Christopher Lee had an impressive résumé even before he made a career in film and other artistic fields. For example, he had volunteered in the Finnish Winter War; later, he enlisted in the RAF, fought the Italians in North Africa, and, because he spoke five or six European languages, he joined the Central Registry of War Criminals and Security Suspects, which tracked down (and we don’t quite know what they did with them) Nazi criminals who were evading capture.

At one point, a journalist asked him what kind of duties he actually carried out in that service, given how secretive they were.

Lee then leaned toward him and, whispering confidentially, had the following brief exchange:

“Can you keep a secret?”

“Yes!”

“So can I.”