Hostages and diplomats to often using video recorded inside the mc compound by iranians. It is narrated by actor William Shatner and is available and is about 90 minutes. Narrator november 4, 1979, iranian students storm the embassy of the United States of america in tehran. Everybody thinks it will be an overnight affair, but it will not. Narrator this is the story of a traumatic crisis that lasted 444 days and ended in january 1981, a personal drama about 51 american men and two american women. We look forward to being with you hopefully, as soon as we , can. Narrator their crime was being associated with the u. S. Embassy in tehran, the punishment was total incarceration. We are happy to see someone from the outside world. Narrator this will be an inside view, with exclusive iranian shot footage never seen before. When did you arrive in iran . I arrived on september 19, 1979. I am a planner for the u. S. Navy. I think today is the 19th of january. Your name and your job. I was the attache at the u. S. Embassy. Narrator this is what really happened as told by fugitive and captive americans, including the head of the u. S. Embassy, bruce lange. Our story starts at the white house on october 22, 1979. Day minus 14, u. S. President jimmy carter believing the shah of iran needed medical tests and treatment, allowed him to enter the United States. President carter it was the right thing to do, and it was at the end of an almost full year of good relations with iran. Narrator eight months earlier, the Ayatollah Khomeini had returned home from exile in france. Although provisional government existed, he became the supreme power in the country. His triumphant return was treated like the Second Coming of mohammed. The ayatollahs campaign to transform iran into an Islamic Republic began. The first target was the shah, tried in absentia and the sentence was death. For 37 years, he was killing our people. 7000 people died in this country. Narrator this deep hatred for the shah was well known to the American Government. The fact that u. S. Had supported the shah prior to the revolution made the embassy in tehran a highrisk posting. The u. S. Man on the spot was bruce lange. He felt strongly that u. S. Should not admit the shah and explained why in a topsecret letter to the state department. I thought until the revolution had put its own institutions of government in place and we had put an ambassador in place and signaled in that way our acceptance of the revolution that it would be dangerous to proceed with his admission. Narrator jimmy carters decision to admit the shah and incensed the iranian public. There were daily demonstrations outside the main gates of the u. S. Embassy compound. Inside, security had already been beefed up to protect a reduced staff of 70. The embassys agricultural attache on november 4, 1979, he was leaving the Embassy Grounds for his office off the compound a block and a half away. As i walked out of the chancellery that morning there , was chanting out front. We knew it was a celebration that one year previous students hs been shot but the sha people in the streets. On that particular morning, we did not perceive more threat than usual. Narrator however, he was concerned about security for the compound, so he went to the Iranian Foreign ministry to ask for more protection. With him was his political officer dick thompson. The reaction generally when we asked for increased protection was one of sympathy. Narrator while iranian diplomat at the Foreign Ministry sympathized with the americans, a mile away at the embassy, hundreds of students were swarming around the main gates. Just before 11 00 a. M. , the attack began. They were over the walls, the chain on the main gate was cut. This was filmed by a student, here showing the motor pool area being overrun. The motor pool was behind the main gates of the Embassy Compound. To the right was the chancery, the operational hub of the Embassy Housing the sensitive communication systems. Way behind the chancery, past some fields and bungalows was the twostory consular building where visas were issued, completely sealed off from the rest of the compound. The students apparently knew that the 13 marines in the compound had Standing Orders not to shoot, but to make sure, the women led the assault. As the attackers overran the motor pool area, marine Sergeant Jimmy lopez stationed at the consular building in the rear of the compound heard the news on his walkietalkie. That happened so fast as soon i heard the transmission, i got up and looked in my little peephole behind me and there were already people running on the compound. The heavy front doors have been bolted shut. Inside were 45 americans plus iranian staff and citizens. Visitors. The marine guards fired tear gas to buy time. When it was realized help was not coming, one of the chancery Security Officers went outside to try to persuade the students to leave. He was immediately captured. The iranians had radios, the net was full of garbage, they were jamming transmissions. The land lines, the telephones were impossible to get through because by that time the basement had been taken. Narrator the students broke in by breaking a basement window. This was all watched from the safety of his office from the compound. He was in radio contact with the this each diplomats on the secondfloor floor of the chancery. Letting him know what was occurring on the roof of the embassy, people very early on managed to get on the roof, were cutting cables, taking down antennas, pulling down the american flag. Narrator the students now threatened to shoot the captured americans. This Security Camera relayed the chilling scene inside the chancery. The people in the chancery had been told was the students just wanted them to come out and they would hold them for an hour or two. They were trying to make a statement about the shah being allowed into the u. S. And continuing to stay in the u. S. We are not with ordinary people, american officials. We are opposite to your government. Narrator with no help coming, the staff retreated floor by floor. One american went out and he was immediately blindfolded and bound and threatened with death. The americans surrendered. While this was happening, 10 americans had locked themselves in the security vault, shredding confidential documents on the orders of bruce langan at the Iranian Foreign ministry and it given orders to start shredding via radio. There were people outside the vault door itself. We instructed the people to stall that as long as they could in order to complete the Destruction Program in the vault. But when they reported they had done that, we told them to go ahead and surrender. Narrator there were still many secret documents locked away in bruce langans office, and he had the key. Later this would come to haunt the americans. None of these details were known to the other americans hiding on the other side of the compound, which was walled off from the rest of the grounds. All they knew was the chancery had been overrun. The head of the consular section, Dick Moorefield. Was clear thatt help was not going to be coming from the iranians. We heard people on the roof and began to smell smoke as they burned their way through the ceiling. Narrator somebody then threw a brick for the washroom window. Consul bob anders or the crash. They put a ladder to the window and demonstrators tried to come in. I kicked open the door and came in so quickly, screaming my full head off, i shocked the iranian coming to the window in a bit of a panic, didnt know what to do because he saw made walking towards him with the business end of a gas grenade facing him and gary lee standing behind me with a shotgun, and he proceeded to scramble out the window as fast as possible. I popped a grenade and was getting ready to throw it out the window, and then this head on the other side looked up to see if the coast was clear, and the grenade chose that moment to go off right in his face. Narrator meanwhile, in the chancery, the captured americans , blindfolded and bound, were being taken to the ambassadors residence. The students started playing russian roulette with the women hostages to learn the combinations to bruce langans safe. At the same time, in the back of the compound, 12 americans and some iranians were preparing to leave the consular building. Fortunately for us, the terrorists had not blocked the street entrance. The consulate building, unlike the chancery, has a direct door onto the back street. I asked rich queen to open the door and start the scattering process. So i opened it up and there