[SeanLuke]

In the late 1990s a friend of mine gave me a birthday gift: two tickets to Spy Drive. Now THAT was something that could only happen in DC.

Oleg Kalugin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleg_Kalugin) was a former head of the KGB at the Russian Embassy in DC in the 1980s. When Oleg returned to Russia, his criticism of the KGB led him to be stripped of his rank and eventually exiled to the USA to avoid serious recriminations in Russia. He was eventually tried in abstentia. It was in DC where he teamed up for a while with David Major, a retired spymaster for the FBI and former adversary, and together they did what could only be done in Washington DC: they ran a paid bus tour.

You heard that right. For $80, we'd get on the bus, and then these two former spymasters on opposite sides of the cold war would get up in the front of the bus with microphones and take us to various dead drops, mark locations, famous spy meeting locations, and so on, and tell stories the whole way, and joke about how one was gonna arrest the other. It was insane. It was glorious.

Both of them later were recruited to be on the advisory board of the Spy Museum, and it is my understanding that Oleg was very effective at acquiring a lot of stuff for the museum from the former KGB.

Edit: in case people don't believe me...

https://www.upi.com/News_Photos/view/upi/9cc8f17c411182bd874...

[ghotli]

I've been to that museum and was most struck by the small section about Einstein informing the president at the time that the math meant nukes were possible and likely would exist in the short term. There's a lot of cool stuff in that museum, but that's the one that stuck with me. It's written with a typewriter and signed by Einstein, iirc.

[boomboomsubban]

It's rather famous. Written by Leo Szilard but signed by Einstein who later seemed to regret it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einstein%E2%80%93Szilard_lette...

I don't understand why it would be in the Spy Museum.

[Uhhrrr]

Cold War relevance, maybe?

[Yoric]

As far as I remember, this letter started the race to nuclear weapons between the US and Nazi Germany. Lots of spycraft involved in that race.

[etrautmann]

This is why I keep coming back to HN. I would never have come across this otherwise.

[ourmandave]

Is this what happens to 007s if they actually live to retire age?

[6stringmerc]

Pretty much - look at Frank Abignale the "Catch Me If You Can" con master. Even Mitnick fits the role. Once you've mastered a craft and somehow get out from under "the system" which punishes or has caused stress, well, education is fun. Story telling is how we grow. Oral histories and all that.

Normally these type of folks are not allowed to write about their experiences much due to there being potential collateral damage in print, but talking? Much smaller radius. Plus you get to size up your audience!

[dylan604]

>but talking? Much smaller radius.

I don't think this adage is true now, or won't be for much longer. Fewer and fewer things are read, but everyone is watching videos now. That's the current trend at least. However, written text does have the potential for long out lasting whatever digital video/audio anything, so to that point I concede the original sentiment

[FormerBandmate]

Frank Abagnale exaggerated his exploits as a con man as a… con. You almost have to admire how ballsy that is.

[ethbr0]

If you're listening to Frank Abagnale tell a story... well, just don't be the guy who raises his hand and asks "Did that really happen?"

[Arrath]

True dedication to the craft

[tetris11]

in the case of Frank, it might have all been storytelling

[cnntth]

To tag on to the others, the former 'chief of disguises' for the cia does interviews[1] all the time, I think also on the board for the Spy Museum (and featured quite a bit in it about both disguises and being a woman). Depending on their personality, why not play up the 'former cia/fbi/nsa' thing to educate/entertain/lend legitimacy to their business?

[1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUqeBMP8nEg