it right off the bat.

We was in jump school together, paratroop school.

I had a hard time because I was flatfooted.

It was Bruce was cheering me on.

We did everything together, it seemed like.

- [Bruce] I love the camaraderie-ship, feeling I belong someplace.

- Everybody in the platoon loved Nakashima.

The life of the party, you know, he'd sit around there and joke around with all the fellas, you know.

- [Bruce] All the brothers were a deuce.

I got to tag along and called me a deuce and a half.

- Hey man, what's up there?

He kind of had that little brother talk in there with it, you know.

[chuckles] - [Algene] I said, so where is he?

[engine rumbling] - [L.V.]

I remember him saying, Inglewood.

After my daughter moved, I was coming to California like other every year then.

I tried to find a phone book with his name in it, and didn't find him.

- After so many years, he's just like, "You know what, Algene, I don't think that he's alive anymore."

And this past Christmas, I was in Chicago, visiting family.

L.V.

called me, "Guess what?"

And I say, "What?"

I say, "I found 'em, I found 'em."

"Who did you find?"

- [L.V.]

My granddaughter called me.

Look at my Facebook page and it said, "I'm looking for L.B.

We were together in the first cav.

division, in Vietnam."

[playful strumming music] [pattering wings] Hello?

Is that you, Nak?

- I could tell by his voice.

You'll never, ah, you'll never forget that.

[chuckles] I knew it was him.

- I knew it was him.

- "Man, I've been looking for you for a long time."

"Where you been looking?"

[laughs] - After the phone call, Andy, he say, "You know he's Japanese."

What?

I said, "Are you serious?"

He was like, "Yeah."

I say, "No."

[rustling paper] - [Bruce] There I am.

I was born in Camp Rohwer, Arkansas.

- [Interviewer] Why were you in a camp?

- [Bruce] I don't know, they thought that we were a threat to the United States.

So they put all the Japanese Americans in these camps.

My dad was fighting in Germany and Italy and we were over here.

He wouldn't say much.

I always wanted to know, but he wouldn't tell me.

I can't say he ever hugged me or told me he loved me or anything like that.

Just he was my dad, a lot of respect for him.

So when Vietnam was starting off, I said, "Well, I better volunteer too."

He didn't want me to go.

I mean, "You sure you want to go in the Army?"

"Yeah, Dad, 'cause you were."

Everybody's got their yard stick they got to measure up to.

[gentle music] Ah, we were going on a recon operation and we come up to this village.

The place was designated as "Un-friendlies."

This is an armored personnel carrier that got blown up a couple days prior.

Appointment said we got movement up front.

Everybody on full alert.

The C.O.

says "What we got, what we got up there?"

You ain't gonna believe this.

Down this trail, this little girl, I don't know, she might have been three or four years old, and she pulling a water buffalo and backup.

I mean this is the middle of war.

I don't think she ever had canned peaches before.

Oh man, she loved that.

Ah, yeah.

[laughs] Her smile, you know, in the middle of war, what she had smiled about, she had that smile.

[gentle music] Life is precious.

You don't realize that until you experience something like that.

But she remind me of my little cousin, Linda.

She grew up on the egg ranch.

[gentle music] I would see these rice patties, and man, remind me of celery fields.

You see all these farmers out there, damn, that looked like when I was on the farm.

[gentle music] I felt that connection.

I started seeing the resemblance.

I looked like the enemy, that's what I was told.

Even L.V.

said that, "Damn Bruce, yeah, you guys look the same man."

[laughs] - He looked just like 'em, unless you knew him.

That's what I was afraid of, somebody might mistake him for the enemy.

You young and you scared and you know, you shoot at anything moving.

- One time an officer asked me, "Hey, would you put these black pajamas on?

I'd like to take a picture and tell him you were captured VC."

I said, "Do you want me to put those things and look like a VC, is that what you're saying sir?"

And he's laughing, you know, like a joke.

Well, I was angry at first, but then nothing I really do about it.

I felt, what am I doing here then?

