Argo How the CIA and Hollywood Pulled Off the Most Audacious Rescue in History [Paperback]

The true account of a daring rescue that inspired the filmARGO, winner of the 2012 Academy Award for Best Picture

On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants stormed the American embassy in Tehran and captured dozens of American hostages, sparking a 444-day ordeal and a quake in global politics still reverberating today. But there is a little-known drama connected to the crisis: six Americans escaped. And a top-level CIA officer named Antonio Mendez devised an ingenious yet incredibly risky plan to rescue them before they were detected.

Disguising himself as a Hollywood producer, and supported by a cast of expert forgers, deep cover CIA operatives, foreign agents, and Hollywood special effects artists, Mendez traveled to Tehran under the guise of scouting locations for a fake science fiction film calledArgo. While pretending to find the perfect film backdrops, Mendez and a colleague succeeded in contacting the escapees, and smuggling them out of Iran.

Antonio Mendez finally details the extraordinarily complex and dangerous operation he led more than three decades ago. A riveting story of secret identities and international intrigue,Argois the gripping account of the history-making collusion between Hollywood and high-stakes espionage. 

“It’s a fast-paced, straight­forward, and gripping story full of drama and compelling characters….For history buffs and Affleck fans,ARGOthe book, provides added insight into a wild, if not widely known, incident in the history of American foreign policy and the CIA.”
—Boston Globe
 
“Besides being a talented spy, Mendez is also a gifted storyteller…His latest book is a page turner…”
—Associated Press
 
“Fascinating story…This book is an exciting read.”—Deseret News
 
“ARGOis a mesmerizinló.