There was a report in the London Times dated June 8 1956 regarding
Captain John Herbert King who had been sentenced to 10 years in the UK
in 1939 for espionage on behalf of Soviet Russia.

This was the first report of the incident and evidently it was only
then made public following testimony given to the SSC by Isaac Don
Levine, a journalist.

Levine had got his information from Walter Krivitsky, a Soviet
Intelligence officer who had defected in 1937 and who (allegedly)
later committed 'suicide' in Washington.

What Hearings were these and how can I get a copy of the testimonies?

---

Clarification of Question by probonopublico-ga on 14 Oct 2004 02:01 PDT

Hi, Freddy

Yes, thanks to you, it looks like the Senate Hearing would have been
investigating the Burgess & Maclean Affair.

All the Best!

Bryan

Bryan, I suppose you have seen this page
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/SSkrivitsky.htm

and read the book "A Death in Washington" by Gary Kern and Nigel West.

I'll try to find out more.

According to 
http://www.angelfire.com/oz/1spy/film.html

in the film "Conspirator" (1949) 
"Robert Taylor plays a British officer feeding the Soviets military
secrets while his wife, Elizabeth Taylor, comes to suspect him.
Taylor's role is modeled after the espionage career of Captain John
Herbert King ..."

I don't quite understand how Taylor's role could have been modelled
after King, if it was only in 1956 that his story was made public.

John Herbert King not mentioned by
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0041260/

Donald Cameron Watt, "(John) Herbert King: A Soviet Source in the
Foreign Office", Intelligence and National Security, vol. Ill, no. 4
(1988), p. 62.

http://books.myweb.ru/cgi-bin/new/library.cgi?PageType=READBOOK&BookID=1510&PageNo=10

Index to Intelligence and National Security:
http://frode.home.cern.ch/frode/crypto/INSindex.html
http://frode.home.cern.ch/frode/crypto/INS.html

Publishers:
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/02684527.asp

This article may have the answer to your question. Apparently not
available online, but the British Library has a copy.

Bryan, have you seen these documents?
http://foia.fbi.gov/spies.htm

Isaac Don Levine:
http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/levine_isaac.htm

Hi, Again, Freddy

I have already got 'Death in Washington' which explores Krivitsky's
death. I've also got a lot of other stuff on Mr K.

Captain King was fingered in Sept 1939 by Isaac Don Levine who acted
as a spokesman for Krivitsky. So, King's role was known by Levine
which explains the Hollywood version.

Interestingly, King was only revealed in the UK after Levine had
testified at the Senate hearing. Levine had testified that King had
been taken to the Tower of London and 'quietly shot'. Hence, the
Foreign Office denial.

I'll check out your other links later.

Many thanks, again.

All the Best

Bryan

Isaac Don Levine (1892-1981), Papers, ca. 1914-1978; 138 boxes

http://specialcollections.library.emory.edu/guides-jewish.html

Hi, Again, Freddy

I have now checked your other links. Many thanks.

Unfortunately, nothing significant has emerged.

The FBI file on Blunt was so heavily weeded that it was meaningless.

I would bet that the coded letter that supposedly led to the unmasking
of Maclean was a cover story. More likely it was the Venona stuff that
did the trick.

Krivitsky (via Levine) also identified another spy in September 1939
whose description roughly corresponded with Maclean, but without
giving the name.

It seems likely that Levine was testifying at a Senate hearing on the
Burgess & Maclean Affair.

All the Best

Bryan