Dahl and Dealings with Stephenson and CS Forester

Dahl's writing career jump started quickly with Shot Down Over Libya.Forster had asked for some RAF anecdotes to make a story but published Dahl's reminiscences exactly as they were.The title of the article was changed to that title although h was not shot down. During the war he worked for the BIS writing propaganda for the Allied Cause.He was introduced to espionage and the Canadian spymaster Wm Stephenson known as Intrepid.He supplied intelligence from Washington to Stephenson and his organization British Security Coordination.He was sent back to Britain for alleged misconduct by British embassy officials and Stephenson sent him back to Washington after the war with a promotion.


Revealed in the 80's, he was also an agent for MI-6, the British foreign intelligence service to promote Britain's cause and message in the U.S., working with Ian Fleming and David Ogilvy.He combated the America First Movement.

Dahl married Patrician Neal in 53 and was married for 30 years and had 5 children: Olivia (who died of measles encephalitis in 1962, aged seven), Tessa, Theo, Ophelia, and Lucy. He dedicated The BFG to Olivia after her death, and subsequently became a proponent of immunisation.[13]
Quote- Olivia died of measles encephalitis in 62. He dedicated the BFG after her death, and became a proponent of immunisation. After Theo's injury he became involved with the WDT valve to alleviate his son's condition hydrocephalus when his baby carriage was hit by a taxi in NY City.
He married Patricia Neal in 53 and in 65 she had three aneurysms and he took charge of her rehabilitation. They were divorced in 83 following Dahl's affair with her friend Felicity Crosland whom he subsequently married, 22 years his junior.
His children and grandchildren had attained prestigious careers later:

• Ophelia Dahl is director and co-founder (with doctor Paul Farmer) of Partners in Health, a non-profit organisation QUOTE
• Lucy Dahl is a screenwriter in Los Angeles. Tessa's daughter Sophie Dahl (who was the inspiration for Sophie, the main character in her grandfather's book The BFG) is a model and author who remembers Roald Dahl as "a very difficult man – very strong, very dominant ... not unlike the father of the Mitford sisters QUOTE

An aside. Dahls' detailed bio appears in The Irregulars, a sound book I've been listening to. His meeting with C S Forrester, a then young writer and agent of the BIS, to romanticize and high light the British plight was given flesh and detailed.The BIS engaged in cultural propaganda in romanticizing the British plight and the "evil" Nazi menace to win sympathy in the US with the British cause to engage America in the war. His writing stint was accidental and the story A Piece of Cake was accepted unaltered by Forrester. Britain's plight was showcased effectively and the support of FDR proved a tip in the balance.

Dahl began writing in 1942, after he was transferred to Washington, D.C. as
Assistant Air Attaché. His first
published work, in the 1 August 1942 issue of The Saturday
Evening Post was "Shot Down Over Libya", describing the crash of his Gloster
Gladiator. C. S. Forester had asked
Dahl to write down some RAF anecdotes so that he could shape them into a story.
After Forester sat down to read what Dahl had given him, he decided to publish
it exactly as it was. The original title of the article was "A Piece of
Cake"—the title was changed to sound more dramatic, despite the fact that the he
was not "shot down".[7]
During
the war, Forester worked for the British Information Service and was writing
propaganda for the Allied cause, mainly for American consumption.[8] This work
introduced Dahl to espionage and the activities of the Canadian spymaster William Stephenson,
known by the codename "Intrepid". During the war, Dahl supplied intelligence
from Washington to Stephenson and his organisation, which was known as British
Security Coordination. Dahl was sent back to Britain, for supposed
misconduct by British Embassy officials: "I got booted out by the big boys," he
said. Stephenson sent him back to Washington—with a promotion.[9] After the
war, Dahl wrote some of the history of the secret organisation and he and
Stephenson remained friends for decades after the war.[10]
He ended
the war as a Wing Commander.
His record of five aerial victories, qualifying him as a flying ace, has been
confirmed by post-war research and cross-referenced in Axis records, although it
is most likely that he scored more than that during 20 April 1941 where 22
German aircraft were downed.[11]
He was
also revealed in the 1980s to have been a clandestine agent for MI-6, the
British Foreign Intelligence Service, serving in the United States to help
promote Britain's interests and message in the United States and combat the "America First"
movement, working with other well known men including Ian Fleming and David
Ogilvy.[12]
[edit]
Postwar life
[edit]
Family

Patricia
Neal and Roald Dahl
Dahl married American actress Patricia
Neal on 2 July 1953 at Trinity Church
in New York City. Their
marriage lasted for 30 years and they had five children: Olivia (who died of measles
encephalitis in 1962, aged seven), Tessa, Theo, Ophelia, and Lucy. He
dedicated The BFG to Olivia after her death, and subsequently became a proponent
of immunisation.[13]
When he
was four months old, Theo Dahl was severely injured when his baby carriage was
hit by a taxi in New York City. For a time, he suffered from hydrocephalus, and as a
result, his father became involved in the development of what became known as
the "Wade-Dahl-Till" (or
WDT) valve, a device to alleviate the condition.[14][15]
In
1965, Neal suffered three burst cerebral aneurysms
while pregnant with their fifth child, Lucy; Dahl took control of her
rehabilitation and she eventually relearned to talk and walk.[16]
They were divorced in 1983 following Dahl's affair with Neal's friend, Felicity
Crosland, and he subsequently married Felicity ("Liccy") d'Abreu Crosland (born
12 December 1938), who was 22 years his junior.
Ophelia Dahl is director
and co-founder (with doctor Paul Farmer) of Partners in Health, a
non-profit organisation. Lucy Dahl is a screenwriter in Los Angeles. Tessa's
daughter Sophie Dahl (who was the
inspiration for Sophie, the main character in her grandfather's book The BFG) is a
model and author who remembers Roald Dahl as "a very difficult man – very
strong, very dominant ... not unlike the father
of the Mitford sisters sort of roaring round the house with these very loud
opinions, banning certain types – foppish boys, you know – from coming
round."[citation
needed]