1 00:00:15,920 --> 00:00:20,439 Speaker 1: Lute force. If it doesn't work, you're just not using enough. 2 00:00:21,120 --> 00:00:26,320 Speaker 1: You're listening to Software Radio, Special Operations, Military Nails and 3 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:29,360 Speaker 1: straight talk with the guys in the community. 4 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:39,240 Speaker 2: Hi, welcome back to a wonderful episode of soft Rep Radio. 5 00:00:39,400 --> 00:00:42,040 Speaker 2: I am your host, rad and before I introduce my 6 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 2: next guest, I just want to mention our merch shop, 7 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:48,279 Speaker 2: soft rep dot Com Forward slash Merch. Go check out 8 00:00:48,280 --> 00:00:51,360 Speaker 2: the merch keep us in business. That's what's making that 9 00:00:51,440 --> 00:00:55,040 Speaker 2: fireplace stay lit and going and flickering. And we really 10 00:00:55,040 --> 00:00:57,120 Speaker 2: appreciate all of you out there tagging us on the 11 00:00:57,160 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 2: internet with soft Rep and soft reap mafia hashtag on 12 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:03,520 Speaker 2: your merch It's super cool. Also, we have a book 13 00:01:03,920 --> 00:01:07,120 Speaker 2: a book club. Excuse me, it's soft Rep dot Com 14 00:01:07,600 --> 00:01:10,679 Speaker 2: Forward slash book hyphened club. So if you take a 15 00:01:10,720 --> 00:01:14,080 Speaker 2: look at our book club, enroll in it. These books 16 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:16,959 Speaker 2: are picked and curated by the guys behind the scenes 17 00:01:17,400 --> 00:01:21,000 Speaker 2: like Brandon Webb and Guy and all of everybody out there, 18 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:24,600 Speaker 2: even myself and my next guest. Hopefully his book and 19 00:01:24,640 --> 00:01:27,800 Speaker 2: books will become part of our book clubs. And let 20 00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 2: me introduce Jesse Fink, who is an author and he 21 00:01:31,920 --> 00:01:34,840 Speaker 2: has written quite a few books actually, so let me 22 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:36,480 Speaker 2: just read a little bit of his bio here. Jesse 23 00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:39,920 Speaker 2: Fink a British Australian author of six books, including twin 24 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:43,640 Speaker 2: biographies of the hard rock band ac DC, The Youngs, 25 00:01:44,160 --> 00:01:47,320 Speaker 2: The Brothers who Built ac DC and Bond The Last Highway, 26 00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:51,200 Speaker 2: the cocaine trafficking Story Pure Narco. And the book that 27 00:01:51,240 --> 00:01:53,400 Speaker 2: we're going to talk about more than the other ones 28 00:01:53,440 --> 00:01:55,960 Speaker 2: is The Eagle in the Mirror, a biography of British 29 00:01:56,000 --> 00:01:59,840 Speaker 2: intelligence officer Dick Ellis. His books have been translated into 30 00:01:59,840 --> 00:02:02,360 Speaker 2: some languages. And I just want to welcome to the show. 31 00:02:02,400 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 2: Welcome to the show, Jesse. 32 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:05,520 Speaker 3: Great to see you again, my friend. 33 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:10,200 Speaker 2: Yes, this is round two with Jesse and I. We 34 00:02:10,280 --> 00:02:14,239 Speaker 2: linked up a little while ago, and now it's better 35 00:02:14,280 --> 00:02:16,919 Speaker 2: that you're in London and we've got you connected. Now 36 00:02:16,960 --> 00:02:19,200 Speaker 2: that's interesting. White Friy's better. 37 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:21,880 Speaker 3: There, better reception than Washington. Here. 38 00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:24,720 Speaker 2: Hey, let me ask you something. I get hit this 39 00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:27,560 Speaker 2: all the time by people that reach out to me 40 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:31,120 Speaker 2: and they're like rad you know, I'm a struggling writer. 41 00:02:31,480 --> 00:02:33,680 Speaker 2: I got out of the military and I want to 42 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:35,480 Speaker 2: write or I just want to write, and they reach 43 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 2: out to me because I talked to folks like yourself. 44 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:40,280 Speaker 2: You know, what was it that helped you get into 45 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:42,800 Speaker 2: writing in the beginning that maybe you can you know, 46 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:45,240 Speaker 2: inspire somebody out there before we get into your book 47 00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 2: The Eagle in the Mirror. 48 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:50,040 Speaker 3: I mean, I did a journalism degree at university, like 49 00:02:50,080 --> 00:02:52,360 Speaker 3: a lot of people, but it sort of didn't really 50 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:55,760 Speaker 3: prepare me for real life at all, straight into unemployment. 51 00:02:55,840 --> 00:02:58,000 Speaker 3: So you know, I think the idea of sort of 52 00:02:58,040 --> 00:03:01,600 Speaker 3: getting degrees to qualify you for writing and being a 53 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:05,920 Speaker 3: journalist is an outdated idea. I think really it comes 54 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:12,480 Speaker 3: down to self education, travel, reading as much as you can, 55 00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:16,680 Speaker 3: you know, reading people that you admire, and I think gradually, 56 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:21,480 Speaker 3: sort of just through a process of you know, patience 57 00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:26,320 Speaker 3: time in osmosis, you develop some sort of skills in 58 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:29,079 Speaker 3: your own writing. As long as you're reading good writers 59 00:03:29,120 --> 00:03:33,960 Speaker 3: and sort of you know, taking hints from you know, 60 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:37,920 Speaker 3: what they do, eventually it leaches into your own work. 61 00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:39,800 Speaker 3: So I mean, that's the best advice I can give 62 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:43,120 Speaker 3: anyone is just read a lot, you know, just read 63 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:47,000 Speaker 3: what you're interested in. And the great thing is, now 64 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:50,720 Speaker 3: you know the way the book industry is. You know, 65 00:03:50,760 --> 00:03:54,600 Speaker 3: there are a lot of pathways for writers who can't 66 00:03:54,600 --> 00:04:00,640 Speaker 3: get agents or can't get publishers to publish themselves. You know, 67 00:04:00,720 --> 00:04:03,560 Speaker 3: I'm doing it myself. I mean I published with you know, 68 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:10,040 Speaker 3: normal book publishers throughout my career. But you know, this October, 69 00:04:10,280 --> 00:04:13,440 Speaker 3: it's coming up to the fiftieth anniversary of A Bond 70 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:17,279 Speaker 3: Scott Jordan ac DC and I just had literally, you know, 71 00:04:17,320 --> 00:04:20,280 Speaker 3: two hundred pages of material that I didn't use in 72 00:04:20,400 --> 00:04:22,480 Speaker 3: the last book I did on Bond Scott. So I 73 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:24,400 Speaker 3: just thought, you know, I'm going to put it on Amazon. 74 00:04:24,440 --> 00:04:27,520 Speaker 3: I'll just make it six American bucks and just see 75 00:04:27,520 --> 00:04:29,599 Speaker 3: how it goes. And already I've had a lot of 76 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:31,760 Speaker 3: pre orders for it. So you know, there are a 77 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:33,720 Speaker 3: lot of different ways that you know, people can get 78 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:34,919 Speaker 3: into the business. 79 00:04:35,560 --> 00:04:38,839 Speaker 2: It's really cool and good advice too, And so the 80 00:04:38,880 --> 00:04:41,159 Speaker 2: Bond Scott and E. C. D C. Let's hit on 81 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:43,160 Speaker 2: that a little bit, right rock and roll, bro, you 82 00:04:43,279 --> 00:04:47,000 Speaker 2: got your smiling, I'm smiling. You know what was it 83 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:50,360 Speaker 2: like to like be around that environment for the years 84 00:04:50,360 --> 00:04:52,120 Speaker 2: you were there and then write the book? 85 00:04:52,600 --> 00:04:56,719 Speaker 3: Well, you know, the book came about really through through 86 00:04:56,760 --> 00:05:00,320 Speaker 3: a dark period of my personal life when and I 87 00:05:00,320 --> 00:05:04,599 Speaker 3: had a marriage breakdown. You know, this was back in 88 00:05:06,080 --> 00:05:09,080 Speaker 3: you know, two thousand and seven. So I had written 89 00:05:09,120 --> 00:05:12,640 Speaker 3: my first book, which was about Australia at the soccer 90 00:05:12,680 --> 00:05:16,960 Speaker 3: World Cup, and then you know, my marriage fell apart, 91 00:05:17,040 --> 00:05:19,679 Speaker 3: and really I went into sort of like this five 92 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:26,160 Speaker 3: year kind of downward spiral of you know, excessive drinking 93 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:31,960 Speaker 3: and excessive dating and and really didn't think I had 94 00:05:32,080 --> 00:05:34,159 Speaker 3: much of another book in me. And then I ended 95 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:38,200 Speaker 3: up writing a memoir about this time. And I remember 96 00:05:38,279 --> 00:05:42,880 Speaker 3: sort of during this period, there was one night where 97 00:05:42,920 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 3: I felt really suicidal about my sort of situation and 98 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:49,640 Speaker 3: was very tempted just to walk out in front of 99 00:05:49,640 --> 00:05:52,320 Speaker 3: the garbage truck. This is like at three o'clock in 100 00:05:52,320 --> 00:05:55,200 Speaker 3: the morning one night, and for whatever reason, I just 101 00:05:55,200 --> 00:06:01,040 Speaker 3: put on some ac DC on my laptop at three 102 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:05,000 Speaker 3: o'clock in the morning, and it was like this incredible job. 103 00:06:05,160 --> 00:06:08,800 Speaker 3: It was this fabulous antidepressant that sort of just pulled 104 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:13,840 Speaker 3: me out of this incredibly dark moment. And I thought, 105 00:06:14,040 --> 00:06:15,800 Speaker 3: you know, that's the power of rock and roll. That's 106 00:06:15,800 --> 00:06:18,440 Speaker 3: the whole point of ac DC. This is this is 107 00:06:18,480 --> 00:06:21,560 Speaker 3: why people connect to this music on a on a 108 00:06:21,600 --> 00:06:26,080 Speaker 3: really visceral physical level, and it explains the popularity of 109 00:06:26,080 --> 00:06:28,280 Speaker 3: a CDC, which is the biggest rock band in the world, 110 00:06:28,400 --> 00:06:33,840 Speaker 3: so huge, huge, you know, you know, just you know, 111 00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:36,919 Speaker 3: even the military connection. I remember, you know, talking to 112 00:06:36,960 --> 00:06:39,800 Speaker 3: a guy who you know, would play a C d 113 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:43,000 Speaker 3: C on in his helicopter in Somalia and you know, 114 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:46,240 Speaker 3: things like that. So you know, I talked to these 115 00:06:46,279 --> 00:06:48,120 Speaker 3: people and I said, you know, why do you connect 116 00:06:48,160 --> 00:06:50,440 Speaker 3: to this music? And this was really kind of like 117 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:53,599 Speaker 3: the starting point for me to kind of write this 118 00:06:53,760 --> 00:06:57,400 Speaker 3: appreciation of the music of a C d C, which 119 00:06:57,440 --> 00:07:01,360 Speaker 3: at that time, you know, critics didn't take very seriously. 