In a few months a new us president will begin to chart a course through a complex set of national security issues. Cia veteran ed mickolus tells host scott simon more top secret jokes from his new book, the secret book of cia humor. A cia agents humorous secret guide to government phrases. The secret history of fort detrick, the cias base for mind control experiments today, its a cuttingedge lab. Poisoner in chief details the cias secret quest for mind control journalist stephen kinzer reveals how cia chemist sidney gottlieb worked in.
Espionage and secret operations have long been a source of fiction, and the real and perceived u. The national post sifted through the pile in a search for the funny parts, and found these highlights. Cia veteran ed mickolus tells host scott simon more topsecret jokes from his new book, the secret book of cia humor. The secret book of cia humor kindle edition by mickolus. Mickolus is the author or coauthor of a number of books on counterterrorism. The secret book of cia humor by ed mickolus goodreads. This is from a document entitled soviet jokes that was prepared for the cia s deputy director in the 1980s. Author of disputed cia book kills himself by accident. The cia has released a 355page document which officially acknowledges that area 51 in nevada does exist, and the agency comes clean about their. Author of disputed cia book is found dead us news life. The jokes were all told amongst soviets themselves, and were apparently gathered by cia. This compilation of espionage humor is based on the. However, with limited staff and resources, we simply cannot respond to all who write to us.
Kuklinski, one of the most important agents who ever volunteered to the cia, provided crucial data about sovietwarsaw pact military topics beginning in the early 1970s. Poisoner in chief details the cias secret quest for. Ryszard kuklinski, a member of the polish general staff who worked secretly for the us government for over nine years. He flew secret cia missions with hmong fighters in laos. H is answers are often sprinkled with humor and compassion that you.
So the us air force, with the cooperation of the cia, built a top secret radar base on a 1,700meter 5,600 ft mountain in laos, a country bordering vietnam located 25 kilometers 15 mi from the laosvietnam border, the base was manned by cia personnel and used to direct us heavy bombers in the ongoing attempt to. Zhivago novelist lara prescott became curious about the women who worked at. My father fought the cias secret war in laos bbc news. The secrets we kept imagines what cia secretaries knew. Central intelligence agency cia is a source of many books, films and video games. A secret life is author benjamin weisers riveting account of the life and career of polish army col. The secret book of cia humor kindle edition by ed mickolus.
My client had already written and published this book some years ago, but when i worked on volumes 2 and 3 of. We read every letter or email we receive, and we will convey your comments to cia officials outside opa as appropriate. This is a list of fictional secret agents and spies. Well, my last book was a biography of a cia officer, and by all accounts, my sources in the agency admired my admiring take on the late intelligence officer robert ames. A former investigative reporter for the washington post and time, he has also written for the new york times, newsweek, gq, slate, and. Casey in a public toilet to work on covert missions, including destroying a fuel depot in nicaragua and a chemical weapons plant in iraq. Seven of the eight books weisberg published after whitewash were about the kennedy assassination. Cia spymaster james jesus angleton was one of the most powerful unelected officials in the united states government in the mid20th century, a ghost of american power. Just because youre protecting the national government, doesnt mean you should take yourself too seriously.
The jokes were all told amongst soviets themselves, and were apparently gathered by cia operatives. Governmentspeak, that enemy of plain english, is a language that has annoyed americans since the days of king george iii. The secret history of fort detrick, the cias base for. Allen dulles, the cia, and the rise of americas secret government, not out of an interest in cold war spy craft but as an ancillary corner to the assassination of john f. The book presents fbicia rivalry through the prism of national traumasincluding the kennedy assassination, watergate, and 911and argues that the agencies failure to cooperate has. From the first page to the end, the manuscript is one long adolescent anecdote after another of pedestrian pranks and practical jokes that kids. The secret history of the cia, afghanistan, and bin laden, from the soviet invasion to september 10, 2001, abbreviated as ghost wars, is a book written by steve coll, published in 2004 by penguin press, won the 2005 pulitzer prize for general nonfiction. From world war ii to the cold war, angleton operated beyond the view of the public, congress, and even the president. What separates this compelling biography from many others about public figures of the 20th century is that angleton left no letters, no diaries, no memoirsa few selfserving videos survive after his disgraced exile from the cia but invariably he never says anything revealing and falls back on biblical references, eg. Intelligence officers bookshelf central intelligence agency.
James bond in ian flemings books, which also include cia agent felix leiter. Book of cia humor declassifies topsecret jokes wbur news. The secret wars of the cia john stockwell a lecture by john stockwell given in october, 1987 on the inner workings of the national security council and the cias convert actions in. The untold story of intelligence briefings to americas presidents from kennedy to obama. In the 1950s and 1960s, it was the center of the u. It turns out that among those peeved are our nations spies. In the book, dux asserts he was recruited by central intelligence agency cia director william j. Some fiction may be historically based, or will refer to less actionoriented aspects, such as intelligence analysis or counterintelligence. He is a professor and chair of the journalism department at emerson college. In the early 1990s, the minerva secret was almost exposed after iran arrested a salesman for crypto ag named hans buehler, claiming he was a spy. Secrets the cia doesnt want you to know readers digest. As it turns out, one subject is not separate from the other. Jane blonde, in the jane blonde series by jill marshall. As we drove through our town, a suburban huddle of strip malls and telephone poles, he told me he.
Intelligence literature central intelligence agency. Kessler began his career as a journalist in 1964 on the worcester telegram, followed by three years as an investigative reporter and editorial writer with the boston herald. Secret symbolism, dark humor can be had for a price on ebay for the folks who run the international spy museum in downtown washington, the cias loss is their gain. Targets deep in north vietnam could not be bombed when it was dark or cloudy. The secrets we kept imagines what cia secretaries knew about dr. Dont miss one agents hilarious guide to secret government phrases. Ted gup is the author of the bestseller the book of honor and of nation of secrets and a secret gift. In the book, he claimed to have worked as a cold war secret operative in the middle east and eastern. See list of james bond allies for a complete list of 00agents and secret agents found throughout flemings books. The secret book of cia humor paperback common by author ed mickolus on. This is a lesson that ed mickolus and many other agents learned while serving their country. Top 10 disturbing true crime books you wont want to read twice april 16. The secret war between the fbi and cia, a nonfiction book by american historian and policy analyst mark riebling, explores the conflict between u.
The office of public affairs opa is the single point of contact for all inquiries about the central intelligence agency cia. An american warriors uncensored story is a memoir by martial artist frank dux, published in 1996 by reganbooks. With the title of this book, the secret book of cia humor, expectation is that this is a work of great insight into the highlevel intellect of such an elite agency. Cia secret agents do have a sense of humor, though. Ronald kessler is the new york times bestselling author of 21 nonfiction books about the trump white house, secret service, fbi, and cia. That kind of gave a clue that something funny was going on, he said. The secret book of cia humor is a great read that can be picked up and enjoyed for a quick segment or a more lengthy interval.