were three or four dressed as National Police and the revolutionary guard actually it i said how are you in farsi. I said we are leaving the building. He said ok. At that time people started to file out. Narrator the americans split into two parties, six in one group, led by the consular Dick Moorefield. We got another block or so, a group of eight or nine young militants ran up and surrounded us and said we were hostage, and at first i didnt catch that. I said youve got the building, do whatever you want. Burn it down. They said, no, you dont understand. You are hostage. He said keep on walking, dont stop, dont talk. Just walk straight. As we started to walk off, the young man fired a shot. They surrounded us saying cia, cia, etc. Some other nonsense. The guard started frisking me for weapons. He found a radio and started to walk off with it. He was going to take the radio. I said excuse me. He turned around and i smiled and used hand gestures to confuse him, grabbed the radio, grabbed the bottom smashed it on , the wall and destroyed about 4000 worth of electrical equipment, and i handed the shattered components back to him and said, now you can have it. Narrator the second escaping group. These five americans, led by bob anders had taken a different route and were on their way to the British Embassy, a standard contingency plan, but the route became blocked by demonstrators. At that bob said i am going point home. We said we are going with you. We just wanted to get off the street because i noticed at least it seemed like some people were starting to stare at us. Narrator the relative safety of bobs apartment was only four blocks away, but across the street from it was revolutionary Committee Headquarters. When we came to the street where the Committee Headquarters was, we crossed it and peered around the corner to see if anyone was looking and then make a mad dash for the building on the other side, and we did that one after the other and made it into bobs apartment, which was quite a relief, i think, for all of us. As soon as we got in there, we got on the telephone and on the radio. Everyone in our embassy had two way radios. We were trying to call different apartments and couldnt get answers anywhere. I became convinced we were the only ones able to get out. Narrator he was right. Back at the main gates of the embassy, the other captured group was being forced back to the motor pool area. By now it was Late Afternoon in tehran and the hostages were split into small groups. Moorefield and his colleagues were about to join them. They escorted us to the ambassadors house. While we were there they separated us. My hands are bound with a nylon cord which cut off the circulation after while. Our hands were tied to the chairs and our feet were tied to the feet of the chair, and at which time they went through the show of questioning us before the cameras this young man had. There is one american who shall remain nameless who was telling the iranians who each american was, giving them information. He should have been shot for that, but i dont set policy. Narrator back in washington, d. C. , the state department set up a fully functioning iran working desk within hours of the takeover. Although concerned, secretary of state cyrus vance and officials were sure the iranian government would eventually come to the rescue. By now it was getting dark in tehran and started to rain. The embassys takeover made for an evenings entertainment, whole families came to the embassy and chanted death to america. Death to the shah. Meanwhile, bruce was still at the Foreign Ministry and told them to take sanctuary in the Swedish Embassy upstairs. I walked up the stairs to the Swedish Embassys office suite and they were expecting me. Narrator at the foreign minister met with him. He told the diplomats he would speak to the revolutionary counsel that night and assured them the crisis would soon be resolved. He asked me where i proposed to spend the night and i said, well, that is your responsibility, mr. Foreign minister. I am here with the assurance your government will provide protection for me in my mission. It is your responsibility. Can you assure me i will be safe on the streets . Obviously you cannot. He just wanted us to go away. His attitude was i have enough headaches. Your people are just making my life more complicated than it need be. Narrator so they were then taken to an ornate ballroom used for diplomatic receptions. They demanded telephones. They were taken in and plugged into the ballroom, so we were able to continue our discussion with washington on one of the lines, and use the other phone to make local calls. It was an uncomfortable, worrisome night. We could not accept with assurance what he told us. Clearly we hoped what he told us would be true by morning, but we had no assurance of that and we were very skeptical. Narrator meanwhile at the Swedish Embassy, the end of day one of the hostage crisis left lee with nowhere to go, so he stayed the night in the embassy. He was at least more comfortable than his 63 captured colleagues. We were sure this would be over in a day at most. Narrator day one of the 444day hostage crisis was finally over. Narrator as day two dawned, lee continued to monitor the compound from his viewpoint in the Swedish Embassy. A mullah showed up. Inside the grounds. Narrator he was no less than the son of the Ayatollah Khomeini. If he had told him to release the hostages, there is no doubt they would have, but he didnt. Instead he gave him the ayatollahs support. Most of the militants were students, mainly from tehran university. They were zealots and conservative shiite muslims, the dominant faith of iran. They were angry at the government for maintaining normal relations with the United States, so in october, 1979, 30 or 40 of them met to plan in action, against the iranian government and the United States. Incredible as it sounds, the siege of the u. S. Embassy was only supposed to last three to five days. When the government proved incapable of stopping the students and the ayatollah signaled his support publicly, the students found they had started something worth continuing. With massive popular support, including elements of the military, they demanded the return of the shah as a way to end the takeover. The hostages are here because this is the only thing we can have here against america, and we tell them we do have the hostages until they send the shah here. The iranians were looking for some people by name, and the word came back to the Swedish Embassy that my name happened to be one of them. Narrator the person whod then gave sanctuary to him was a scandinavian friend of his. She worked in the Swedish Embassy. I was taken to a private residence and spent the next two weeks in that residence day and night. Narrator that same day, a u. S. Information Cultural Agency called the iranianamerican society was being overrun. The director was kate colb. They escaped the students and were given sanctuary by the germans in their cultural center. The germans were absolutely fantastic. They not only provided us a safe space to get to immediately, but were willing to take us into their homes if we needed a deep cover. Narrator but they made the biggest mistake of their lives. They returned after hearing that the militants had left. There they were joined by the person who had been at the tehran airport during the takeover. Within 15 minutes of return, they were all captured. All three of them were being taken to the Embassy Compound to join the other people being held hostage there. At that point we realized we had to do something about the other five. Narrator the five consular staff were the only americans now out. They still trusted the Iranian Foreign ministry enough to tell them the six were free. When we first learned that the six were free in the city, we had informed the Foreign Ministry at the level we thought appropriate and sought their assistance. I said in effect that you should be aware that there are several people who were not caught by the student militants who are presently in tehran. Narrator it has never been revealed before that the Iranian ForeignMinistry Officials knew that the six americans were free. It is possible that 20, 30, more people knew. Narrator later on november 5, terms were set for the five to be picked up by British Embassy staff. The british had a housing compound in the northern part of the city. They put them up there. Narrator while they were safe behind the gates of the british compound, for kate, it was the start of 14 months of captivity. When we arrived at