Traitors in Tinseltown (w.t)
In 1930s California, a story of espionage, sabotage, and attempted murder unfolded on the streets of L.A as Hitler rose to power in Germany.
Nazi flags on Broadway Street in Los Angeles, 1936
A small group of WWI veterans, headed by a Jewish lawyer named Leon Lewis, rose to defend democracy and America against the rising threat of fascism and Nazism in their own backyard.
Out of the office of his small law practice, Lewis and his spies embarked on an 11-year undercover operation.
Leon Lewis
Spy: Neil Ness Code Name - N2
Their mission was to meticulously document and expose the individuals, tactics, and plans of fascist and Nazi groups in California, many of whom had connections to cells nationwide.
Hermann Schwinn - German American Bund, West Coast leader
Nazis at Hindenburg Park in Los Angeles
They successfully penetrated the highest echelons of these organizations, uncovering crucial information.
Spy Reports
Through their infiltration, they managed to foil plots involving sabotage, illegal weapons sales, and even murder. Oftentimes, letting local or federal authorities take the credit.
Hermann Schwinn, arrested.
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Franz Ferenz, Nazi's West Coast propaganda distributor, arrested.
Despite their profound impact and the immense risks they undertook, Leon Lewis and his dedicated team of men and women were never publicly recognized and their extraordinary story has remained largely untold…
“We are by no means out of the woods and cannot afford to relax our vigilance…or counter-attacking the credibility and motives of the hate disseminators…”
- Leon Lewis, 1941