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Berlin Author Bernd von Kostka Duels in the Dark with Cold War History

Ep. 62

Bernd von Koska is the curator of the Allied Museum in Berlin and co-author of Capital of Spies. For almost half a century, From summer 1945 until 1990, NATO and the Warsaw Pact fought an ongoing duel in the dark. Espionage was part of everyday life in both East and West Berlin with spies of numerous nationalities and loyalties. In this conversation Bernd describes the highlights of his book and intelligence activities in Berlin: the success, failures, famous and the infamous to include: the Crash of the YAK28P, The Spy Tunnel, The Meister and James Hall, James Carney, a visit from Marcus Wolf, Benno Ohnes shooting, Dean Reed, Rosenholtz Files and the Berlin Airlift. Capital of Spies (co-authored with Sven Felix Kellerhoff) is a great starter reference to the important intelligence events in Cold War Berlin. Bernd is a Berliner and no stranger to the spy world. Aside from his work at the museum, he’s recently helped produce British drama Spy City on AMC with author William Boyd.  

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