Robert Ode
Robert Ode was one of the hostages taken on November 4, 1979. When captured, he was retired and the oldest person taken at 65 years old. While in captivity he was permitted to keep a diary, which amounted to 115 pages of valuable information on the daily lives of the hostages. His diary begins with the day the Iranian students seized the U.S. embassy, and extends to the day of release.
Day 1
Ode first describes the events of the takeover of the embassy. At first on the morning of the takeover, Ode states:
"I really didn't know what was happening but was told that a mob had managed to get into the Embassy Compound
and, for our own protection, everyone had to go upstairs immediately."
Ode then goes on to say that he and the others in his area of the embassy were told to evacuate. However, upon leaving the embassy, Ode and those with him encounter trouble:
"When we were about 1 ½ blocks from the Consular Section we were surrounded by a group of the students, who
were armed, and told to return to the Compound. When we protested a shot was fired into the air above our heads...
We were taken back to the Compound, being pushed and hurried along the way and forced to put our hands above
our heads and then marched to the Embassy residence. After arriving at the residence I had my hands tied behind my
back so tightly with nylon cord that circulation was cut off. I was taken upstairs and put alone in a rear bedroom and
after a short time was blindfolded."
Day 2
On the second day of captivity, Ode describes a situation in which the students forced him, along with about ten other hostages, to sit around a dining room table, hands bound to the chairs. Ode was not allowed to talk with the other hostages, and had to be led to the bathroom and other rooms by the students, after which he was tied back into the chair. That night, Ode's bed was the floor under the table.
Day 38
During the 37th day of being held hostage, Ode gives description of the room he is in, and describes it in rather positive terms. In the room, Ode notes that the room is relatively comfortable when compared to some of the others, with a mattress for him to lie on. The room appears sanitary, as does the toilet, and he is allowed a warm shower, to shave, and to clean his clothes. Sometimes, the students take the hostages to get exercise. However despite these "commodities," he still cannot communicate with the other hostages and his hands must always be bound together.
Day 41
On this day, Ode focuses on the fact that he has received mail from his family and friends for the first time. Though he desires to keep the letters in his possession, his captors do not allow this, but they do tell Ode that he is allowed to answer the letters.
Day 190
On his 128th day of being held hostage in Iran, Ode is visited on Iranian doctor. Ode describes his ailments, the major one being a heart condition. He hopes that he may be able to be released soon on the basis of his old age and poor health, but he does not get the reply he wishes for. With the doctor are are cameramen to document the event on television and take pictures.
Day 193
Ode is brought to an enclosure in the embassy to exercise on a bike. While there, he writes:
"I sat on the bike for about 10 minutes and a photographer took some color and black and white photos (picture can
be seen below). Sunshine was warm and lovely but I was there only about 10 minutes, obviously this was only for
photographic (propaganda) purposes and not for my benefit!"
Day 275
Ode notes that though he has been a hostage for nine months now, he has no indication that he will be released anytime soon. He says that he:
"Just can't understand what our Gov't is doing to obtain our release. It is very, very, discouraging!"
He also cites issues with receiving his mail, and says that when he asks for it, he sometimes does not get it. On the subject of mail Ode says:
"It is a constant up-hill battle to get mail--as the students will never realize how much it means to us."
While going to the bathrooms he sees female hostages cleaning the toilets, and finds that the female hostages also cook meals. Ode himself had previously offered to help clean up but the request was denied, evidently because the students believed such tasks were "women's work." Additionally, on this day Ode says that the students serve the hostages chocolate cake, and he assumes it is as celebration for "confinement" of the exact nine months that the Americans have been in captivity.
Day 277
While outside with an Iranian student on this day, Ode has a conversation with the young man, and Ode remarks:
"...the only thing I had learned was to hate Iran and all Iranians and that I would hate this country and everyone
connected with it for the rest of my life!"
