17 Facts About Matt Cvetic

Matthew Cvetic was a Pittsburgh native who was a spy and informant working for the Federal Bureau of Investigation inside the Communist Party of the United States during the 1940s.

Matt Cvetic told his story in a series published in The Saturday Evening Post, and his experiences were then fictionalized in the old time radio show I Was a Communist for the FBI, adapted for a Warner Brothers motion picture in 1951.

Matt Cvetic testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee in the 1950s.

One of 11 children, Matt Cvetic graduated from St Mary's Roman Catholic Grammar School in 1922.

Matt Cvetic quickly agreed, and by the end of 1942, was considered suitable material for membership in the Pittsburgh branch CPUSA, his membership being granted to him in February, 1943.

Shortly after his joining the party, Matt Cvetic was offered weekly compensation in the amount of $15, which was increased to $35 per week in late 1943, then $65 by 1947.

The depth to which Matt Cvetic penetrated the CPUSA remains unclear.

In February 1950, Matt Cvetic surfaced for the first time and was summoned to testify before HUAC.

However, while Matt Cvetic was considered a reliable witness when testifying in front of friendly audiences, hostile cross-examinations often left him at a loss for words, unable to remember key details and often refusing to answer questions on the grounds that he did not wish to give away FBI secrets to the communists.

On July 14,1950, Matt Cvetic was featured in the television series We the People, a half-hour program hosted by Dan Seymour detailing his alleged activities while operating as an FBI informant.

Concurrently, on July 15,22, and 29,1950, Matt Cvetic published his story in serial format in the Saturday Evening Post, written by Pete Martin.

The series had Dana Andrews as the voice of Matt Cvetic and had a $12,000 budget which was a significant amount for a radio show.

Matt Cvetic poses as a faithful party member to gain information on Communist plots designed to destroy the US Except for his superiors in the FBI and a local priest, no one, not even members of Matt Cvetic's family, knows that he is merely posing as a Communist.

In February, 1955, a depressed Matt Cvetic was admitted to St Francis Hospital in Pittsburgh by his son for a psychiatric evaluation following several days of heavy drinking.

Matt Cvetic was readmitted a short time later and received electroconvulsive therapy in March 1955, after which he was released.

In 1960, Matt Cvetic became involved with the John Birch Society as well as the Christian Crusade, a strongly anti-communist organization led by Reverend Billy James Hargis.

On July 26,1962, Matt Cvetic suffered a heart attack and died at age 53 while waiting to take a driver's license exam in Los Angeles, California.