120 00:07:01,400 --> 00:07:03,320 Speaker 3: It's always sort of been regarded as a bit of 121 00:07:03,320 --> 00:07:07,320 Speaker 3: a sort of a gimmick rock band, and you know, 122 00:07:07,640 --> 00:07:10,600 Speaker 3: the American critics don't take it very seriously. And I 123 00:07:10,720 --> 00:07:13,760 Speaker 3: ended up writing this book called The Youngs, which was 124 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:19,400 Speaker 3: just their story through eleven important songs, and it was 125 00:07:19,480 --> 00:07:22,680 Speaker 3: a very successful book, sort of went around the world, 126 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:27,000 Speaker 3: went to twenty countries. I suddenly had success that I 127 00:07:27,040 --> 00:07:30,640 Speaker 3: hadn't had in my previous two books, and suddenly found 128 00:07:30,680 --> 00:07:35,280 Speaker 3: myself an ACDC biographer. So that was how you know, 129 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:37,880 Speaker 3: that came about. And then because of the success of 130 00:07:37,920 --> 00:07:42,600 Speaker 3: that book, my publisher was interested in another music biography, 131 00:07:42,640 --> 00:07:45,280 Speaker 3: and I suggested Bond Scott, because you know, Bond Scott 132 00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:49,720 Speaker 3: is a folk hero to people the world over, and 133 00:07:49,760 --> 00:07:54,440 Speaker 3: he has a remarkable personal story and his life ended 134 00:07:55,080 --> 00:07:57,960 Speaker 3: in fairly tragic circumstances at the age of thirty three. 135 00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:01,280 Speaker 3: So I then wrote another book about a CDC. So 136 00:08:02,320 --> 00:08:06,560 Speaker 3: really it all just came out of, you know, very 137 00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:13,680 Speaker 3: unusual personal circumstance. But the great thing was that, you know, 138 00:08:13,720 --> 00:08:16,160 Speaker 3: you write books like this and then you have people 139 00:08:16,200 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 3: reach out to you on social media like Facebook or 140 00:08:20,440 --> 00:08:23,040 Speaker 3: Twitter or whatever, who will say, hey, I just read 141 00:08:23,080 --> 00:08:26,320 Speaker 3: your book, and I just went through exactly the same thing. 142 00:08:26,400 --> 00:08:28,320 Speaker 3: You know, I lost my job, or I lost my wife, 143 00:08:28,440 --> 00:08:33,080 Speaker 3: or I'm a widower or whatever. And all these people 144 00:08:33,160 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 3: have a personal story that is sort of anchored in 145 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:39,960 Speaker 3: the music of rock and roll, whether it's Led Zeppelin 146 00:08:40,080 --> 00:08:44,960 Speaker 3: or ac DC or the Who or whoever. But that's 147 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:49,280 Speaker 3: what rock and roll music does. It's this fabulous, bandy depressidant. 148 00:08:51,400 --> 00:08:56,679 Speaker 3: So that was really how I ended up writing music biographies. 149 00:08:57,800 --> 00:08:59,480 Speaker 2: I love it, and I love rock and roll, and 150 00:09:00,440 --> 00:09:02,200 Speaker 2: I think we all love rock and roll and music 151 00:09:02,600 --> 00:09:06,360 Speaker 2: consued the soul, right and it just does you know, 152 00:09:06,400 --> 00:09:08,400 Speaker 2: you just turn on something and look, you got triggered 153 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:10,000 Speaker 2: by a C d C at three in the morning. 154 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:13,600 Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, that's right. And then I ended up sort 155 00:09:13,640 --> 00:09:15,880 Speaker 3: of spending the next ten years of my life writing 156 00:09:15,920 --> 00:09:16,280 Speaker 3: about them. 157 00:09:16,320 --> 00:09:16,520 Speaker 2: You know. 158 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:21,160 Speaker 3: It wasn't what I thought would happen. And then, you know, 159 00:09:21,280 --> 00:09:24,120 Speaker 3: during the course of writing the biography of Bob Scott, 160 00:09:24,120 --> 00:09:28,640 Speaker 3: which took four years to write, I met some people 161 00:09:28,640 --> 00:09:33,199 Speaker 3: in Miami who, after the book came out, they contacted 162 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:36,640 Speaker 3: me and said, oh, by the way, would you talk 163 00:09:36,679 --> 00:09:40,440 Speaker 3: to this cocaine trafficker in Miami who wants to write 164 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:45,600 Speaker 3: a book? And you know, I ended up sort of 165 00:09:45,640 --> 00:09:49,080 Speaker 3: talking to this guy on WhatsApp from Sydney, he was 166 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:51,640 Speaker 3: in Miami, and we sort of agreed to write a 167 00:09:51,640 --> 00:09:55,360 Speaker 3: book about his life, and then spent sort of two 168 00:09:55,360 --> 00:09:58,120 Speaker 3: and a half years working on that. And so that 169 00:09:58,200 --> 00:09:59,800 Speaker 3: just sort of came out of the Bond Scott book. 170 00:09:59,800 --> 00:10:02,360 Speaker 3: It was just a complete accident, and suddenly I'm writing 171 00:10:02,360 --> 00:10:07,760 Speaker 3: about Pablo Escobar, right and dea you know, talking to 172 00:10:07,880 --> 00:10:10,559 Speaker 3: guys from US Customs. 173 00:10:12,240 --> 00:10:14,080 Speaker 2: Yeah, no, I'm just like, I'm just listening to you. 174 00:10:14,440 --> 00:10:16,640 Speaker 2: It's just the story. You know, You're like, you're you're 175 00:10:16,679 --> 00:10:18,120 Speaker 2: at one point in your life and then that takes 176 00:10:18,160 --> 00:10:20,800 Speaker 2: you to another place. After music involves the music in 177 00:10:21,120 --> 00:10:23,120 Speaker 2: this other story of Pablo Escobar just kind of comes 178 00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:25,800 Speaker 2: out of that, and now here you are writing about 179 00:10:25,920 --> 00:10:29,920 Speaker 2: the cocaine trafficking of Pablo Escobar. 180 00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:33,360 Speaker 3: Yeah, that's right. So and then I spent two and 181 00:10:33,400 --> 00:10:35,199 Speaker 3: a half years working on this book and then the 182 00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:37,440 Speaker 3: you know, I can't I don't know if I could swear, 183 00:10:37,520 --> 00:10:41,480 Speaker 3: but you know, yeah, that's fine. Fucking pandemic hits right, 184 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:46,959 Speaker 3: that's right, and Australia gets absolutely smashed more than other countries. 185 00:10:47,440 --> 00:10:49,400 Speaker 3: You guys in America thought you had it bad. I mean, 186 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 3: the Australians had it really bad because the government wouldn't 187 00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:55,840 Speaker 3: let us leave the country at all at all, So 188 00:10:56,040 --> 00:11:02,520 Speaker 3: we were basically prisoners of the Australian government, stuck in Australia, 189 00:11:02,600 --> 00:11:05,640 Speaker 3: couldn't go anywhere. And I, you know, I thought, you know, 190 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:07,839 Speaker 3: that's a sort of a violation of my human right. 191 00:11:07,840 --> 00:11:09,640 Speaker 3: If I want to leave the bloody country, I should 192 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:13,760 Speaker 3: be able to do. They wouldn't allow anyone to leave, so, 193 00:11:15,360 --> 00:11:19,720 Speaker 3: you know, Pure and Arco basically came out at the 194 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:21,760 Speaker 3: worst possible time. So I've just spent two and a 195 00:11:21,760 --> 00:11:25,560 Speaker 3: half years working on this book and we couldn't promote it. 196 00:11:25,640 --> 00:11:28,080 Speaker 3: You know, the guy that I wrote it with, Lewis Navia, 197 00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:31,360 Speaker 3: he couldn't come to Australia from Miami. I couldn't go 198 00:11:31,400 --> 00:11:37,440 Speaker 3: to the United States. It really hurt the book. But 199 00:11:37,520 --> 00:11:42,760 Speaker 3: the funny thing was, you know that the the few 200 00:11:42,800 --> 00:11:46,400 Speaker 3: things that Australians could do was we could go shopping 201 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:51,320 Speaker 3: at a supermarket, we could fill up our cars with petrol, 202 00:11:53,160 --> 00:11:57,160 Speaker 3: or we could go to thrift shops. And so I 203 00:11:57,200 --> 00:12:00,640 Speaker 3: was spending a lot of time in thrift shops, which 204 00:12:00,679 --> 00:12:03,720 Speaker 3: were over sort of in the morning, and I would 205 00:12:03,760 --> 00:12:06,160 Speaker 3: meet my father there because it was the only place 206 00:12:06,200 --> 00:12:08,679 Speaker 3: we could meet, right, So we couldn't go and sit 207 00:12:08,760 --> 00:12:11,800 Speaker 3: in a cafe because there were no tables. He literally 208 00:12:12,320 --> 00:12:16,160 Speaker 3: couldn't sit at a table. And so we would meet 209 00:12:16,200 --> 00:12:18,400 Speaker 3: in this thrift shop and we would just sort of, 210 00:12:18,640 --> 00:12:21,840 Speaker 3: you know, find out what books were on the shelves. 