106: The Death of Frank Olson

Hidden History

Episode 106: At 2:25 AM on November 28, 1953, a CIA bacteriologist and chemical warfare specialist named Frank Olson got up, and ran across a dark room in his underwear, dodging two beds, to hurdle through a closed window with the blinds closed and the curtains drawn, falling 10 stories to his death. At least…that’s the official story. Frank Olson was an unwitting participant in a covert operation called MKULTRA, a two decade long crusade to develop mind control through non-consensual human experimentation. Increasingly disillusioned with his work at the CIA, and intimately knowledgeable of both MKULTRA and American use of biological weapons, Frank Olson was the man who knew too much.

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Sources and Further Reading

The Montreal Experiments: brainwashing and the ethics of psychiatric experimentation: Link

The past Porton Down can't hide: Link

Kinzer, Stephen. Poisoner in chief: Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA search for mind control. Henry Holt, 2019.

The CIA's Secret Quest For Mind Control: Torture, LSD And A 'Poisoner In Chief': Link

Hooper, Troy. "Operation Midnight Climax: How the CIA Dosed SF Citizens with LSD." SF Weekly (2012).

Criminal Poisoning: Clinical and Forensic Perspectives: Link

Wolves, Jackals, and Foxes: The Assassins Who Changed History: Link

Codename Artichoke, The CIA's Secret Experiments on Humans: Link

Six decades later, sons seek answers on death of Detrick scientist: Link