the Embassy Compound, we were separated and searched. The young woman who did my search was a real novice and she just sort of patted a little bit here and there and was terribly embarrassed when she had asked me to take off my dress. So she did her job and left. Evidently she described what she had done because she came back a few minutes later and they said i didnt do a good job and i have to do it over. One of my colleagues has said at some point it was like teaching hostage 101 sometimes. The blindfolds were removed, we were tied to chairs, wrists bound to chairs, then they said no talking. Narrator the hostages would not be allowed to talk for four and a half months. They were separated and placed in the ambassadors residence and elsewhere on the compound. The seven captured women were segregated from the men. They ransacked the place, destroying papers, ripping up the books, just mass destruction, destruction for the sake of destruction. Narrator the students were convinced most of the americans were spies and tore the place apart in search of evidence. One suspect was kate, and they kept her apart from the others. They accused me of spying and all kinds of things. They said give us your jewelry. One of our experts will examine it. My first reaction was if you think youre going to get much ransom out of this, think again. I pulled off my rings and bracelets and i was handing it to him and i realized they were looking at it for value. They were looking at it as if it were going to hold some sort of wondrous mysterious something or other. I am not sure what. Narrator as the days passed, the iranian students claimed they found proof of spying. We know there is spying because we have the documents. One document outlined a cover identity for a cia official. Fake passports were also found, along with lists of iranian contacts, false license plates for agents vehicles, and many payoff envelopes with hundreds of used dollar bills. The United States government, if it does not reply to the iranian peoples request, we will begin the trials and carry out the sentences. Narrator these discoveries gave the iranian students the leverage they needed. They had delivered to the iranian people evidence that the hostages were spies, not diplomats. The Prime Minister was powerless. The provisional revolutionary government also resigned that day. At that point, i think we began to think this was not going to be resolved immediately. When the provisional government fell and power default to the revolutionary council, the students, in the streets my capacity to function was severely limited. It was very clear very quickly that those who held power were very reluctant to speak to us, to sully their reputations politically, if you will. Narrator one of the casualties of the governments collapse was the person who was replaced as foreign minister. He initially sided with the students and their demands. President carter would formally reject the request to return the shah. President carter the United States will not yield to International Terrorism or to blackmail. Narrator the hostages remained at the mercy of the militants and the crisis became carters personal nightmare. That not, the second night, i was allowed to lie down, bound hand and foot, and in the middle of the night, someone came up and tapped me on the shoulder and whispered, are you mr. Moorefield . I said i was. They said, come with me. They untied my feet but left my hands tied, put a blanket over my head and took me away from the Embassy Compound. A number of automobile changes, my moving from one car to another, and eventually i ended up i think in a student dorm. Narrator moorefield and five others had been spirited out of the embassy to act as hostages for the hostages in case the iranian government attempted to rescue them. He was then terrorized. In the back of my head i heard the rifles being loaded, the bolt, the click of the trigger on an empty chamber. I think it was clearly intended to intimidate us at that time. For me, it was also an indication i might not get out and i was likely to be there for a long time. Narrator as chaos reigned, fear spread throughout the foreign community. U. S. Businessmen fled iran, taking flights to anywhere. For the british hiding the fugitive americans, anxiety grew that their residential compound might be attacked, so the British Ambassador phoned the Iranian Foreign ministry. He suggested it might not be safe to keep the five people they had in their housing compound much longer. One of the british officers came and informed us that we were going to have to leave. We were somewhat surprised and perhaps even a little shocked at this, because we felt this was a good place to wait out the whole thing. Narrator the five had nowhere to go, so they turned to dichter thompson for help. He called this man, a thai cook who worked for kate cobe and lived in her house. He would become their link to freedom. I turned to him to see if he would be willing to help these people out, speaking to him in thai, which we were pretty sure the iranians would not understand. They told me to find a place for five of them to stay. Then i decided and i told them the house. They said good. That was a good location. Narrator for the next five days the americans hid in this house of hostage john graves, listening to the news on tv and radio. When they heard a Diplomatic Mission from the states led by ramsey clark had failed to meet with the Ayatollah Khomeini, their anxiety to fear turned to panic. In one week, the most powerful nation in the world had been unable to help its hostage. When we lost contact with vic about wednesday or thursday, the Foreign Ministry no longer allowed our phone calls to go through. We were on our own at a house leased by the embassy and one that could be traced by records that were at the embassy. I decided to tell them they better move to another house. And he took us to kate cobes house, a couple of blocks away, in a car driven by an iranian friend of his who he trusted. It was right up against the street. We could not go in the kitchen without risking being seen by any person walking down the sidewalk. I think we decided within a few minutes that this was not an acceptable hiding place. I thought it would be a good idea to do something i had in the back of my mind all the time, and that was to call my good friend from the Canadian Embassy. The phone rang, and i got up to answer it and found it was bob anders. John said to me, well, why didnt you call sooner . Come over here. You can stay with us. I immediately felt very relieved about that. Narrator the offer of sanctuary by the canadian first secretary and his british wife was a turning point for the americans. Zena though, did not have diplomatic immunity. Her decision to take in the americans was particularly courageous. Narrator at the Canadian Embassy in tehran, the secretary told his boss, ambassador kim taylor, about the fugitive americans. I was delighted to hear that some had made their way out and we were in position to be of some help to them. Narrator taylor cabled ottowa about the americans on the run. Despite the risks, he recommended canada officially sanctioned their offer of refuge, but the final decision rested with the canadian minister of external affairs, flora macdonald. She and her Prime Minister joe clark decided that ca canada would help, unlike new zealand sweden, britain, who had turned , down the last request for sanctuary. In tehran the five americans were picked up by two British Embassy cars and taken to the residence. We were then told we would not be able to stay together, that two of our party would have to go with ambassador taylor. The presence of two of our group in his own home would make the point this was an official act of canadian policy and not just an independent undertaking by john. So cora and mark lijak, along with counsel bob anders, stayed from november 10 at the house. Joe and Kathy Stafford stayed at ambassador kim taylors house. That same day a few european diplomats were escorted into the embassy to see the hostages. They only saw some and reported they were being well treated. Others, however, were being terrorized. They grabbed us, blindfolded us, took us outside, lined us against the wall, and slammed you against the wall. You put your hands up against the wall and we could hear them walking in the back. They pushed me against the wall, like this. And it was like, holy shit, what is going down . I thought for sure we were going to be executed. I was sure of it. And next thing i know, they started chambering rounds behind