Figure in Rosenberg Case Admits to Soviet Spying

[Fountain79]

In 1951, Morton Sobell was tried and convicted with Julius and Ethel Rosenberg on espionage charges. He served more than 18 years in Alcatraz and other federal prisons, traveled to Cuba and Vietnam after his release in 1969 and became an advocate for progressive causes.

Through it all, he maintained his innocence.

But on Thursday, Mr. Sobell, 91, dramatically reversed himself, shedding new light on a case that still fans smoldering political passions. In an interview, he admitted for the first time that he had been a Soviet spy.

And he implicated his fellow defendant Julius Rosenberg, in a conspiracy that delivered to the Soviets classified military and industrial information and what the American government described as the secret to the atomic bomb.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/12/nyregion/12spy.html?ex=1378958400&en=3f64769488e3598c&ei=5124&partner=facebook&exprod=facebook

[hlthe2b]

1. I finally got to see the documentary "Heir to an Execution"

produced by HBO in 2004. It was a fascinating account of the two sons and grandchildren of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in this incredible bit of history. I remember how captivated my mother was by the story... I guess she assumed that they were both guilty, but just the thought of a mother choosing not to try to save herself left her obsessed. Of course I doubt anything she would have said would have spared her life, given Roy Cohns and some of the other fanatics of the time.

I have always assumed that one or both was guilty of some kind of exchange with the Soviets, but never thought they had shared the atomic secrets... It appears that that assessment is largely right, although it is still not clear that Ethel had any direct role.

Rent the documentary online from BlockBuster or Netflix. It is worth seeing.

[DesertFlower]

2. i saw it 2x.

it was great.