211 00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:25,880 Speaker 3: And he mentioned to me that he had picked up 212 00:12:25,880 --> 00:12:30,760 Speaker 3: a book about this Canadian SPI called William Stevenson, and 213 00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:34,280 Speaker 3: in the book it had mentioned a guy called Dick 214 00:12:34,280 --> 00:12:37,000 Speaker 3: Ellis and said, and Fred, who's my father, said well, 215 00:12:37,520 --> 00:12:40,480 Speaker 3: check out this dick Ellis feller. I think he's very interesting. 216 00:12:40,559 --> 00:12:44,120 Speaker 3: There might be a book at it. So I'm stuck 217 00:12:44,160 --> 00:12:47,400 Speaker 3: in Sydney. I'm looking for another book to do, but 218 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:51,440 Speaker 3: I can't travel anywhere, I can't do anything. And suddenly 219 00:12:51,440 --> 00:12:54,839 Speaker 3: dick Ellis falls into my lap literally, you know, well 220 00:12:54,880 --> 00:12:56,480 Speaker 3: not literally, you know. 221 00:12:56,920 --> 00:12:58,920 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, Dad, Dad knows what's up. 222 00:13:00,520 --> 00:13:03,160 Speaker 3: But the great thing was because of the pandemic. You know, 223 00:13:03,240 --> 00:13:07,400 Speaker 3: the National Archives in the UK, which have a lot 224 00:13:07,440 --> 00:13:12,920 Speaker 3: of these intelligence files, they made it all free because 225 00:13:12,920 --> 00:13:15,400 Speaker 3: of the pandemic because no one could go into a library. 226 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:19,160 Speaker 3: So I was able to download thousands of files from 227 00:13:19,160 --> 00:13:22,680 Speaker 3: the National Archives, and I was able to do this book, 228 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:27,679 Speaker 3: you know, from my laptop in Sydney. And that's how 229 00:13:27,679 --> 00:13:31,480 Speaker 3: I ended up writing about spies. So, you know, each 230 00:13:31,600 --> 00:13:35,160 Speaker 3: each book kind of fell into the other in a 231 00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:38,160 Speaker 3: strange way, you know, And that's how I ended up 232 00:13:38,800 --> 00:13:43,000 Speaker 3: going from sport to divorce, to ac DC to cocaine 233 00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:43,640 Speaker 3: to spies. 234 00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:49,600 Speaker 2: I love it. That's a great little timeline you just 235 00:13:49,600 --> 00:13:51,840 Speaker 2: put out right there. And and this book, The Eagle 236 00:13:51,920 --> 00:13:55,439 Speaker 2: and Mirror, it goes after Charles Howard. Dick Ellis, right, 237 00:13:55,480 --> 00:13:58,080 Speaker 2: he had such you know a name that we know 238 00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:01,720 Speaker 2: him ass and a lot of people had doubts about him, 239 00:14:01,880 --> 00:14:07,240 Speaker 2: but he was the longest serving six operative. Right is 240 00:14:07,240 --> 00:14:08,800 Speaker 2: that right that worked in I six? 241 00:14:10,320 --> 00:14:13,040 Speaker 3: It was essentially m I six is top man in 242 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:15,480 Speaker 3: America during the second ward. 243 00:14:15,679 --> 00:14:18,240 Speaker 2: Can ask a question, if you're a spy, you have 244 00:14:18,320 --> 00:14:20,480 Speaker 2: to be kind of like a spy to the other 245 00:14:20,600 --> 00:14:23,640 Speaker 2: side too, because you're trying to get spy information for 246 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:26,920 Speaker 2: your spy, and so you know they're going to want 247 00:14:26,920 --> 00:14:31,320 Speaker 2: to pit him as like this multiple spy of spies. 248 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:34,520 Speaker 2: But it's kind of the job of a spy to 249 00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:35,960 Speaker 2: be a spy. 250 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:41,080 Speaker 3: Well, I mean, there's you know, there's there's spying on 251 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:45,960 Speaker 3: your enemy, and it also you know, I guess trying 252 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:50,560 Speaker 3: to figure out who is sort of in your midst 253 00:14:50,560 --> 00:14:52,640 Speaker 3: at the time and what information they're trying to get 254 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:54,960 Speaker 3: out of the people that you work with. You know, 255 00:14:55,480 --> 00:14:57,640 Speaker 3: are the people that you work with actually working for 256 00:14:57,720 --> 00:15:01,280 Speaker 3: the other side. And you know that famous quote about 257 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:05,520 Speaker 3: you know, the spy game being akin to a wilderness 258 00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:06,160 Speaker 3: of mirrors. 259 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:14,960 Speaker 4: You know that so computed, You know that that you know, 260 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:16,880 Speaker 4: it's very easy to become. 261 00:15:16,640 --> 00:15:22,960 Speaker 3: Paranoid obviously in an environment that so anyway, dick Ellis 262 00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:29,160 Speaker 3: was It was an Australian, a fellow who was born 263 00:15:29,200 --> 00:15:33,520 Speaker 3: in eighteen ninety five, and he he had a very 264 00:15:33,800 --> 00:15:37,920 Speaker 3: tough childhood. His mother died very young, his father couldn't 265 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:43,000 Speaker 3: take care of him. He ended up sort of becoming 266 00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:46,600 Speaker 3: a self educated classical musician and ended up on a 267 00:15:46,640 --> 00:15:51,960 Speaker 3: scholarship to the UK and left in nineteen fourteen and 268 00:15:52,120 --> 00:15:55,200 Speaker 3: war broke out and he ended up joining the British Army, 269 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:02,560 Speaker 3: got injured multiple times on the Western Front and took 270 00:16:02,640 --> 00:16:07,600 Speaker 3: up learning Russian and this was of great use to 271 00:16:08,080 --> 00:16:12,720 Speaker 3: the British intelligence services. So after his time as a 272 00:16:12,760 --> 00:16:17,440 Speaker 3: soldier was over, he got recruited by m I six 273 00:16:17,520 --> 00:16:19,640 Speaker 3: and he was sort of thrown into the field too 274 00:16:20,760 --> 00:16:24,240 Speaker 3: essentially encounter at the time, you know, the great menace 275 00:16:24,280 --> 00:16:27,520 Speaker 3: of the Soviet Union, which had just been sort of 276 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:32,520 Speaker 3: created by the Russian Revolution, and so the great fear, 277 00:16:32,560 --> 00:16:34,920 Speaker 3: obviously of the British was that the Communists were going 278 00:16:34,960 --> 00:16:38,320 Speaker 3: to try and take over Great Britain. And you know 279 00:16:38,400 --> 00:16:44,640 Speaker 3: that the the security apparatus of Britain was very much 280 00:16:44,680 --> 00:16:48,520 Speaker 3: geared against you know, this this Russian menace, the Red menace. 281 00:16:49,520 --> 00:16:55,760 Speaker 3: So dick Ellis was incredibly valuable to Britain because of 282 00:16:55,800 --> 00:17:01,360 Speaker 3: his language skills. He married a Ukrainian woman who was 283 00:17:01,400 --> 00:17:07,960 Speaker 3: well connected into Ukrainian exile communities who were against the Soviets, 284 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:15,399 Speaker 3: and so he basically operated as a as a like 285 00:17:15,440 --> 00:17:21,159 Speaker 3: a field agent in Western Europe, basically gathering information that 286 00:17:21,240 --> 00:17:24,800 Speaker 3: could be used against the Soviet Union. And during the 287 00:17:24,840 --> 00:17:27,960 Speaker 3: course of this time, there was some sort of cooperation 288 00:17:28,160 --> 00:17:33,000 Speaker 3: between the Nazis and the Great Britain against the Soviets. 289 00:17:33,280 --> 00:17:35,679 Speaker 3: And this is where sort of dick el has got 290 00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:41,919 Speaker 3: into trouble that many years later he was accused of 291 00:17:41,960 --> 00:17:45,920 Speaker 3: being a Russian and the Soviets, sorry, a Russian and 292 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:50,760 Speaker 3: Nazi spy. But this was many years later. This was 293 00:17:50,800 --> 00:17:55,639 Speaker 3: in the nineteen sixties, so we don't know exactly what 294 00:17:55,760 --> 00:17:58,359 Speaker 3: he was up to sort of between the wars, but 295 00:17:58,440 --> 00:18:03,080 Speaker 3: there was a lot of complicated double agentry and triple 296 00:18:03,119 --> 00:18:06,439 Speaker 3: agentry going on in Europe at that time, and the 297 00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:09,560 Speaker 3: Brits and the Germans were actually cooperating with each other 298 00:18:10,160 --> 00:18:16,879 Speaker 3: against the Russians. And then dick Alis came to America 299 00:18:17,000 --> 00:18:23,479 Speaker 3: in nineteen forty and he was officially the British consul 300 00:18:23,560 --> 00:18:25,359 Speaker 3: in New York, so he was sort of running the 301 00:18:25,400 --> 00:18:30,480 Speaker 3: Passport office in New York, but he was essentially fronting 302 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:35,439 Speaker 3: or heading up six in America. And at that time, 303 00:18:36,440 --> 00:18:40,480 Speaker 3: the Americans hadn't joined the war effort against Adolf Hitler, 304 00:18:40,520 --> 00:18:45,280 Speaker 3: and the purpose of Els being in the United States 305 00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:48,720 Speaker 3: was essentially to sort of try to get the United 306 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:52,760 Speaker 3: States to join Great Britain in fighting the Nazis. And 307 00:18:55,320 --> 00:18:58,119 Speaker 3: you know, the fascinating thing for me was that I 308 00:18:58,280 --> 00:19:05,359 Speaker 3: came across an old interview that he had done with 309 00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:11,199 Speaker 3: a Canadian television company that had never aired that he 310 00:19:11,320 --> 00:19:17,919 Speaker 3: said that he had got warning of the attack on 311 00:19:17,960 --> 00:19:21,040 Speaker 3: Pearl Harbor about four months before it happened, and that 312 00:19:21,160 --> 00:19:25,159 Speaker 3: this warning had been actually relayed to the FBI and 313 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:31,560 Speaker 3: to President Roosevelt himself, and which sort of rewrites the 314 00:19:31,600 --> 00:19:34,119 Speaker 3: whole sort of story around Pearl Harbor and sort of 315 00:19:34,880 --> 00:19:37,600 Speaker 3: undermines this idea that, you know, that the Americans were 316 00:19:37,640 --> 00:19:40,120 Speaker 3: worn as this sort of grand conspiracy. I think there's 317 00:19:40,119 --> 00:19:46,960 Speaker 3: a lot more to it. And Dick Ellis contributed a 318 00:19:46,960 --> 00:19:49,679 Speaker 3: great deal to the American war effort. He set up 319 00:19:49,720 --> 00:19:53,760 Speaker 3: the OSS, which became the CIA. You know, he set 320 00:19:53,840 --> 00:20:00,920 Speaker 3: up training centers in Maryland and in Ontario in Canada 321 00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:06,560 Speaker 3: for OSS personnel. He was given a legion a merit 322 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:12,520 Speaker 3: by President Truman. He set up the Australian Secret Intelligence Service. 