“Secrets Revealed” – Curators Alexis and Andrew on SPY’s Pop-Up Exhibit
Summary
Dr. Alexis Albion (LinkedIn, Twitter) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss amazing artifacts with amazing stories from SPY’s newest pop-up exhibit: “Secrets Revealed: Highlights from the Grant Verstandig Collection.”
What You’ll Learn
Intelligence
- Casablanca’s spy connection
- Lasting effects of the Rosenberg trial
- Women in Intelligence
- WWII covert operations
Reflections
- What makes a story timeless?
- The human dimension of history
And much, much more …
Episode Notes
This year, the International Spy Museum opened a new pop-up exhibit, featuring artifacts from the private collection of Grant Verstandig, Co-founder, Chairman and CEO of Red Cell. Andrew and Alexis curated the exhibit and sat down to talk all about it...
Dr. Alexis Albion currently serves on the SPY team as the Curator of Special Projects. In previous chapters, she was a staff member on the 9/11 Commission Report, consultant with the World Bank, and strategist with the U.S. Department of State.
And…
Andrew and Alexis only scratched the surface of this exhibit. “Secrets Revealed: Highlights from the Grant Verstandig Collection.”
Quote of the Week
“To us, that might be the Rosenbergs – These sort of incredible historic figures from the Cold War Intelligence. But to Mike Meeropol, it's his mom and dad. So, I think it's a really human story as well. This letter makes recommendations about their sentencing, about life and death, and again, for me it evokes that really human dimension about whether or not this mother might have lived.”
Resources
SURFACE SKIM
*SpyCasts*
- Hitler’s Trojan Horse – Nazi Intelligence with Nigel West (2023)
- Honey Trapped: Sex, Betrayal & Love – with Henry Schlesinger (2022)
- Amazon to Darien, Atlantic to Pacific – Intelligence in Colombia with former Head of its Navy Admiral Hernando Wills (2022)
- My Life Looking at Spies &the Media with Paul Lashmar (2021)
*Beginner Resources*
- Soviet Spy Scandal: Who Were the Rosenbergs?, L. Davidson, HistoryHit (2022) [Article]
- Casablanca in 2 Minutes, YouTube (2019) [Video]
- Who was the real Mata Hari?, N. Barber, BBC Culture (2017) [Article]
- How D-Day Was Fought From The Sea, Imperial War Museum (n.d.) [Article]
*Artifacts Discussed*
- Mata Hari Pencil Sketch (ca. 1905)
- German Bombing Map, WWII (1941)
- Victor Lazlos Prop Passport (ca. 1942)
- The Neptune Monograph (ca. 1944)
- J. Edgar Hoover Letter, FBI (1951)
DEEPER DIVE
Books
- Ethel Rosenberg, An American Tragedy, A. Sebba (St. Martin’s Press, 2021)
- Operation Neptune, B.B. Schofield (Pen & Sword Maritime, 2008)
- Femme Fatale: Love, Lies, and Mata Hari, P. Shipman (Harper, 2008)
Articles
- The immortal ‘Casablanca’: Why the Old Hollywood’s Everlasting Masterpiece Is Still Beloved, S. Mikulee, Cinephilia and Beyond (2017)
- FARC: A Portrait of Insurgent Intelligence, J. Gentry & D. Spencer, INS (2010)
- Casablanca and United States Foreign Policy, R. Raskin, Journal of Film History (1990)
- Reconsidering the Rosenbergs: Symbol and Substance in Second Generation American Jewish Consciousness, D. Moore, Journal of American Ethnic History (1988)
Video
- 60 Minutes: The Brothers Rosenberg, CBS News (2016)
Primary Sources
- Letter from Sophie Rosenberg to Mamie Eisenhower, Eisenhower Presidential Library (1953)
- Letter from Clyde Miller to Dwight Eisenhower Urging Clemency for the Rosenbergs, Eisenhower Presidential Library (1953)
- Response from Dwight Eisenhower to Clyde Miller, Eisenhower Presidential Library (1953)
- The Clydebank Blitz, National Records of Scotland (1941)
*Wildcard Resource(s)*
- The classic quote from Casablanca, “Here’s looking at you, kid” is ranked #4 on the American Film Institute’s Top 100 Movie Quotes. In fact, four quotes from the movie made it onto the list – Can you guess what the others are?
