Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Chef, Spy
Julia Child was a great chef. A towering figure–both literally and figuratively. And she was also a U.S. spy during WWII. That according to new documents released this week.
But didn’t we already know this? USA Today noted upon the 2002 opening of the Spy Museum in DC that
[a] section on celebrity spies includes chef Julia Child, who processed classified documents in Ceylon for the CIA precursor, the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). “She had a taste for adventure,” quips Coakley, showing off a blown-up photo of Child reclining glamorously on an Army-style bunk bed.
Even if this latest news isn’t exactly, well, news, it’s as good a time as any to note that food and spies have always had an interesting relationship–from competitors spying on chefs to steal their recipes to unsuspecting archaeologists dosed with poisoned drinks to faceless modern-day Soviets poisoning former spies with toxic dishes.
As those latter two events reminded readers, the surest way to (stop) a man’s heart is though his stomach.
Post title explained here.
