The Live Drop
Mark Valley
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From bestselling author and the producer of the hit cable series Masters of Sex, Thomas Maier, comes a true story of espionage and mobsters, based on the never-before-released JFK Files.
In this episode Mark talks with author and journalist Thomas Maier about his book Mafia Spies--A fact based look at a sensational event in intelligence history when the CIA approached the mafia to assist in the assassination attempts on Cuba's dictator Fidel Castro. In the early 1960s, two top gangsters, Johnny Roselli and Sam Giancana, were hired by the CIA to kill Cuba's Communist leader, Fidel Castro, only to wind up murdered themselves amidst Congressional hearings and a national debate about the JFK assassination.
Mafia Spies revolves around the outlaw friendship of these two mob buddies and their fascinating world of CIA spies, fellow Mafioso in Chicago, Cuban exile commandos in Miami, beautiful Hollywood women, famous entertainers like Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack in Las Vegas, Castro's own spies in Havana and his double agents hidden in Florida, J. Edgar Hoover's FBI snooping, and the Kennedy administration's "Get Castro" obsession in Washington.
Thomas Maier is among the first to take full advantage of the National Archives' 2017-18 release of the long-withheld JFK files, many of which deal with the CIA's top secret anti-Castro operation in Florida and Cuba.
Also we talk about Maier's first foray into fiction, with his new crime novel, Montauk to Manhattan, Thomas Maier
Find more of Thomas Maier's work here ==> http://www.thomasmaierbooks.com/
Mafia Spies Official Trailer ==> AIRS JULY 16TH, 2024 ON PARAMOUNT PLUS
Summary paraphrased from promotional materials.
Live Drop 68 Thomas Maier
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Phil Gurski, an author and renowned Canadian intelligence professional. Phil worked as an analyst at the Communications Security Establishment (CSE), Canada's equivalent of the NSA, and as a senior strategic analyst at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). He contributes to the Ottawa Citizen and has published six books on counter-terrorism, including his recent work, The Peaceable Kingdom: A History of Terrorism in Canada from Confederation to the Present.
I interviewed Phil in an actual face to face Live Drop in the town of Russell, Ontario, where he talked about his forthcoming book on the Fenian Raids of the mid-19th century. The first terrorism threat Canada faced came from across the border from disgruntled Irish Nationalists after the American Civil War. In this wide-ranging discussion, we delve into a primer on the ramshackle but spirited Fenian Raids and explore the history of Canada, immigration along the border, Five Eyes intelligence sharing, modern terrorism threats, and the challenges facing the Canadian intelligence community at large. Turns out Canada doesn't have a CIA equivalent, nor a foreign intelligence collection mandate... only for direct threats to their national security.
Phil Gurski is the CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting. You can find him on X at @borealissaves, and on his blog and website borealisthreatandrisk.com
Live Drop Episode 67
Get bonus content on PatreonHosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
