| Vendor | |
|---|---|
|
Fletcher Agency
Melissa Chinchillo |
| Original language | |
| English | |
| Weblink | |
| http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ … | |
ARGO
How The CIA and Hollywood Pulled Off The Most Audacious Rescue in History
A real-life thriller by former CIA Chief of Disguise about how the CIA faked a movie project to rescue diplomats from Tehran during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.
Warner Bros film adaptation goes into production this September, with Ben Affleck directing and starring as Tony Mendez, George Clooney producing. Film release: October 12, 2012.
Warner Bros film adaptation goes into production this September, with Ben Affleck directing and starring as Tony Mendez, George Clooney producing. Film release: October 12, 2012.
This is the daring story of a top-secret rescue mission in which Tony Mendez, then head of the CIA's Disguise Section, dreamt up and executed the most inventive and elaborate hoax to successfully rescue six diplomats trapped in Tehran.
He needed a reason for a disguised CIA rescue team to enter Iran during a time of dangerous political upheaval. He and his team created a fake, big-budget Hollywood movie project, called ARGO, and a production company, Studio Six Productions, so that they could disguise themselves as film producers scouting locations in Iran for their movie.
To build his cover, Mendez put $10,000 in a suitcase, flew to Los Angeles, and contacted his friend John Chambers, the veteran make-up artist who won a 1969 Academy Award for Planet of the Apes. Chambers had the key to making their fake movie credible-- a script for a film based on a science fiction novel, one that lent itself perfectly to Iran's rugged landscape. Mendez named the movie "Argo" after the ship used by Jason in his daring voyage across the world to retrieve the Golden Fleece. In four days, Mendez and his team created Studio Six Productions replete with an office space, workers, telephone lines, and business cards. They placed advertisements for their movie in "The Hollywood Reporter" and "Variety". With their cover story securely in place, Mendez and his team flew to Tehran to begin their rescue mission.
The film adaptation of ARGO was set up in 2007 with George Clooney and Grant Heslov. In 2011, Ben Affleck came aboard as director and lead actor. Both the film and the book are based on Tony Mendez's real-life experience.
TONY MENDEZ is the former chief of disguise for the CIA. A recipient of the CIA's Intelligence Star of Valor and the Trailblazer Award, he is the author of "The Master of Disguise" and "Spy Dust". He was a consultant for the television series "The Agency". Mendez helped design the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., where he is a founding board member.
He needed a reason for a disguised CIA rescue team to enter Iran during a time of dangerous political upheaval. He and his team created a fake, big-budget Hollywood movie project, called ARGO, and a production company, Studio Six Productions, so that they could disguise themselves as film producers scouting locations in Iran for their movie.
To build his cover, Mendez put $10,000 in a suitcase, flew to Los Angeles, and contacted his friend John Chambers, the veteran make-up artist who won a 1969 Academy Award for Planet of the Apes. Chambers had the key to making their fake movie credible-- a script for a film based on a science fiction novel, one that lent itself perfectly to Iran's rugged landscape. Mendez named the movie "Argo" after the ship used by Jason in his daring voyage across the world to retrieve the Golden Fleece. In four days, Mendez and his team created Studio Six Productions replete with an office space, workers, telephone lines, and business cards. They placed advertisements for their movie in "The Hollywood Reporter" and "Variety". With their cover story securely in place, Mendez and his team flew to Tehran to begin their rescue mission.
The film adaptation of ARGO was set up in 2007 with George Clooney and Grant Heslov. In 2011, Ben Affleck came aboard as director and lead actor. Both the film and the book are based on Tony Mendez's real-life experience.
TONY MENDEZ is the former chief of disguise for the CIA. A recipient of the CIA's Intelligence Star of Valor and the Trailblazer Award, he is the author of "The Master of Disguise" and "Spy Dust". He was a consultant for the television series "The Agency". Mendez helped design the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., where he is a founding board member.