18. She Became Secret Agent in WWII
When WWII broke out, Josephine Baker was recruited by French military intelligence. She had initially expressed support for the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in the 1930s, so when the Axis powers defeated and occupied France, they assumed that Baker was friendly to their cause. As it turned out, she was anything but. Taking advantage of the occupiers’ trust, she risked her life on clandestine work for the Allies. Her celebrity and fame opened doors, and rubbing shoulders with high ranking Axis personnel, she charmed officials she met in social gatherings to collect information.