us, and all of a sudden the temperature dropped about another 30 degrees. And it got real cold. I was just waiting for what i thought would be a loud crash, and everything to fade out, and that would be the end of life. Waiting for it, and this really morbid curiosity overtook me, wondering, would i feel it . How long would the pain last . Would everything go slow motion . Would it be just like being hit in the head by a two by four and then blackness and then light at the end of the tunnel . Nothing else could be done. And actually the person at the door said ok, and closed the door. And we were alone and looked at each other and said, what the hell was that . And it was over. Narrator back in the u. S. , bewilderment turned to anger. Any iranian on the street could become a target. Jimmy carter chose to hit back at iran through economic measures. President carter no one should underestimate the resolve of the American Government and the American People in this matter. Narrator on november 12, he cut off oil imports from iran and then froze iranian assets in u. S. Banks. Despite this, on november 18, after help from the plos yasser arafat, the ayatollah ordered the release of three hostages. The most difficult part was sitting in a chair 16 hours a day with your arms tied to the arms of the chair. Narrator their release was followed two days later by 10 more hostages being freed, four women and six blacks. This was the first time they had seen each other since the takeover. Their release came as a complete surprise to them. They were taken to the tehran s airport, where they gave a press conference. There are some still being held hostage. They are keith koob. Elizabeth swift. Keith koob is an officer, and she is an officer. Elizabeth swift is a critical officer. Narrator the news of their release took three months to reach and swift and kate cobe, who were kept in total isolation in the embassy. In february when i found out that they had been released, that day was a day of euphoria. It was the next best thing to being sent home myself. Narrator the freed americans did not speak publicly about their experiences because the ayatollah was now threatening to try the remaining hostages as spies. We have found no evidence that proves these people are diplomats. All evidence proves that these people are spies. The date of the trials are not faked because we believe the United States must return the shah. Narrator as with any foreign embassy, information gathering is of prime importance. The iranians claimed there were at least three cia operatives among the 53 hostages. These documents and forged passports purport to show the undercover identities of the agencies. This embassy staffer, thomas harrop, ohara had no less , than three different aliases, with passports for each. Born in belgium, july 8, 1934. Your cover occupation is a commercial business representative. Narrator these developments caused great concern to the swedish ambassador who was hiding lee schatz. The ambassador needed help and confided in canadian ambassador ken taylor. The conversation opened by saying it was appropriate that we could possibly offer some help since he could easily be seen as a canadian. My response was that while possibly of course we could since we already have five, i am not realizing that he did not realizing he had the five. I think he was as astounded as i was. Ambassador taylor arranged that i meet with someone who knew both of us and who would take us to where lee was staying. Two people came in the door, one who i had never met before. The only thing i could think of was, wow, i finally met someone from the cia. When we got to the house, i was first of all unaware until that trip that it was the canadians that the other people were with. I purposely didnt say anything because i wanted to keep this as a surprise. Im sure the first thing we did was sit down and have a drink. Narrator back home in idaho, lee shatz was front page news. The state department told his mother he was safe, but forgot to tell her not to tell the press. In washington and new york, other american journalists were also aware that some americans had escaped the takeover. But the white house asked for a publication freeze, and they all agreed to it. For sun chai, that silence saved his life because militants were checking homes of hostages and found one at kate cobes house. One guy put his gun to my stomach and said, where is the americans, where is the americans . I said, i work with the americans but my boss is at the embassy already. There are no americans around here. If i hide the American People they would kill me. Left. Is why narrator he is an unsung hero of the u. S. Hostage crisis. He spent the next 18 months in hiding, living in the basements of friends homes, coming out only at night to find food and fresh air. In a more restrictive situation, were the 53 hostages, most of whom had been moved to a storage warehouse they called the mushroom inn. In this windowless environment, they were incarcerated for many months. When you are locked in there, it is like a bank vault. Not only didnt you see the sun, but you were completely cut off from the world. It was quiet all the time. Even the birds didnt sing. It was just the growing silence roaring silence. Narrator many hostages spent up to half a year here, two to a room under 24 hour surveillance. Talking was forbidden. Night time was when they flipped off the lights and daytime was when they turned on the lights. That was day and that was night. That was it. The only time we saw the sun was when we were taken outside for about 20 minutes to exercise, walk around, and it was just such a tremendous feeling to be able to not only see the outside, to feel a breeze, but to hear the birds, to hear the traffic, just to hear car horns, it was a really exhilarating feeling to go outside. Narrator back at the Foreign Ministry, life was at least bearable. Three hostages went into the ballroom, but were still prisoners. These pictures taken by other diplomats show the room they lived in. We had two means of communicating written messages, one very much aboveboard and the other not. The first was via the Iranian Foreign ministry tellex to the embassy in washington, which in turn passed them on to the state department. The other method was to give messages to various visitors who came to see us. Narrator these visitors relayed information about the hostages condition to bruce langan. The particular burden that rested on the three of us in the first days and throughout the appreciation the and the realization we could do so little to help our colleagues in the compound. We had no leverage, nothing we could do about our colleagues. Narrator by december, foreign minister banisadr was himself replaced and the negotiations stalled again. We are not bound to accept the arbitrary decision by anyone on the face of the earth. President carter for Government Action to support and in effect participate in the taking and holding of hostages is unprecedented in human history. Narrator jimmy carter then ordered most of irans diplomats out of the u. S. The following day, december 13, the shah left for panama. It was hoped his departure would bring the crisis to an end, but it did not. However, in iran, government officials did allow the three americans held in the Foreign Ministry to see other diplomats, one of whom was kim taylor. Kim taylor i think brought us some aftershave lotion, which turned out to be scotch, a tradition that was subsequently followed by the swiss. Kim taylor told us he was in very close and continuing contact with ottawa and washington on a plan that was evolving, but he did not share with us any specifics. Narrator the six houseguests in hiding with the canadians knew nothing of these plans. They had settled into a daily routine of playing scrabble, listening to the news, reading and drinking more than they ever had before. We were the kids and john was big daddy and we waited for him to come home every night because he always had something of interest, hopefully something of interest for us to hear about. Narrator the news they wanted to hear was that the crisis would be over by christmas, but it was not to be. However, their canadian hosts made christmas 1979 a real high for the six fugitive americans. In many ways, its the best christmas i ever had. We had a really, really good christmas, a lot better than our friends did. And i guess that was something that we always had to think about, even when we were bummed out and depressed. We knew that we were always better than our friends were. [silent night being