William W. Wells
 William W. Wells    (spook) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1925 |
| Died | April 6, 2013 (Age 87) |
| Nationality | US |
| Alma mater | Yale |
William W. "Wild Willy" Wells was a US spook and was considered one of the CIA's top clandestine operators.[1]
Career
He was attending Yale at the start of WW2 but was diverted to study Chinese language at the University of Pennsylvania, and was later assigned as a U.S. military liaison to the Chinese military police on the Burma Road. After the war he graduated from Yale, joined Standard Oil to return to China.[2]
In 1952, he started work for the CIA and began a long and successful "China watcher" career, with overseas postings in the Philippines, Taiwan, Japan and Hong Kong.[2]
He was Deputy Director for Operations when director Stansfield Turner in 1977 began "a purge" of the clandestine service. Two months after the dismissal notices went to the first 200 senior members, the top clandestine officers began receiving them as well. By late December, Wells, the signer of the controversial notices, had himself retired.[3] Wells' top assistant, Cord Meyer, Jr. also was ousted.
He began a second career as a real estate broker in Bethesda, Maryland.[2]
References
- ↑ https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP99-00498R000100120064-1.pdf
- ↑ a b c https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/washingtonpost/name/william-wells-obituary?id=6007091
- ↑ https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1977/12/29/cia-author-of-212-dismissal-notes-is-ousted-as-operations-branch-chief/9308de40-37c1-4987-a7f7-8c7addeb40ba/
