McCone, John Alex (1902–1991)

US industrialist, head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) 1961–65. A devout Catholic and a fervent opponent of communism, he declined to use extreme measures to secure some of the political ends his political masters sought.

Early successes in the steel and construction industries made McCone a multimillionaire on the strength of winning several government contracts. He was chair of the US Atomic Energy Commission 1958–60, and was chosen by President Kennedy to succeed Allen Dulles as director of the CIA in 1960. It was while at the CIA that he made the discovery of Cuban-bound Soviet arms that led to the Cuban missile crisis. He was eventually removed from his post by President Johnson, and returned to his business career as a director of the International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation (ITT).