Day 328
Ode writes about "another fight....to make the terrorists understand what we wanted", though he is unsuccessful. Later in the day he speaks with a student, Hamid, who claims to come in "just to see how we were" though Ode does not believe this is his true motive. Ode and Hamid talk about Iraq's recent invasion of Iran, and Ode hopes that Iran learns not to mess with more powerful nations, namely the U.S. Ode and Hamid move on with their conversation, and Hamid wants to know how Ode has spent his day. Ode replies with the following:
"I told him that every day was the same--that I did my exercises, studied Spanish, did some reading, wrote some
letters but pointed out to him that we were restricted again so I didn't spend much time writing: that we usually played
two or three games of Scrabble in the afternoon and that I did some reading, but not as much as before since I was
studying Spanish now."
Hamid and Ode continue on with their talk, and Ode voices his complaints:
"...I was no longer going to cooperate by cleaning up the library and the exercise room as Jerry and I did; how we
have difficulty keeping the toilet supplied with items necessary for cleaning and doing dishes; how we only get one
shower a week and then don't get out in the sun as I consistently request; etc., etc. I showed him how long it takes for
me to receive letters..."
Ode makes clear his anger towards the system that the Iranian students have imposed upon the hostages:
"I harped at him about ... how the students (whom I called terrorists) went out of their way to make us angry and then
wondered why we became so. I told him that they were exceptionally cruel and unkind which he denied, saying that
they were not "terrorists" but students but I told him that when I am kept for almost a year in a locked room, constantly
guarded by so-called "students" with loaded guns, when I couldn't even go to the toilet or for showers without being
blindfolded and constantly guarded--then, in my opinion, they were terrorists and had no right to call themselves
anything else. I reminded him about how cruel they were to my wife to keep us separated, especially since I was no
longer a young man, had never had anything to do with Iran before I came here, that I was sent here for 45 days and
have been held for almost a year and am treated like a child, and that when they do things like this they are "terrorists"
pure and simple and had long ago ceased to be students. He said that they tried to be kind to us but that "our
government" was the one that was difficult as it wouldn't agree to anything. I reminded him again that I told him and
other student-terrorists right from the first day of our captivity that the U.S. Government would never agree to negotiate
with "gangsters and terrorists" and that while they may not consider themselves to be terrorists and gangsters, that is
exactly what they are regarded in the eyes of the world.
Release
On the day of the release, Ode writes not from the embassy in Tehran that he had for the past 444 days, but from an airplane headed away from Iran. All of the hostages are overwhelmingly happy that they are free, and can only really feel completely safe when they hear "You are now leaving Iranian air space!" The hostages, for days on end, had felt like the negotiations were going nowhere, but in those final months before their release they did get indications from the students that "something would happen soon."
Ode also writes about the ordeal in Iran prior to getting out of Iranian airspace. He was taken from the room he held with other hostages, and informed that he was "one of the candidates" to be released along with a couple of other hostages. Though Ode is surprised that the American government will allow for some hostages to be released but not all at the same time, he hopes to be selected.
In order to be selected, Ode was interviewed by an Iranian woman who had interviewed him before. He notes that she had learned English in Philadelphia as she had gone to school there, yet "In spite of her long residence in the United States she was rabidly anti-American!" Ode then humorously states, "Perhaps living in Philadelphia makes one that way!" Ode learns that this woman was shown on television broadcasts in America as propaganda for Iran. She interviews, and the interview goes as follows:
"Several TV cameras were focused on us and Mary asked me to describe my daily activities while being held
hostage... Mary queried me as to whether I had been well treated to which I replied, "There was much room for
improvement in our treatment" Then she asked me whether I felt there was any justification for having been taken
hostage. I replied, "There was absolutely no justification...there never was." With that, Mary said, "The interview is
over!"
Robert Ode was one of the hostages taken on November 4, 1979. When captured, he was retired and the oldest person taken at 65 years old. While in captivity he was permitted to keep a diary, which amounted to 115 pages of valuable information on the daily lives of the hostages. His diary begins with the day the Iranian students seized the U.S. embassy, and extends to the day of release.
