1. The people of Iran elected Mohammad Mossadeq in 1951 as Prime Minister. He replaced the monarch, Shah Reza Pahlavi.

2. In 1952, Mossadeq nationalized British Petroleum (BP) oil fields in Iran to give the people of Iran more money from and control over their nation-state’s oil. The US Central Intelligence Agency spread rumors among the Ayatollah religious leaders of Iran and paid people to demonstrate against him. The CIA claimed he was a communist. Mossadeq was forced from power in 1953 and was replaced by the Shah of Iran, once again.

3. The Shah restored BP to partial ownership of the Iranian oil fields and gave Shell Oil and American oil companies control of the remaining oil fields a few years later.

4. In 1979, the people of Iran rose up and threw the Shah out of power a second time. The crowds took of the US Embassy and held 52 Americans hostage. The current movie, Argoe, tells the story of the CIA managing to help 5 former employees at the US Embassy to escape. The Shah was replaced by Ayatollah Khomeini.