Actress Chanté Adams, who portrays Canedy in the movie, was only 26 at the time of filming, and like Michael B. King's fiancée, Dana Canedy, was approximately six years younger than him and was around the age of 41 during the events depicted in the film. He suffered from a certain amount of PTSD from his wartime experiences and did not speak about them. He had fought in the First Gulf War in 1991, and his arms had permanent splotches from chemical sprays he received during that conflict. In fact, the real First Sergeant Charles Monroe King had prior wartime experience.
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Jordan was just 33 when production on the movie began, making him approximately 15 years younger than King was when he experienced the real-life events. Born in 1958, King was 48 when he died in 2006. The real Charles Monroe King was significantly older than actor Michael B.
Is Charles Monroe King's age depicted accurately in the movie? Jordan and Chanté Adams portray the couple in the Denzel Washington movie.
Top: Dana Canedy and Charles Monroe King's son Jordan with his parents during Charles's two-week leave in 2006.
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He taught them how to balance a checkbook, bailed them out of jail, and even discussed birth control with them. His fiancée, Dana Canedy, later wrote, "I struggled to understand what motivated the man who had for so long dreamed of your birth but chose to miss it because he believed his soldiers needed him more." King had a "strong sense of duty." He was already a father figure to many of the young men and women who served under him. First Sergeant Charles Monroe King insisted that he would only take his leave after all of the 105 men he commanded had gone home first, many of whom were very young and just out of high school. Thanks, God.ĭid the real Charles Monroe King miss the birth of his son? The army even recognized my artistic abilities. Like anything, you have some challenging days, but when I look back I have no regrets. God blessed me above all I could imagine. In one entry, he expressed his thankfulness to God for leading him to the Army:Įnlisting in the Army was one of the best decisions I had ever made in my life. In exploring the A Journal for Jordan true story, we discovered that King's devotion to God is evident throughout his journal entries to his son. Sometimes crying can release a lot of pain and stress. Plenty of his journal entries are included in his fiancée Dana Canedy's memoir, including the following:īe humble about your accomplishments, work harder than the man next to you, it is all right for boys to cry. It was unfinished, but Charles wanted to make sure what he had written made it home. It was not long after the young soldier's death that Charles mailed the journal home in July 2006. He even told his son about his own experiences in combat, including recovering the remains of a young soldier's body from a tank, and the importance of honoring the lives of those who make the ultimate sacrifice. He stressed the importance of duty, honor, and putting others before oneself. He included his favorite Bible verses and emphasized the power of prayer. While conducting our A Journal for Jordan fact-check, we learned that Charles instructed his son on everything from dealing with disappointment and resolving conflict to how to treat a lady and act on a date. What did Charles Monroe King include in the journal for his son, Jordan? In real life, Charles Monroe King filled out the journal A Father's Legacy: Your Life Story in Your Own Words. Charles displayed courteous Midwestern values, while The New York Times senior editor Dana was more modern and drawn to city life. They both dated other people at times during their nearly decade-long relationship, but ultimately, she says that "it was his steadiness, his character, and his sureness about who he was and what he stood for that won me over." As seen in the movie, there was an opposites attract element to their relationship. In her memoir, Dana describes thinking that he was "gorgeous" when they first laid eyes on each other.įor years, Dana says that she resisted getting deeply involved with Charles, mainly because as the daughter of an Army veteran, she knew what it was like to grow up on military bases and she "wanted no more of that life." Their career aspirations also kept them geographically apart for a number of years. He stopped by to deliver a piece of artwork he created for her father. The A Journal for Jordan true story reveals that Charles first met Dana at her family's old home in Radcliff, which is not far from Fort Knox, Kentucky. How did Charles Monroe King meet his fiancée Dana Canedy?