Igor Gouzenko

Info

Role

Writer

Date of birth

01/13/1919

Date of death

06/25/1982

Place of birth

Rogachovo, Dmitrov Uyezd, Moscow Governorate, RSFSR [now Moscow Oblast, Russia]

Igor Gouzenko

Biography

Igor Gouzenko is popularly known as the man who 'started the Cold War'. He was a cypher clerk working in the Russian Embassy in Ottawa Canada when he defected on September 5, 1945. He lived the rest of his life in ambiguous obscurity in Ontario, living in fear of reprisals by Stalin's KGB. His identity and location could never be revealed. He appeared several times on television; notably on the Canadian programs THIS HOUR HAS SEVEN DAYS and FRONT PAGE CHALLENGE. He was introduced to the public during a radio interview with American Drew Pearson. In these public 'appearances ', he would always wear a pillowcase or a hood over his head.

Known For