Day 1
Ode first describes the events of the takeover of the embassy. At first on the morning of the takeover, Ode states:
"I really didn't know what was happening but was told that a mob had managed to get into the Embassy Compound
and, for our own protection, everyone had to go upstairs immediately."
Ode then goes on to say that he and the others in his area of the embassy were told to evacuate. However, upon leaving the embassy, Ode and those with him encounter trouble:
"When we were about 1 ½ blocks from the Consular Section we were surrounded by a group of the students, who
were armed, and told to return to the Compound. When we protested a shot was fired into the air above our heads...
We were taken back to the Compound, being pushed and hurried along the way and forced to put our hands above
our heads and then marched to the Embassy residence. After arriving at the residence I had my hands tied behind my
back so tightly with nylon cord that circulation was cut off. I was taken upstairs and put alone in a rear bedroom and
after a short time was blindfolded."
Day 2
On the second day of captivity, Ode describes a situation in which the students forced him, along with about ten other hostages, to sit around a dining room table, hands bound to the chairs. Ode was not allowed to talk with the other hostages, and had to be led to the bathroom and other rooms by the students, after which he was tied back into the chair. That night, Ode's bed was the floor under the table.
Day 38
During the 37th day of being held hostage, Ode gives description of the room he is in, and describes it in rather positive terms. In the room, Ode notes that the room is relatively comfortable when compared to some of the others, with a mattress for him to lie on. The room appears sanitary, as does the toilet, and he is allowed a warm shower, to shave, and to clean his clothes. Sometimes, the students take the hostages to get exercise. However despite these "commodities," he still cannot communicate with the other hostages and his hands must always be bound together.
Day 41
On this day, Ode focuses on the fact that he has received mail from his family and friends for the first time. Though he desires to keep the letters in his possession, his captors do not allow this, but they do tell Ode that he is allowed to answer the letters.
Day 190
On his 128th day of being held hostage in Iran, Ode is visited on Iranian doctor. Ode describes his ailments, the major one being a heart condition. He hopes that he may be able to be released soon on the basis of his old age and poor health, but he does not get the reply he wishes for. With the doctor are are cameramen to document the event on television and take pictures.
Day 193
Ode is brought to an enclosure in the embassy to exercise on a bike. While there, he writes:
"I sat on the bike for about 10 minutes and a photographer took some color and black and white photos (picture can
be seen below). Sunshine was warm and lovely but I was there only about 10 minutes, obviously this was only for
photographic (propaganda) purposes and not for my benefit!"
Day 275
Ode notes that though he has been a hostage for nine months now, he has no indication that he will be released anytime soon. He says that he:
"Just can't understand what our Gov't is doing to obtain our release. It is very, very, discouraging!"
He also cites issues with receiving his mail, and says that when he asks for it, he sometimes does not get it. On the subject of mail Ode says:
"It is a constant up-hill battle to get mail--as the students will never realize how much it means to us."
While going to the bathrooms he sees female hostages cleaning the toilets, and finds that the female hostages also cook meals. Ode himself had previously offered to help clean up but the request was denied, evidently because the students believed such tasks were "women's work." Additionally, on this day Ode says that the students serve the hostages chocolate cake, and he assumes it is as celebration for "confinement" of the exact nine months that the Americans have been in captivity.
Day 277
While outside with an Iranian student on this day, Ode has a conversation with the young man, and Ode remarks:
"...the only thing I had learned was to hate Iran and all Iranians and that I would hate this country and everyone
connected with it for the rest of my life!"
Day 328
Ode writes about "another fight....to make the terrorists understand what we wanted", though he is unsuccessful. Later in the day he speaks with a student, Hamid, who claims to come in "just to see how we were" though Ode does not believe this is his true motive. Ode and Hamid talk about Iraq's recent invasion of Iran, and Ode hopes that Iran learns not to mess with more powerful nations, namely the U.S. Ode and Hamid move on with their conversation, and Hamid wants to know how Ode has spent his day. Ode replies with the following:
"I told him that every day was the same--that I did my exercises, studied Spanish, did some reading, wrote some
letters but pointed out to him that we were restricted again so I didn't spend much time writing: that we usually played
two or three games of Scrabble in the afternoon and that I did some reading, but not as much as before since I was
studying Spanish now."
