Skip to main content

Manuel Harold "Manny" Frockt

3132nd Signal Service Co : 2nd Platoon

ASN#15361225

Born 1924 in TN, Died 2022

County of residence at enlistment: Jefferson County, KY
Other residence(s): Louisville, KY; West Palm Beach, FL
United States Army, European Theatre of Operations
Occupation before the war: foremen, n.e.c.
College education before the war: 1 year
College education after the war: Univ. of Louisville Law School
Source: W. Anderson Notes; Post War Sonic List from Bill Anderson; 3132 Pine Camp Photo Names; photo courtesy of son Ivan Frockt

Manny Frockt was born on June 17, 1924 in Chattanooga, TN. The family moved to Louisville, KY a few years later. He was the middle of three children; his father owned a pawn shop, and later an antique store.

Manny graduated from Louisville Male High School and registered for the draft on June 30, 1942, right after he turned 18. He enlisted a few months later, on December 7, 1942. His enlistment form states that he had one year of college.

He was a member of the sonic deception unit in the Ghost Army; in his book Ghost Army of World War II, Jack Kneece tells the story of Manny, who didn't smoke, selling his Red Cross and K-ration American cigarettes on the streets of Paris, and, after being observed by a general, ending up briefly in an Army jail for selling cigarettes in uniform. Luckly, officers from the 23rd were able to spring him quickly!

Frostbite in his feet got him an early discharge. After he returned home, Manny attended the University of Louisville Law School, where he met undergraduate student Esther Tandeta; they married in 1948 and settled in Louisville.

After graduation, Manny practiced law for 50 years. He was the lawyer for the GE union, for three police unions, and for several smaller unions. He also served as a probate judge and lectured at the law school. Manny says that he "had a wonderful practice" and that he "was a very good lawyer before a jury."

He didn’t talk about his Ghost Army experiences until news started to leak out 40-50 years after the war ended. “The brass said ‘Keep your mouth shut.’ So I did.”

Later in life, Manny and Esther moved to Palm Beach County, FL and Manny continued to practice law in Lake Worth, FL. In 1999 he was honored at the Kentucky Bar Association Annual Convention as "1999 Senior Counselor," in recognition of his 50 years of practice.

Manny and Esther had two children: Joel and Shelley, both of whom became attorneys. Esther died in 2007; they had been married for 59 years.

Manny died on December 4, 2022; at the time he was living in a senior facility in West Palm Beach "with a wonderful lady."

Sources:

1930 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/81412589:6224?indiv=1&tid=&pid=&queryId=1ebc2a036398ba35b55e6db092435efe&usePUB=true&_phsrc=pov6&_phstart=successSource

1940 census

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/49429898:2442?indiv=1&tid=&pid=&queryId=1ebc2a036398ba35b55e6db092435efe&usePUB=true&_phsrc=pov10&_phstart=successSource

1942 draft card

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=2238&h=37463713&tid=&pid=&queryId=39a598762f4f20e21c8e08c3a50e0f33&usePUB=true&_phsrc=pov4&_phstart=successSource

1942 enlistment record (has incorrect birth date but clearly the right person)

https://www.fold3.com/record/84312866/world-war-ii-army-enlistment-records-manny-h-frockt

1947 engagement announcement in Chattanooga Daily Times (TN)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/604897084/?terms=manny%20h%20frockt&match=1

1948 marriage announcement in Louisville KY Courier-Journal

https://www.newspapers.com/image/108414203/?terms=manny%20h%20frockt&match=1

1958 city directory, Louisville KY

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1312561275:2469?indiv=1&tid=&pid=&queryId=1ebc2a036398ba35b55e6db092435efe&usePUB=true&_phsrc=pov8&_phstart=successSource

1969 article in Louisville KY Courier-Journal; he is GE union attorney

https://www.newspapers.com/image/107083321/?terms=manny%20h%20frockt&match=1

1973 article in Park City Daily News, Bowling Green, KY; he is police union attorney

https://www.newspapers.com/image/661534666/?terms=manny%20h%20frockt&match=1

1999 article in Palm Beach Post (FL); he has been attorney for 50 years

https://www.newspapers.com/image/133912249/?terms=manny%20frockt%20attorney&match=1

2007 wife Esther's obituary

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/louisville/name/esther-frockt-obituary?n=esther-frockt&pid=94507718

Ghost Army of World War II by Jack Kneece

https://books.google.com/books?id=ASmcc9MWjVcC&pg=PA129&lpg=PA129&dq=manny+frockt+ghost+army&source=bl&ots=Dls091lUdW&sig=ACfU3U0S0_Dt3yIGbPer-TvxfFDSX-3p8g&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj68_-A1Z7uAhUMn-AKHeo4B4AQ6AEwAHoECAUQAg#v=onepage&q=manny%20frockt%20ghost%20army&f=false

2020 email from Manny Frockt (Rick Beyer has copy)

2022 article in The Palm Beach Post about his receiving the Ghost Army Gold Medal

https://www.palmbeachpost.com/restricted/?return=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.palmbeachpost.com%2Fstory%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fwestpb%2F2022%2F06%2F07%2Fwest-palm-veteran-recalls-ghost-army-service-world-war-ii%2F6830903001%2F

Please Support Our Ongoing Efforts

The soldiers of The Ghost Army used inflatable tanks, sound effects, and imagination to fool the Germans on the battlefields of Europe. The Ghost Army Legacy Project is ensuring that these men and their accomplishments are never forgotten.

Give via credit card by clicking the yellow “Donate” button.

Or, send a check to:

Ghost Army Legacy Project
1305 S. Michigan Ave. #1104
Chicago, IL 60605

All donations are tax-deductible!