Born in Nevada, Tony Mendez moved to Colorado at age 14, attended the University of Colorado and worked for Martin Marietta on the Titan intercontinental missile, according to his online biography. He was recruited for the CIA in Denver through a blind ad. In less than two years, his biography says, he and his family had moved overseas while Mendez worked in South and Southeast Asia.
As a CIA agent, Mendez led the daring rescue of six U.S. diplomats from Iran in 1980. His story was immortalized in the 2012 movie “Argo.” Iran took over the U.S. embassy after their revolution in 1979. Mendez masterminded the escape of the U.S. citizens from the homes of two Canadian diplomats by passing them off as members of a film crew.
Mendez passed away in Frederick, MD at the age of 78 after suffering from Parkinson’s disease.