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Dal McKennon was born on 19 July 1919 in La Grande, Oregon, USA. He was an actor, known for Lady and the Tramp (1955), Gumby: The Movie (1995) and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971). He was married to Betty Warner. He died on 14 July 2009 in Raymond, Washington, USA.

The girl history would come to know as Joan of Arc was the youngest of 5 children born in Domrémy, Duchy of Bar (which Louis XV annexed in 1766 per the Treaty of Vienna after the passing of his father-in-law Stanislaus Leszczynski, the deposed king of Poland and the last Duc de Bar). She was 13 years when she began to hear voices and saw visions of Saints Catherine, Margaret, and Michael directing her to seek out the Dauphin. Around this time, her father was having a reoccurring dream of Joan leaving home with a group of soldiers -- which at the time meant only one thing. The dream was so vivid, he instructed his sons to kill her if she ever tried to leave home; and if they didn't, he would.

Ironically, it was her father contracting a marriage for Joan with a neighbor's boy which made her decide to accept her mission. When the boy sued for breach of contract, she traveled alone to Toul, the nearest diocese, to defend herself. Fortunately, the law was on her side: a woman could not be forced to marry against her will. In ruling in her favor, the judge called Joan "an extraordinary child". She returned to Toul a year later as Commander of the French Army.

In February 1429, the now-17-year-old used the pretense of traveling to Burey-le-Petit to care for her aunt into persuading her aunt's husband to take her to Vaucouleurs to attempt for a second time to gain an audience with the captain of the garrison, Robert de Baudricourt, whom, after increasing pressure from the townsfolk, agreed to provide her an escort to the Dauphin. The men Baudricourt provided, Jéan de Metz and Bertrand de Poulengy, would become two of her generals.

What happened when she arrived at Chinon on March 6, 1429, became the stuff of legend. The Dauphin disguised himself as a courtier and had another courtier dressed as the Dauphin, however, she identified the real Dauphin immediately. After an examination by his clerics, the Dauphin furnished Joan with a small force and sent her to Orléans to assist in lifting the Siege, which his army had been contending with since October 1428.

Arriving on April 29th, she proceeded to whip the troops into shape: no more pillaging, profanity, or "camp followers", and each man was to attend Mass at least once a week. Since their humiliating loss at Agincourt (1415), the French had fought from a defensive posture; Joan went on the offensive. In what came to be known as The Audacious Attack, Joan snuck a small group into the town, then ordered them to regroup for an assault on the Siege Post, saving Orléans from capitulation. The commanders regarded her at first as little more than a glorified cheerleader, yet the rank-and-file loved her: she belonged to the same class as they and was willing to take the same risks she asked them to take. Her brothers Jéan and Pierre, sent by their father to bring her home, instead found themselves fighting under her banner.

The lifting of the Siege in just 9 days brought new recruits from all over France, eager to fight for The Maid. She scored victories at Jargeau (June 11-12), Meung-sur-Loire (June 15), Beaugency (June 16-17), and Patay (June 18), the most disastrous English defeat since Baugé (1421). In stark contrast to Agincourt, where the victorious Henry V had French POWs executed, Joan spared the lives of English POWs. At Patay, she came across a wounded English soldier who asked her if she would hear his confession. Comrades fearing her among the dead found Joan cradling the now-dead young man in her arms, weeping uncontrollably. The English did not win another major engagement for the rest of the Hundred Years' War.

Accepting the peaceful surrender of every town along her path, Joan, her army, and their Scottish allies escorted the Dauphin deep into English territory. On July 17th, he was crowned Charles VII at the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims. This marked the height of her career, as she was stymied repeatedly by an apathetic Charles, who preferred to negotiate with the English and the Burgundians than capitalize on the momentum she had given him. He gave her just one day to take Paris, an impossible task made worse by his order that the pontoons her general Jéan de Alençon had built be destroyed. The fighting at Porte Saint-Honoré, main entry to Paris from the West, was brutal, even by medieval standards: Joan was wounded twice, and her standard bearer was killed. Alençon had to literally drag her away from the battle as she continued to direct action. Her "failure" to take Paris pummeled her standing at court, as Charles's scheming courtiers hoped. She was forced to abandon the Siege of La Charité (November 24-December 25) after her pleas for supplies and artillery fell on deaf ears. Joan and her family were ennobled on December 29th, officially, in acknowledgment for her service, but, in reality, to get her to go home.

On May 23, 1430, Joan and Pierre were captured by the Burgundians during the Siege of Compiègne, with Joan commanding 400 volunteers. Having ordered a retreat, she ushered her group through Compiègne's city gates, but the gates were closed before she, Pierre, and the rest of the rear guard could enter. Historians are divided as to if the gate were closed to prevent the Burgundians from entering, or if it was an act of treachery by Compiègne's governor. Pierre was released after his ransom was paid, ultimately marrying the daughter of the man who raised it.