sung] narrator the militants allowed three american clergymen to celebrate christmas with the hostages. Sleep in heavenly peace. I saw the film of that first christmas, and it looked so nice. You are sitting on the couch, all these cookies and candy in front of you, this preacher sitting there, these iranian guards holding your hands and being nice and smiling, while behind the camera, there are these people with weapons pointing at you. [laughter] it was great. One guy sat in back twirling a six shooter. That first christmas, we were not permitted to say anything on camera. There was a camera there. I chose to ignore signs, posters, cameras, and everything. Not only was it spiritually uplifting at christmas, extremely so, but at the same time it also brought back memories much more poignantly, very poignant memories about past christmases. The contrast was pretty profound. I was so livid that i was really impolite to the minister who came. I was in no condition to think about peace on earth, goodwill toward men that night. Glory to the newborn king. Narrator in the United States it was a painful christmas for the families of the hostages, including the parents of jimmy lopez. Special services were held in churches and cathedrals across the country. Marcy lopez, jimmys sister, symbolized the nations anguish. I know he is ok and that he is not being treated wrong. I would do anything to get him home. And i guess that is the whole worlds goal. Narrator the hostages are pushed from the headlines by the soviet invasion of afghanistan. [explosions] but six days later the hostages are back in the news as the u. N. Secretarygeneral arrives in to negotiate an end to the hostage crisis. After nearly escaping a rampaging mob. Meeting with government officials, sympathizing with the victims of the shahs secret police, he was finally rebuffed by the ayatollah. The mission collapsed. The news unsettled the six americans staying with the canadians. We felt so much time had passed, our problem was a separate one from the other hostages for a variety of reasons, and that some consideration should be given to active plans for getting us out. Narrator unknown to the six, not only were the canadians making plans to get them home, but at least one member of kim taylors staff, Sergeant Jimmy edwards, was gathering information for the u. S. Military. He was eventually captured inside the u. S. Embassy compound by iranian militants while attempting to find out exactly where the hostages were. He was taken to the embassy guardhouse, questioned and released after he told the students he was only collecting posters for his collection. Some posters he needed, he said, were stuck only on the inside of the walls. Ambassador kim taylor quickly sent him to canada, where he received two decorations for bravery. The information collected inside the embassy by the canadians was transmitted to the cia and state department. It was used later by the pentagon in planning for operation eagle claw, the American Rescue mission. They attempted to gauge whether or not a socalled commando raid would be plausible. This was a collective effort. Narrator at the same time, the canadian government in ottawa provided bogus passports for the six american houseguests. The other vital documents such as false drivers licenses came from provincial governments of ontario and alberta. Then, at the cia headquarters in langley, virginia, six canadian passports were doctored with the necessary stamps, visas, and photos of the six americans. The passports arrived in tehran by diplomatic courier. Canadian first secretary roger lucy, who understood farsi, inspected the passports for errors. There was a mistake. There was one date that had inadvertently been set ahead. Narrator the cia had mistakenly the date the six americans were meant to have arrived in tehran. The date they had forged showed the six leaving iran before they had arrived. This error was rectified by a cia agent whom jimmy carter had sent to iran to assist in the canadian caper. We were given Background Information on canada because they were quite literate tour next door neighbor to the north. Learning to say eh, and eating with our left hand. I had to find out it was actually torono, canada, instead of toronto, canada. All of us were part of a Canadian Business venture, checking out the situation in iran. That is why we supposedly were there. We were given new names and dates of birth and that kind of stuff, and asked to start learning who we were going to be. Narrator by january 27, nearly all the Canadian Embassy staff, including john and zena sheerdown, had left tehran, supposedly on holiday. It had been decided the escape from iran was to take place on january 28, during iranian elections. The americans made their way to the airport in our office cars as friends of mine. When you are in the car and it is dark and you are just driving, i began to imagine all sorts of terrible things that were going to happen when we got there. I was wearing dark glasses. I think i used a little Eyebrow Pencil to darken my eyebrows, i cut my hair in a little different way, and the girls changed their hairdos. To walk into a crowded airport lobby was very scary. It felt very strange. But after we stood there for a minute or so, then it was ok. But that made me very nervous. Normally the man stood there, took your passport, stamped it, and you were on your way. That particular morning, there for some reason was a change. He took my passport, looked at it, and stepped into a side room. Narrator three long minutes later, he returned. He looked at me and in broken english said, is this you . And it was a very stern picture, no smile. That morning i was trying to be as cheerful as i could when i was talking to any of the officials. And i got a very stern look on my face, pulled down my mustache and said, yes. He smiled and i smiled, he handed me my passport, and on i went. That is the point where you really begin anticipating, you are so close and yet there are vital things to do. And going on board and sitting down was just that much closer. And mentally, i think we were counting down the minutes, and fortunately once we were on board, the takeoff was almost immediate. We leaned down the aisle and looked at each other and it was a knowing look, a smile on his face and we were really very happy. As we coasted to the mountains as we pulled over the turkish border, it was obviously the high point of the trip, so good to finally be out of there. Finally we landed in frankfurt, and back in the real world. And it was a great, great feeling to be out of that situation. We both kind of looked at each other and just in unison, stomped our feet on the ground one more time, and it was over for us. Narrator the four remaining canadians closed the embassy and took the next flight out of iran. The escape of the six americans was supposed to be kept a secret but canadian journalists broke the story on the morning of january 29. It was called the canadian caper and became one of the few Bright Moments in the long months of the iranian hostage crisis. The six flew home to a heros welcome. [applause] we walked into the lobby of the state department and it was filled with people. I was totally overwhelmed. That is the closest i have ever really come to crying in public. There was so much emotion there. [applause] sooner or later, here or anywhere in the world, canada will pay for this violation of the sovereignty of iran. Narrator after the iranian elections, the new president , banisadr, started secret negotiations with the americans. It was through two lawyers in france. The talks led to a scenario for transferring the hostages from the student militants to the iranian government, which in turn would release the hostages to the americans. How nice of you to come. Thank you very much. Narrator it was also agreed the hostages could be visited. I was praying we could have a chat. Thank you. You are sick . I was. You dont look they had us cleaned up. The plan was for them to report being mistreated, a practiced opposed by islamic law. That would give the ayatollah a reason to have been transferred to the iranian government. The glasses, we have not been able to find them. It has been going on since january. You can see my eyes. In return for transferring the hostages, the United Nations agreed to set up an inquiry. The commission came and everything went according to ayatollahthen the changed his mind. On march 11, the u. N. Commission left iran. The agreement had collapsed and it was obvious the government had no real power. To add to the United States