It sounds like something out of Hollywood. Indeed, it was made into a Brazilian movie in 1997 with Alan Arkin…
The Assassination of Ambassador Spike Dubs — Kabul, 1979
Adolph “Spike” Dubs was a career diplomat who served in Germany, Liberia, and the Soviet Union. He became a noted Soviet expert, and in…
The Jonestown Massacre
Jonestown, Guyana was the scene of one of the most harrowing tragedies in American history. On November 18, 1978, at…
The Iran Hostage Crisis– Part II
In these excerpts, Bruce Laingen, then Charge d’Affaires of U.S. Embassy Tehran and one of the “super Satans” kept hostage at the…
The Iran Hostage Crisis — Part I
November 4, 1979 – Radical Iranian students take over the U.S. embassy in Tehran and hold 52 Americans hostage. The…
Tie a Yellow Ribbon — The Iran Hostage Crisis as Seen from the Home Front
Penelope (Penne) Laingen is the wife of Bruce Laingen, who had served in Germany, Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan before being…
“I’m still a dip kid”
Kathleen Turner was one of the iconic actresses of the 1980’s, starring in such movies as Romancing the Stone, Jewel…
Operation Dragon Rouge
William E. Schaufele, Jr. was the Congo Desk Officer at State from 1964 to 1965, when 330 people, including the…
A Moveable Feast with Julia Child
Julia Child, who would have celebrated her 100th birthday on August 15, 2012, was a pioneer in bringing French cuisine…
Fascinating Figures
Diplomacy and foreign policy attract some of the smartest, most dedicated, and most interesting figures in every generation. In this…