page_title: John Chambers (make-up artist)
section_title: Work with the CIA
hierarchical_section_title: John Chambers (make-up artist) / Work with the CIA
caption_attribution_description: English: Poster for the film Argo created by the CIA as part of the Canadian Caper. The fictitious film was part of an elaborate back-story used in the rescue of six U.S. diplomats from Tehran during the Iran hostage crisis
context_page_description: John Chambers was an American make-up artist and prosthetic makeup expert in both television and film. He received an Academy Honorary Award from The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1968. He is best known for creating the pointed ears of Spock in the television series Star Trek, and for his groundbreaking prosthetic make-up work on the Planet of the Apes film franchise.
  Chambers was awarded CIA's Intelligence Medal of Merit for his involvement in the Canadian Caper, in which six American hostages escaped during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. The incident was the basis of the film Argo, which won the 2012 Academy Award for Best Picture, and in which Chambers was played by John Goodman.
context_section_description: In the late 1970s, Chambers worked as a contractor for the CIA, creating "disguise kits" for CIA personnel stationed in other countries. Some of his work can be seen at the International Spy Museum in Washington D.C..
  In 1980, Chambers was enlisted by CIA officer Tony Mendez to work on the Canadian Caper—the rescue of six American embassy personnel who hid at the residence of the Canadian ambassador during the Iran hostage crisis. Chambers set up a fake movie and production company as a cover story of a film crew planning to shoot a science fiction film, titled Argo, in Iran. To make the cover believable, Chambers used actor Michael Douglas's former office during the filming of The China Syndrome (1979) at 
  Sunset Gower Studios. Chambers and Mendez printed fake business cards, held a film press party at a nightclub in Los Angeles, and took out advertisements in Variety and The Hollywood Reporter magazines. Fellow make-up artist Robert Sidell and his wife Andi assisted in the hoax; Andi posed as the receptionist of their fake production company.
  The rescue effort was successful, and Chambers was awarded CIA's Intelligence Medal of Merit, but he was required to keep his involvement a secret, until the story was declassified in 1997. In the 2012 Academy Award for Best Picture-winning film Argo, Chambers was portrayed by John Goodman.
caption: Movie poster of fake sci-fi film Argo, created as part of the cover story for Canadian Caper
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