323 00:20:13,560 --> 00:20:19,200 Speaker 3: He did all these remarkable things, and then he died 324 00:20:19,240 --> 00:20:24,520 Speaker 3: in nineteen seventy five. And you know, in the nineteen 325 00:20:24,560 --> 00:20:27,400 Speaker 3: eighties a couple of books came out which accused him 326 00:20:27,400 --> 00:20:33,399 Speaker 3: of being a Russian and German spy, which was quite 327 00:20:33,400 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 3: shocking to his family, so shocking that his daughter returned 328 00:20:39,240 --> 00:20:42,440 Speaker 3: all his medals to the British government, and that his son, 329 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:47,520 Speaker 3: who was a Canadian intelligence officer, was incredibly disgusted by 330 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:52,119 Speaker 3: the way that his father had been smeared and the 331 00:20:52,200 --> 00:20:55,920 Speaker 3: case against him, I thought, having reviewed all the evidence 332 00:20:56,240 --> 00:20:59,600 Speaker 3: was pretty flimsy. So this book is really an attempt 333 00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:00,760 Speaker 3: to kind of clear his name. 334 00:21:01,880 --> 00:21:03,920 Speaker 2: Yeah, and I mean you kind of have to play 335 00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:07,320 Speaker 2: both sides of the fence. But again, where did he 336 00:21:07,359 --> 00:21:09,080 Speaker 2: pass away at? Where was his fight? Where was he 337 00:21:09,160 --> 00:21:10,640 Speaker 2: where'd he die? What country? 338 00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:14,800 Speaker 3: He died in England in nineteen seventy five, So he 339 00:21:14,840 --> 00:21:16,160 Speaker 3: was he was eighty years old. 340 00:21:16,280 --> 00:21:19,560 Speaker 2: Yeah, and jeez, I wasn't even born yet. I was 341 00:21:19,600 --> 00:21:22,760 Speaker 2: two years still for me, Holy cow. 342 00:21:23,119 --> 00:21:25,280 Speaker 3: Yeah, I was born in seventy three, So I was 343 00:21:25,280 --> 00:21:29,840 Speaker 3: only too yeah when he died. And you know, like 344 00:21:29,880 --> 00:21:34,600 Speaker 3: I said, I knew nothing about this guy until my 345 00:21:34,680 --> 00:21:37,880 Speaker 3: father had mentioned him, you know, during the pandemic. He said, 346 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:42,080 Speaker 3: looking to this person, he's quite fasinating. And I thought, well, 347 00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:46,720 Speaker 3: he's a remarkable Australian story. He's a great British story exactly, 348 00:21:46,800 --> 00:21:52,320 Speaker 3: and he's a great American story. And he's he's had 349 00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:57,359 Speaker 3: this remarkable kind of intelligence and military career over three 350 00:21:57,359 --> 00:22:03,080 Speaker 3: countries and served as an intelligence officer essentially from about 351 00:22:03,200 --> 00:22:06,720 Speaker 3: you know, nineteen twenty one three to nineteen seventy five. 352 00:22:07,240 --> 00:22:11,960 Speaker 3: I mean, it's a remarkable kind of trajectory, an arc 353 00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:15,000 Speaker 3: of a man's life. And yet and also it has 354 00:22:15,040 --> 00:22:18,560 Speaker 3: this allegation of working for Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler. 355 00:22:18,880 --> 00:22:22,560 Speaker 3: So I couldn't really believe that this story hadn't been told. 356 00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:25,000 Speaker 2: It's not like he resided his rest of his life 357 00:22:25,040 --> 00:22:27,879 Speaker 2: in Germany or in you know, off the coast of 358 00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:30,240 Speaker 2: Russia and on a Black island or anything. It's not 359 00:22:30,280 --> 00:22:33,080 Speaker 2: like he died there. He died in the UK, right 360 00:22:33,160 --> 00:22:35,840 Speaker 2: where you know, where he fell at home. That's that 361 00:22:35,920 --> 00:22:39,600 Speaker 2: was home obviously, And so he was, and he was 362 00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:44,680 Speaker 2: awarded by our President of America at the time, Roosevelt, 363 00:22:44,800 --> 00:22:47,199 Speaker 2: right awarded him with like probably the closest thing to 364 00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:51,560 Speaker 2: a medal of honor, I'd imagine, you know, yeah, right, 365 00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:53,199 Speaker 2: And so he got awarded that he didn't get it. 366 00:22:53,359 --> 00:22:55,639 Speaker 2: Did he get awards and accolades from like Hitler and 367 00:22:55,680 --> 00:22:58,080 Speaker 2: from Russia Stalin and or anybody? 368 00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:00,680 Speaker 3: No, no, no, no, he didn't get anything from then. 369 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:05,440 Speaker 3: But you know, the thing was, I mean, I don't 370 00:23:05,480 --> 00:23:11,000 Speaker 3: know how much you know about Russian espionas, but I mean, 371 00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:17,040 Speaker 3: obviously the great traitor of the twentieth century in Britain's 372 00:23:17,080 --> 00:23:21,080 Speaker 3: eyes is a fellow called Kim Philby. And Kim Philby 373 00:23:21,960 --> 00:23:25,199 Speaker 3: worked for mi I six and defected to the Soviet 374 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:33,520 Speaker 3: Union in nineteen sixty three, and greatly embarrassed that, you know, 375 00:23:33,560 --> 00:23:36,879 Speaker 3: the intelligence services of Britain and the United States that 376 00:23:37,080 --> 00:23:40,800 Speaker 3: this person had operated at a very high level for 377 00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:44,520 Speaker 3: decades and given all these secrets over to the Russians 378 00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:50,200 Speaker 3: and then defected in nineteen sixty three. So after Philby defected, 379 00:23:51,200 --> 00:23:56,800 Speaker 3: that was when Ellis was interrogated by people within m 380 00:23:56,880 --> 00:24:00,000 Speaker 3: I five and six in London, and he was confronted 381 00:24:00,280 --> 00:24:06,480 Speaker 3: with sort of reports of Nazis who had been arrested 382 00:24:06,480 --> 00:24:09,560 Speaker 3: after the Second World War, mentioning that a source for 383 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:11,720 Speaker 3: a lot of their information was it was a man 384 00:24:11,800 --> 00:24:17,160 Speaker 3: called Captain Ellis. 385 00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:15,880 Speaker 2: And. 386 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:21,600 Speaker 3: The report of one Nazi officer it ended up on 387 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:25,920 Speaker 3: the desk of Kim Philby, who in nineteen forty six 388 00:24:26,000 --> 00:24:29,520 Speaker 3: was working with Dick Ellis. And this person had written 389 00:24:30,160 --> 00:24:33,440 Speaker 3: in the margin on this document it said who was 390 00:24:33,480 --> 00:24:37,680 Speaker 3: this man Ellis? And Kim Philby had answered and said, 391 00:24:37,880 --> 00:24:40,280 Speaker 3: you know, essentially that he didn't know, and that no 392 00:24:40,359 --> 00:24:44,800 Speaker 3: further action should be taken, right, which is odd given 393 00:24:44,800 --> 00:24:48,600 Speaker 3: that they were working together in this office in London, 394 00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:55,560 Speaker 3: So you know, jumped to nineteen sixty five. It's, you know, 395 00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:59,280 Speaker 3: two decades later. People are looking at this report thinking, 396 00:24:59,400 --> 00:25:02,520 Speaker 3: why did why did Kim Philby cover for Dick Ellis here? 397 00:25:02,600 --> 00:25:05,960 Speaker 3: Why did he say that he didn't know who he was? Right? 398 00:25:06,160 --> 00:25:08,840 Speaker 3: Maybe they were working together, Maybe Dick Ellis was this 399 00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:14,000 Speaker 3: other Russian mole within m I six And and that 400 00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:17,080 Speaker 3: was really the starting point for the British investigation against 401 00:25:17,119 --> 00:25:24,159 Speaker 3: Dick Ellis. And but I went back to all the 402 00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:28,320 Speaker 3: you know, the original documents that were available you know, 403 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:32,560 Speaker 3: the ones that certainly sort of been released anyway to 404 00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:39,399 Speaker 3: see what the case against Ellis was. And my my hunch, 405 00:25:39,560 --> 00:25:45,840 Speaker 3: my conclusion was that Dick Elis was actually involved in 406 00:25:47,119 --> 00:25:49,280 Speaker 3: something that the British didn't want the rest of the 407 00:25:49,320 --> 00:25:51,600 Speaker 3: world to know about, which was that they were actually 408 00:25:51,640 --> 00:25:55,760 Speaker 3: working with the Germans prior to the outbreak of the 409 00:25:55,800 --> 00:25:59,560 Speaker 3: Second World War and that their their common enemy was 410 00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:03,920 Speaker 3: the Service Union, and that Dick Ellis didn't want to 411 00:26:03,960 --> 00:26:07,600 Speaker 3: get his boss at m I sets into trouble basically 412 00:26:07,640 --> 00:26:11,440 Speaker 3: for working on an unsanctioned program, which was to work 413 00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:17,080 Speaker 3: with the Nazis. So it's a very convoluted, very sort 414 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:22,960 Speaker 3: of dense tale about someone who's been completely forgotten, but 415 00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:26,040 Speaker 3: who's very significant in sort of the history of the 416 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:28,360 Speaker 3: Second World War and the history of the Cold War. 417 00:26:28,560 --> 00:26:32,360 Speaker 3: Who deserved I think the benefit of the doubt. 