The Disappearance Of McKinley Nolan
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''The Disappearance of McKinley Nolan'' is a 2010
documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
directed by
Henry Corra Henry John Corra (born November 11, 1955) is an American documentary filmmaker best known for pioneering what he calls "living cinema". Background Henry Corra is an American documentary filmmaker best known for pioneering what he calls "living c ...
, which follows Michael Nolan on the search for his brother McKinley Nolan, a U.S. Army Private who vanished during the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
. The circumstances of McKinley's disappearance were mysterious, and his status and whereabouts became classified U.S. military information to which the Nolan family was denied access. Retired Lt. Dan Smith returned 40 years later to the U.S. from
Tay Ninh Tay or TAY may refer to: People and languages * Tay (name), including lists of people with the given name, surname and nickname * Tay people, an ethnic group of Vietnam ** Tày language * Atayal language, an Austronesian language spoken in Taiw ...
, Vietnam having encountered a nameless American man whom he later photo-identified as McKinley Nolan. The search for McKinley is a deeply personal journey for his brother Michael and includes groundbreaking footage and interviews of former
Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), and by extension to Democratic Kampuchea, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The name was coined in the 1960s by Norodom Sihano ...
and
Viet Cong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the communist-driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, and ...
members.


Cast

*Michael Nolan: McKinley Nolan's brother *Mary Nolan: McKinley Nolan's wife *Frank Wagner *Richard Linnett: Journalist researching McKinley's story *Lt. Dan Smith: Vietnam Veteran *Roger Nolan: McKinley Nolan's son *R.L. Brown: Mary Nolan's brother *Robert Lee Brown Sr.: Mary Nolan's Father *Congresswoman
Sheila Jackson Lee Sheila Jackson Lee ( Jackson; January 12, 1950 – July 19, 2024) was an American lawyer and politician who was the U.S. representative for , from 1995 until her death in 2024. The district includes most of central Houston. She was a member of ...
: Assisted the Nolans *Thach Quang: McKinley Nolan's adopted son *Ms. Hoa *Mr. and Mrs. Cong *Benjamin David Reich: Interpreter *Cham Sone: Former Khmer Rouge guard *Nguyen Van Tinh *Dang Thuan Hoa *Nguyen Van Thien *Nguyen Van Tuoi *Dao Sy To *Tit Ream *Thol Koung *Ung Chun *Ou Seng Heang *Ta Sonn *Sarah Thomas: Interpreter *Denny Danielson


Production

Production began in 2006 after the story was brought to director Henry Corra by journalist Richard Linnett, who had been following the case for 12 years. Captivated by the Nolans' longing to find McKinley, Corra traveled to Texas to meet them. The timing was perfect, as retired Lt. Dan Smith was scheduling his first meeting with the Nolan family with the news that he saw McKinley Nolan alive. In the 40 years since McKinley's disappearance, U.S. government cooperation with the Nolan family in their search had been extremely limited. When the filmmakers attempted to gain access to areas in Vietnam and Cambodia where McKinley Nolan was rumored to be, they were denied access on all fronts by the U.S., Vietnamese, and Cambodian governments. Through the efforts of Congresswoman
Sheila Jackson Lee Sheila Jackson Lee ( Jackson; January 12, 1950 – July 19, 2024) was an American lawyer and politician who was the U.S. representative for , from 1995 until her death in 2024. The district includes most of central Houston. She was a member of ...
, the crew and the Nolan family were able to secure travel visas and permission for entry, as well as access to military records regarding McKinley Nolan. Actor and activist
Danny Glover Danny Glover ( ; born July 22, 1946) is an American actor, producer, and political activist. Over his career he has received List of awards and nominations received by Danny Glover, numerous accolades including the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian A ...
and Joslyn Barnes of Louverture Films joined the project as Executive Producers, as did Jim Butterworth and Daniel Chalfen of Naked Edge Films. Together with Richard Linnett, Lt. Dan Smith, and several interpreters, the team collected groundbreaking evidence regarding the Khmer Rouge and Viet Cong in their search for McKinley Nolan.


References


External links

* *
''Arts of War on the Web'' review

McKinley Nolan at Corra Films, Inc.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Disappearance Of Mckinley Nolan 2010 films American documentary films 2010 documentary films Documentary films about the Vietnam War Documentary films about missing people Nolan 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language documentary films