The Crook Factory

As if spying for the KGB wasn’t enough excitement, in 1942, during World War II, Hemingway set up a real-life intelligence network called The Crook Factory to watch pro-Franco and pro-Hitler agents in Cuba. He meticulously recorded his sightings and submitted all his findings to American Intelligence agencies.

But just one year later, the FBI disbanded the network, largely because they thought his activities were embarrassing and he needed to be stopped. In 1999, writer Dan Simmons released a book called The Crook Factory, a brilliant fictionalized version of Hemingway’s real-life counter-espionage and spy ring.

Advertisement

Advertisement