| Jay De L'Eau | |
|---|---|
 De L'Eau in Peleliu | |
|
Actor |
Dylan Young |
|
Rank |
Private First Class, Corporal |
|
Battles |
Battle of Cape Gloucester Battle of Peleliu |
|
Status |
Deceased as of 1997 |
Cpl. Jay De L'Eau was a Marine who fought with Eugene Sledge's unit in the Battle of Peleliu.
History[]
Born on July 29th 1923 in San Bruno California[1], De L'Eau was first encountered in Pavuvu when Sledge, Bill Leyden, and Robert Oswalt arrived at his cabin. When the others, Pfc. Merriel "Snafu" Shelton and Cpl. R.V Burgin refused to give them a bunk, De L'Eau offered to show them around as well as find them a place to stay.
Peleliu[]
De L'Eau on the airfield
De L'Eau was next seen in Peleliu, where his unit landed on the beach and invaded the island. Like Leyden, he did not have a particularly notable role in this scene.
Airfield[]
During the Airfield assault, De L'Eau was a little more notable as he used a bazooka to help clear out a partially destroyed building shortly after the death of Oswalt. After a night in said destroyed building, he later witnessed Sledge gaining the new nickname "Sledgehammer."
Bloody Nose Ridge[]
De L'Eau and Sledge when Burgin announced the death of Captain Haldane
De L'Eau's psychology would later be tested to its limit at the Bloody Nose Ridge. One night, De L'Eau confides in Sledge his feelings. An attack later begins and ends quickly with none of the Japanese even going near Sledge and De L'Eau. Nonetheless, De L'Eau breaks down into tears with Sledge comforting him.
Later, De L'Eau goes to defecate in a cave and is attacked by two Japanese soldiers, one of whom he kills, and he runs off with his pants still down. The marines take their time to kill the other soldier, much to De L'Eau's chagrin. He also finds out that he "shit [himself]" while he was running, and everyone teases him while he went to get some fresh dungarees (pants).
De L'Eau does not have a particularly unique role afterwards, but it is certain that he was one of the marines mourning the loss of Capt. Andrew Haldane, who the marines respected. He is later seen among the marines leaving Peleliu, and is presumably one of the marines swimming off the shore of Pavuvu.
Transfer[]
The real Jay De'Leau as he appeared in his later years
De L'Eau later gives the others bad news, he has been transferred to intelligence, which meant that he would not join the others in Okinawa.
Later Life[]
While his final fate was not told by the end of the miniseries, it is known that he became a Corporal at some point during or after the Battle of Okinawa. Jay De L'Eau lived in Redding, California, and married his wife Fran, a member of All Saints Episcopal Church in Redding.
Also, in the Profiles of the Pacific: R.V Burgin, there's a picture of De L'Eau, Eugene Sledge and R.V. Burgin at a reunion decades later that tells us that he survived the war.
He died in 1997.
Trivia[]
The Real Jay De L'Eau and the Real Eugene Sledge
In the novelized version, only in Okinawa was De L'Eau assigned to fire a bazooka, although he reports to battalion headquarters company commanded by Lt. "Duke" Ellington, Sledge's former platoon leader.