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Flato was born in New York on May 27, 1908 to David A. and Hilda (Firot) Flato. He suffered from polio as a child and as a result was deformed, standing only a little over three feet in height and left with a hunchback forcing him to walk with a cane.<ref>[http://www.ioba.org/newsletter/archive/8(4)/reference2.php ''Books About Bookselling: A Backward Look'']</ref> His younger brother Jerome served in the United States Navy during World War II.<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Charles_Flato Relative's statement, Charles Flato was not a hunchbacked dwarf, January 17, 2006.]</ref>

Flato was born in New York on May 27, 1908 to David A. and Hilda (Firot) Flato. He suffered from polio as a child and as a result was deformed, standing only a little over three feet in height and left with a hunchback forcing him to walk with a cane.<ref>[http://www.ioba.org/newsletter/archive/8(4)/reference2.php ''Books About Bookselling: A Backward Look'']</ref> His younger brother Jerome served in the United States Navy during World War II.<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Charles_Flato Relative's statement, Charles Flato was not a hunchbacked dwarf, January 17, 2006.]</ref>

During the winter of 1932 he and homosexual author [[John Cheever]] rented Prescott Townsend's place in Provincetown, Massachusetts.<ref>''John Cheever: A Biography'', Scott Donaldson, 2002</ref> Flato submitted an article on Matthew Brady's Civil War photographs that was subsequently published in the Harvard University literary magazine Hound & Horn.<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2479/is_n4_v23/ai_18339989/print ''Afterimage'', "Scavenging the landscape: Walker Evans and American life," Melissa Rachleff, Jan-Feb 1996.]</ref> The article "Matthew B. Brady 1823-1896" was published in the October-December 1933 issue.<ref>''Afterimage'', "Scavenging the landscape: Walker Evans and American life," Melissa Rachleff, Jan-Feb 1996.</ref> In May 1935 Flato joined the Communist Party.<ref>[http://homepages.nyu.edu/~th15/gorskylist.html The Alger Hiss Story, "Gorsky's List", No. 72.]</ref> His party alias was C.D. Manchester.<ref>The Alger Hiss Story, "Gorsky's List", No. 72.</ref> He married [[Lucy Burman]] also a Communist Party member. From 1937 to 1941 Flato worked as an investigator and report writer for the [[Senate Subcommittee on Civil Liberties]] of the Labor Committee. Flato was employed by the United States government and spied for Soviet intelligence during [[World War II]]. He also served under [[Nelson Rockefeller]] in the Latin American division of the [[Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs]] during [[World War II]].  Flato worked in the Blockade and Supply Branch of the [[Board of Economic Warfare]] (BEW), the Senate Committee on Education and Labor chaired by Senator [[Robert M. La Follette, Jr.]], and the [[Foreign Economic Administration]].  

During the winter of 1932 he and homosexual author [[John Cheever]] rented Prescott Townsend's place in Provincetown, Massachusetts.<ref>''John Cheever: A Biography'', Scott Donaldson, 2002</ref> Flato submitted an article on Matthew Brady's Civil War photographs that was subsequently published in the Harvard University literary magazine Hound & Horn.<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2479/is_n4_v23/ai_18339989/print ''Afterimage'', "Scavenging the landscape: Walker Evans and American life," Melissa Rachleff, Jan-Feb 1996.]</ref> The article "Matthew B. Brady 1823-1896" was published in the October-December 1933 issue.<ref>''Afterimage'', "Scavenging the landscape: Walker Evans and American life," Melissa Rachleff, Jan-Feb 1996.</ref>One drawback to this article is that he credits Brady with all the Civil War photographs even though Brady often had others take the pictures for him.<ref>''Afterimage'', "Scavenging the landscape: Walker Evans and American life," Melissa Rachleff, Jan-Feb 1996.</ref> In May 1935 Flato joined the Communist Party.<ref>[http://homepages.nyu.edu/~th15/gorskylist.html The Alger Hiss Story, "Gorsky's List", No. 72.]</ref> His party alias was C.D. Manchester.<ref>The Alger Hiss Story, "Gorsky's List", No. 72.</ref> He married [[Lucy Burman]] also a Communist Party member. From 1937 to 1941 Flato worked as an investigator and report writer for the [[Senate Subcommittee on Civil Liberties]] of the Labor Committee. Flato was employed by the United States government and spied for Soviet intelligence during [[World War II]]. He also served under [[Nelson Rockefeller]] in the Latin American division of the [[Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs]] during [[World War II]].  Flato worked in the Blockade and Supply Branch of the [[Board of Economic Warfare]] (BEW), the Senate Committee on Education and Labor chaired by Senator [[Robert M. La Follette, Jr.]], and the [[Foreign Economic Administration]].  

Flato is mentioned in [[Venona]] transcript #588 of April 29, 1944. Flato's complicity in espionage was corroborated by information exhumed from the NKVD archives in the 1990s.  He was also a member of the “Sound” and “Myrna” groups. His codename in the Gorsky memo is "Bob".<ref>Alexander Vassiliev's original Russian hand-written notes titled [http://www.johnearlhaynes.org/page44.html#_ftnref48 "A.Gorsky's Report to S.R. Savchenko, 23 December 1949"].</ref> In another Venona transcript, he is believed to be codename "Char".

Flato is mentioned in [[Venona]] transcript #588 of April 29, 1944. Flato's complicity in espionage was corroborated by information exhumed from the NKVD archives in the 1990s.  He was also a member of the “Sound” and “Myrna” groups. His codename in the Gorsky memo is "Bob".<ref>Alexander Vassiliev's original Russian hand-written notes titled [http://www.johnearlhaynes.org/page44.html#_ftnref48 "A.Gorsky's Report to S.R. Savchenko, 23 December 1949"].</ref> In another Venona transcript, he is believed to be codename "Char".