problems, the shaw who was now in panama and threatened with deportation to iran took up president carters promise that he could return to the u. S. That he would have to abdicate the Peacock Throne first. This, the shawl refused to do. To bew to egypt which was the last flight of his life. Special report. Back in the u. S. ,. Hostage crisis had become a daily obsession on all three stations. It is day number 155. The networks grasped at opportunity to show pictures of the hostages. For the students, it was a propaganda ploy to get world coverage. For hostages, it was an opportunity to communicate with their loved ones. Food is good and a more than adequate, and the only reason i am losing weight is it is because i decided that was one thing i could do while i was here. [laughter] realized back and we they had probably been given a much more positive picture than we would have chosen had we thought more carefully about it, so we determined right then and there that if another such time came, we would be a little bit more controlled and what we had to say. It was not any easier for the hostages to control what some of the visitors had to say. , they have exercise, bicycles pingpong, videocassettes. The food is fine. I remember easter. That was when drew piper came over. He got a lot of us mad. He turned a blind eye to everything that was going on and saw only what he wanted to. Their library,us it is a room this ice covered with books and it is going to get more books. And possible to talk to the man. He did not want to hear it. The visits were an opportunity for hostages to get letters from home. I brought you a letter from your family. Thank you. I thought maybe it was tickets to america. The lack of mail was a hot issue back in the states. Many of the relatives of the hospitals complained about it. To me, it was clear that they were using male as an intimidation point either against us or against our families. This was too much for moorefields wife. Why are we not being allowed to hear from the hostages . Why isnt there mail coming out of the embassy in tehran. They bragged that my wife had been on national tv with their Sordid Affairs and accused the cia of withholding my mail. I do not think they realized how much they told me. They told me first that we still had diplomatic relations with iran and that the hostages were an issue, that the American People had not forgotten about the hostages, that are Living Conditions and mail was specifically was an issue. Gonehat my wife had public, and knowing my wife was doing a fairly effective job. And that was what was bothering them. Narrator to punish misses moorefield, the iranians held back most of her husbands letters. In the 444 days, only four got through to the states. There is a news blackout, they were not telling us anything. We used to go on fishing expeditions with him. One year, the guards would come in whose iq was not that high. We would just Say Something really offthewall like, so, the American Forces landed. The kid would say no. We would say, oh, that is what we heard. No, no. No, you are lying. No, the americans are still floated off the persian gulf. Oh ok. I would walk out and write it down and send a message. Yeah, they are still out there, guys. [gunshots] narrator operation eagle claw. A rescue mission using Hercules Aircraft and helicopters. A minimum of six choppers had to make it to desert one. Because of sandstorms, only five arrived. Colonel charlie was their leader. Without six helicopters, you cannot make it. Narrator the colonel had no choice but to abort the mission and president carter agreed. As the commandos were leaving, one of the helicopters hit a hercules transport. The explosion sent a ball of fire 400 feet into the sky. The toll was eight servicemen dead and five wounded. The corpses were abandoned along with several sets of mission plans. Late yesterday, i canceled a carefully planned operation which was underway in iran to position our rescue team for a later withdrawal of american hostages. Narrator day 174 was a low point of the whole 444 day hostage crisis. The aborted raid was a humiliating blow for america. The bodies were brought back to tehran and displayed in coffins inside the compound. One iranian stabbed a body in the head. The skull disintegrated. The charred body of the eight dead americans were returned to the u. S. The lone white house opponent to the mission, he resigned and was replaced as secretary of state by edmund muskie. When the bodies of the americans were finally returned, a period of National Mourning commenced in the United States. Your suffering, your loss are not in vain. I fervently pray that those who are still held hostage will be freed without more bloodshed. Narrator although no one knew it, the hostages had reached the halfway mark of their captivity. Many were then moved all over iran. I was put into a military solitary maximum security cell which was six by nine with a toilet and a washbasin. And a slot on the door in which they could feed us. That was a place where we were sleeping with the centipedes. There was not a whole lot you can do when you are locked into one small room. Fortunately we had books. We did a lot of reading. We exercised twice a day and we had a routine that took us approximately 45 minutes. For both of us, this was a time of spiritual development. I was bored, had nothing else to do, and i had a piece of paper and a pencil. That was all i needed. I used to start doing cartoons of the jokes we had about the iranians Different Things about them jacking around and blowing off their buddies head and claiming the cia had done it. They use to love to play with their rifles. Mechanical masturbation. They have this habit of pull back the handle, let it slide, and then pull the trigger when there was no magazine in. They would charge and pull the trigger and they would do that 20, 30 times. A couple of them forgot when they put the magazine in. They would pull the target handle, pull the trigger, and pop off a round. Narrator although after the aborted mission, some of the hostages had been moved outside tehran, Richard Queen was still in the embassy. One morning, i woke up and had a slight numbness on the left hand. I thought originally i had probably just slept on my arm. But it didnt go away. It spread slowly up the arm. Until it eventually affected the whole left half of my body, particularly the left hand. Narrator queen was examined by a quack doctor who laughed off his illness. I couldnt walk, i was nauseous all the time, i couldnt eat anything, i was vomiting constantly. Eventually they thought possibly i might be dying. Narrator to have a hostage die would have been embarrassing for the militants. So they sent queen to a tehran hospital. , the doctors diagnosed his illness as multiple sclerosis, which is potentially lifethreatening. I initially thought i was going back to the compound. I thought that was soon because i had my intravenous feeding tubes and so forth. He said no, you are going back home. He said Ayatollah Khomeini has released you to your parents. They then turned on the radio and there it was. My farsi is not that good but certainly i can make out my name. Narrator on july 10, he was taken to the airport. I got on that plane and they put me on first class. They started wheeling out this giant breakfast, not for me, but for the first class passengers. I was starved and famished. I started eating anything and everything that came within grasp. Narrator in zurich, queen was taken to the hospital and his parents were flown in from the United States. I do remember mother coming in, tears in her eyes. Things were blurry. Narrator a day later, queens condition in hospital had dramatically improved, and he was flown back to the states within a week. [cheering] i could tell i was out. But my mind did not really jump to that conclusion. I really cant express words what it is like to be back in america again. I really cant say much more. I just wish there were 52 more with me. There are 14 out now and there are 52 more to go. Narrator july 27, 1980, was a day of euphoria in iran. The selfproclaimed king of kings and the light of the arians was dead. Cancer had killed the man iranians call the bloodsucker of the century. With his demise, a major stumbling block for the hostages release was over. The ayatollah was now prepared to barter. The former west german ambassador to iran was contacted by a close aide of the ayatollah. Secret meetings with the iranians were held in west germany throughout september and released. But war intervened. On september 22, 1980, iraq