TV series to decode General An's life

Revered Vietnamese General Pham Xuan An, whose life was the subject of American historian Larry Berman's book, will be the focus of a US$ 1-million television series.

Today, Professor Berman comes to Viet Nam to sign a contract with local book publisher First News and the Cat Tien Sa Entertainment Company to make the 30-episode TV series on General An, with each episode being 45 minutes long.


The film will be shot in Viet Nam and the US, with the script being revised by the professor himself. The first episode is scheduled to be broadcast on the occasion of National Day, which falls on September 2, next year.

Berman's revised book, titled Perfect Spy – The Incredible Double Life of Pham Xuan An, was first published in 2007, and stirred both the Vietnamese and American public. The English version of the edition was also released across the world later.

Early this year, Berman visited Viet Nam to release the updated version of the book, Perfect Spy X6, which gives an honest and vivid account of the thrilling but dangerous life of An.

Pham Xuan An (1927 – 2006), who was also known as "X6," "Hai Trung" or "Tran Van Trung," worked in southern Viet Nam as a reporter for Reuters, Time magazine and the New York Herald Tribune during the war. At the same time, he was spying for northern Viet Nam.

An lived this dangerous double life for more than 20 years. After the war, he was conferred with the title "Hero of the People's Army" and promoted to "General," one of the country's only two intelligence officers to achieve that rank.

Berman, winner of the Bernath Lecture Prize, has written several books on the Viet Nam War, including Planning a Tragedy: The Americanization of the War in Viet Nam and Lyndon Johnson's War: The Road to Stalemate in Viet Nam.

He is also working on a 120-minute feature film on the general, entitled The Perfect Spy X6.

"I really hope that the film will be screened at the Academy Awards or the Cannes Festival. My responsibility is to let the world know about General An, a brilliant Vietnamese spy," he said.