When an ear of corn slammed against Donald Faivre’s head, the Illinois farm boy stormed away from harvest and tumbled 6,400 miles from his grain fields along a surreal chain of firing squads, peg legs, Tojo, Tokyo Rose, cannibalism, and a curious set of prison sketches penciled by a Japanese doctor caught in the dragnet of World War ll’s most heinous acts.
Two years later, Faivre returned to his Midwest corn and soybeans, carrying home the poignant sketches. He protected the collection in his farmhouse for decades, steadfastly hoping to return the drawings.
With the patience of a stone, the sketches waited 70 years, finally finding their rightful owners in 2023, thanks to Faivre’s remarkable integrity. Amidst the horrors of WWll, he was thrown into a bizarre tale juxtaposing guilt, acquittal, honor, and shame, yet maintained a sense of justice, rather than retribution. Faivre emerged from the rabbit hole as he entered—a farmer with a heart of gold.
Fat Man and Little Boy
On Aug. 6, 1945, exactly 1,338 days after Pearl Harbor, six B-29 Stratofortress bombers took off from the Pacific island of Tinian at 2:45 a.m., noses pointed north by northwest on a 1,500-mile flight to Japan. Among the squadron: Enola Gay. She and her 12-man crew carried a single 9,700 lb. bomb—Little Boy—packed with 140 lb. of uranium.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member