Ike's Mystery Man by Peter Shinkle is a very interesting combination of biography and history. On the whole, it is a biography of Robert Cutler, who was the first National Security Advisor.

He was also a gay man working in the government during the McCarthy era, when not only communists, but 'sexual perverts' were being hunted as security risks. It doesn't appear that he went to great lengths to hide his sexuality, but he was never exposed. In fact, some powerful people seem to have deliberately shielded him.

So, while we learn a lot about the man's life, through school and war and finally government work, as well as his infatuations with younger men, we also get a view of the changing view of government. For example, the book looks at the primary era of the CIA trying to change governments around the world in the US's favour, even though the hindsight of now says that those regime changes rarely worked out well in the long run. We also get a first-hand view of how dangerous it was to be a gay man in government, although I get the feeling that he rarely was a lover of his paramours as much as a mentor. But while he never faced exposure, a number of the younger men in his circle of influence ended having to resign instead of being exposed.

The author is a relative of Robert Cutler, and had access to, among other things, a series of diaries that he gave to the young man who was the great love of his life, although the man in question had several regular lovers. Later in life, Cutler seemed to vacillate between great joy whenever they were together to intense depression when he didn't get the reassurances he wanted that he was the focus of the life a man less than half his age.

All in all, it was a fabulous read about a part of recent history I knew little about. After all, few people think twice about gays in government anymore, but even in Canada, there was a long period of time when public servants could find themselves under investigation because someone made an accusation. In Canada, they were hooked up to a device called, I kid you not, the Fruit Machine in an attempt to determine homosexuality. Thankfully, the world, for the most part, has moved past that stage.

The life of Robert Cutler, a confidant of President Eisenhower, who compartmentalized his gay life for 40 years, is wonderfully told. If one is looking for a gay life during the 1930's through 1960's, one will be disappointed. After an experience in his youth, he seems to have buried these feelings, only to have them awaken in his later life. However, in this very complete biography, one gets the life of a man who is intimately involved in some of the most fascinating issues of these days. The revelations of the work of the Ike administration, the background issues involved, the individuals in the administration and Cutler's many friends surprised me. Here was a gay man, who many felt was gay, yet was able to walk the tightrope in this very repressive era.
Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for providing this Kindle edition.