Launches and conference appearances here in portlands. It also by being one of our in new orleans. But also by being one of our speakers. He is here to talk about his latest look avenue of spies, which is the basis of the tour alex just got back from last lead where we took people from normandy, following the bedford boys, then to paris with a remarkable story we are about to hear unfolded during the not the occupation. I occupation. Please join me in welcoming alex. Ershaw area alex can you hear me ok . Good. In you hear me over here if pace around nervously . As i walk the avenue of spies . Grade. Fantastic audience. Im going to be very politically incorrect now and Say Something that i probably shouldnt say. Im actually going to think someone from the museum who is the reason why i am standing here right now. Please, jeremy collins, can you stand up, raise your hand up . Wheres jeremy . [applause] the reason why im going to embarrass him briefly, and please forgive me for this, is b
And he was. With albert spier and others in paris six weeks almost to the day in june of 1940. This gentleman here is one of americas first spies. Before the Second World War there was no foreign intelligence service, the americans you guys didnt have a foreign intelligence service. That was the job of people who worked for the state department donald costar was a princeton graduate in 1929, a volunteer ambulanceman working in normandy during the blitzkrieg and he wrote a detailed story about the blitzkrieg for Readers Digest and he wrote about a terrifying. He was working for the americans and recording the impact and the ferocity of the blitzkrieg and he found his way to paris in early july of 1940, was dropped off at the Hotel Bristol by none other than george canon who became a Great American statesman and then found his way to the American Hospital of paris where he went to the office of dr. Summer in jackson and said to dr. Sumner jackson i need to hide for a while. And the theor
I thought, wouldnt it be a great idea if i could persuade a new york publisher to pay me a certain amount of money to go back and get drunk 23 times every year . And it worked. Unfortunately, i had to ask a write a book at the end of it. I want to read you a quick quote. I dont want this to be too much of a slideshow. I was fortunate in finding some remarkable images given to me by the last living hero of my book, Phillip Jackson, who is 89 years old today. You will see some images of him later. A quicko just read you section, a short section. I hate reading from books because people always fall asleep. This is really the theme of the book. It is by a very distinguished and brave french man. There were many. We lived in shadows as soldiers of the night, but our lives were not dark. There were arrests, torture, and death for so many of our friends and comrades, and tragedy awaited all of us just around the corner. We did not live in or with tragedy. We were exhilarated by the challenge