418 00:26:34,119 --> 00:26:36,399 Speaker 2: A different microscope. Like today we can go back on 419 00:26:36,520 --> 00:26:39,199 Speaker 2: DNA and find out that there was DNA on the 420 00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:42,960 Speaker 2: crime scene and like they can rediscover who possibly the 421 00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:46,840 Speaker 2: suspect is. Today from the sixties, they're fighting missing persons 422 00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:49,280 Speaker 2: all the time, So why couldn't a case be relooked 423 00:26:49,320 --> 00:26:51,760 Speaker 2: at from such a long time ago? To just say, hey, 424 00:26:51,800 --> 00:26:54,399 Speaker 2: you know, let's let's let's put it this way like 425 00:26:54,880 --> 00:26:59,119 Speaker 2: Dick Ellis boy, I had my thought of you know, 426 00:26:59,320 --> 00:27:02,359 Speaker 2: he was okay. So if they're going to say that 427 00:27:02,680 --> 00:27:07,399 Speaker 2: Germany was sympathizing with the UK pre war to go 428 00:27:07,440 --> 00:27:11,200 Speaker 2: against Russia, well here in America, our Congress was also 429 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:15,120 Speaker 2: sympathizing with Germany in some aspects that our president had 430 00:27:15,119 --> 00:27:17,000 Speaker 2: to say this, we don't want to go to war, 431 00:27:17,040 --> 00:27:18,480 Speaker 2: but we have to go to war. This isn't okay. 432 00:27:18,520 --> 00:27:22,399 Speaker 2: There was German sympathizers in our Congress, you know. So 433 00:27:22,440 --> 00:27:24,879 Speaker 2: it's like that wasn't out of the norm. That's what 434 00:27:24,880 --> 00:27:27,879 Speaker 2: I'm trying to say, to have the countries talking to 435 00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:29,320 Speaker 2: Germany pre German War. 436 00:27:31,000 --> 00:27:33,159 Speaker 3: And there were a lot of people were in the 437 00:27:33,240 --> 00:27:37,000 Speaker 3: Nazi Party prior to the outbreak of the Sycamore War 438 00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:40,679 Speaker 3: who could see what where Hitler was taking Germany and 439 00:27:40,720 --> 00:27:42,560 Speaker 3: they didn't want any part of it. They actually wanted 440 00:27:42,560 --> 00:27:46,960 Speaker 3: to get rid of Hitler. So people within MI six 441 00:27:47,080 --> 00:27:52,439 Speaker 3: were actually talking to Admiral Kanaris, who was one of 442 00:27:52,440 --> 00:27:56,199 Speaker 3: the main plotters against Hitler, who you know, was was 443 00:27:56,280 --> 00:27:58,800 Speaker 3: rounded up and executed. 444 00:28:01,040 --> 00:28:03,200 Speaker 2: Exactly because people are trying to take out Hitler and 445 00:28:03,200 --> 00:28:06,399 Speaker 2: say they did what they're like. 446 00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:09,800 Speaker 3: This is my conclusion was that dick Elis was involved 447 00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:15,600 Speaker 3: in some sort of plot against Hitler, working with sort 448 00:28:15,600 --> 00:28:18,640 Speaker 3: of cooperative kind of elements within the Nazi Party itself, 449 00:28:18,840 --> 00:28:22,840 Speaker 3: you know that. So the thing my point is that 450 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:28,160 Speaker 3: you know, things can be said in documents that can 451 00:28:28,200 --> 00:28:31,840 Speaker 3: be interpreted in many different ways. It depends what your 452 00:28:32,240 --> 00:28:35,239 Speaker 3: your mindset is or how you're seeing that information and 453 00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:39,720 Speaker 3: what your own agenda is. Right. So, in the context 454 00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:41,840 Speaker 3: of the nineteen sixties, you've got all these people who 455 00:28:41,880 --> 00:28:46,080 Speaker 3: are incredibly embarrassed about Kim Philby defective to the Soviet Union, 456 00:28:46,680 --> 00:28:49,200 Speaker 3: and suddenly they're like, okay, ship, we've got to fucking 457 00:28:49,800 --> 00:28:52,760 Speaker 3: you know, make up with this, with this gross negligence, 458 00:28:53,560 --> 00:28:57,520 Speaker 3: put a li on it, and find someone else, right. So, 459 00:28:58,280 --> 00:29:01,000 Speaker 3: and this happens all the time. So I think dick 460 00:29:01,080 --> 00:29:05,920 Speaker 3: Ellis was at was a victim of this. Unfortunately, his 461 00:29:06,480 --> 00:29:12,920 Speaker 3: name has been associated with, you know, betrayal and sabotage, 462 00:29:13,080 --> 00:29:17,800 Speaker 3: and he's like a Benedict Arnold an intelligence world, and 463 00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:22,240 Speaker 3: I don't think I don't think it really sort of 464 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:27,360 Speaker 3: stacks up to be a solid case. So this book 465 00:29:27,440 --> 00:29:32,520 Speaker 3: is my attempt in you know, very difficult circumstances in 466 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:34,920 Speaker 3: that I don't have access to you know, all these 467 00:29:34,920 --> 00:29:38,240 Speaker 3: classified file health that are still held by m I 468 00:29:38,280 --> 00:29:40,760 Speaker 3: six were then ever going to get released, right But 469 00:29:41,800 --> 00:29:46,120 Speaker 3: I went through every every possible document, every possible mention 470 00:29:46,240 --> 00:29:50,800 Speaker 3: of this fellow that had ever been printed and reconstructed 471 00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:55,720 Speaker 3: essentially his life, put together a timeline. I figured out 472 00:29:55,720 --> 00:30:01,480 Speaker 3: where he was at any particular time, and Wow, basically 473 00:30:01,480 --> 00:30:03,400 Speaker 3: came to the conclusion that he can't be guilty of 474 00:30:03,440 --> 00:30:06,960 Speaker 3: all these things that he's accused of. So I think 475 00:30:07,040 --> 00:30:10,200 Speaker 3: people who are interested in, you know, the way that 476 00:30:10,720 --> 00:30:17,760 Speaker 3: intelligence agencies operate, who are interested in you know, I 477 00:30:17,760 --> 00:30:19,840 Speaker 3: guess you know your your country is dealing with this 478 00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:23,640 Speaker 3: right now, this whole issue of trust. 479 00:30:25,680 --> 00:30:29,040 Speaker 2: Right who do we trust? You don't we trust? Do 480 00:30:29,040 --> 00:30:31,760 Speaker 2: we trust? The judicial system? Do we trust the DOJ 481 00:30:31,920 --> 00:30:35,720 Speaker 2: Department of Justice? Do we trust? I mean, you know, trust. 482 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:36,640 Speaker 2: It's got to have. 483 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:38,720 Speaker 3: Trust, that's right, you know. So I think that it 484 00:30:38,720 --> 00:30:43,520 Speaker 3: would be interesting because people who are who are concerned 485 00:30:43,520 --> 00:30:46,280 Speaker 3: with those sort of issues, and I think you know, 486 00:30:46,360 --> 00:30:50,360 Speaker 3: every everyone whether you're in the U S Or the UK, 487 00:30:50,640 --> 00:30:53,080 Speaker 3: or Australia or Western Europe right now, I think there's 488 00:30:53,120 --> 00:31:00,000 Speaker 3: this there's this contagion of distrust of of government agents. 489 00:31:01,000 --> 00:31:04,600 Speaker 2: It's it's just been put out there to thwart the 490 00:31:05,800 --> 00:31:09,280 Speaker 2: the justice systems and the trust of the people because 491 00:31:09,720 --> 00:31:13,360 Speaker 2: somebody's getting themselves put in front of a judge and 492 00:31:13,400 --> 00:31:16,080 Speaker 2: a magistrate and so they're going to say that they're 493 00:31:16,120 --> 00:31:18,840 Speaker 2: innocent and that this is all lies and this is corrupt, 494 00:31:18,840 --> 00:31:20,960 Speaker 2: and then people will just and you got the internet, right, 495 00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:23,320 Speaker 2: it just can pile on so fast and the next thing, 496 00:31:23,320 --> 00:31:25,680 Speaker 2: you know, it's just what's going on here is going 497 00:31:25,720 --> 00:31:29,560 Speaker 2: on over in the EU, you know, you know, and 498 00:31:29,600 --> 00:31:32,280 Speaker 2: I have to far right wings trying to take over 499 00:31:32,360 --> 00:31:35,240 Speaker 2: in France and right now, you know, and people trying 500 00:31:35,280 --> 00:31:38,280 Speaker 2: to do snap elections over there so that Mark Home 501 00:31:38,360 --> 00:31:42,640 Speaker 2: can get you know, the party aligned and et cetera. 502 00:31:42,800 --> 00:31:44,880 Speaker 2: And then you've got I mean, I pay attention, right, 503 00:31:44,920 --> 00:31:46,880 Speaker 2: this is kind of what's going on, and it's. 504 00:31:48,520 --> 00:31:55,640 Speaker 3: You know, and if you can and and this is 505 00:31:55,680 --> 00:31:59,520 Speaker 3: a good example of that that you know that they're 506 00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:02,560 Speaker 3: elements within any. 507 00:32:03,480 --> 00:32:05,640 Speaker 2: But it's not so much that Jesse, it's not so 508 00:32:05,720 --> 00:32:08,560 Speaker 2: much being told, it's that we see it ourselves. We 509 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:11,640 Speaker 2: see the words being said out of the person's mouths 510 00:32:11,840 --> 00:32:13,760 Speaker 2: and they're saying it to us, and they're coming back 511 00:32:13,840 --> 00:32:17,360 Speaker 2: later saying they never said it. Right, That's that's that's 512 00:32:17,400 --> 00:32:19,840 Speaker 2: where this has happened. This is it's like we watched 513 00:32:19,840 --> 00:32:23,120 Speaker 2: you say that. Now you're saying you never said that. 514 00:32:23,200 --> 00:32:26,520 Speaker 2: Like this is all lie. It's like, yeah, trying to 515 00:32:26,560 --> 00:32:30,640 Speaker 2: like make us go crazy to you know, move forward 516 00:32:30,760 --> 00:32:31,880 Speaker 2: their agenda. 517 00:32:31,520 --> 00:32:33,400 Speaker 3: And their lie. 518 00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:38,080 Speaker 2: Yes, that's that. Yeah. And again it's what's happened to 519 00:32:38,080 --> 00:32:42,200 Speaker 2: to Dick is that he was kind of in the 520 00:32:42,320 --> 00:32:45,600 Speaker 2: right place at the right times for all sorts of 521 00:32:45,800 --> 00:32:50,240 Speaker 2: intermingling with all of these different elements of the world. 522 00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:53,520 Speaker 2: Brow he just happened to just be this little puzzle 523 00:32:53,520 --> 00:32:55,160 Speaker 2: piece that was like hey, you know, coming over to 524 00:32:55,160 --> 00:32:57,320 Speaker 2: the US saying you guys should take a look at this. 525 00:32:57,320 --> 00:33:00,320 Speaker 2: This is a situation going on over here. He's you know, 526 00:33:00,360 --> 00:33:03,360 Speaker 2: working for the UK, he's you know, definitely working for 527 00:33:03,400 --> 00:33:06,320 Speaker 2: the Allies, it seems like. And you know, but pre war, 528 00:33:06,360 --> 00:33:08,280 Speaker 2: he's got to talk to you know, he's got to 529 00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:11,440 Speaker 2: get intel they call it human and you know, human 530 00:33:11,440 --> 00:33:14,720 Speaker 2: intelligence and all this other intelligence. You've got to probably 531 00:33:14,800 --> 00:33:17,680 Speaker 2: befriends somebody who wants to give up, and. 532 00:33:17,720 --> 00:33:19,720 Speaker 3: Very likely you have to pay them at some point 533 00:33:19,760 --> 00:33:23,160 Speaker 3: with money that you don't have. So one of the 534 00:33:23,240 --> 00:33:26,800 Speaker 3: core sort of allegations made against Ellis was that at 535 00:33:26,800 --> 00:33:32,520 Speaker 3: some point he pocketed some money from an enemy source. 