invaded iran and the talks were pushed aside once again. For the hostages, the ordeal continued. There were a couple people in tehran that cracked, they couldnt handle it. They went slightly crazy. Others were pulling them through. There was one person in particular that used to fry out. He would jump up and convulse and hop around the room and all this bundle of energy coming out and he was mumbling and talking to himself and crying and giggling and laughing. The man would go totally ballistic and not know what was going on around him. Down and wouldnt remember. He would not know what was going on. We were never permitted to see any of the men. We had no contact with our colleagues and that was perhaps one of the most difficult things to deal with. Narrator there were at least two unsuccessful suicide attempts during the captivity. But there were also many efforts to escape. One was made by stephen lotter. Three attempts were made by malcolm kelp. His window was welded shut. Six of them worked me over and eat me into unconsciousness on two occasions, kept me handcuffed and tied for seven Straight Days and nights. They kicked me in the temple a couple of times. I still have a consistent ringing in my ears. Narrator he spent 374 days in solitary confinement. Another hostage, military attache charles scott, endured an incredible 480 days in a 408 days in a closet like cell with no windows or air circulation. At this time, some of the men underwent their second mock execution. They were standing behind us with the rifles. Im standing against the wall. Finally i said, to help to hell with this. I sat down. The kid came up and grabbed me and said no, you must stand and turn around. I said, up yours. The kid said if you do not, it will be serious. I said, what are you going to do, shoot me . Go ahead, i dont care anymore, guy. I sat there, they walked around telling everybody else to sit down. I scored a little moral victory for me. Narrator scoring points against the guards was one way some of the hostages developed a psychological edge. The guards themselves began to show signs of strain. He sort of slumped in the chair and informed us we should feel sorry for him because he had almost had a nervous breakdown taking care of us. It had been quite a strain on him. Five to seven months was one thing. But this had gone on just a little too long. Narrator as the fighting between iran and iraq took its toll and the sanctions taking effect, the hostage crisis was becoming a hindrance. On day 365, the Iranian Parliament rubberstamped the conditions for the hostages release. They wanted the late shahs wealth and the u. S. Banks money returned. And the u. S. To stay out of iran, dropping all of its claims. Two days later on november 4, the anniversary of the takeover, americans headed to the polls for a president ial election. My thoughts and my prayers for our hostages in iran, as though they were my own sons and daughters. Narrator one year was too long to wait and the result was an awesome victory for ronald reagan. Ladies and gentlemen, president elect ronald reagan. Narrator the negotiations picked up. Algeria was named as intermediary. Serious talks started november 10. The release appeared imminent. On november 12, they were the last hostages moved off the compound to a prison. Then on november 27, militants officially announced they had handed the hostages over to the government. The americans were never to return to the Embassy Grounds, which were open to the public. For the students, it was the end of their power. Coad and ann swift were moved to a prison and a building where they caught sight of some of the men. Their appearances had changed, beards had been grown. That sort of thing. We had this feeling again of being back among our colleagues. Narrator as the shadow diplomacy with the algerians and and iranians continued, hope grew that the 52 hostages would be home for christmas. This dream was dashed by the new ayatollah Prime Minister who suddenly demanded 24 billion in gold and cash. The result was the hostages had to spend a second christmas in captivity. We decided it was more important to let our families know we were all right than anything else. So the question was, what could you do or say . Im feeling good. I lost weight, for which im grateful. Ann and i keep busy every day. We are reading and studying faithfully. I love you all very much and i look forward to being with you, hopefully as soon as we can. Merry christmas. I want to tell her how much i miss her, especially now that it is christmas. And i love her very much. And the little baby grandson i have not seen, i hope to see them soon. Merry christmas to you all. And to my mother. Mom. I expect you to continue the good work in school and help mom around the house. Dont forget to feed the wild birds this winter, they are probably getting hungry. I am all right. I do expect to come home. When, i dont know. I just hope it is over soon. Can you sing with me . Bless all the dear children in thy tender care and take us to heaven to live with thee there how goes the negotiations . Are we going home . The first days of january, the three of us were taken to prison and put into cells in solitary confinement. That simply was not just to let us go off scot free, as it were. We had to do a little time in the slammer. We were eventually released to the complex where we all then were gathered for the final several days. Then income been much better. We were all in a house. They believe if a deal is to be released to be made, it had to be before reagans inauguration. On the night of the 20th, they came in and told us they would release some of us. On the night before the 20th, they came in and said they were going to release some of us. We were told there would be examinations on the part of the doctors in another part of the building. We were taken blindfolded. When the blindfolds were removed, we realized we were being examined by algerian doctors. A clear sign that something was about to happen. We were interviewed on iranian tv. My job at the embassy, i was a counselor for political affairs. Today is january 19, 1981. They said we need an interview. We want to tape you. Just keep in mind that it is up to us whether or not you leave. In other words, talk good about us and we will let you go, and if you dont, you are staying here. I did not think it was correct for the iranian people to seize an embassy and all diplomats hostage. I still say that today, the same thing i said the day i was taken. Have you learned anything from this experience . Personally a lot. More than you or your friends would want to know. Can anyone claim you have been tortured here or brainwashed here . That is a very deep and appropriate question, and i hesitate to answer. I dont know what sort of agreements have been met between the negotiating committees. You can introduce yourself if you like and say how you are. Narrator one hostage, Master Sergeant regis reagan, refused to cooperate with the interviewers. For his defiance, he was brutally beaten after the algerian doctors had seen him. We have now reached an agreement with iran, which will result, i believe, in the freedom of our american hostages. They came in early that morning and told us to pack our trash. They didnt tell us why. We figured we were going back to the prison. One of the student militants burst into the room where bruce and i had been together for the previous day and a half or so and said we had 15 minutes to get ready to go to the airport. Ann and i reached in the cupboard and pulled out our getaway bags and said we are ready, lets go. I dont recall i felt anything but an incredulous sensation that this thing was finally coming to an end. And then they herded us down the stairs and put us on a tour bus. We were not allowed to talk while we were on the bus en route to the airport. They took off our blindfolds, and it was like wow, they are not supposed to do this. Something was definitely different. They kept saying dont speak. Dont speak. Thats like trying to stop niagara. We were all doing this light of out of the side of our mouth and under our breath. It was late at night. We pull in the airport. We could hear the jet engine. There were bright lights on. At the airport, we were taken out one by one. Blindfolds were removed. And run through to the airport. Speaking]es even though we had to go through this, my feeling was this was their last gasp because they realized they had lost. [yelling and shouting] they were pulling out people one at a time. We can hear this, deaths to carter, death to america, death to