He could also, on the occasions that civil rights groups protested the lily-white nature of the FBI, be dressed up in a suit, posted at a desk outside Hoover’s office, and described to innocent visitors as one of the Bureau’s premier black agents. Already in the car by the time it reached Hoover’s house was Clyde Tolson, Hoover’s number-two man, as well as his closest friend. It was Tolson’s job to flatter the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and to make sure that others flattered him as well; he did this without subtlety, for the job did not require any.