536 00:33:33,240 --> 00:33:38,680 Speaker 3: Right now, Yes, on the surface, that appears a terrible thing, 537 00:33:38,760 --> 00:33:42,760 Speaker 3: what a betrayal. You're accepting money from your your enemy, right, 538 00:33:43,960 --> 00:33:47,840 Speaker 3: But if you're if you're a drug dealer pretending to 539 00:33:47,840 --> 00:33:50,960 Speaker 3: be sorry, if you're a policeman pretending to be a 540 00:33:51,040 --> 00:33:53,920 Speaker 3: drug dealer and you're working under cover, you're going to 541 00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:56,160 Speaker 3: accept the money because you want the other side to 542 00:33:56,200 --> 00:34:00,120 Speaker 3: think that, you know, you're a drug deal right And 543 00:34:00,160 --> 00:34:02,840 Speaker 3: not exactly, it's the same sort of situation if you're 544 00:34:02,840 --> 00:34:05,480 Speaker 3: working as a spy and you want the other side 545 00:34:05,480 --> 00:34:09,600 Speaker 3: to think that you're ploiable and amnable and corruptible, and. 546 00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:12,319 Speaker 2: You know, it just reminds me of the book of 547 00:34:12,360 --> 00:34:15,440 Speaker 2: the movie Point Break with Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayzey. 548 00:34:15,680 --> 00:34:18,120 Speaker 2: There's a scene when they go into the house and 549 00:34:18,120 --> 00:34:20,120 Speaker 2: and and the guy from it Hot Chili Peppers is 550 00:34:20,120 --> 00:34:22,960 Speaker 2: in there, Anthony Keatis and everybody, and it's like and 551 00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:25,319 Speaker 2: Tom Sizemore is like, what do you do? And this 552 00:34:25,400 --> 00:34:27,400 Speaker 2: is my this is my case, this is my I 553 00:34:27,400 --> 00:34:29,160 Speaker 2: got this tattoo on my neck. I've been with these 554 00:34:29,160 --> 00:34:31,480 Speaker 2: guys for five years. You think I want this tattoo 555 00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:33,640 Speaker 2: on my neck. And he's the total undercover cop, like 556 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:36,160 Speaker 2: they're blowing his cover. You know, he's like, what are 557 00:34:36,200 --> 00:34:38,640 Speaker 2: you doing? That's what It kind of reminds me of. 558 00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:43,879 Speaker 3: The point would be linked to my book there you go. 559 00:34:46,239 --> 00:34:49,719 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, dude, it's like I had to get this tattoo. 560 00:34:49,760 --> 00:34:49,960 Speaker 3: Man. 561 00:34:51,080 --> 00:34:54,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, So what is the spy to do? You know, 562 00:34:54,280 --> 00:34:55,919 Speaker 2: especially when the spy is on your side, you gotta 563 00:34:55,960 --> 00:34:57,719 Speaker 2: have some leeway and that money. How do we know 564 00:34:57,800 --> 00:35:00,080 Speaker 2: that money didn't necessarily go to the miss. 565 00:35:01,640 --> 00:35:03,160 Speaker 3: I don't know. If we don't know where that was 566 00:35:03,160 --> 00:35:08,560 Speaker 3: spent or yuh, if he did spender himself, maybe he 567 00:35:08,600 --> 00:35:12,600 Speaker 3: probably wasn't getting paid enough. And look, anyone who watches 568 00:35:13,320 --> 00:35:18,000 Speaker 3: that vacation, anyone who watches any spied drum on television, 569 00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:23,600 Speaker 3: you know, the main protagonist of that series is confronted with, 570 00:35:24,840 --> 00:35:28,520 Speaker 3: you know, morally complicated situations on a daily basis. It's 571 00:35:28,560 --> 00:35:33,359 Speaker 3: part of the job, right, So you know the point 572 00:35:33,400 --> 00:35:37,680 Speaker 3: I'm making is that, you know, two decades later, you know, 573 00:35:37,840 --> 00:35:41,080 Speaker 3: some some sort of you know, information on a piece 574 00:35:41,080 --> 00:35:44,359 Speaker 3: of paper that that can be interpreted in a certain way. 575 00:35:44,920 --> 00:35:48,759 Speaker 3: Isn't a slam dunk against that person. You know that 576 00:35:48,920 --> 00:35:51,080 Speaker 3: there's there's a lot more involved, there's a lot more 577 00:35:51,160 --> 00:35:55,120 Speaker 3: nuanced that's that's not there on the paper, And and 578 00:35:55,160 --> 00:35:56,960 Speaker 3: I think that that's what he was a victim of. 579 00:35:57,120 --> 00:35:59,120 Speaker 3: It was just that there was a witch hunt going on, 580 00:35:59,239 --> 00:36:02,920 Speaker 3: and you know, his name had been mentioned by several 581 00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:05,799 Speaker 3: sort of Nazi officers, and on the surface it looked 582 00:36:05,920 --> 00:36:08,040 Speaker 3: very damning, but I don't think it was. 583 00:36:10,640 --> 00:36:12,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like, you know, trying to go after some 584 00:36:12,760 --> 00:36:14,760 Speaker 2: soldiers that had to do their job as a soldier 585 00:36:14,800 --> 00:36:17,160 Speaker 2: and then just try on paper that does not look good, 586 00:36:18,880 --> 00:36:22,040 Speaker 2: but in the in the throes of the situation, it 587 00:36:22,200 --> 00:36:23,359 Speaker 2: may and. 588 00:36:23,760 --> 00:36:27,719 Speaker 3: It's really worth a Russian agent one he would have 589 00:36:27,760 --> 00:36:31,440 Speaker 3: given up, you know, so many of his colleagues to 590 00:36:31,520 --> 00:36:33,759 Speaker 3: the Soviet Union when he had the opportunity, and he 591 00:36:33,800 --> 00:36:36,360 Speaker 3: probably would have ended up living in Russia, not in 592 00:36:36,440 --> 00:36:41,760 Speaker 3: England on an That's what I'm saying. Yeah, So anyway, 593 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:44,759 Speaker 3: that's that's that's the conclusion that I come to, you know, 594 00:36:44,800 --> 00:36:49,239 Speaker 3: after two years working on this book, and it's you know, 595 00:36:49,320 --> 00:36:53,000 Speaker 3: it's a pretty sad tale really, actually, I think he's 596 00:36:53,080 --> 00:36:55,799 Speaker 3: quite a heroic figure who has just been completely let 597 00:36:55,880 --> 00:36:58,480 Speaker 3: down by by people. 598 00:36:59,480 --> 00:37:02,640 Speaker 2: I think that with reaching out, we could reach our 599 00:37:02,719 --> 00:37:05,520 Speaker 2: listeners and our viewers out there to talk about you know, 600 00:37:05,840 --> 00:37:08,319 Speaker 2: Charles Howard Dick. He goes by Dick, right, that was 601 00:37:08,320 --> 00:37:11,840 Speaker 2: his nickname, was Dick, But it's it's Charles Howard Ellis, 602 00:37:12,040 --> 00:37:13,640 Speaker 2: but he went by Dick. So that's why we keep 603 00:37:13,640 --> 00:37:15,839 Speaker 2: referring him to him as Dick. I'm sure that you know, 604 00:37:16,000 --> 00:37:18,279 Speaker 2: us talking about him and bringing his name back up 605 00:37:18,920 --> 00:37:21,080 Speaker 2: and just opening up this little bit of can of worms, 606 00:37:21,080 --> 00:37:22,759 Speaker 2: like hey, you know, there's a lot of people out 607 00:37:22,760 --> 00:37:26,080 Speaker 2: there that are obsessed with detective podcasts and like you know, 608 00:37:26,360 --> 00:37:29,400 Speaker 2: unsolved crimes and unsolved mysteries, and like, hey, could this 609 00:37:29,520 --> 00:37:32,200 Speaker 2: be you know, rethought about, you know, like what is 610 00:37:32,239 --> 00:37:34,319 Speaker 2: this piece of paper that's charging him? And if they 611 00:37:34,360 --> 00:37:36,600 Speaker 2: go and read your book The Eagle in the Mirror, 612 00:37:36,680 --> 00:37:39,600 Speaker 2: they can start to get better understanding of what we 613 00:37:39,640 --> 00:37:41,879 Speaker 2: are trying to talk about without giving away your entire book. 614 00:37:42,000 --> 00:37:44,920 Speaker 3: Yeah, but I mean, you know, the big import of 615 00:37:45,000 --> 00:37:49,839 Speaker 3: this book, obviously is that an Australian classical musician was 616 00:37:49,920 --> 00:37:55,920 Speaker 3: instrumental in setting up your country CIA, right, and no 617 00:37:55,960 --> 00:38:01,799 Speaker 3: one knows. But now the big thing is, oh, was 618 00:38:01,840 --> 00:38:06,080 Speaker 3: this Australian classical musician also a Nazi and Soviet spy? 619 00:38:06,640 --> 00:38:10,600 Speaker 3: And is your CI a compromised from its very inception? 620 00:38:10,760 --> 00:38:13,000 Speaker 3: And this is not a story you hear anyone talking about. 621 00:38:14,840 --> 00:38:18,640 Speaker 2: No, there needs needs to be a movie. Hello, Knock Knock, Hollywood. 622 00:38:19,600 --> 00:38:24,560 Speaker 3: Yeah. So you know, there's a lot, a lot that 623 00:38:24,680 --> 00:38:30,000 Speaker 3: hasn't been written about, you know, the the sort of 624 00:38:30,040 --> 00:38:35,360 Speaker 3: the intelligent sort of efforts of Britain and in America 625 00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:39,719 Speaker 3: during that sort of pre war period and at the 626 00:38:39,960 --> 00:38:44,360 Speaker 3: early part of World War Two. It's it's quite a 627 00:38:44,400 --> 00:38:47,040 Speaker 3: sort of a murky kind of area for historians. And 628 00:38:47,320 --> 00:38:49,440 Speaker 3: there's obviously a lot of debate going on about what 629 00:38:49,480 --> 00:38:52,600 Speaker 3: the Americans actually really knew about, you know, what was 630 00:38:52,640 --> 00:38:55,800 Speaker 3: going on with the Japanese Pride of Pearl Arbor. 631 00:38:56,400 --> 00:38:59,400 Speaker 2: With Pearl Harbor right exactly, like you know, these preemptives 632 00:38:59,400 --> 00:39:00,719 Speaker 2: that he was trying to let them know, like, hey, 633 00:39:00,719 --> 00:39:03,279 Speaker 2: there's chatter they're trying to coin up an attack. You know, 634 00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:05,800 Speaker 2: I always thought that, you know, Russia went inside of 635 00:39:05,880 --> 00:39:07,960 Speaker 2: Japan to fight America. So Japan decided to take it 636 00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:11,560 Speaker 2: on their own regard to come just attack. But if 637 00:39:11,600 --> 00:39:15,080 Speaker 2: there was prior four months prior notice to the situation, 638 00:39:15,239 --> 00:39:17,520 Speaker 2: and then you know all those sailors and everybody that 639 00:39:17,560 --> 00:39:19,600 Speaker 2: were just in the situation, I mean, look what happened. 640 00:39:19,760 --> 00:39:22,040 Speaker 2: It caused the nuclear or the atomic bomb to be 641 00:39:22,120 --> 00:39:22,760 Speaker 2: taught exactly. 642 00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:25,319 Speaker 3: I mean these have huge consequences for. 643 00:39:27,680 --> 00:39:30,399 Speaker 2: I'm like thinking, wait, what's this domino, this one little 644 00:39:30,440 --> 00:39:35,160 Speaker 2: domino of a musician from Australian Australia, what is his 645 00:39:35,239 --> 00:39:36,960 Speaker 2: domino in this whole nomeno? 646 00:39:38,320 --> 00:39:41,920 Speaker 3: So the whole series of butterfly effects that sort of 647 00:39:42,000 --> 00:39:44,680 Speaker 3: ends up with the dropping of the nuclear bomb on Japan. 