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+21 +1
Watching the Watchers: A Spy's Guide to Berlin
Spooks have left their mark on a once-divided city still thought to be an espionage hotbed.
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+1 +1
Now You See It: 25 Years Since the Mysterious Mission of STS-36 (Part 1)
Something strange happened in March 1990. Ground-based observers were busy tracking the orbital progress of a classified Department of Defense payload, recently deployed by the crew of Shuttle Atlantis on STS-36.
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+22 +1
Up in the Air
As night fell over the East German town of Pössneck on the evening of 14 September 1979, most of the town’s citizens were busy getting ready for bed. But not Günter Wetzel. The mason was in his attic, hunched over an old motor-driven sewing machine, desperately working to complete his secret project... By Marissa Brook.
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+14 +1
What Makes a Man Betray His Country?
How a troubled past turned a Soviet military engineer into one of the CIA’s most valuable spies. By David E. Hoffman.
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+24 +1
12th August 1961 - East Germany begins construction of the Berlin Wall
In an effort to stem the tide of refugees attempting to leave East Berlin, the communist government of East Germany begins building the Berlin Wall to divide East and West Berlin. Construction of the wall caused a short-term crisis in U.S.-Soviet bloc relations, and the wall itself came to symbolize the Cold War.
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+19 +1
The day that 'sealed East Germany's fate'
After the Berlin Wall was destroyed in 1989, East and West Germany still had a long way to go before they could become one nation. But in August 1990, the date was finally set for the birth of reunified Germany.
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+22 +1
September 18th 1960 - Castro arrives in New York
Fidel Castro arrives in New York City as the head of the Cuban delegation to the United Nations. Castro’s visit stirred indignation and admiration from various sectors of American society, and was climaxed by his speech to the United Nations on September 26.
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+33 +1
A Berlin bike ride like no other
Marking 25 years since Germany’s 1990 reunification, Joe Baur cycles the Berlin Wall Trail, packing in nearly half a century of history over a single day.
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+35 +1
3rd October 1990 - East and West Germany reunite after 45 years
Less than one year after the destruction of the Berlin Wall, East and West Germany come together on what is known as “Unity Day.”
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+32 +1
Cambridge spies: Defection of 'drunken' agents shook US confidence
Two members of the Cambridge spy ring were so drunken and unstable that US officials were stunned they had been employed by the Foreign Office, newly-released papers show.
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+31 +1
9th November 1989 - East Germany opens the Berlin Wall
East German officials opened the Berlin Wall, allowing travel from East to West Berlin. The following day, celebrating Germans began to tear the wall down. One of the ugliest and most infamous symbols of the Cold War was soon reduced to rubble that was quickly snatched up by souvenir hunters.
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+16 +1
Hot Tub Diplomacy: How a Famed New Age Retreat Center Helped End the Cold War
Early one morning, in September 1982, hundreds of young Russians were waiting in a Moscow TV studio for an image of Southern California to appear on a giant screen. All of a sudden, there it was, live via satellite: a crowd of hundreds of thousands of sweltering Americans, blanketing the desert in front of a rock star-worthy stage and even bigger screens, backed by a ripple of mountains... By Sarah Laskow.
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+20 +1
How Candid Camera Spied On Muscovites At The Height Of The Cold War
In 1961, Candid Camera ruled American television. The proto-reality show, in which everyday people were faced with ridiculous situations under the gaze of a hidden camera, was a massive hit, reaching millions across the country every week. Allen Funt, the show's creator and punchy host, had criss-crossed thousands of miles... By Cara Giaimo.
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+19 +1
The First Line of Defense
During the Cold War, they guarded America’s nuclear weapons facilities. Now they are dying of cancer, as the U.S. government looks the other way. By Jim Morris and Jamie Smith Hopkins.
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+19 +1
Theremin’s Bug
How the Soviet Union Spied on the US Embassy for 7 Years. By Adam Fabio.
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+23 +1
20th December 1963 - Berlin Wall opened for first time
More than two years after the Berlin Wall was constructed by East Germany to prevent its citizens from fleeing its communist regime, nearly 4,000 West Berliners are allowed to cross into East Berlin to visit relatives. Under an agreement reached between East and West Berlin, over 170,000 passes were eventually issued to West Berlin citizens, each pass allowing a one-day visit to communist East Berlin.
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+34 +1
Declassified: U.S. Military’s Secret Cold War Space Project Revealed
Newly released documents describe the U.S. Air Force’s secret cold war project known as the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL). By Leonard David.
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+20 +1
How the Cold War’s Fallout Shaped David Bowie
Critic Agata Pyzik’s 2014 book, Poor But Sexy: Culture Clashes in Europe East and West, situates Bowie at the heart of Cold War pop culture. Here, she explores Bowie's role in uniting disaffected young people on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
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+3 +1
The Truth About the MiG-29
How U.S. intelligence services solved the mystery of a cold war killer. By John Sotham. (Sept. ’14)
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+4 +1
Last Chance, Amigo? You Can Never Be Too Late in Havana
The pope has been there, Obama is there this week and the Rolling Stones are arriving soon. Everyone wants a chance to see Socialism one last time before it dies. But what is it like to visit Cuba for a former citizen of East Germany? By Jochen-Martin Gutsch.
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