Inga Arvad
| Inga Arvad | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Inga Marie Arvad Petersen October 6, 1913 Denmark |
| Died | December 12, 1973 |
| Spouse(s) |
Kamal Abdel Nabi (div.) Tim McCoy |
| Partner(s) | Robert Boothby |
Kamal Abdel Nabi (div.)
Inga Arvad (October 6, 1913 – December 12, 1973) was a Danish journalist, later a U.S. citizen, noted for being a guest of Adolf Hitler at the 1936 Summer Olympics and for her romantic relationship with John F. Kennedy during 1941 and 1942. The juxtaposition of these facts led to suspicions during World War II that she was a Nazi spy. But secret U.S. investigations uncovered no such evidence, and her past did not harm her professional life or social standing in the United States. She was a motion picture writer for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1945 and a Hollywood gossip columnist, and from the late 1940s until her death she was the wife of wealthy cowboy actor and military officer Tim McCoy.
She was born Inga Marie Arvad Petersen but changed her name in 1931. Arvad was the 1931 beauty queen selected by the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende. She attended the Columbia School of Journalism in New York, and then moved to Washington D.C., where she worked as a columnist at the Washington Times-Herald. She met John F. Kennedy in Washington through his sister Kathleen, who was a reporter at the same newspaper. Inga was said to have a good "intuitive style of writing" by her editor.
In 1935, as a freelance reporter, she interviewed Hitler, and this connection to the dictator would color the rest of her life. She is thought to be among the few Scandinavians who interviewed Hitler. He granted her two or, perhaps, three interviews. Arvad had scooped her colleagues earlier by reporting that Hermann Göring was soon to marry German actress Emmy Sonnemann.
She was invited to the wedding and met important Nazis. Through Joseph Goebbels she secured an interview with Hitler. In her article, a description of Hitler was later translated into English as: "You immediately like him. He seems lonely. The eyes, showing a kind heart, stare right at you. They sparkle with force." Arvad was Hitler's guest at the 1936 Summer Olympics, which led to her being investigated by the FBI in America as a potential spy. Hitler had told her that she was a perfect example of Nordic beauty. A photograph of her with Hitler surfaced and the FBI followed her, finding out that she was dating an American ensign, John F. Kennedy, son of the former U.S. ambassador to Britain. Kennedy's prominence led only to greater scrutiny of Arvad and suspicions about her that were never substantiated. Though she wrote only society news and never embraced Hitler's politics, the connection to him shadowed her professional life.
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