Was Clay Shaw Compensated by the CIA?

Steve M. Galbraith wrote in with a comment back a few months ago and it was never forwarded directly to me. My apologies, Steve!

Actually, Steve had a question about whether Clay Shaw was ever compensated for his interaction with the CIA from 1948-56. I call them interactions rather than services because, based upon my own investigation, his interactions with them appeared to be very limited, essentially passing on to the CIA very sketchy and borderline unimportant fragments of information.

However, two sources, with links immediately below, show that the CIA apparently told the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA), back in the late 1970s, that he was never compensated, and then, in 1992, put together an internal memo saying that he had been a highly-paid source.

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=7302&relPageId=3,

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html

Steve asked if I had resolved that contradiction in my biography of Clay Shaw, Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw. The short answer is NO, in the sense that I never determined why the CIA had phrased in the 1992 internal memo as it did. The writer of that memo seemed to be reviewing the material that the CIA had furnished to the HSCA in the 1970s, in preparation for the CIA's cooperation with the Assassination Records Review Board (ARRB). However, none of that material provided to HSCA by the CIA in the 1970s indicated in any way that the CIA had ever compensated Shaw. Quite the opposite: the CIA, in the briefest of assertions to the HSCA, said that it had never given him any compensation.

I tend to believe that he received no compensation, based upon what has been revealed to date about the nature of his interactions with the CIA. His information was very limited, almost useless, and what little of substance he gave to them peaked early on, after his 1949 trip to the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South America, and his 1951 trip to southern South America.

My speculation is that a CIA staffer who put the 1992 memo together for internal historian J. Kenneth McDonald simply got that detail incorrect. I have a FOIA request to CIA on that very detail, asking them to provide any details of any compensation, but that could take years to resolve, if the CIA even cooperates. Many would consider it an open question, and I have no problem with that.

Steve Galbraith also asked if Shaw ever underwent a background investigation prior to his interactions with the CIA back in late 1948 or early 1949, and whether the CIA was aware of Shaw's homosexuality. I don't know if the CIA did an official background investigation. One memo I saw seemed to indicate that the CIA relied on a background check that had already been done by other government agencies (or perhaps one agency). That agency could very weel have been the FBI, which interviewed Shaw in late 1948 at the time that the Czech Trade Exhibit signed a lease with the International Trade Mart. The lease would began the following spring (195) and run for one year, after which it was not renewed. The FBI was very interested in this, and interviewed Shaw about it it. I have always suspected that this led to the CIA's local office, which had recently opened, deciding to use Shaw, among others, as a source of information about international goings-on in New Orleans and the places he traveled. The FBI knew much about Shaw's homosexuality by 1954, and probably much earlier, so I suspect that information was passed on the CIA in the same time period.

The end of Shaw's limited relationship with the CIA in 1956 appeared to have nothing to do with his homosexuality. Instead, he simply had ceased traveling internationally (he would only travel to Cuba, very briefly, and to Puerto Rico for a special project, after 1955, on behalf of the ITM), the ITM was beginning its downward spiral, and he was busier than ever with his real estate projects and social activities. His information had always been limited, centered around his trips on behalf of the ITM, and that activity had by this time all dried up.

Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, had a nice 2015

Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, a biography of the only man ever prosecuted for alleged involvement in the assassination of President Kennedy, has just finished a nice 2015. It was the first full year that a print edition has been available, and had good sales, buiding on the first two years when only the e-book was available.

It garnered some notable reviews, generally split along conspiracy (or the lack thereof) theory lines of thought. Any book on the assassination is bound to have that split, with two large hostile camps already in place for decades, so this was to be expected.

And, of course, it has had to find its audience, always challenging in this day when readers are bombarded with material from all sides and in all forms. But it is steadily working its way around the horn, so to speak.

Here's to an even better 2016!

John Seigenthaler's FBI File Released

The FBI has notified me, in response to my Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, that it has now released John Seigenthaler's FBI file on its website. I have a separate request in, and have appealed the adequacy of the FBI's search.

I became interested in John Seigenthaler's file as a result of my research into the life of Clay Shaw, which culminated in a major biography of Shaw, entitled Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, published in 2013 as an e-book and last year in a print edition.

The book detailed John Seigenthaler's involvement behind the scenes in an effort to obtain internal documents from New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison's investigation in 1967 into the assassination of President Kennedy. An insider in Garrison's investigation, William Gurvich gave the documents to longtime Bobby Kennedy aide Walter Sheridan, who then got them in one fashion or another to Seigenthaler and the Tennessean newspaper for its reporting.

Updated Smashwords Edition of Man Of A Million Fragments; The True Story of Clay Shaw, is released

An updated Smashwords edition of Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, a full-length biography of Clay Shaw, has been released. This edition incorporates the changes made during the publication of the print edition, and places the updated editions on all major e-reader platforms, aside from the Amazon KIndle (the updated version is already available on Kindle).

The changes were almost all cosmetic, mostly addressing inconsistencies in capitalization of titles held by the numerous individuals mentioned in the book.

The updated version is available at smashwords.com, or at Apple's bookstore, Sony's bookstore, Barnes and Noble, and wherever e-books are sold.

Man Of A Million Fragments: The True Story Of Clay Shaw, A Biography Of Clay Shaw, Now Available At Maple Street Book Shop In New Orleans

My full biography of Clay Shaw, entitled Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, is now available at Maple Street Book Shop, 7529 Maple Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, 70118, (504) 866-4916. It is also available at all online book stores.

Biography Of Clay Shaw Now Available at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans

The new print edition of the biography of Clay Shaw, entitled Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, is now available for sale at the Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans, located at 2727 Prytania Street, New Orleans, LA 70130. See link below.

http://www.gardendistrictbookshop.com/

Clay Shaw Bio, Man Of A Million Fragments: The True Story Of Clay Shaw, Released in Paperback Edition

My biography of Clay Shaw, entitled Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, is now available in a deluxe print edition (paperback). The book, a detailed biography that covers Shaw's entire life as a prominent gay businessman and civic leader, his military service, his early life, and his arrest and trial at the hands of New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison, has been available as an e-book only for the past year.

The print edition is available at createspace.com (click on the "Site" button at top right, then click on "Search" and search for "Clay Shaw").

It is also available at amazon.com.

It should eventually be available at all major online booksellers that sell print editions.

Print Edition of Clay Shaw Biography Nears Completion

The long-awaited print edition of the biography of Clay Shaw, Man of a Million Fragments: The True Story of Clay Shaw, is very near completion. I estimate at this time that we will have it out by the end of July, if not before.

The book, which has had a great reception, as an e-book, from anyone who knows anything about the subject, continues to generate positive feedback a year after its release. The print edition should reach the large majority of readers who have not moved exclusively to e-books.

Were You Ever A Source Of Information For The CIA (Domestic Contact Division Or Other), Or Any Other US Intelligence Agency?

Were you ever a source of Information for the Central Intelligence Agency or any other US intelligence agency? Office of Naval Intelligence? National Security Agency?

I am particularly interested in the period of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, and especially if you were a resident of the New Orleans area.

However, any time period and area will do.

If you fit this description and are interesting in talking about it, get in touch with me.