Carmen, Agusan del Norte
Carmen was created into a municipality in 1949, when the "barrio"s of Carmen, Tagcatong, Cahayagan and San Agustin were separated from the municipality of Nasipit and constituted into the newly created town, by virtue of "Republic Act No. 380" which was approved on June 15, 1949. This law was sponsored by Congressman Marcos M. Calo. The town came into being on July 1, 1949.
G.I. Carmen
G. I. Carmen was an all-GI 1945 musical stage show produced by the 253rd Infantry Regiment, 63rd Division of the U.S. Army as morale booster for allied troops occupying post-WWII Europe. Initially intended as a three-show run for the Regiment it was extended to reach the entire Division and then picked up by the 7th Army and sent on an eight-month tour of the ETO seen by over 250,000 military personnel and countless civilians.
Shortly after V-E Day Lt. Robert T. Bogan, 253rd Special Services officer, directed his assistant, T/5 Frederick Wiener (aka Fredd Wayne), to organize an entertainment for the Regiment. Sgt. Joe Pollock, co-collaborator with Wayne on Special Services theatricals during the 253rd’s training stint in Mississippi, joined Wayne in planning a show based on Wayne’s idea of a burlesqued version of Bizet's opera "Carmen". Flyers were posted seeking volunteers for cast and crew in "Carmen – a Boilesk Voishin”. Of the 45 GIs in the cast about half would perform in drag but none wanted the title role, so Wayne in addition to co-producing and directing the show became the U.S. Army’s "Carmen".