In my novel 7 Grams of Lead, the clandestine operations division of the Department of Commerce runs international chain of whorehouses as a means of collecting intelligence. Some readers have thought it over the top. If anything, it understates reality.

The reality: In 1959, the Central Intelligence Agency indeed got into the prostitution business, opening whorehouses in New York City, San Francisco and Stinson Beach, California, in each case with the blessing and cooperation of the local police. The Federal Bureau of Narcotics took a piece of the action, too, in the role of drug dealer.