Dangerous Games

by Wise, James E., Jr.

• ISBN13: 9781591149682
• ISBN10: 1591149681
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-04-15
• Publisher: Naval Inst Pr

Summary

"A brilliantly crafted series of vignettes that collectively broadens our understanding of the sacrifices made by common individuals who served their respective nations. With the 60th and 50th anniversaries of the Korean War and Cuban Missile Crisis, respectively, upon us, this timely book by James Wise and Scott Baron puts an intriguing spin on the standard historical narratives." David F. Winkler, author of Cold War at Sea

"The authors give readers great context, personal experiences, and `the rest of the story' for several incidents and personalities of the era. A must read for anyone interested in the Cold War." Jack Alden Green, Military History Consultant and former Public Affairs Officer, Naval History & Heritage Command

"Dangerous Games is an utterly fascinating book. James Wise and Scott Baron discuss major events of the Cold War through eighteen individuals, most of whom are minor players but who put a human face on major events such as the Berlin Blockade and Cuban Missile Crisis." Spencer C. Tucker, editor of The Encyclopedia of the Cold War

"The 45-year Cold War, as Dangerous Games makes abundantly clear, was anything but cold. Americans in uniform traded fire with North Korean troops on the DMZ, flew secret and sometimes deadly reconnaissance missions over the USSR, suffered in Communist captivity, and endured high winds and heavy seas around the globe to protect the United States and its allies. These and many more stories of Cold War conflict make this book a must read." Edward J. Marolda, author of the U.S. Navy in the Korean War

The Cold War was actually a time of hot wars, spying, murders, defections, shoot downs of reconnaissance aircraft, and a very competitive space race. Authors James Wise and Scott Baron call attention to the political and military volatility of this period by uncovering and relating unknown or long-forgotten incidents of the period. Among them: the murder of a U.S. naval attache on the Orient Express; an East German soldier's leap to the West in Berlin; two CIA officers' imprisonment by China for twenty years; Capt. Bert Mizusawa's rescue, under fire, of a Soviet defector in the Korean DMZ; a North Korean pilot's defection in a MiG fighter; the USS Forrestal fire; and the Soviet Union putting the first man in space. Through these incidents the authors present a history that brings the intensity of the so-called Cold War to life.

Author Biography

James E. Wise Jr., a former naval aviator, intelligence officer; and Vietnam veteran, is the author of many books, including Stars in Blue and U-505. He lives in Alexandria, VA.
Scott Baron, a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, is the coauthor, with Wise, of The Silver Star, The Navy Cross, and Women at War.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. xi
Introduction	p. xiii
First Blood: The USMC in China, 1945-49	p. 1
Elizabeth Bentley: Red Spy Queen, 1945	p. 13
Lt. Gail Halvorsen and the Berlin Airlift, 1948-49	p. 26
The First Cold War Shootdown, 1950	p. 41
Actor James Garner in the Korean War, 1950	p. 46
Capt. Eugene S. Karpe, USN: Death on the Orient Express, 1950	p. 50
CIA Officers John T. Downey and Richard G. Fecteau: Prisoners in China for Two Decades, 1952-73	p. 54
No Kum-Sok: Operation Moolah, 1953	p. 66
Mysterious Disappearance of Cdr. Lionel Crabb, RNVR, 1956	p. 78
Hans Conrad Schumann: Leap to Freedom into West Berlin, 1961	p. 85
Yuri Gagarin: First Man in Space, 1961	p. 89
Maj. Rudolph Anderson Jr.: Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962	p. 105
The Palomares Incident, 1966	p. 119
Carl Brashear: An Extraordinary Sailor, 1966	p. 123
Commander Bucher and the Second Korean Conflict, 1966-69	p. 127
The USS Forrestal Fire, 1967	p. 144
The Panmunjon Ax Murders and Operation Paul Bunyan, 1976	p. 156
Capt. Bert K. Mizusawa, USA: The Firefight at Panmunjon, 1984	p. 163
SSgt. Gregory Fronius and the El Salvador Insurgency, 1987	p. 175
Aircraft Downed During the Cold War	p. 181
U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier Incidents and Casualties During the Cold War	p. 204
Notes	p. 209
References	p. 223
Index	p. 231
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