Sargeant Henry Hisaichi Kano, the 1/6 scale figure

[kanowarrior]

A few of you have heard me talking about this. I just got the go ahead to discuss it in public now. A 1/6th scale collectible figure company is making a figure of my dad. Its already been discussed on the 1/6th scale collectors forums and I've gotten a couple emails from collectors I used to know.

I do have pictures but don't think I'm allowed to show them yet. Not sure when the figure will be out but all the design work is done now. He will come with a combat uniform and Class A's with his decorations as you have seen me wear at Camp Bob events.

My dad was a third assist on a .30 caliber MG crew in a Heavy Weapons company. He carried a .45. The figure is suppose to come with a .30 caliber machine gun and a tripod.

[barcelonablom]

I did and thats pretty awesome.

[kanowarrior]

This is the offical back story about my father that is going to hit the 1/6th scale collectors forums today.

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Henry Hisaichi Kano was born and raised on the island of Kauai in Hawaii. He grew up in the town of Hanapepe. Henry left Kauai in 1934 for California. He moved to Los Angeles and attended trade school at the National School of Los Angeles. After graduating he worked on the fishing boats in San Pedro but his real desire was to become a Border Patrol Agent. One problem he faced was a height limit but that could be waived if you had been in the Military so Henry enlisted in the US Army for two years. The year was 1941.

Henry Kano was not a famous person, he was not any more special than the tens of thousands of other Japanese American Nisei who volunteered or were drafted for the Army in WWII. He did not even go into the Army for patriotic reasons as many or even most of the 442nd soldiers had. But he had the same spirit that made them famous and proved to the rest of the world that they were true and loyal Americans ready to do whatever was necessary to win the war for American. And if need be, give their lives for their country as well. For me, he was much more than that. He was my father.

Henry began his military career at Camp Roberts in California and was stationed there until July of 1942. During this time he was the Company Clerk. December 7th, 1941 would change everything.

After leaving the training Battalion, Henry was sent back East and spent the next two years as a Sergeant setting up firing ranges and training troops for combat. During this time he met his future wife Jean and would spend his time on leave traveling to her home in Waterloo, Iowa. One day his train was late on the way back to his camp and he was reduced in rank to a Private First Class and shipped overseas to join the 100th Battalion in Italy. PFC Henry Kano became a .30 caliber machine gun team assistant gunner. Before he left Jean gave him a ring that she wore when she was a child. Henry kept that ring on his dog tag chain and wore it all through the war.

Near Death Experience

Fighting in Italy was a battle from ridge to ridge. Experienced GI's would crawl to the top of a ridge and peer over into the valley below. Henry was doing just that when an NCO newly arrived from the States jumped up on the ridge next to him. Henry looked up at him but he was gone. Thinking the NCO had slipped and fallen back down the slope; he got up on the ridge, turned around and looked back down the slope. As he bent down an 88mm shell tore his backpack off.

They never found the NCO; he had taken a direct hit from the 88mm AT gun down on the valley floor. The Germans were sighting through the bore of the weapon at individual GI's as they came up on the ridge. The 88mm shells fired so fast and flat that they were faster than the speed of sound. The shell would hit before you could hear it coming.

When Henry finally returned home, he was honorably discharged from the Army at Fort MacArthur in Long Beach. Henry eventually opened his own flower shop in San Clemente until he retired in 1995. Henry and his wife Jean both passed away in 2007.

Other Recollections

Henry vividly recalled the towns in Italy. People would dry tomatoes on their roof tops and the bright red of tomatoes would create a mosaic of color.

A popular meal was a sort of Hawaiian 'Hobo Stew'. Never the same it was made using whatever they could share or scrounge. There was a lot of cabbage. Local farmers grew a lot of cabbage as it would keep a long time and refrigeration was non-existent.

[kanowarrior]

Here is one of the pre-production pictures.

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[kanowarrior]

Backside. I'm not sure exactly what equipment he is coming with. The company making it was negotiating prices on the accessories with the factory. Hopefully I should know soon.

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