The spy John Le Carr, who became the author of novels defining the Cold War era, has died, his publisher said in a statement Sunday. He is 89 years old.
Publisher Curtis Brown CEO Johnny Keller said in a statement that pneumonia was the cause of death. Le Corre, whose real name is David Cornwell, is almost 50 years old with his wife and four sons.
“His wish will never be seen again, and his loss will be felt by every book lover and all who are interested in the human condition,” Keller said in a statement. “We have lost a great man of English literature, a man of great intelligence, kindness, humor and intelligence. I have lost a friend and mentor and an inspiration.”
In 1996, Le Carr told CBS News’ Mark Phillips, “Joseph Conrad wrote about the ocean because he was born at sea, and I was very quickly recruited into the secret world. At that request, I copied Conrat; the secret world was my nature. Organ, I was in those years, he I understand the ocean and its functions. “
Le Carr’s introductory novel, “Call for the Dead,” introduced the world to George Smiley, a kind of anti-James panda, an unhappy, unhappy, but relentless civil servant. Smiley appeared as a side character in his third book, appearing in nine books, including the best-seller “The Spy Who Came In From The Gold” and his last book, “A Legacy of Spice”.
Le Carr told Steve Croft “60 minutes” In 2018 “These characters never left me.”
“In some interesting way, especially Smiley, they became – even though I didn’t write about them – they became sometimes very conscious guys in my imagination,” Le Carey said. “What I wanted to do at this point was to close the Smiley saga in the 50s and 60s now, to inquire into the past about what we did in the Cold War in the name of freedom. It’s worth it.
Le Carey refused to put his name to any literary awards and refused to accept Knighthood. He told Kraft that “I suspect I do not like the suspicions of the literary world.” He wanted to be the commander-in-chief of the British Empire “at least for everyone”.
“I do not want to pretend to be a government honoree, so I have to comply with the government somehow,” Le Carey said. “I don’t want to wear armor.”
Le Care was 5 years old when his mother left the Olive family. He and his brother were left in the care of their father Ronnie Khan. Le Carey said his father had an “amazing brain”, but “if there was a crooked way to do something, he took it.”
Le Carey is an outstanding student who graduated in modern languages from Oxford. A life as a spy seemed like a natural fit for him.
“When it comes to recruiting people for the secret world, I had what recruiters were looking for,” Le Carr said. . Part of it within me. When I discovered that identity, it took root in me. That’s right – it was connected to the world I knew in the past. “
He stared at working for the famous British spy agency MI6 in Germany, posing as a young ambassador as he climbed the Berlin Wall.
He began writing novels during his travels and lunch.
“My memory is that I wrote it so fast, the story,” Le Carey said. “But I had no idea where I was going at first. It flowed. I think once in your writing career you get a break like this. I really hope – naturally, nothing else comes to me.”
His third book, “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold”, became his outrageous novel, a 1963 literary event. Because he wrote under a pseudonym, the only people who knew who the author was were British intelligence, and they did not want to blow his card in Germany. When he finally left as a teacher, MI6 allowed him to leave, allowing him to focus on writing full time.
Terry Pincher / Express via Getty Images
Le Carr’s novels centered on what he called the “secret intelligence service” or “circus” and were the perfect window into the secret life of intelligence during the height of the Cold War. The 1974 “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” is based on the hunt for Kim Bilpi, a real-life spy who provided hundreds of classified documents to the Soviet Union.
But even as the Cold War dragged on in the 1980s, Le Care’s writing was not affected by carelessness. Philip Roth described his 1986 novel “A Perfect Spy” as “the best English novel since the war”.
His success as a novelist, translated into film and television adaptations of the 1965 series “The Night Manager” and the BBC series, and “The Spy Who Came in from the Gold”. Actors who portrayed George Smiley include Rupert Davis, Alec Guinness and Gary Oldman.
After the end of the Cold War, Le Car turned his attention to the pharmaceutical industry, the Arab-Israeli conflict and ultimately to Brexit. He told Mark Phillips “CBS Sunday Morning”“Although the Cold War ended in 2019, it was” the same game, but played for different purposes and with different rules. ”
“Well, first of all, in my books, I tried to live up to the curiosity of my time,” Le Carr said. “In this case, I’m very deeply – I feel very deeply – the British public is made of bamboo by those with private interests. So, to get that impression, invest in the characters rather than standing up in an argument. It’s my job.”
