20 facts you might not know about 'Argo'

In 2007, “Wired” magazine published an article written by Joshuah Bearman. The story is told in the title, as the article is called “How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue American from Tehran.” Later that year, George Clooney’s production company began setting up a movie based on the piece.

“Argo” is Chris Terrio’s first produced screenplay. After the success of this true-story drama, Terrio’s career took a very different turn. His screenwriting jobs after “Argo” are “Batman v. Superman,” “Justice League,” and “The Rise of Skywalker.” Not exactly the same kind of movies.

After retiring from the CIA, Antonio “Tony” Mendez was not shy about discussing his career. Mendez is the CIA agent played by Ben Affleck in “Argo.” He’s written four memoirs about his time in the CIA, and “Argo” is based in part on his book “The Master of Disguise.”

Many of the characters in “Argo” are real people, since this is based on a true story. That includes John Chambers, the makeup artist played by Goodman. Chambers did indeed help the CIA with this mission, but he had a truly impressive career in Hollywood. In addition to creating Spock’s ears on “Star Trek,” he was responsible for the makeup in “Planet of the Apes,” which won him an honorary Oscar.

Scoot McNairy and Kerry Bishe play the couple Joe and Kathy Stafford. The producers of the AMC show “Halt and Catch Fire” must have liked their chemistry together. McNairy and Bishe were reunited on that show as Gordon and Donna Clark.

Roger Zelazny’s “Lord of Light” won the 1968 Hugo Award for Best Novel. That made it fodder for a potential film adaptation. Jack Kirby was even hired to work on the project. Eventually, it fell through. At this point, the CIA got its hands on the adaptation of “Lord of Light” and used it as the basis for their plan.

When Affleck’s Tony Mendez arrives at CIA headquarters and then walks into the lobby? That was filmed at the original CIA headquarters in Virginia, with the CIA’s permission. That’s as far as the agency would go, though. The rest of the CIA scenes were shot in a basement in Los Angeles.

Iran and the United States have continued to share a, shall we say, frosty relationship. “Argo” did not shoot any of the movie in Iran. They did go to the Middle East, though, shooting in Istanbul, Turkey.

Mendez called one of his autobiographies “The Master of Disguise,” and apparently he was even good at disguising his phony companies. Studio Six, the production company Mendez created for the operation, proved so realistic that it got dozens of scripts delivered to them, including some after the operation was over and he closed the office. One of those scripts was evidently from Steven Spielberg.

The first actor signed on to the movie was Alan Arkin, who plays Lester Siegel. However, in a movie filled with real people, Siegel is not one of them. The character was invented for the film as an amalgamation of several real people.

Affleck, a Led Zeppelin fan, wanted to use their song “When the Levee Breaks” in the film. After the scene was shot, though, the guys in the band requested a change. The needle had been dropped at the beginning of the album, while “When the Levee Breaks” is the last song on the second side. Affleck appreciated the attention to detail and reshot the scene to make the needle drop accurate.

Arkin and Cranston are both in “Argo,” though they do not share scenes together. They did get to interact during the promotional campaign, at which point Cranston gave Arkin a surprise. Cranston mentioned that he was in “Little Miss Sunshine,” the movie that Arkin won an Oscar for. However, Arkin had no idea that Cranston had been in “Little Miss Sunshine,” since they didn’t share scenes together. Also, apparently Arkin didn’t watch the movie he won an Oscar for.

“Argo” won Best Picture, and it features Goodman in a supporting role. The previous year the winner of Best Picture at the Oscars was “The Artist.” You know who is in that movie? That’s right, Goodman. He was in back-to-back Best Picture winners.

Affleck plays the ostensible lead of the movie he directed, but it wasn’t because he was a dead ringer for the real Mendez. There are a few differences in their appearance, but one fittingly stands out above the rest. Mendez was 5’7’’, while Affleck is reportedly 6’4’’.

The riot and storming of the embassy at the beginning of the film was entirely recreated. It was shot on Super 8 to look more authentic. In fact, Super 8 cameras were handed out to some actors in those scenes to capture footage and to create a greater sense of authenticity.

“Argo” takes plenty of liberties with the real events. That’s not uncommon in dramatizations. Not everybody was OK with this. In particular, many Canadians were not pleased with the rewriting of history. The general consensus of the real history is that the Canadian government was spearheading the rescue mission, with the CIA being involved in a lesser role. Even Jimmy Carter has said that this part of the story is not accurate. Affleck noted that since the film is “based on a true story,” they were allowed to “take some dramatic license.”

If you want the Canadian take on this rescue effort, you have an option. Well, if you can track down “Escape from Iran: The Canadian Caper,” that is. The TV movie aired on CBS in 1981 and is focused on the efforts of the Canadian embassy. Kenneth Taylor, not Tony Mendez, is the lead character.

“Argo” may not have had any superheroes and may have been a based-on-a-true-story dramatic thriller, but it was still a hit. Perhaps bolstered by having Affleck on board as both the star and the director, “Argo” made $232.3 million off of a $45-million budget. It was also a critical hit, exemplified by the fact Roger Ebert named it his top movie of the year.

“Argo” was nominated for seven Academy Awards. One of those was for Best Picture. However, one of them was not for Best Director. Affleck did not get nominated for that award even though his film was up for Best Picture. Additionally, Affleck won a Golden Globe for directing “Argo.” This was generally considered a real snub by the Academy.

Terrio won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, but that’s wasn’t the most notable award it would win that night. “Argo” also took home Best Picture, even though Affleck hadn’t even been nominated for Best Director. This was only the fourth time that had ever happened, and the first since “Driving Miss Daisy.” “Green Book” has since pulled this off as well.