[chuckles] [somber music] I would see these people that were dead that remind me of my parents and my brothers and sister, remind me of my grandfather, yeah.

Kinda scary, yeah.

[somber music] Made me think, would it be easier for me to be a good soldier and not feel guilt about killing another Asian?

Or destroying their homes or their fields?

Would I feel not as guilty?

[somber music] - That's why the military would like to get you while you're young.

You're brainwashed so that anything goes, you know?

[somber music] And we were told that you can't trust the people because they might turn on you.

Our motto was, no prisoners, anybody we see, we kill 'em, you know.

And that's like a poison, once it get into your system, now.

[somber music] - One time we're talking about it.

Somebody yelled up, "We gotta kill all these [censored] gooks."

And I'm thinking, "What's they mean by that?"

North Vietnamese, are they Asians, a Viet Cong?

I just couldn't understand that, so, somebody brought up, [grumbles] "Now if we were in Mexico, will we kill all Mexicans?"

Or, "If we was in Africa, will we kill all the Africans?"

[chuckles] [mutters] The guy, "Nah, just gooks."

[laughs] Yeah.

[somber music] Damn Hindu, I'm getting scared.

- [L.V.]

Bruce is different.

Bruce is special.

He was the only Asian in our company.

- [Bruce] Only certain people that you can share your moments with.

They know where you're coming from.

- [L.V.]

Like I would tell Bruce, "I got your back, man, don't worry about it."

[somber music] - [Lonnie] It was in the afternoon, and our area, what we called Happy Valley.

- [Bruce] In front of me was L.V., in front of him was Baby Lewis.

Baby Lewis stepped on a mine.

[dramatic music] [explosions blasts] - [L.V.]

But I thought I was gone at first.

[gentle music] Couldn't move 'cause my leg was all twisted up.

I thought, "My God."

- [Bruce] I look over and blood coming from his head, his legs, his arm.

- [L.V.]

And then a piece of it hit Nak in the neck.

- [Lonnie] Ran over there, the medic was taking care of Nakashima.

L.V.

was laying up with his eyes rolling back in the head.

And I kept telling him to keep talking to me, don't go to sleep.

[somber music] [helicopter blades whirring] So the helicopter came in and we loaded up Nakashima, L.V.

- [Bruce] Just prior to taking off, I remember that they brought in three or four wounded VC.

- [Lonnie] Once they got in the helicopter, they was gone.

I never did see him again.

[helicopter rumbling] [helicopter continues rumbling] - [Bruce] So I remember I was getting kinda weak.

I look over at L.V.

and made sure he was breathing, but he wasn't conscious for a while.

Prisoner.

They had their hands tied behind them and they looked like young boys like us.

And then, all I can say is, that L.V.

saved me.

[somber music] - [Interviewer] How?

- Man, now I'm starting to feel scared right now.

Me telling her about those prisoners being thrown out, that's like gory, [grumbles] ugly [censored].

I feel very guilty that I couldn't maybe stop it, or you know, what's going on.

- [Interviewer] Let's cut man.

Let's take a break.

[somber music] [helicopter whirring] - [L.V.]

Call it Field Operation Hospital.

I had to have surgery immediately - [Bruce] When I woke up, I just asked, "Where's Hendking?"

And he says, "We shipped him out to a major hospital.

He was seriously wounded."

Started thinking, if it wasn't for him, you know, taking all that, I would've got it.

- [L.V.]

They medevaced me immediately to the, I wanna say the Philippines.

I don't know, I guess I felt they could have let him say goodbye to him.

Nothing you can do about it, just keep going forward.

[engine humming] [somber music] [yard decoration whistling] - Are you nervous?

- Mm mm.

[can thunks] We cool.

[man laughs] [quiet music in the background] Hey.

Yeah, where you at, L.V.?

[Bruce mutters] [phone clatters] Damn, L.V.

[L.V.

laughs] Just [censored] the fan, is that you?

[L.V.

laughing] - Hey L.V., oh my God.

- Yeah.

Man, I've been lookin' for you 1001 years.

Every time I've been to California, I'm trying to find you.

