Houjahen Haokip describes the activities and rituals of the Changkut festival which celebrates the paddy and harvest. He is a male Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Harold Priddy. Priddy joined the Army Air Corps around 1938. He completed Officer Candidate School in mid-1942. He deployed to England, and served as chief of Materials Section, Air Transport Service. Priddy was able to commandeer sufficient resources within the European Theater to assist Patton’s 3rd Army in their drive into Germany in late 1944. For his contribution, General Charles de Gaulle awarded Priddy the French War Cross with Silver Star. He was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Martin Mehron. Mehron joined the Navy in February 1941 after spending a year working for Western Electric while attending night school at the Newark College of Engineering. Upon completion of boot camp at Newport, he attended radio school in Jacksonville, which ended with a secret two-week course in radar. After learning to operate radar in PBYs, he stayed on at Jacksonville as an instructor until being sent to a more rigorous radar school at Corpus Christi. From there, he was assigned to a PB4Y unit, VPB-117, flying 12-hour patrols in search of ships and ground targets. One night, after a patrol off of Leyte Gulf, his crew returned to a darkened base and was told to continue to reconnoiter until it was safe to return. After they were given the okay, they came in for the landing but ran out of fuel and crashed 10 seconds before hitting the strip. They hit the water, several of the crew sustaining serious injuries, some fatal. Mehron was rescued and treated for a head injury at a converted hospital. Upon his recovery, he returned to the States as a radar maintenance …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard O'Shaughnessy. O'Shaughnessy joined the Navy in 1942 and received basic training at Great Lakes. Upon completion of aviation radio and gunnery school, he was assigned to VPB-117, alternating between the top turret and radio of a PBY4-1 Catalina. In early 1944, he deployed to the Pacific in a secret operation that was somehow known to Tokyo Rose, who nicknamed them the Blue Raiders. Being one of the first squadrons equipped with radar, they performed classified patrol missions and bombed opportunistically. On one mission, the crew became lost; running low on fuel, they unloaded their plane by throwing out oxygen system and guns. They landed at their base just as the engines cut out. O'Shaughnessy was administered Dramamine to help him through 24-hour-long missions out of Mindoro, tracking the Japanese fleet. Near the end of the war, his crew faced their first enemy fire and shot down six aircraft. O'Shaughnessy was transferred to Corpus Christi but found he could not advance due to nepotism. He was discharged into the Reserves and retired as a master chief.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Owens. Owens joined the Navy in 1943, aspiring to be a fighter pilot. He enrolled in the V-12 program but by 1944 there was declining interest in pilots with as little experience as he would have had, so he volunteered for gunnery school. He joined a PBY4-2 Privateer crew in Florida as a turret gunner and deployed to the Philippines. Flying over the South China Sea and along the coastline of Indochina, his crew was often accompanied in the air by nonconfrontational Japanese fighters. On one mission over a targeted ship, however, Owens's crew flew too closely to the lead plane and struck a column of water splashing up from their bomb. This caused engine trouble and made them an easy target for nine aggressive enemy fighters. The crew escaped after shooting down three Oscars and diverted to Palawan for an emergency landing. In their haste to lighten the load on the damaged plane, they tossed out their life rafts before crossing the sea. Fortunately, they arrived without incident. After 23 combat missions in both the PBY4-1 and 4-2, Owens returned home and became an engineer for …

Houjahen Haokip recites two versions of the ritual called Changlhakou used for inviting the spirit of the paddy upon the village. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Houjahen Haokip recites the ritual called Daaiphu used to avoid the anger of the spirits who live in lakes, forests, and fields. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Houjahen Haokip recites the ritual called Gamlahlen used for healing the sudden, severe sickness believed to be inflicted by the spirits of the forests. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Houjahen Haokip recites the ritual called Joulangthoina used for healing a sick person who becomes mad after going to the forest. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Houjahen Haokip recites the ritual called Khopichanglhakou used for inviting the spirit of the paddy to come upon the village and grant a bountiful harvest. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Houjahen Haokip recites a ritual called Kilhalho used to avert misfortune caused by bad dreams. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Houjahen Haokip recites the ritual called Tuidoithoina used for sickness caused by visiting water bodies, such as lakes, rivers, or ponds. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording. He was thought to be the only living Thadou priest in Lambung village at the time.

Phalthing Haokip tells the story of a beautiful lady called Lenchonghoi who lived with her seven brothers. In the story, a wicked man called Khalbompu tries to take away Lenchonghoi to be his wife. She is from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), and speaks Manipuri in addition to Thadou. She is around 83 years old at the time of recording.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with George W. Meyers. Meyers worked as a welder and on an oil rig prior to joining the Navy just after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Meyers was eventually assigned to a naval construction battalion and recalls assembling massive oil tanks, a hospital and a radar installation in the Solomon Islands. He also shares anecdotes about welding pontoons together at the Admiralty Islands. Meyers was discharged in November, 1945.

