The spy who sold oil to Hitler—or did he just sell us a lie?
An American of Swedish origin and oil trader, Eric Erickson allegedly maintained business relations with the Nazi regime for the sole purpose of passing information to his country's secret services and working towards the defeat of the Third Reich. But what reality lies behind the heroic myth he himself created?
Writing
Layers deception like an onion—each peel stings more.
Direction
Lorenzen lets the contradictions breathe, no easy answers.
Director
Jan Lorenzen
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Erickson's 1959 memoir 'The Riddle of Erickson' became a Cold War bestseller and was optioned for a Hollywood film that never materialized—partly because studios couldn't verify his claims.
The documentary uses Erickson's own declassified OSS files against him, showing he reported far less than he later claimed. His real value may have been as a myth, not a spy.
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