Oh my God.

- Oh L.V., awesome.

Hey, my bucket list is almost full, man.

[L.V.

laughs] Yeah.

- I've been trying to find ya.

Oh, this is my daughter.

- Hi.

- Oh, how are you?

It was kind of overwhelming.

What do you say, he's back from the dead?

- And this is my wife.

- Algene.

- Algene.

- Algene.

- It was so amazing, it made my day.

[crying] I'm sorry.

Man, I looked for you, I looked for you.

I really did.

- [Algene] Yeah, he's been looking for you.

Bruce, he seemed happy, but sad, you know, closed off.

- [L.V.]

He had changed a whole lot.

Like he aged more than me and he was still thinking about the war.

He need to get out more often, because you know, you just can't sit in that house all day.

It'll run your crazy.

- I've kept stressing, you know, that you really should come and visit.

And he seemed kind of skeptical then, eh.

- [L.V.]

I want him to come see Birmingham so I can show him my lifestyle now.

Get out, enjoy life.

- [Bruce] This thing ready, man.

- [L.V.]

Yeah, yeah.

- [Bruce] You walk with it, you might get shot.

[group laughs] - Then he brought up, he didn't have anyone to watch the cat, you know?

And I heard the music playing in the background, you know, like the violin, like, yeah, okay, here we come with all the excuses.

So [speaks foreign language] I really didn't think he was coming.

[gentle strumming music] [plane engine humming] - I got medevaced from Vietnam.

I landed in San Francisco.

Mom and dad came to visit me at the hospital in Presidio.

[cat meows] Hey, get out.

First time my dad hugged me.

He give me a good hug.

We all started crying.

I saw their faces and I says, "Oh my God."

[somber music] I think I'm in trouble.

I was kind of standoffish about having any type of relationship with Asians.

I couldn't explain it to my mom and dad.

So I detached.

[somber music] - [Interviewer] You okay?

- I felt shame.

[somber music] And, Asian culture's shameless.

[somber music] I didn't have nobody to talk to.

I'd have to be in the fast lane, so I wouldn't ever think, bring back [censored].

[somber music] Living on the edge, yeah.

I missed L.V., yeah.

[somber music] I was pretty young, 30?

Stopped by the house to visit and my mom showed me this picture that she said she painted, and she says, "You look at it, what do you think?"

And I said, "Just a bunch of trees, man."

She said, "Does it look like a path?"

That's all she said, you know.

I said, "Eh, kind of like."

I said, "Well, mom's trying to tell me something or I don't know what it is."

I had to get out of there.

- [Interviewer] Did you ever get close to them again?

- No.

That's part of my guilt, I never... - [Interviewer] Yeah.

[somber music] - Hard to say, you know, after the fact, after they passed, I should have, could have.

Yeah, life is short, yeah?

And this is where I'm at now.

Sad, weak, lonely.

- After L.V.

visited here, I tried to encourage him, go and visit him.

Now why wouldn't you trust yourself enough that you can do this?

I heard, "Girl, I don't know about that plane."

Come on man, go do that and get your yayas on and feel the feeling.

[somber music] - Oh, every morning, I wake up at 6:30, walk out there.

First thing I see is the painting.

Reminds me of mom all the time, but I think she's looking at me or watching me or something.

[laughs] Sometimes that things off kilter, off center sometimes.

I must have done something wrong or something.

[laughs] Mama, I'm sorry.

[somber music] And I say, "Oh how come all these trees are so tall and dark?"

Then I see at the end it gets lighter and lighter.

[dramatic music] Oh.

[music fades] [door creaks] [door clatters] [engine humming] - [Station Intercom] At the Boston boarding- - Too many people, I'm not used to all this.

I'm glad I have that painting.

I believe she did that to guide me.

[gentle strumming music] When you get older, you think about that light at the end of the trail.

You gotta go up through that path though.

You gotta walk there, mm.

[plane engine humming] - Hi.

- Hi.

[gentle music] And with L.V., I don't know, it's just like I owe him.

Yeah.