Hamid and Ode continue on with their talk, and Ode voices his complaints:
"...I was no longer going to cooperate by cleaning up the library and the exercise room as Jerry and I did; how we
have difficulty keeping the toilet supplied with items necessary for cleaning and doing dishes; how we only get one
shower a week and then don't get out in the sun as I consistently request; etc., etc. I showed him how long it takes for
me to receive letters..."
Ode makes clear his anger towards the system that the Iranian students have imposed upon the hostages:
"I harped at him about ... how the students (whom I called terrorists) went out of their way to make us angry and then
wondered why we became so. I told him that they were exceptionally cruel and unkind which he denied, saying that
they were not "terrorists" but students but I told him that when I am kept for almost a year in a locked room, constantly
guarded by so-called "students" with loaded guns, when I couldn't even go to the toilet or for showers without being
blindfolded and constantly guarded--then, in my opinion, they were terrorists and had no right to call themselves
anything else. I reminded him about how cruel they were to my wife to keep us separated, especially since I was no
longer a young man, had never had anything to do with Iran before I came here, that I was sent here for 45 days and
have been held for almost a year and am treated like a child, and that when they do things like this they are "terrorists"
pure and simple and had long ago ceased to be students. He said that they tried to be kind to us but that "our
government" was the one that was difficult as it wouldn't agree to anything. I reminded him again that I told him and
other student-terrorists right from the first day of our captivity that the U.S. Government would never agree to negotiate
with "gangsters and terrorists" and that while they may not consider themselves to be terrorists and gangsters, that is
exactly what they are regarded in the eyes of the world.
Release
On the day of the release, Ode writes not from the embassy in Tehran that he had for the past 444 days, but from an airplane headed away from Iran. All of the hostages are overwhelmingly happy that they are free, and can only really feel completely safe when they hear "You are now leaving Iranian air space!" The hostages, for days on end, had felt like the negotiations were going nowhere, but in those final months before their release they did get indications from the students that "something would happen soon."
Ode also writes about the ordeal in Iran prior to getting out of Iranian airspace. He was taken from the room he held with other hostages, and informed that he was "one of the candidates" to be released along with a couple of other hostages. Though Ode is surprised that the American government will allow for some hostages to be released but not all at the same time, he hopes to be selected.
In order to be selected, Ode was interviewed by an Iranian woman who had interviewed him before. He notes that she had learned English in Philadelphia as she had gone to school there, yet "In spite of her long residence in the United States she was rabidly anti-American!" Ode then humorously states, "Perhaps living in Philadelphia makes one that way!" Ode learns that this woman was shown on television broadcasts in America as propaganda for Iran. She interviews, and the interview goes as follows:
"Several TV cameras were focused on us and Mary asked me to describe my daily activities while being held
hostage... Mary queried me as to whether I had been well treated to which I replied, "There was much room for
improvement in our treatment" Then she asked me whether I felt there was any justification for having been taken
hostage. I replied, "There was absolutely no justification...there never was." With that, Mary said, "The interview is
over!"
This is information has been adapted from the following source: “Iran Hostage's Diary.” jimmycarterlibrary.gov, Jimmy Carter Library and Museum, 8 Aug. 2011. Web. 11 June 2013. <http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov/documents/r_ode/>
Additional entries in Ode's 151-page-long diary can be found at the link above.
Additional entries in Ode's 151-page-long diary can be found at the link above.
Image at top of page shows image of American hostages with faded image of Richard Ode on top ("Does American Film’s Portrayal of Iran Shape Public Perception?") (“Iran Hostage's Diary”).