A Brush with Espionage: The CIA Intelligence Art Collection
“First Sting,” Stuart Brown, 2008, Oil on Canvas. Donated courtesy of Richard J. Guggenhime and Donald Elster. Painting depicts the turning point in the Soviet-Afghan War with the first of…
From Cup to Quill: The Influence of Coffee Houses on English Literature
Garraway’s Coffee House in Exchange Alley, London, 1873.George Walter Thornbury (1828–1876). The 17th and 18th centuries in England were marked by significant cultural and intellectual developments. One of the most…
Elizebeth Smith Friedman: America’s First Female Cryptanalyst
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth Smith Friedman. Photo: National Cryptologic Museum Collection. Elizebeth Smith Friedman was a pioneering cryptanalyst whose work during World War II was instrumental in breaking enemy…
P.O. Box 1142: A Secret World War II Intelligence Facility
Memorial to P. O. Box 1142 at Fort Hunt Park. Photo by Ser Amantio di Nicolao / CC BY 3.0. Cropped. P.O. Box 1142 was a clandestine military intelligence facility…
Black Hills HoneyBadger™: Game-Changing Ammunition
Black Hills Ammunition, headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota, has a rich history and a commitment to excellence. Founded over 40 years ago by Jeff Hoffman and his wife Kristi,…
The Unmasking of a KGB Assassin: The Defection of Bogdan Stashinsky
The Lubyanka building (former KGB headquarters) in Moscow, where Stashinsky received his orders from. Photo by Alexander Savin / CC BY-SA 3.0. In the fall of 1961, Bogdan (or Bohdan)…
The Women’s Airforce Service Pilots: Aviation Trailblazers
WASP members Frances Green, Margaret (Peg) Kirchner, Ann Waldner and Blanche Osborn leaving their plane, “Pistol Packin’ Mama”. The Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) were a trailblazing group of women…
Wandering Warriors: The Legacy of Knight-Errants
Gawain unwittingly fights Yvain in the Garrett MS. No. 125 manuscript of Chrétien’s “Knight of the Lion” (c. 1295). The concept of the knight-errant is one of the most romanticized…
The Power of Literature: How the CIA Leveraged “Doctor Zhivago” Against the Soviets
The book “Doctor Zhivago” distributed throughout the Soviet Union by the CIA. Photo: Central Intelligence Agency. The story of the CIA’s involvement with Boris Pasternak’s novel, Doctor Zhivago, is a…
The Tuskegee Airmen: Pioneers of the Sky
Tuskegee Airmen – Circa May 1942 to Aug 1943 Location unknown, likely Southern Italy or North Africa. The Tuskegee Airmen were a pioneering group of African American military pilots who…