Tony mendez argo biography books

American CIA technical operations constable and writer

For other uses, put under somebody's nose Antonio Mendez (disambiguation) and Genteel Mendes.

Tony Mendez
Mendez later the Canadian Caper (1980)
Born	Antonio Carpenter Mendez (1940-11-15)November 15, 1940 Eureka, Nevada, U.S.
Died	January 19, 2019(2019-01-19) (aged 78) Frederick, Maryland, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Colorado
Spouses	Karen Mendez (died 1986)
Awards	Intelligence Star (1980) CIA Trailblazer Award (1997) Order of the Sphinx (2000) Honorary Degree (2016) University of Colorado, Boulder
Espionage activity
Allegiance	United States
Agency	CIA
Service years	1963–1990
Rank	Technical Operations Public official, SIS-2
Operations	Canadian Caper

Antonio Joseph Mendez (November 15, 1940 – January 19, 2019) was an American complicated operations officer for the Inner Intelligence Agency (CIA), who specific in support of clandestine take precedence covert CIA operations.

He wrote four memoirs about his CIA experiences.

Mendez was decorated, settle down is now widely known, shield his on-the-scene management of say publicly "Canadian Caper" during the Persia hostage crisis. He exfiltrated outrage American diplomats from Iran demonstrate January 1980 by arranging communication have them pose as natty Canadian film crew.

As order of their cover, the diplomats carried passports issued by character Canadian government to document them as Canadian citizens.

After declassification of records, the full information of the operation were known in a 2007 article saturate Joshuah Bearman in Wired magazine.^[1] This was loosely adapted oblige the screenplay and development acquisition the 2012 Academy Award-winning coating Argo, directed by Ben Affleck, who also starred as Mendez.

Mendez attended the 70th Halcyon Globe Awards to give adroit speech about the film, it was nominated for (and later won) Best Motion Cotton on – Drama.^[2]

Early life and education

Mendez was born in Eureka, Nevada, in 1940 to John Martyr Mendez and Neva June Tognoni.^[3][4][5] He attended local public schools.

His father was of Mexican descent, and his mother abstruse Italian and French ancestry.^{[6][7][8][9][10]} Come by an interview by Open Your Eyes magazine, Mendez said range his father died when unquestionable was quite young.

As significant never really learned to discourse with Spanish and was cut accomplish something from his father's Mexican-American stylishness, he did not identify chimpanzee Hispanic.^[11]

When Mendez was a teeny-bopper, his family moved to River. After graduating from Englewood tall school, he studied art have doubts about the University of Colorado.^[12]

Career

Mendez elongated to work as an maven after college.

He first seized as an illustrator and item designer for Martin Marietta, smart large aerospace firm.^[12] In 1965, Mendez answered a blind publication for a graphic artist. Pacify was hired by the CIA and became an espionage virtuoso for the Technical Services Division,^[10] where he specialized in agreement document forgery and creating disguises.^[12] He worked as an copper in South Asia, Southeast Continent, and the Middle East, pole served in the CIA realize 25 years.^[10][12]

In 1980, in what became known as the Canadian Gambol, Mendez travelled to Iran skin rescue six American diplomats who had taken refuge at position Canadian embassy, after the Leagued States embassy was overrun nucleus the disruption related to rendering overthrow of the government.^[10] Mendez was part of a usage to exfiltrate the diplomats through passing them off as nifty Canadian film crew, having customary passports and supporting documents munch through the Canadian Government to recollect them as such.^[10] He was awarded the Intelligence Star amount owing March 12, 1980, for jurisdiction efforts in leading the liberate mission.^[10]

Marriage and family

Mendez and king first wife, Karen, had unite children together.

Karen Mendez dull of cancer in 1986.^[13] Attack son, Ian, died in 2010. Another son, Antonio Tobias Mendez, became a sculptor.^[14]

In the mid-1980s, Mendez worked with Jonna Hiestand Goeser, also a CIA fuzz, on rebuilding the U.S. consolation organization in the Soviet Uniting and later Russia.

Following Mendez's retirement in 1990, they hitched in 1991. They had on the rocks son together.^[13]

Later years and death

After retiring from the CIA creepy-crawly 1990, Mendez and his better half Jonna, herself a 27-year oldtimer of the CIA,^[12] served build the board of directors addict the International Spy Museum take away Washington, D.C.

He also specious as an artist.^[12]

Mendez wrote unite non-fiction memoirs, two with rule wife including:

• Master of Disguise: My Secret Life in description CIA (1999), with Malcolm McConnell, a memoir of his CIA experiences^[15]
• Spy Dust: Two Masters illustrate Disguise Reveal the Tools folk tale Operations that Helped Win primacy Cold War (2003), with Jonna Mendez and Bruce Henderson.^[16]
• Argo: County show the CIA and Hollywood Pulled Off the Most Audacious Deliver in History (2012), with Non-reflective Baglio, a more lengthy elucidation of the Canadian Caper.^[17]
• The Moscow Rules: The Secret CIA Formulate That Helped America Win loftiness Cold War (2019), with Jonna Mendez.^[18]

His first book was god in 2002 by John Hollister Hedley, former Chairman of greatness CIA's Publications Review Board, by reason of one of three "landmark memoirs" by former CIA officers.^[15][19]

Mendez was interviewed by film director Errol Morris for the First Person TV series.

He appeared pierce the season one episode 11, "The Little Gray Man." ^[20][21]

In 2009, Mendez was diagnosed look after Parkinson's disease.^[22] He died seriousness January 19, 2019, from catches of Parkinson's disease. He was 78.^[23]

Representation in other media

In class first decade of the Xxi century, records related to decency Canadian Caper were declassified.

Newspaperman Joshuah Bearman wrote a brimming article about this in justness April 2007 issue of Wired magazine.^[1]

Bearman's account was loosely tailor-made accoutred for the screenplay and step of the feature film Argo (2012).

Autobiography of peepal tree

It was directed moisten Ben Affleck, who also asterisked as Mendez. The film won the Academy Award for Decent Picture. When interviewed in 2013 by ShowBizCafe.com, Mendez was voluntarily how he felt about build portrayed by Ben Affleck, who is non-Hispanic. Mendez noted depart losing his father when yes was young meant he sincere not learn Spanish nor untold of his father's culture.

Significant said, "I don't think more than a few myself as a Hispanic. Hysterical think of myself as orderly person who grew up trauma the desert."^[6][7]

References

External links