648 00:39:45,400 --> 00:39:50,720 Speaker 3: So yeah, so it's it's a it's a very difficult 649 00:39:50,800 --> 00:39:54,320 Speaker 3: kind of it's not an easy it's not an easy child. 650 00:39:54,360 --> 00:39:59,040 Speaker 3: But I think, you know, the greatest, the greatest obstacle 651 00:39:59,040 --> 00:40:02,839 Speaker 3: obviously for me, was you know, you're writing about a spy. 652 00:40:03,000 --> 00:40:05,320 Speaker 3: So spies don't really let you know about what was 653 00:40:05,360 --> 00:40:08,080 Speaker 3: going on in their personal lives, and so you know, 654 00:40:08,280 --> 00:40:10,520 Speaker 3: try and trying to sort of understand who he was 655 00:40:10,560 --> 00:40:14,640 Speaker 3: as a human being on a sort of a personal level. 656 00:40:14,800 --> 00:40:20,480 Speaker 3: Was extremely difficult, but I think I did the best 657 00:40:20,520 --> 00:40:23,799 Speaker 3: possible job that I could do, and I hope that 658 00:40:24,480 --> 00:40:28,680 Speaker 3: you know, someone someone else, maybe you know, goes and 659 00:40:28,760 --> 00:40:32,879 Speaker 3: sort of takes the book and uses it as a 660 00:40:32,880 --> 00:40:35,000 Speaker 3: as a as a starting point to you know, maybe 661 00:40:35,080 --> 00:40:37,400 Speaker 3: try to write more about you know, both him and 662 00:40:37,880 --> 00:40:41,960 Speaker 3: all these very important issues, and that more work is 663 00:40:42,040 --> 00:40:49,280 Speaker 3: done on on you know, the stories like like Pearl 664 00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:53,360 Speaker 3: Harbor and how that happened, and the role of the 665 00:40:53,360 --> 00:40:58,520 Speaker 3: British and the setting up of American intelligence. You know, 666 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:02,080 Speaker 3: at the moment the I mean you you you look 667 00:41:02,120 --> 00:41:05,439 Speaker 3: at the you know, the O. S. S. And it's all, 668 00:41:05,560 --> 00:41:09,400 Speaker 3: you know, sort of credited to William Donovan. But you 669 00:41:09,440 --> 00:41:15,120 Speaker 3: know that I have multiple quotes in the book from 670 00:41:15,160 --> 00:41:17,960 Speaker 3: from people within the US government saying that Dick Ellis 671 00:41:18,000 --> 00:41:19,919 Speaker 3: was actually running the O. S. S. And it wasn't 672 00:41:19,920 --> 00:41:24,439 Speaker 3: William Donovan, Right, So who is this Australian musician who's 673 00:41:24,520 --> 00:41:27,680 Speaker 3: running the you know, the most important sort of intelligence 674 00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:32,160 Speaker 3: agency for the US government. You know, the fact that 675 00:41:32,160 --> 00:41:37,120 Speaker 3: we're talking about it and is a starting point. But generally, 676 00:41:37,360 --> 00:41:40,839 Speaker 3: you know, the the level of public awareness about you know, 677 00:41:41,400 --> 00:41:44,440 Speaker 3: Dick Ellis and the role of the British and the 678 00:41:44,480 --> 00:41:46,920 Speaker 3: American government at that time is very minimal. 679 00:41:49,000 --> 00:41:51,000 Speaker 2: Well, yeah, because they wanted to keep it low profile. 680 00:41:51,640 --> 00:41:53,920 Speaker 2: Why would they want to boast about it and like 681 00:41:54,040 --> 00:41:56,239 Speaker 2: have all these like, you know, tweets about it back then, 682 00:41:56,320 --> 00:41:58,520 Speaker 2: like oh, hey, Dick Ellis is helping out here, you know, 683 00:41:58,600 --> 00:42:01,600 Speaker 2: and like hey hey Germany, Dick Ellis is over here 684 00:42:01,719 --> 00:42:04,360 Speaker 2: dot x or whatever. I mean, like, you know, we 685 00:42:04,440 --> 00:42:05,840 Speaker 2: kind of put our foot in our mouth all the 686 00:42:05,880 --> 00:42:08,040 Speaker 2: time with these tweets, And I mean, how can you 687 00:42:08,040 --> 00:42:10,279 Speaker 2: have a spy game? How could anybody be a spy 688 00:42:10,360 --> 00:42:13,360 Speaker 2: today at all if they were born with some chip 689 00:42:13,440 --> 00:42:15,279 Speaker 2: in their hands, some screen, you know. I mean, like, 690 00:42:15,800 --> 00:42:17,240 Speaker 2: how do you go about being covert? 691 00:42:17,280 --> 00:42:21,400 Speaker 3: You know, a very good question. I don't know if 692 00:42:21,960 --> 00:42:24,160 Speaker 3: a guy like Ellis would be able to operate today 693 00:42:24,239 --> 00:42:27,880 Speaker 3: with the same efficiency that he did. But you know, 694 00:42:28,000 --> 00:42:30,040 Speaker 3: back in those days it was a very different world 695 00:42:30,120 --> 00:42:33,640 Speaker 3: where you know, just getting from getting from New York 696 00:42:33,680 --> 00:42:36,360 Speaker 3: to London would taken an ordon and amount of dog. 697 00:42:36,239 --> 00:42:40,400 Speaker 2: You know, correct, And the camera systems in London today 698 00:42:40,920 --> 00:42:43,279 Speaker 2: are nothing compared to what was happening back then. Now 699 00:42:43,280 --> 00:42:45,840 Speaker 2: you can like follow every your film like fifteen thousand 700 00:42:45,880 --> 00:42:46,800 Speaker 2: times in a minute. 701 00:42:47,120 --> 00:42:50,040 Speaker 3: Yeah, you know, and we have mobile phones and social media. 702 00:42:50,400 --> 00:42:54,319 Speaker 2: It's like a hundred percent complete, so everybody's their own 703 00:42:54,320 --> 00:42:57,680 Speaker 2: production company and filming and uploading, a producer and director 704 00:42:57,719 --> 00:43:02,959 Speaker 2: and actor. Dude, this would make a really good either 705 00:43:03,120 --> 00:43:06,839 Speaker 2: series because then you can follow the Dick ellis, you know, 706 00:43:07,200 --> 00:43:10,960 Speaker 2: from you know, classical music learning guy to who he is. 707 00:43:11,000 --> 00:43:13,120 Speaker 2: This would make a great series, honestly, not I mean 708 00:43:13,120 --> 00:43:16,400 Speaker 2: a movie would be great, you know with you know, 709 00:43:16,680 --> 00:43:20,080 Speaker 2: that would be awesome, but a series would be cool too, right, 710 00:43:20,120 --> 00:43:22,799 Speaker 2: because I just that'd be cool if make Because you 711 00:43:22,800 --> 00:43:25,719 Speaker 2: said it yourself. We've watched so many spy movies. We 712 00:43:25,840 --> 00:43:26,160 Speaker 2: like him. 713 00:43:26,480 --> 00:43:30,600 Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, there's I think. Look, I mean all the 714 00:43:30,640 --> 00:43:34,400 Speaker 3: books that I've done, I think I think, you know, 715 00:43:34,520 --> 00:43:40,440 Speaker 3: the pure Na book would be probably the easiest to 716 00:43:40,560 --> 00:43:42,720 Speaker 3: translate into it into a series. 717 00:43:43,960 --> 00:43:46,279 Speaker 2: Oh yeah, pure and narc Oh, yeah, for sure, and 718 00:43:46,320 --> 00:43:47,279 Speaker 2: everybody would watch that. 719 00:43:47,719 --> 00:43:47,919 Speaker 1: Yeah. 720 00:43:48,440 --> 00:43:50,279 Speaker 3: At the time, you know, we had a we had 721 00:43:50,280 --> 00:43:54,560 Speaker 3: an agent, the guy who was uh the agent for 722 00:43:54,640 --> 00:43:57,520 Speaker 3: Jack Rachel. He was handling it. 723 00:43:57,600 --> 00:44:05,480 Speaker 5: And what happened was that basically we got the feedback 724 00:44:05,560 --> 00:44:09,279 Speaker 5: that at that time when the book came out, you know, 725 00:44:09,320 --> 00:44:11,800 Speaker 5: it was just really just issue of timing, that the 726 00:44:11,840 --> 00:44:17,000 Speaker 5: whole Narco's craze had kind of died out a bit, 727 00:44:17,560 --> 00:44:22,480 Speaker 5: and that you know, drug trafficking wasn't the flavor of 728 00:44:22,480 --> 00:44:26,920 Speaker 5: the month anymore, and that and that producers just wanted 729 00:44:27,040 --> 00:44:29,160 Speaker 5: strong female characters. 730 00:44:29,760 --> 00:44:34,280 Speaker 2: Okay, okay, okay, okay, cool, cool, cool, and narcos. 731 00:44:35,040 --> 00:44:37,480 Speaker 3: And so there wasn't really much we could do about it. 732 00:44:37,520 --> 00:44:41,280 Speaker 3: So yeah, unfortunately that didn't get made into a series. 733 00:44:41,320 --> 00:44:44,480 Speaker 3: But you know the thing is these things are all cyclical, 734 00:44:45,800 --> 00:44:49,880 Speaker 3: and you know, drug trafficking will become very popular on 735 00:44:49,920 --> 00:44:52,840 Speaker 3: television I'm sure like within the next three to four years, 736 00:44:52,880 --> 00:44:56,040 Speaker 3: and you know, pil Narco will get made into a series. 737 00:44:56,120 --> 00:44:57,279 Speaker 3: So you know, that's just the way. 738 00:44:57,320 --> 00:44:59,719 Speaker 2: Well, it's still justice, it's still just as going on, 739 00:45:00,080 --> 00:45:04,120 Speaker 2: know as it was. And I mean, as long as 740 00:45:04,120 --> 00:45:08,160 Speaker 2: we have the three letter agency running DEA laws around here, 741 00:45:08,200 --> 00:45:11,120 Speaker 2: there's always going to be guys trying to get underneath 742 00:45:11,120 --> 00:45:14,120 Speaker 2: their skirt their laws. That would make a great TV 743 00:45:14,239 --> 00:45:18,240 Speaker 2: series that I'd love to be in it on the beach, 744 00:45:18,400 --> 00:45:20,239 Speaker 2: I'll be a guy on the beach all he went 745 00:45:20,320 --> 00:45:21,000 Speaker 2: that way. 746 00:45:22,360 --> 00:45:24,520 Speaker 3: That was one of the themes of that book actually 747 00:45:24,760 --> 00:45:29,160 Speaker 3: was was you know the whole issue of the War 748 00:45:29,200 --> 00:45:33,680 Speaker 3: on drugs and how the War on drugs was really 749 00:45:34,040 --> 00:45:38,960 Speaker 3: kind of propping up this you know, huge American bureaucracy, 750 00:45:39,000 --> 00:45:41,799 Speaker 3: all these sort of government agencies that were sort of 751 00:45:41,840 --> 00:45:46,840 Speaker 3: dedicated to destroying drugs, and you know the how the 752 00:45:46,920 --> 00:45:51,320 Speaker 3: you know, the the people customs, the court system, the 753 00:45:52,200 --> 00:45:57,160 Speaker 3: Bureau of Prisons. How it was this massive ecosystem that 754 00:45:57,560 --> 00:46:01,440 Speaker 3: basically relied on drugs to exist and that you know, 755 00:46:01,560 --> 00:46:05,400 Speaker 3: tens of thousands of people relant on on you know, 756 00:46:07,480 --> 00:46:11,160 Speaker 3: salaries from their jobs for these agencies to you know, 757 00:46:11,239 --> 00:46:14,840 Speaker 3: to take them through to retirement. And it gets in 758 00:46:14,920 --> 00:46:17,760 Speaker 3: no one's interest to actually solve this particular problem. 