Sold to the English after Charles did not pay her ransom, Joan was put on trial, paid for by the Duke of Bedford (regent for his and Charles's nephew, Henry VI). The judges were pro-English French clerics from the University of Paris, led by Bishop Pierre Cauchon (who was forced to flee his seat at Beauvais when Joan took the town). At the time of her capture, Joan was the most-famous person in all Christendom, so Cauchon (hoping to prove that Joan was a fraud) had the proceedings meticulously recorded. In something of an irony, Bedford's wife confirmed Joan's virtue, preventing Cauchon from trying her as a witch. After 15 interrogations in less than a month, followed by a "trial" which rubber-stamped the foregone conclusion, she was convicted of heresy and turned over to secular authorities. Bedford signed her death warrant, and she was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431, at the Vieux-Marché in Rouen before a crowd of 10,000, including 800 English soldiers who escorted her to the venue. One soldier gave her a cross fashioned from twigs and twine as his comrades wept, despite orders from their superiors to show no emotion.

It wasn't until 1450 that Charles ordered an inquiry into the "faults and abuses" committed by the judges whom "brought about her death iniquitously and against right reason, very cruelly". He knew that he owed Joan his throne, and if she was indeed a heretic, that made him a heretic as well. Hence, the inquiry had nothing to do with clearing her name and everything to do with legitimating his rule. Meanwhile, Joan's mother petitioned Pope Nicholas V for redress. Jéan Bréhal, inquisitor-general of France, was charged by the papal legate, Guillaume d'Estouteville, with reviewing the case. Bréhal urged the new pope, Callixtus III, to take up Joan's cause. On July 7, 1456, after a "retrial" at the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, Joan was declared a martyr, the victim of a political vendetta which violated canon law and cleared of all charges, however, her claims of divinity were not addressed. Callixtus excommunicated the now-deceased Cauchon in 1457.

Her popularity grew over the centuries, yet not everyone was a fan. Shakespeare depicted her as a witch in "Henry VI, Part I". Voltaire mocked her in "The Maid of Oranges". The Revolutionaries who overthrew Louis XVI banned the yearly celebration of the lifting the Siege of Orléans, destroyed her relics, and turned her statues into cannons. It was only after Napoléon declared her a national symbol of France that she was on her way to becoming universally revered. On May 16, 1920, Joan was canonized by Pope Benedict XV. A gold halo was placed over the head of her statue at the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris as Parisians, whose ancestors fought Joan at Porte Saint-Honoré, crammed the streets in celebration.

In the years immediately following her death, several women came forward claiming to be Joan; in 1434, Jéan and Pierre recognized one named Claude. For the next 6 years, the brothers and their "sister" traveled from town to town, receiving lavish gifts from Joan's many admirers, all of whom were desperate to believe she had escaped her fate. Then the trio made the mistake of visiting court. Unable to tell Charles the "secret" Joan told him, proving to him she that had been sent by God, Claude confessed to the subterfuge, and begged forgiveness. Jéan's fate is unknown. Pierre continued to serve in the Army. Claude married and had two children.

Clotilde Forgeot d'Arc, who played Joan in the 2022 celebration of the lifting of the Siege of Orléans, claims to be Pierre's descendant. However, this is disputed. Genealogist Michel de Sachy de Fourdrinoy wrote in "Bulletin de L'alliance Française" (October 1973) "there is no longer any known descendants of the brothers of the Maid", confirming scholar François de Bouteiller's findings published in "Revue des Questions Historiques" (1878) that Joan's great-great nephew Charles du Lys (d. 1632) was the "last remaining male of the line". Clotilde's great-great-grandfather, Henri Gaultier, renamed his children "d'Arc" after being granted an Ordonnance Royale by Charles X in 1827.

Joan's birthplace Domrémy was renamed Domrémy-la-Pucelle ("The Maid") in 1578.

Marie Pillet was born on 20 July 1941 in Ville-la-Grand, Haute-Savoie, France. She was an actress and writer, known for Before Sunset (2004), Two Days in Paris (2007) and La Menace (1977). She was married to Albert Delpy. She died on 13 February 2009 in Paris, France.

Jean Girault was born on 9 May 1924 in Villenauxe-la-Grande, Aube, France. He was a writer and director, known for The Gendarme of Saint-Tropez (1964), Jo (1971) and The Exchange Student (1967). He was married to Françoise Girault. He died on 24 July 1982 in Paris, France.

Pierre Cassignard was born on 19 December 1965 in Sainte-Foy-la-Grande, Gironde, France. He was an actor, known for Empreintes criminelles (2010), Le sourire du clown (1999) and La locandiera (2007). He died on 20 December 2021 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France.