Houjahen Haokip performs a ritual called Hunbol used for health and prosperity. He is a Thadou speaker from Manipur (currently living in Lambung village), around 80 years old at the time of recording.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Al Adkins. Adkins joined the Marine Corps in the fall of 1942. He served with the 6th Marine Division, 22nd Marine Regiment. They participated in the Battle of Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands. On Guadalcanal, they formed the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade, participating in the Battle of Guam until they disbanded in September of 1944. Continuing on with the 22nd Marines, Adkins served in the Battle of Okinawa. He returned to the US and received his discharge in September of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Charles Odell Sears. Sears was drafted into the Army in 1943, a year after finishing high school. He trained at Fort Lewis, Washington. He shares a few humorous anecdotes about basic training. He was attached to the 739th Tank Battalion and learned how to drive the M-4 A-1, the Sherman. He speaks of training in Oregon, Washington, at Bouse, Arizona and at Fort Knox, Kentucky before being shipped overseas to England in August, 1944. His unit landed in Frnace in October, 1944. Sears describes being wounded by an accidental discharge from a comrade with a pistol. Sears also speaks about being a tanker in WWII in general terms. His unit was a special tank unit. Some of the tanks had searchlights (CDL-SP) designed to operate at night and spot for artillery while others had minesweepers attached. Sears describes blowing up a mine in a cabbage field in Germany one day. Sears rejoined his unit after being accidentally shot one day after Germany surrendered. His unit was on its way to California to train for the Pacific Theater when Japan surrendered.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ralph Herman Seibt. Seibt joined the Army Air Corps in June 1939. A skilled typist, he worked in communications for the 52nd Squadron at Randolph Field. He took an interest in flying and in 1944 transferred to Montgomery, Alabama, as a cadet. He was hazed and got on poorly with his instructor, and after a certain point he refused to continue his training. Seibt deployed to Guam with the 501st Bombardment Group, 41st Bombardment Squadron, assigned personnel duties such as administering Purple Hearts. Initially, he lived in dangerous jungle conditions but eventually was housed in barracks. He saw natives rounded up in stockades in Agana and was instructed not to interact with them. Upon his return to the States, he crossed paths with German POWs at Fort Bliss, where he was discharged. He enjoyed having the opportunity to chat with them, and they were happily reminded by his last name of one of the great German radio manufacturers. Seibt returned home to his wife and got to know his daughter, who was born in July 1944.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Wayne Richards. Richards joined the Army Air Corps in 1940 and received radio training at Scott Field. Upon completion, he was able to transmit coded messages at 20 wpm. He volunteered for gunnery school, hoping to see combat, and deployed to North Africa with the 301st Bombardment Group (Heavy), 353rd Bomb Squadron, as a B-17 radio operator. In campaigns throughout the Mediterranean and as far east as Athens, he stood out to his colonel as a keen observer. Richards alerted his group when a supposed milk run over Ibiza was rife with antiaircraft fire and was the only one to see that a targeted bridge in Anzio was still standing. He received a warm welcome in Cerignola, Italy, where civilians offered wine and laundry service to the troops. Richards flew the first mission over Rome, admonished to carefully spare the Vatican. He returned home after 50 missions and attended flight school until his discharge in September 1945. Richards completed aeronautics school on the GI Bill and became a commercial pilot.

Interview with Guthrie O'Donnell, a rancher.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Jack Maroney. Maroney joined the Marine Corps in early 1943. He served as a 20mm gunner aboard USS Enterprise (CV-6) through the end of the war. Maroney participated in 12 Naval engagements aboard the Enterprise, including the Gilbert and Marshall Islands Campaigns, the Battle of the Philippine Sea and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. He returned to the US and was discharged in late 1945.

Joujam Haokip tells the traditional narrative 'Thasie pute' about a lazy grandfather and his grandson. She is a literate female Thadou speaker from Lhanjang village in Churachandpur district, Manipur. She is among the youngest Thadou storytellers, around 18 years old at the time of recording.

Joujam Haokip tells the love story of Chingnu (a girl) and Helen (a boy). She is a female Thadou speaker from Churachandpur district, Manipur, around 80 years old at the time of recording.

Veninei Haokip tells the immortal love story of two lovers, Khupting and Ngambom. She is a female Thadou speaker from Lambung village in Tamenglong district of Manipur, around 80 years old at the time of recording.