Frank Perconte
| Frank Perconte | |
|---|---|
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| Nickname | Perco |
| Born | March 10, 1917 Joliet, Illinois |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1942-1945 |
| Rank |  Technician 4th Grade |
| Unit | Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | |
| Relations | -Joseph Perconte (father) -Mary Carbone (mother) -Jack Perconte (nephew) -Richard (son) -Evelyn (wife) |
| Other work | Postman |
Technician Fourth Grade Frank J. Perconte (born March 10, 1917)[2] is a former non-commissioned officer during World War II with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division in the United States Army. He was portrayed by James Madio in the HBO/BBC miniseries Band of Brothers.
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[edit] Youth
Perconte was born and raised in Joliet, Illinois. His parents were Joseph Perconte, who died in 1929, and Mary Carbone.[2] He attended parochial schools since he was Catholic.[2] He graduated Joliet Central High School in 1935.[2] After High School during the Great Depression, he and some of his friends moved to Gary, Indiana and worked in a steel mill.[2] He enlisted on August 17, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois[3] and was one of the first soldiers assigned to Easy Company.
[edit] Military service
Perconte was a non-commissioned officer in 1st Platoon. Sometime after Toccoa, he married Evelyn, and had a son named Richard.[4] He participated in the division's airborne assault on France on D-Day, and saw action during Operation Market Garden and the Battle of the Bulge. On Easy's assault on the town of Foy on January 13, 1945, he was shot in the buttock by a German sniper.[5] Frank was out for a couple of days before re-joining Easy at the town of Haguenau.
In late April 1945, Perconte along with Denver Randleman, and a few others were patrolling an area outside of Company E's headquarters, and along the way they discovered the Kaufering concentration camp in Landsberg, Germany.[6][7] Perconte ran back to headquarters and alerted Major Richard Winters.[6][7] Along with Perconte and Winters, the rest of Easy joined them on a trip back to the camp.[6][7]
[edit] Later years
Perconte survived the war and returned home to become a postman. As of 2011 he lives in Joliet, Illinois. His nephew, Jack Perconte, played major league baseball during the 1980s with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners, and Chicago White Sox.[2]
He is one of 20 contributors to the 2009 book We Who Are Alive and Remain: Untold Stories from the Band of Brothers, published by Penguin/ Berkley-Caliber. As of 2011 he is the oldest living member of Easy Company, 2nd Battalion 506 PIR.
[edit] Decorations and Awards
[edit] American Army Medals
Bronze Star (1 Oak leaf cluster, denoting a second awarded)
Purple Heart
Army Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (4 Campaign Stars, and 1 Bronze Arrowhead)
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal (With Germany Clasp)
[edit] Foreign Decorations
Croix de Guerre (With Bronze Palm Leaf)
French Liberation Medal
[edit] Commemorative Medals Awarded Post-War
- Commemorative D-Day Medal (60th Anniversary)
- Commemorative D-Day Medal (50th Anniversary)
- Commemorative Battle of the Bulge Medal
- Commemorative French D-Day Medal
- Combat Service Commemorative Medal
- Austrian Liberation 50th Anniversary Medal
- Victory in Europe Commemorative Medal
- Commemorative WWII Medal
[edit] Badges/Other
- 5 Overseas Service Bars (two and a half years overseas)
- Honorable Service Lapel Pin
- Marksmanship Badge (with two bars, denoting Submachine gun, and Pistol feats)
- Presidential Unit Citation (with two Oak leaf clusters, one for each Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge)
- Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB)
- Parachutist Badge
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ DeAngelis, Frank. "Perconte's shadowbox". http://www.frankdeangelis.com/T-5%20Frank%20Perconte.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
- ^ a b c d e f Brotherton, pp.8-9.
- ^ WWII Army Enlistment Records: on-line NARA Archival Database
- ^ Bio of Perconte
- ^ Mini bio on Perconte on The Battle of Normandy website
- ^ a b c Ambrose, pp.262-263.
- ^ a b c Winters, p.214.
[edit] Bibliography
- Brotherton, Marcus (2009). We Who Are Alive and Remain: Untold Stories from The Band of Brothers. Berkley Caliber. ISBN 0743464117.
- Ambrose, Stephen E. (1992). Band of Brothers: Easy Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9780743464116.
- Winters, Richard D., with Cole C. Kingseed (2006). Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0425208133.
[edit] External links
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- 1917 births
- American military personnel of World War II
- Band of Brothers characters
- American people of Italian descent
- Living people
- Recipients of the Bronze Star Medal
- Recipients of the Combat Infantryman Badge
- Recipients of the Purple Heart medal
- Operation Overlord people
- People from Joliet, Illinois
- Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France)
- United States Army soldiers