reagan, death to whoever they were taking across. One of the guards standing there, he had this stern look on his face. As i was going up, i gave him the bird. Behind my back, i flipped him off. And this little guy, i dont know who was somebody hit me in the back but i figured hey, last shot guy, take it. I really still didnt believe i was going home. Thank you. Thank you. Hi. There were all of our colleagues standing there. Gray,rosen and john kisses. And and never got the questions for everybody to hear that questions. And how are you . How are you . [indiscernible] a celebration. A reunion. A crew despaired at times if we would ever sit down. I remember them saying we will never get this plane off the ground. When it began to move, there was a giant cheer. Got up to the head of the runway and there was another cheer. We rolled down the runway, and there was another cheer. We were airborne and yet again, a cheer. We were all on an emotional high. The last cheer i think was when it was announced on the intercom that we had passed out of iranian airspace. That is when they broke out the champagne. Solemnlyald reagan, do swear, that i will faithfully execute the office of the president of the United States. Were so gallantly streaming some 30 minutes ago, the planes bearing our prisoners left iranian airspace and they are now free. [applause] i remember getting off the plane in algeria and seeing our ambassador and his wife standing, both of them with tears streaming down their cheeks, and not really being able to comprehend. Narrator these pictures were beamed to the u. S. Where the entire nation and especially the families of the hostages were glued to their tv sets. This is the lopez family. [yelling and cheering] but they are all hearty and are now and you can imagine in their happiness, they are preparing to board the american planes for the last leg of the trip. Really went crazy when we got in the airport. Everybody was trying, it had been a long time. [cheering] narrator from frankfurt airport, they drove, arriving at dawn. Nobody slept. We had been up for over 24 hours. Everyone was still going on the adrenaline surge. All the best to you and that you will forget the last 444 days pretty soon. It was very subdued. It was really kind of neat. We thought it was sweet of them. Prepare him room and heaven and nature sing and heaven and nature sing and heaven and heaven and heaven nature sing narrator after four days of hot showers, longdistance phone calls, american cooking, and fresh air, the cleanshaven former hostages finally flew home to their families. What is the first thing you are going to do when you get back . Today . Take my wife in my arms. Narrator they were on their last leg of their journey back to america. Narrator the air force one jet carried the returning americans to Stewart Air Force base in west point, new york. We are so happy to be back. Its marvelous. It is like being back in love. Narrator the next day, the exhostages flew to washington, d. C. To be showered with love. For them, this was day one of picking up their lives again. Their 444 day crisis was finally over. She raced through the crowd and started climbing towards me. It was my sister. I was amazed at how much she had grown. Narrator 10 years later, there are still american citizens being held hostage. If you dont hear my voice and see my face again, i want you to look after yourself. Narrator they are not in iran but in lebanon where 19 americans have been kidnapped by various factions of the Islamic Jihad group. Five if them have been released. Two escaped. And one rescued. William buckley, an Embassy Political officer, died in captivity. Murdered by their captors, was peter kilburn, a librarian. And william higgins, who was part of the United Nations peacekeeping force. Today, eight americans remain hostages in lebanon. Journalist Terry Anderson has been held captive for 56 months, that is over 1700 days. This tells me you have not forgotten and i know you will not. Narrator these three professors from Beirut University college have been held for 34 months, that is more than twice the length of the iranian hostage crisis. The state department is convinced the key to their freedom is held by irans islamic leaders. And since the death of the ayatollah, the iranian government has been less hostile to the u. S. Hey but prospects for the imminent release of the hostages remains slight. As for the former hostages in iran, the 52 who spent 444 days in captivity, have picked up their lives again. Only one, william keough, has since died. The six americans who escaped through the canadian caper are all well. Lee schatz, the agricultural attache, has left the government and became director of International Development for a dairy company. He is now married with two sons. Mark also had two boys. After postings in hong kong, they are in warsaw where cora teaches english and mark is the Administration Officer in the u. S. Embassy. Joe and Kathy Stafford became parents and joe is posted in washington. Bob anders, the leader of the escape group, was posted to norway and then jamaica. He is now the counsel at the u. S. Embassy in vienna. He retires in march, 1990. Canadian ambassador ken taylor received the u. S. Congressional medal. He was also honored with canadas highest award, the order of canada. As was his wife pat, along with john, and his wife. The canadian caper made ken taylor a national hero. He then moved to new york. Richard queen, released after 250 days, still suffers from multiple sclerosis and needs a cane to walk. I cant walk great distances yet. But i have a feeling i will not get back to where i was. Narrator queen remains positive. He is working at the state department in washington and was married in february, 1989. Kate cobe, one of the two women hostages, was one of many who wrote a book after she was freed. She put on all the weight she lost in tehran, the one thing she did not mind losing. Based in west germany where she is the director of an american cultural and information center, she still has her faith in god. I think of the hostages who are currently being held in the middle east and of their families and friends. But hopefully, working together, maybe we will be able to change things for them. That would be my wish today. Narrator ann swift who was locked up with kate is in the bureau of Counselor Affairs at the state department. Counselor chief Dick Moorefield retired in may, 1989. His last posting was his economic chief in mexico. He lives outside of washington with his wife dorothea who remains active in Amnesty International for the victims of crime movement. If what i went through enabled americans to say they were proud of their country and they love their country and to say this openly and not be ashamed about it, then from my point of view, every moment was worth it. Narrator marine Sergeant Jimmy lopez came home an allamerican hero, making the front cover of life magazine. I dont know if people want to know me because they are sincere about it, or it is to get some of the fallout. Narrator for this girl, there was no doubt. They married in november, 1987. After a posting in japan and a promotion, he is now on duty in california. Vick thompson has also been promoted. Today, he is the deputy chief of mission in bangkok, thailand. He never forgot the help that the thai cook gave to the six americans on the run. He moved to the United States and in 1985, his family was reunited in boston. Finally, bruce langon, a former head of the u. S. Embassy in tehran who warned his government not to admit the shah, after his release from iran, he became the Vice President of the National Defense university in washington. Although now retired, he is the executive director of the National Commission of public service. Of public service. Looking back, for the 52 of us on the 10th anniversary of the seizure of our embassy, it is a time to remember the fact that eight americans are still hostage, denied of their freedom because of the threat of terrorism in the middle east. Announcer air force colonel Thomas Schaefer was the highest ranking military officer among 52 hostages who were held for 444 days in iran from november 4, 1979 to january 20, 1981. Colonel schaefer who died in 2016 at the age of 85 was held in solitary confinement for more than three months. Next on reel america, colonel schaefers intelligence briefing for her fellow air force officers after his strategies after his release, detailing his strategies for coping with the ordeal. The jubilation shown in these press photographs was with the american hostages in iran