Robert Lindsey (journalist)
Encyclopedia
Robert Lindsey is a journalist
and author
of several true crime
books, including The Falcon and the Snowman: A True Story of Friendship and Espionage
(1980), the story of Christopher John Boyce
and Andrew Daulton Lee
, who were both convicted of selling information to the Soviets. He won the 1989 CWA Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction
for A Gathering of Saints: a true story of money, murder and deceit.
Lindsey worked as a reporter and editor at the San Jose Mercury-News and The New York Times
, and also served as the Los Angeles bureau chief for The Times
.
Marlon Brando
and Ronald Reagan
used Lindsey's assistance when writing their autobiographies, respectively, Brando: Songs My Mother Taught Me, and "Ronald Reagan: An American Life."
During the early 1980s, an LDS document dealer, Mark Hofmann
, began to uncover a series of potentially damaging documents implying that Joseph Smith
, far from being the angelically inspired founder of a church, was in fact a diviner
led to a cache of gold by a spirit that took the form of a white salamander
. The quality of his forgeries was such that it took some intensive detective work to uncover this, even after a number of document experts had found them to be "genuine". The story of these, together with that of the bomb blasts, is told with a well-researched narrative which carefully explains the complex episode.
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of several true crime
True crime
True crime is a non-fiction literary and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people.The crimes most commonly include murder, but true crime works have also touched on other legal cases. Depending on the writer, true crime can adhere strictly to...
books, including The Falcon and the Snowman: A True Story of Friendship and Espionage
The Falcon and the Snowman
The Falcon and the Snowman is a 1985 film directed by John Schlesinger about two young American men, Christopher Boyce and Daulton Lee , who sold U.S. security secrets to the Soviet Union...
(1980), the story of Christopher John Boyce
Christopher John Boyce
Christopher John Boyce is a convicted KGB who sold U.S. spy satellite secrets to the Soviet Union in the 1970s.-Espionage:...
and Andrew Daulton Lee
Andrew Daulton Lee
Andrew Daulton Lee is an American who was convicted of espionage for his involvement in the spying activities of his childhood friend, Christopher Boyce.Lee was the adopted eldest son of Dr. Daulton Lee, a wealthy California physician...
, who were both convicted of selling information to the Soviets. He won the 1989 CWA Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction
CWA Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction
The CWA Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction is a British literary award established in 1978 by the Crime Writers' Association, who have awarded the Gold Dagger fiction award since 1955....
for A Gathering of Saints: a true story of money, murder and deceit.
Lindsey worked as a reporter and editor at the San Jose Mercury-News and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, and also served as the Los Angeles bureau chief for The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
.
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
and Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
used Lindsey's assistance when writing their autobiographies, respectively, Brando: Songs My Mother Taught Me, and "Ronald Reagan: An American Life."
A Gathering of Saints
"A Gathering of Saints: A True Story of Money, Murder and Deceit" tells the story of a series of incidents involving the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS Church), during the 1980s, beginning with a series of forged and potentially damaging documents, and ending with three bomb explosions that rocked Salt Lake City.During the early 1980s, an LDS document dealer, Mark Hofmann
Mark Hofmann
Mark William Hofmann is an American counterfeiter, forger and convicted murderer. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished forgers in history, Hofmann is especially noted for his creation of documents related to the history of the Latter Day Saint movement...
, began to uncover a series of potentially damaging documents implying that Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith was founder of what later became known as the Latter Day Saint movement or Mormons.Joseph Smith may also refer to:-Latter Day Saints:* Joseph Smith, Sr. , father of Joseph Smith...
, far from being the angelically inspired founder of a church, was in fact a diviner
Diviner
Diviner is an infrared sensing instrument aboard NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, part of the Lunar Precursor Robotic Program which is studying the moon...
led to a cache of gold by a spirit that took the form of a white salamander
Salamander Letter
The Salamander Letter was a document created by Mark Hofmann in the early 1980s.The letter was one of hundreds of documents concerning the history of Latter Day Saint movement that surfaced in the early 1980s...
. The quality of his forgeries was such that it took some intensive detective work to uncover this, even after a number of document experts had found them to be "genuine". The story of these, together with that of the bomb blasts, is told with a well-researched narrative which carefully explains the complex episode.