William Egan Colby (January 4, 1920–April 27, 1996) became director of the CIA on September 4, 1973, after James R. Schlesinger. It was Colby who launched the Accelerated Pacification Campaign during the Vietnam War. He later would reveal a large amount of information to Congress, such as CIA attempts to assassinate Fidel Castro. He was fired by President Gerald Ford and replaced with George H.W. Bush on January 30, 1976.

After reportedly going out canoeing in the middle of the night, Colby died under suspicious circumstances near his home in Rock Point, Maryland . He reportedly did not mention any canoeing plans to his wife, nor was it normal for him to go boating at night. Colby's body was not immediately located, but later found underwater—close to where his canoe was. The cause of death was reportedly an aneurism, which caused him to drown, resulting in hypothermia. He was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery on May 13, 1996.

Quotes

• South Vietnam faces total defeat, and soon.

Sources

• http://www.rotten.com/library/bio/usa/william-colby/
• William Colby and Peter Forbath, Honourable Men: My Life in the CIA, London: Hutchinson & Co., 1978