Jimmy Patterson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lt. James "Jimmy" Steven Patterson is the main character of the award-winning Medal of Honor franchise beginning with the original Medal of Honor in 1999 and later in a sequel Medal of Honor: Frontline in 2001. He has also appeared as a main character in Medal of Honor: Heroes.
Contents |
[edit] Early Life
James Steven Patterson was born on Armistice Day, November 11, 1919 in Carthage, Missouri.
[edit] College
James Patterson attended the University of Michigan where he excelled in most of his classes. The following transcript states the subjects he took, his professors, and his grades.
Dean: Hirschmen
Student Advisor: Dr. McDevitt
Student ID: TE 64-46
| Subject | Professor | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Vector & Tenor Analysis | Taylor | A+ |
| Physical Chemistry | Jones | A |
| Metallurgy | Nellane | A- |
| Comparative Religion | Thankamushy | A+ |
| German | Kraber | C- |
| Differential Equations | Fitzgerald | A+ |
| Fluid Dynamics | Cross | A |
| Structures | Orimoloye | A+ |
| German | Kraber | A+ |
| Logic & Philosophy | Henson | A+ |
| Chaucer | Dahood | A |
Patteron was an honor student and expected to go to Harvard, but instead shocked his family by going to West Point. He graduated third in his class and volenteered for the Army Air Corp.
[edit] Officer Candidate School
Upon entering the United States Army Air Corps, James Patterson applied and was accepted to Officer Candidate Training. The following is his offical OCS Summary dated on May 20, 1942.
| Date of Birth | November 11, 1919 Carthage, MO |
| Height | 6'1" |
| Weight | 170lbs |
| Hair | Light Brown |
| Eyes | Green |
| Rank | Cadet |
| Service | US Army |
FIELD RATINGS:
| Weapon | Score |
|---|---|
| M1 Garand | 95% |
| Mark II Frag Grenades | 91% |
| Browning Automatic Rifle | 94% |
| Combat Shotgun | 97% |
| 1903 Springfield Scoped Rifle | 99% |
SPECIAL QUALIFICATIONS:
| Demolitions (Type I & II) |
| All-Weather Combat |
| Basic Conversational German |
| Signal Corps Certificate (Morse Code) |
| R-1830 Engine Repair |
The end of the summary was pressed as RECOMMENDED, indicating a recommendation to whichever assignment James would choose. James had subsequently chosen the Army Air Corps.
[edit] First Encounter with the OSS
James Patterson's first encounter with the Office of Strategic Services occured in November 1942. James was randomly chosen from a select few of officers from the Air Transport Command.
His mission was to pilot a specially modified Northrop Alpha to an undisclosed German-controlled airfield in occupied North Africa. Upon his arrival his orders were to pick up an OSS operative who had just destroyed a fuel depot in anticipation of the upcoming invasion of North Africa known ironically as Operation Torch. His strict orders stated that he was not even allowed to look at the operative, as to keep the operative's identity secure. In fact, the operative was none other than Manon Batiste, whom he would later be working with upon his entrance into the OSS.
[edit] Assignment to the 101st Airborne
Lt. Patterson was assigned as pilot for the 101st "Screaming Eagles" and soon became a well respected pilot by the men of 4th Platoon. He was widley considered the best .45 shot on the base.
[edit] D-Day minus One
One the night of June 5th, 1944 Lt. James Patterson, now twenty four years old, flew his over-laden C-47 transport plane over the Contentin Peninsula in order to drop the 4th Platoon over it's drop zone.
Once the last paratrooper left the C-47, Patterson turned around and made his way home. Unfortunately his plane was attacked by German fighters. With one engine burning and a hole in the tail of plane, James crash-landed his plane into an open field bound by the hedgegrows of Normandy. James and four of his crewmen survived.
[edit] Battle through the Night
Immeditely after crashing, a group of German soldiers arrived investigating the crash, James killed seven of them with his Colt .45 as he and his fellow crewmen retreated into the darkness. Armed with his pistol, an M1 Garand and a few grenades, James and his men continued towards the coast, taking out a few Wehrmacht checkpoints along the way.
[edit] Encounter with the Resistance
Running low on ammunition and determination, Patterson and his men were finally found by a French Resistance Group called the Marquis, led by none other then Manon Batiste herself. The Marquis had then agreed to help Patterson and his men reach their lines. The resistance group escorted them to a small port city just north of Quinéville on the Eastern Edge of the Pennisula where they boarded a fishing trawler.
[edit] Arrival onboard the USS Thomas Jefferson
After navigating through miles of German mine-studded waters they final reached the Allied Armada. James and his men were taken aboard the USS Thomas Jefferson,a transport ship carrying memmbers of 116th Infantry Division. Despite his harrowing ordeal which would earn him a foreclaimed Medal of Honor, James came to terms with the fact that the invasion would require the efforts of every able bodied man on the vessal, James decided to return to France with the 116th.
[edit] D-Day
James and the men of the 116th Infrantry Division were loaded off of the USS Thomas Jefferson and on to a Higgins boat for the pending invasion. As the landing craft made its way to the beach James looked around at his comrades-in-arms and prepared for his finest hour.
[edit] Trivia
All of the listed "Professors" Patterson had in college in fact are members of the Medal of Honor crew. For example Kraber, Patterson's German Professor, is Eric Kraber, the chief Sound Engineer.
Jimmy never talks in the games he has appeared in. One of the soldiers he encounters in Medal of Honor: Frontline asks him a question and when Jimmy doesn't answer, he says "Good, I'll take your silence for a yes. Go, get him sport."
Medal of Honor: Heroes reveals that Manon and Jimmy eventually start dating towards the end of the war and that he proposed to her. It does not reveal whether she accepted.
