Former CIA  Officers

Antonio and Jonna Mendez to be featured in third JPH Lecture

    Antonio J. Mendez, who was honored for his efforts in helping rescue six US diplomats who had been held hostage for 444 days in Iran, and his wife Jonna, also a former CIA officer, will be the featured speakers December 11, 2000 at North Arkansas College in the John Paul Hammerschmidt Lecture Series. The two, who were the subjects this past January of a three-part television special on the Discovery Channel titled "Masters of Deception," will speak at 7 p.m. in the first floor Conference Center of the JPH Business and Conference Center on Northark's South Campus. The lecture is open to the public free of charge.

    In his provocative book, Master of Disguise - My Secret Life in the CIA (William Morrow, 11/99), Tony Mendez shares with readers the creative and artistic talents he employed working as the Central Intelligence Agency's Chief of Disguise for 25 years. James Bond had "Q" and the CIA had Tony Mendez!

    With the approval of the CIA, Mendez talks about front line operations--operations that allowed operatives to cross borders, infiltrate countries and extract and rescue agents, undetected. In order to rescue the hostages in Iran, Mendez organized a fictitious Canadian Film production company, scripted a screenplay, hired cast and crew, scouted locations, and even opened a Hollywood production office to pull off his ruse. His new production was even featured in Variety and Hollywood Reporter and drew worldwide attention. The "Mission Impossible" - style scheme worked! He fooled Iranian fundamentalists and brought home the six Americans safe and sound. For his efforts, he was awarded the CIA's Intelligence Star.

    In their lecture at North Arkansas College, Tony and Jonna Mendez will share techniques, high-tech gadgetry and unbelievable tales that will inform, fascinate and intrigue. In a review of Tony's book, Robert M Gates, former director of the CIA, writes: "Tony Mendez has written a spell-binding memoir of secret CIA operations, and the Agency's unsung heroes of the Cold War, among whom he was one of the most imaginative and courageous. Put aside spy novels that bear no resemblance to reality, here is a gripping portrayal of the real world of intelligence operations by a man who was really there!"

    Tony and Jonna Mendez will present the third in a series of JPH Lectures. During the 1999-2000 academic year, area residents heard from former Astronaut/Cosmonaut Dr. Jerry Linenger and Sherpa mountain guide Jamling Norgay, star of the Imax film "Everest."