Spies, Pop Flies, and French Fries: Stories I Told My Favorite Visitors to the CIA Exhibit Center

Written by the founding curator of the CIA Exhibit Center, this book is based upon some of the extemporaneous monologues Linda McCarthy gave while conducting tours for VIP visitors to the Center, a museum of espionage-related artifacts located inside CIA headquarters. Because the Center is housed in the secured Agency building near Washington, DC, it is not open to the general public. In her book, however, McCarthy takes the reader inside the fascinating, one-of-a-kind attraction, which has been featured on programs such as the "Today" show. Topics covered in McCarthy's account, concern, among other subjects, the evolution of satellites and signals intelligence, the Buffalo Soldiers, the Navajo code talkers, and the famous "Limping Lady of the OSS," Virginia Hall, who was awarded this nation's second highest military decoration for heroism for her work as an Office of Strategic Services field agent during World War II. Of special note is the chapter (the "Pop Flies" part of the title) highlighting the life and career of baseball's mystery man, Morris "Moe" Berg, who became one of America's foremost atomic spies during the Second World War. One of the many graphics presented in this book are two pages reproduced from Berg's OSS application, where he lists his "past employers"--the Boston Red Sox and the Washington Senators--and his "positions"--catcher. Also included in "Spies, Pop Flies, and French Fries" is a special feature called "Operation Explore More," which encourages readers to undertake their own "intelligence-gathering operations," using resources the author has compiled at the end of each chapter. Closing out the book is a chapter titled "Name That HUMINT," an entertaining and educational trivia exercise that features a number of intriguing espionage-related questions--and their correct answers.