The quiet Americans : four CIA spies at the dawn of the Cold War--a tragedy in three acts / Scott Anderson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Anderson, Scott, 1959- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States. Central Intelligence Agency--Officials and employees--Biography.

United States.

Burke, Michael, 1918-1987.

Burke, Michael.

Wisner, Frank, 1909-1965.

Wisner, Frank.

Sichel, Peter M. F.

Lansdale, Edward Geary, 1908-1987.

Lansdale, Edward Geary.

United States. Central Intelligence Agency.

Cold War.

Espionage, American--History--20th century.

Espionage, American.

History.

Intelligence officers--United States--Biography.

Intelligence officers.

Spies--United States--Biography.

Spies.

Employees.

Genre:

Biographies.

History.

Physical Description:

x, 562 pages, 24 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Four CIA spies at the dawn of the Cold War--a tragedy in three acts

Place of Publication:

New York : Doubleday, [2020]

Summary:

"At the end of World War II, the United States dominated the world militarily, economically, and in moral standing--seen as the victor over tyranny and a champion of freedom. But it was clear--to some--that the Soviet Union was already executing a plan to expand and foment revolution around the world. The American government's strategy in response relied on the secret efforts of a newly-formed CIA. THE QUIET AMERICANS chronicles the exploits of four spies--Michael Burke, a charming former football star fallen on hard times, Frank Wisner, the scion of a wealthy Southern family, Peter Sichel, a sophisticated German Jew who escaped the Nazis, and Edward Lansdale, a brilliant ad executive. The four ran covert operations across the globe, trying to outwit the ruthless KGB in Berlin, parachuting commandos into Eastern Europe, plotting coups, and directing wars against Communist insurgents in Asia. But time and again their efforts went awry, thwarted by a combination of stupidity and ideological rigidity at the highest levels of the government--and more profoundly, the decision to abandon American ideals. By the mid-1950s, the Soviet Union had a stranglehold on Eastern Europe, the U.S. had begun its disastrous intervention in Vietnam, and America, the beacon of democracy, was overthrowing democratically-elected governments and earning the hatred of much of the world. All of this culminated in an act of betrayal and cowardice that would lock the Cold War into place for decades to come. Anderson brings to the telling of this story all the narrative brio, deep research, skeptical eye, and lively prose that made LAWRENCE IN ARABIA a major international bestseller. The intertwined lives of these men began in a common purpose of defending freedom, but the ravages of the Cold War led them to different fates. Two would quit the CIA in despair, stricken by the moral compromises they had to make; one became the archetype of the duplicitous and destructive American spy; and one would be so heartbroken he would take his own life. THE QUIET AMERICANS is the story of these four men. It is also the story of how the United States, at the very pinnacle of its power, managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory"-- Provided by publisher.

Anderson chronicles the exploits of four spies: Michael Burke, Frank Wisner, Peter Sichel, and Edward Lansdale. The four ran covert operations across the globe, trying to outwit the ruthless KGB in Berlin, parachuting commandos into Eastern Europe, plotting coups, and directing wars against Communist insurgents in Asia. But time and again their efforts went awry, thwarted by a combination of stupidity and ideological rigidity at the highest levels of the government-- and more profoundly, the decision to abandon American ideals. It culminated in an act of betrayal and cowardice that would lock the Cold War into place for decades to come.-- adapted from jacket

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: Act 1 THIS SAD AND BREATHLESS MOMENT

1. Operation Dogwood

2. A Demon Inside Me

3. A Man Called Typhoid

4. The Wunderkind

5. The Man Who Could Disappear

6. The Sentinel

7. A Lush Lawlessness

8. The Quiet American

9. A World Blowing Up

10. An End to Normal Things

Act 2 HEARTS AND MINDS AND DIRTY TRICKS

11. The Mighty Wurlitzer and the Royal Dwarf

12. Operation Rusty

13. Ripe for Revolt

14. Finding "Our Guy"

15. Witch Hunt

16. Operation Fiend

17. War as a Practical Joke

18. Tossing the Dice

Act 3 CROWDING THE ENEMY

19. An Alarming Enthusiasm

20. Red Scare Revived

21. White Knight

22. Operation Success

23. Those Bastards Out There

24. Collapse.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [477]-535) and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Anderson, Scott. Quiet Americans.

ISBN:

9780385540452

0385540450

9781101911730

1101911735

OCLC:

1132237540