Nicholas W. Orloff was a Russian immigrant to the United States and asset of the New York KGB during World War II. Orloff came from a Russian aristocratic family, and received a regular stipend from the KGB for his services. Orloff reported information to Soviet intelligence on immigrant groups, and acted as a talent-spotter for new sources. In 1944 Orloff applied for U.S. citizenship, and tried to get a job with the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the predecessor agency of the CIA. At the same time he applied to the U.S. State Department. He had told his wife, a native-born American, that he was breaking off all connections with Soviet intelligence in order to reduce the chance that she might turn him in to American authorities.
According to OSS records, Orloff obtained American citizenship in mid-1944 and, shortly thereafter, applied for a position with the OSS, citing his fluency in several European languages and his many years of residence in Europe. It appears, however, that his application was rejected.
Read more about Nicholas W. Orloff: Venona
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