It was January 27, 1980, a Sunday
At 7:35 in the morning, a Swissair jet left Tehran airport with 6 very special passengers on board holding Canadian passports, apparently a Canadian film crew. But they were not Canadians, nor were they a film crew. They were in fact American diplomatic staff who had been employed at the US Embassy but who had been in hiding and sheltered by Canadian embassy staff.
At the time, Iran was in full-blown Islamic revolution fervour under the strict religious figure, Ayatollah Khomeini. Anti-US sentiment was at a fever pitch, and by extension so to was a general “anti-west” sentiment.
The previous year thousands of angry and chanting students and militants were in the streets. They had turned their anger on the American Embassy in Tehran and broken into the compound subsequently holding American staff hostage for three months (eventually six months) under harsh conditions. It became known as the Iran hostage crisis.
An attempted American rescue ended in a fiery fiasco in the Iranian desert and the deaths of eight members of the group of rescuers. Another subsequent rescue plan also ended in fiasco, but fortunately with no deaths.
“The CIA was a junior partner”– Ambassador Ken Taylor
All during that time however, six Americans who had managed to escape the embassy had been hiding out in the home of Canadian diplomat John Sheardown, under the added guidance of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor. In doing so, the Canadian diplomats and staff put themselves in a situation of extreme personal risk.
Unlike the popular 2012 film, Argo, the American government had no real understanding or knowledge of what was going on other than from information secretly supplied by Ken Taylor.
As the situation became even more confused and dangerous in Iran, the Canadian government decided it was time to try to smuggle the Americans out. The government passed a special “Order in Council” which allowed Canadian passports to be created and issued to the Americans.
Again, unlike the popular Hollywood version, CIA agent Mendez actually spent most of the time in Washington and Hollywood, and was only in Tehran for a day and a half. Also thanks to the Canadians, he and another agent along with the six US staff members successfully boarded a Swissair flight to Zurich posing as a film crew.
CBC TV NEWSCAST 1980
When “Argo” was premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, Ken Taylor wasn’t invited even though he was in Toronto at the time.
Taylor did see the film and was diplomatic but not pleased, “The movie’s fun, it’s thrilling, it’s pertinent, it’s timely,” he said. “But look, Canada was not merely standing around watching events take place. The CIA was a junior partner.”
He also expressed concern that many people will accept the Hollywood version as history.
Argo’s director and star Ben Affleck finally yielded to pressure and added a postscript to the film to give a little more credit to the Canadian effort.
In response to the Hollywood version, the National Film Board of Canada made a documentary to set the record straight, called “Our Man in Tehran” A television version was also made in 1981 called “Escape from Tehran” starring Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent.
After returning from Iran, Taylor was appointed as Consul-General in New York City. In 1980, he and his wife were made Officers in the Order of Canada, and he additionally received the US Congressional Gold Medal.
He later was a Chancellor at the University of Toronto, and still later, senior vice-president at RJR Nabisco.
Ken Taylor’s son reported on October 16, 2015 that his father had died in New York of cancer at age 81
As to the name of the American film “Argo” that apparently might have been taken from the name of the Swissair plane which flew the group out from Tehran. It was named Aargau, after a Swiss province.
YouTube trailer – Our Man in Tehran
Additional information- sources
- National Post : Joseph Brean- Oct 2015
- Global Affairs Canada- Taylor- crisis
- Canadian Enclyopaedia-
- Globe and Mail: Simon Houpt- film setting the record straight
Anniversary of the famous “Canadian Caper” rescue
It was January 28, 1980.
A Swissair jet left Tehran airport with 6 people on board holding Canadian passports, apparently a Canadian film crew. They were in fact American diplomatic staff who had been employed at the US Embassy but who had been in hiding and sheltered by Canadian embassy staff.
At the time, Iran was in full blown Islamic revolution fervour under Ayatollah Khomeini. Anti-US sentiment was at a fever pitch, and by extension “anti-west” sentiment.
Students and militants had overrun the American Embassy in Tehran the previous year and had been holding American staff hostage for three months (eventually six months) under harsh conditions in what became known as the Iran hostage crisis.
A later attempted American rescue ended in a fiery fiasco in the Iranian desert and the deaths of eight members of the group of rescuers. A subsequent different rescue plan also ended in fiasco, but with no deaths.
“The CIA was a junior partner”- Ambassador Ken Taylor
All during that time however, six Americans who had managed to escape the embassy had been hiding out in the home of Canadian diplomat John Sheardown, under the added guidance of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor. In doing so, the Canadian diplomats and staff put themselves in a situation of extreme personal risk.
Unlike the popular 2012 film, Argo, the American government had no real understanding or knowledge of what was going on, other than information secretly supplied by Ken Taylor.
As the situation became even more confused in Iran, the Canadian government decided it was time to try to smuggle the Americans out. The government passed a special “Order in Council” which allowed Canadian passports to be created and issued to the Americans.
Again, unlike the popular film, CIA agent Mendez actually spent most of the time in Washington and Hollywood, and was only in Tehran for a day and a half. Again thanks to the Canadians, he and another agent along with the six US staff members successfully boarded a Swissair flight to Zurich posing as a film crew.
When “Argo” was premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, Ken Taylor wasn’t invited even though he was in Toronto at the time.
Taylor saw the film and was diplomatic but not pleased, “The movie’s fun, it’s thrilling, it’s pertinent, it’s timely,” he said. “But look, Canada was not merely standing around watching events take place. The CIA was a junior partner.”
He also expressed concern that many people will accept the Hollywood version as history.
Argo’s director and star Ben Affleck finally yielded to pressure and added a postscript to the film to give a little more credit to the Canadian effort.
In response to the Hollywood version, the National Film Board of Canada made a documentary to set the record straight, called “Our Man in Tehran”
Ken Taylor’s son reported on October 16, 2015 that his father had died in New York of cancer at age 81
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