Something I have to do before I pass.

It'll make my whatever, my travels complete.

[dog barking] [L.V.

laughing] - [L.V.]

I didn't think you'd show up.

[laughing] - Yay!

[laughs] I'm so glad you finally made it, oh my goodness.

My goodness.

- Have a seat, have a seat.

- [Bruce] He's done a lot of great things for himself.

Worked for the post office, raised a big family.

Yeah, that made me happy, I'm proud of him.

- [L.V.]

Yeah, that's me around Christmas time.

[laughs] - What you laughing about?

[pair laughing] - You see how fast L.V.

talks?

Now see I had to, you know, what?

Bruce can understand every word he's saying.

That's that bond.

- [Bruce] I don't know, it's difficult to explain to anybody.

Now there's certain things that I don't talk about because a lot of people don't understand.

L.V.

understands, he was there, you know?

- When I first came from Vietnam, I went home.

I was angry with the world.

I got over it because I realized you can't keep this anger in you.

It'll eventually eat you up.

- [Bruce] L.V.

doesn't have any bad bone in his body except all the ones that he got wounded with.

It made me realize I shouldn't hold things in.

[somber music] - [Interviewer] Bruce, we've tried a couple times for you to talk about what happened on the helicopter after you guys got hurt, on the way to the field hospital.

But we've always had to stop.

- I know.

Yeah, that's difficult for me.

- [Interviewer] Is it easier to talk about it when you're next to him?

- I don't know.

[somber music] [helicopter rumbling] Well, I remember being put on the helicopter.

They got you out first and then I went second.

And I remember taking off.

- Getting a little shot of morphine, stuff like that.

I was going like going in and out for a while.

- Well we had some prisoners.

Seeing them that close, I felt scared.

This [censored] is real.

[somber music] Jesus, all [censored] gooks, [censored] 'em.

They just threw 'em out.

[sober music] [somber music continues] They start pushing the prisoners out and then, he looked at me and grabbed me, and the way he grabbed me and stuff, I knew I was next.

[somber music] [helicopter rumbling] [somber music] And all of a sudden, there's L.V., he just said my name, "What's going on?"

[wind hissing] - When I woke up, Bruce, the men are pushing him, and he was flying out, and I grabbed him and sayin', "He's my friend, he's my friend, he's not the enemy."

And I pulled him back in so he wouldn't fall out of the helicopter.

- He clamped onto my arm and pulled me, and just held on to me like that while the helicopter's going up.

It was a long flight to the hospital.

Couldn't breathe sometimes.

[laughs] [somber music] But he was there for me.

He was there.

[somber music] Yeah.

[L.V.

laughs] Thank you for saving my life.

- Oh Bruce.

[laughs] - Twice.

[L.V.

coughs] Yeah.

- You ain't gotta thank me for that.

[somber music] - I didn't want you to leave me again.

[pair laughs] - I know, I know.

[rain pattering] [thunder rumbling] - [Bruce] Something that I've been carrying for a long time.

Weight on my shoulders.

- [Interviewer] How you feeling now?

- [Bruce] A lot of pressure off me or something.

Relief.

Kind of release.

[somber music] [birds chirping] [phone rings] Good morning.

They're filming me right now, I mean you on TV right now.

[laughs] - [L.V.]

He done messed up.

[laughs] He didn't let me find him, he done messed up now, 'cause I ain't gonna let him go.

[gentle strumming music] - [Bruce] I felt found.

I'll still be mean, [laughs] crazy, angry.

I'll still feel resentment.

I volunteered to go over there, spill a lot of blood.

[gentle strumming music] I still had to prove myself.

But reconnecting with L.V.

mended a lot of my hurts, negative thoughts, feelings.

I let some of that stuff go.

[gentle strumming music] I don't know how to say this.

I'm getting to the point where, you know, I gotta forgive myself.

[gentle strumming music] Now I'm working on that.

[gentle strumming music] [gentle piano music] ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ - [Announcer] Support for "Reel South" is provided by the ETV Endowment and the National Endowment for the Arts.