759 00:46:18,680 --> 00:46:20,440 Speaker 2: We're all getting paid because we're. 760 00:46:20,280 --> 00:46:22,360 Speaker 3: All getting paid, and we're all going to retire early 761 00:46:22,400 --> 00:46:25,480 Speaker 3: at fifty or whatever. And why would we want to 762 00:46:25,600 --> 00:46:29,520 Speaker 3: sort of crush the cartels when you know, we can 763 00:46:29,560 --> 00:46:32,360 Speaker 3: continue to get paid and get paid very well and 764 00:46:32,719 --> 00:46:34,560 Speaker 3: retire early and sort of have. 765 00:46:36,080 --> 00:46:39,640 Speaker 2: Got very Goldwater involved, and you know, brought Goldwater in 766 00:46:39,640 --> 00:46:41,480 Speaker 2: to start the DEA and then all of a sudden 767 00:46:41,520 --> 00:46:46,040 Speaker 2: you've got you know, communities being affected by you know, 768 00:46:46,160 --> 00:46:49,560 Speaker 2: DEA agents and throwing them in jail and disrupting families 769 00:46:49,640 --> 00:46:53,120 Speaker 2: over you know, even pot, right, cannabis and marijuana and stuff, 770 00:46:53,160 --> 00:46:56,400 Speaker 2: because it's it's so highly scheduled, right, all these drugs 771 00:46:56,400 --> 00:46:59,120 Speaker 2: are so highly scheduled. I'm a big believer in freedom 772 00:46:59,120 --> 00:47:03,120 Speaker 2: of choice. However, I understand that, you know, what can 773 00:47:03,160 --> 00:47:05,720 Speaker 2: you do when someone like the president creates this entity 774 00:47:05,760 --> 00:47:08,200 Speaker 2: to go after and they give it billions of dollars? 775 00:47:08,719 --> 00:47:10,920 Speaker 2: So who at the top is going to want to 776 00:47:10,920 --> 00:47:12,560 Speaker 2: ever say, oh, I don't want this job. I got 777 00:47:12,560 --> 00:47:15,840 Speaker 2: billions of dollars at my disposal. I've got teams of 778 00:47:15,840 --> 00:47:18,680 Speaker 2: people at my disposal. We're all making incomes, and we're 779 00:47:18,680 --> 00:47:21,800 Speaker 2: all you know, you know, making incomes. 780 00:47:22,120 --> 00:47:25,359 Speaker 3: Yeah, but like you know, I was in New York, 781 00:47:25,480 --> 00:47:29,320 Speaker 3: you know when we first spoke, and I was shocked. 782 00:47:29,480 --> 00:47:33,000 Speaker 3: I was absolutely shocked by what I was seeing with 783 00:47:33,120 --> 00:47:35,440 Speaker 3: the street, like just from the last time that I 784 00:47:35,480 --> 00:47:39,239 Speaker 3: was there about ten years ago, like seeing you know, 785 00:47:39,360 --> 00:47:42,480 Speaker 3: people who were you know, look like zombies were on something. 786 00:47:42,520 --> 00:47:45,319 Speaker 3: And it's like I hadn't seen that the last time 787 00:47:45,360 --> 00:47:48,120 Speaker 3: I was in New York, and so something going on there. 788 00:47:48,200 --> 00:47:51,319 Speaker 3: And I don't know where you live, but I was 789 00:47:51,440 --> 00:47:54,840 Speaker 3: utah utah, right, I don't know what the fentomyl situation 790 00:47:55,000 --> 00:47:55,920 Speaker 3: is in. 791 00:47:56,280 --> 00:48:00,279 Speaker 2: That's just like, yeah, that's the word methth but you 792 00:48:00,280 --> 00:48:02,680 Speaker 2: want to know what it is. It's adderall. It's descriptions 793 00:48:02,680 --> 00:48:10,799 Speaker 2: of adderall to children that the parents are taking. Let's 794 00:48:10,840 --> 00:48:11,279 Speaker 2: be clear. 795 00:48:11,680 --> 00:48:17,719 Speaker 3: In in New York, I was just shocked in a 796 00:48:17,840 --> 00:48:20,640 Speaker 3: terrible state and there were you know, people who looked 797 00:48:20,680 --> 00:48:24,359 Speaker 3: like literally they'd been sort of you know, exhumed from 798 00:48:24,360 --> 00:48:30,080 Speaker 3: a crypt. So there's obviously like a serious sort of 799 00:48:30,160 --> 00:48:35,840 Speaker 3: social kind of sort of problem going on there with 800 00:48:35,840 --> 00:48:39,160 Speaker 3: with you know, rampant kind of drug use. And obviously 801 00:48:39,200 --> 00:48:42,440 Speaker 3: I think, you know, not just the United States, but 802 00:48:42,520 --> 00:48:46,440 Speaker 3: you know Britain. Britain's got the same problems. Australia has 803 00:48:46,440 --> 00:48:50,080 Speaker 3: got not not as bad as the US, but we're 804 00:48:50,120 --> 00:48:52,319 Speaker 3: also to deal with. But we've got to come up 805 00:48:52,320 --> 00:48:54,000 Speaker 3: with different solutions to the drug problem. 806 00:48:54,800 --> 00:48:56,960 Speaker 2: It's really interesting because we'll give it to our pilots, 807 00:48:57,400 --> 00:48:59,560 Speaker 2: you know, like here's here's some go pills, is what 808 00:48:59,560 --> 00:49:01,920 Speaker 2: it's called. I'm going to say that, right, A lot 809 00:49:01,920 --> 00:49:05,720 Speaker 2: of the pilots that fly these jets they're called got pills, 810 00:49:06,640 --> 00:49:08,359 Speaker 2: and they get out of the military and where's these 811 00:49:08,360 --> 00:49:12,080 Speaker 2: got pills at right right where are they? You know, 812 00:49:12,160 --> 00:49:13,600 Speaker 2: so now of a sudden they're starting to go and 813 00:49:13,640 --> 00:49:15,759 Speaker 2: wander and find it and get involved in you know, 814 00:49:16,080 --> 00:49:19,160 Speaker 2: the corner alley and whatever you want to see, you know, shading, 815 00:49:19,200 --> 00:49:21,279 Speaker 2: this is what they're called. But you know, and it's 816 00:49:21,320 --> 00:49:23,960 Speaker 2: just like, uh, it goes from being prescribed, is what 817 00:49:24,000 --> 00:49:26,319 Speaker 2: I'm kind of getting at too. They go downhill to 818 00:49:26,320 --> 00:49:28,080 Speaker 2: try to find it after the prescription stops. 819 00:49:28,360 --> 00:49:34,480 Speaker 3: Yeah, story is like but you know, dude, I mean 820 00:49:34,480 --> 00:49:37,879 Speaker 3: it goes you know. What I was getting at is that, 821 00:49:38,280 --> 00:49:41,400 Speaker 3: you know, they in telling the story of this, this 822 00:49:41,480 --> 00:49:47,240 Speaker 3: cartail member, he's recommendation really was that you legalized cocaine. 823 00:49:48,719 --> 00:49:52,319 Speaker 3: That you know, you stopped the cartail the boat by 824 00:49:52,400 --> 00:49:56,959 Speaker 3: doing that. And that's not a conversation that I think 825 00:49:57,160 --> 00:50:02,719 Speaker 3: is h people are ready for yet, but I think 826 00:50:02,760 --> 00:50:05,080 Speaker 3: it's inevitable. But you know, how are you going to 827 00:50:05,160 --> 00:50:10,520 Speaker 3: stop things? Caw tills. It's a major situation, and that's 828 00:50:10,560 --> 00:50:11,759 Speaker 3: a right. 829 00:50:12,520 --> 00:50:16,880 Speaker 2: You legalize that. If you legalize it, in my opinion, 830 00:50:17,000 --> 00:50:19,560 Speaker 2: you kind of cut back on the trafficking of the humans, 831 00:50:19,560 --> 00:50:23,000 Speaker 2: which is the biggest problem. Yeah, okay, so then you 832 00:50:23,040 --> 00:50:25,839 Speaker 2: cut out the mules of the human trafficking, because now 833 00:50:25,840 --> 00:50:28,440 Speaker 2: there's only just going to be like you know, uh, 834 00:50:28,600 --> 00:50:30,680 Speaker 2: really ill wheel trafficking and you got to stop that. 835 00:50:30,680 --> 00:50:32,799 Speaker 2: That's what it should be about, is that kind of 836 00:50:33,320 --> 00:50:38,000 Speaker 2: human enslavery junk like that that they are made to 837 00:50:38,040 --> 00:50:40,960 Speaker 2: carry that across into borders and into other countries. Guys 838 00:50:41,000 --> 00:50:44,439 Speaker 2: writing in coffins called a submarine that the coast Guard 839 00:50:44,440 --> 00:50:46,520 Speaker 2: are banging on trying to get them to open up 840 00:50:46,800 --> 00:50:48,520 Speaker 2: as they're just barely above the water. You know, these 841 00:50:48,560 --> 00:50:51,600 Speaker 2: guys are risking their everything for whatever reason. We don't know, 842 00:50:51,840 --> 00:50:55,160 Speaker 2: political persecution in their country. Their families could be held hostage, 843 00:50:55,160 --> 00:50:57,080 Speaker 2: and you don't know that they have guns to their heads. 844 00:50:57,120 --> 00:50:58,840 Speaker 2: And these guys have to go into the submarine and 845 00:50:59,040 --> 00:51:01,560 Speaker 2: traffic the stuff because they're just now pawn in the 846 00:51:01,600 --> 00:51:05,160 Speaker 2: whole scheme. There's just so much. And yeah, so we 847 00:51:05,160 --> 00:51:08,759 Speaker 2: should check out your books. We should check out the 848 00:51:08,920 --> 00:51:14,840 Speaker 2: tell me the name of the Narcos book, Pure Narco, 849 00:51:14,920 --> 00:51:16,520 Speaker 2: and that's already out, and so we're going to put 850 00:51:16,520 --> 00:51:20,000 Speaker 2: that in the little dissertation on our website. We'll have 851 00:51:20,040 --> 00:51:22,799 Speaker 2: Pure Narco in there. And then also of course we've 852 00:51:22,800 --> 00:51:25,800 Speaker 2: been talking about the Eagle in the mirror and Dick Ellis, 853 00:51:25,920 --> 00:51:29,160 Speaker 2: Charles Howard Ellis and his role within World War two 854 00:51:29,440 --> 00:51:32,520 Speaker 2: and the world at that time, and how he was 855 00:51:32,560 --> 00:51:36,960 Speaker 2: such an intricate piece to the security of nations. And 856 00:51:37,000 --> 00:51:40,480 Speaker 2: I'm just ed Hee's a musician from Australia, Okay, and 857 00:51:40,560 --> 00:51:42,160 Speaker 2: I just want to bring that up, all right, so 858 00:51:42,280 --> 00:51:43,959 Speaker 2: rock and roll, you know I love rock and roll. 859 00:51:44,320 --> 00:51:48,080 Speaker 2: And then we just had a great conversation and I 860 00:51:48,120 --> 00:51:49,880 Speaker 2: just want to really thank you for taking the time 861 00:51:50,200 --> 00:51:52,160 Speaker 2: on the other side of the world for me over 862 00:51:52,200 --> 00:51:54,640 Speaker 2: there in London. I'm here in Utah, so thank you. 863 00:51:54,680 --> 00:51:56,680 Speaker 2: On this day, it is Sunday, so I just want 864 00:51:56,719 --> 00:51:58,680 Speaker 2: to say thank you for making the time to link 865 00:51:58,760 --> 00:51:59,760 Speaker 2: up with me on a Sunday. 866 00:52:00,160 --> 00:52:02,719 Speaker 3: No worries. It's good to talk to you again. And 867 00:52:03,520 --> 00:52:05,680 Speaker 3: hopefully so came together perfectly. 868 00:52:06,880 --> 00:52:10,680 Speaker 2: It does it is. You're great and you're really enjoyable 869 00:52:10,680 --> 00:52:13,200 Speaker 2: to listen to. And I know my listener, uh is 870 00:52:13,239 --> 00:52:15,360 Speaker 2: going to enjoy this conversation and we're all going to 871 00:52:15,400 --> 00:52:19,520 Speaker 2: be opened up now more to talking about Dick Ellison, 872 00:52:19,760 --> 00:52:21,920 Speaker 2: making our own opinion about the guy, right, you know, 873 00:52:22,000 --> 00:52:25,480 Speaker 2: let's give him another chance at you know, being a 874 00:52:25,480 --> 00:52:29,719 Speaker 2: successful dude for America. And the Allies all right during 875 00:52:29,760 --> 00:52:33,600 Speaker 2: a really bad time. So on behalf of Jesse Fink 876 00:52:33,640 --> 00:52:35,480 Speaker 2: and his book The Eagle in the Mirror and his 877 00:52:35,560 --> 00:52:37,960 Speaker 2: publicist and I'm gonna give you a shout out and 878 00:52:38,320 --> 00:52:41,000 Speaker 2: okay because you're ranging all this, so thanks so much. 879 00:52:41,040 --> 00:52:45,279 Speaker 2: I appreciate you. And Brandon Brandon Webb who runs the site, 880 00:52:45,440 --> 00:52:48,720 Speaker 2: and Anton who's my producer, and guy who's an editor, 881 00:52:49,239 --> 00:52:52,560 Speaker 2: Martin on the back end. Thank you so much everybody. 882 00:52:52,640 --> 00:52:54,319 Speaker 2: And I just want to say go check out the 883 00:52:54,360 --> 00:52:57,800 Speaker 2: merch store and thesoft rep dot com forwards. Last book, 884 00:52:57,880 --> 00:53:00,880 Speaker 2: hyphen Club, and this is rad Save peace. 885 00:53:06,200 --> 00:53:09,680 Speaker 1: You've been listening to self red Ldia h