Joe Rynearson was born in La Grande, Oregon, USA. Joe is known for May December (2023), The Girl from Plainville (2022) and My Best Friend's Exorcism (2022).

Andrew Patterson was born in a rural northeastern Oregon town in 1973 and lived there most of his youth years. The son of an anthropologist and art historian, his parents took him abroad for up to a year at a time to live in countries like Spain, Greece, Costa Rica, and more.

After graduating high school, Andrew was an AFS student in Italy for a year where he studied Italian and in a classical liceo. He then attended Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin where he majored in psychology and Italian studies. Upon graduation, he moved to Las Vegas where he sold suits and new and used cars. In 1998, he moved to Singapore where he has been ever since.

He has acted in various sitcoms, dramas, comedies and been a presenter, as well as modeling for print ads and doing voice-overs.

Andrew has one brother in the Malaysia who is a copywriter and one brother in Portland, Oregon who is a freelance producer.

Roger Vincent was born on 30 May 1878 in Sainte-Foy-la-Grande, Gironde, France. He was an actor, known for Le cabaret du grand large (1946), Trois balles dans la peau (1934) and Casque d'Or (1952). He died on 6 November 1959 in Paris, France.

Mario Cyr was born in Grande-Entrée, Îles de la Madeleine, Québec, Canada. He is known for Polar Bears: Ice Bear (2013), The Last Continent (2007) and Antarctic Mission: Islands at the Edge (2007).

Ken Swartz was born on 13 January 1913 in La Grande, Oregon. He was a set decorator, known for The Lost Moment (1947), The Affairs of Susan (1945) and I Spy (1965). He died on 1 August 1973 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Agnes Vernon was born on 27 December 1895 in La Grande, Oregon, USA. She was an actress, known for Queen of the Turf (1921), Bringing Home Father (1917) and In Search of a Wife (1915). She died on 21 February 1948 in San Diego, California, USA.

Antonio Machín was born on 8 February 1903 in Sagua la Grande, Villa Clara, Cuba. He was an actor and composer, known for Cuéntame cómo pasó (2001), Hola... señor Dios (1970) and Del rosa al amarillo (1963). He died on 4 August 1977 in Sevilla, Spain.

An award winning producer, screenwriter, published author and former executive at Metropolitan Talent Agency, Jayson earned Cinema Studies and Creative Writing degrees from the University of Oregon. In 2014, he launched the production company, CrittNation, an establishment focused on developing and producing original television series and feature films for worldwide distribution.

Mel Martinez was born on 23 October 1946 in Sagua la Grande, Villa Clara, Cuba. He has been married to Kitty since 1975. They have three children.

Herminio Traviesas was born on 1 October 1914 in Sagua la Grande, Cuba. He died on 3 December 1993 in Atlantis, Florida, USA.

French art critic and historian Elie Faure was born in Ste. Foy, Gironde, France, in 1873. His father was a grower of wine grapes. At 17 years of age Elie was sent to the Lycee Henri IV in Paris, where he studied medicine, receiving his degree in 1899. He became a respected surgeon, but his first love was always art--although he was not a painter himself--and from childhood he had been entranced with paintings and painters (during his college days in Paris he would spend much of his off time in The Louvre). He married at 24 and his wife gave birth to two sons, one of whom died in infancy. He was so traumatized by this tragic incident that he went for many years without even looking at a painting. It was when he became involved in what became known as The Dreyfus Affair--when French Army Capt. Alfred Dreyfus, a Jew, was convicted by the French army leadership of spying for Germany, a charge motivated entirely by anti-Semitism--that he regained his love of art, mainly due to his association with writer Émile Zola, a staunch defender of Dreyfus. It was through Zola that Faure met the painters he had most admired, and this was the start of his career as an art historian.

In 1904 he published a brochure about the painter Velazquez. The next year he co-founded the Universite Populaire, a school for adult education. It was while he was an instructor there that he came out with what is considered to be his greatest work, the epic "History of Art".

When World War I broke out he joined the French army and served as a surgeon, returning to his art career at war's end. He published many brochures on the major French artists, such as Paul Cézanne and Henri Matisse, and and became good friends with the renowned Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. Rivera even painted a portrait of Faure in his old French army uniform.

Elie Faure died in Paris, France, in 1937 at age 64.

Elvira Cervera was born on 4 January 1923 in Sagua la Grande, Villa Clara, Cuba. She was an actress, known for Terre indigo (1996), Operación Fangio (1999) and Cumbite (1964). She died on 27 March 2013 in Habana, Cuba.

Jenna Rae was born on 6 August 1982 in La Grande, Oregon, USA. She is an actress, known for Gone (2012), The Road (2009) and Follow the Prophet (2009).