‘Pink Panther’ Character Was POW’s Signal

When Iraqi captors forced him to denounce the Gulf War in front of a television camera, Chief Warrant Officer Guy L. Hunter Jr. for the briefest instant imitated his favorite character, the bumbling Inspector Clouseau of “The Pink Panther.”

It was Hunter’s subtle signal to his wife, Mary, that he was fine and that he was following orders when he assumed his stilted Peter Sellers voice to call the war “crazy.”

In a 20-minute telephone conversation Wednesday morning with his wife--the first since his capture Jan. 18--Hunter disclosed some details of his 47-day ordeal.

For all but two days, he was in solitary confinement, Mary Hunter said. Given only one blanket, he was cold most of the time. The relentless bombings that led to his eventual release Tuesday were among the scariest moments of his life, he told his wife.

In a news conference at an Oceanside park, Mary Hunter described her conversation with her husband of 14 years, whom she jokingly calls “Mr. Hunter.”

“He said, ‘You don’t know how wonderful it is just to hear your voice.’ He was laughing with me and told me how much he loved me and he couldn’t wait to get me. . . ,” said Mary Hunter, neglecting to finish her sentence.

While Mary Hunter braved the press, Cindy Acree, wife of former POW Lt. Col. Clifford M. Acree, had a more private celebration at her Oceanside home. In a statement, Acree said she was elated to see her husband walk off the plane arriving in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.

“I’ve always said that our wedding day was the happiest day of my life, but this may top even that,” Acree said. “I knew Cliff’s strength and our love together would get him through his most trying times.”

Clifford Acree, 39, was piloting the OV-10 Bronco plane when it was downed in the southeastern Kuwaiti desert. Hunter, who has been in the Marines for 29 years, was the observer in the turboprop plane. He was scouring the barren ground to mark targets and to assess the enemy’s position.

When the two-seat aircraft crashed, Acree and Hunter, 46, were captured by Iraqi soldiers. The two Camp Pendleton-based Marines were among the first prisoners of war and among the last released.

A day after Acree and Hunter were taken prisoner, the two--along with one other American and four allied prisoners--were forced to issue statements before a television camera. The footage of seven uniformed and bruised-looking men denouncing the war shocked the world but brought relief--as well as a new set of anxieties--to their families, who thought they might be dead.

In his statement, Hunter’s voice changed as he denounced the conflict, saying, “I think this war is crazy.” Mary Hunter immediately knew that her husband was in good shape and told military authorities. But this fact was not disclosed for fear that his captors would punish him if they learned he had been signaling his wife--not criticizing his country.

“His favorite person is Peter Sellers,” Hunter said. “He talks to me a lot like that (doing an imitation). When we go to an English restaurant, he talks to the waitresses in an English accent.”

Guy Hunter, whom friends describe as a funny, outgoing man, can also do French and Spanish accents.

“That’s just his personality,” Mary Hunter said. So when Guy Hunter issued his televised statement, “he was doing that to let me know so I could share it with all of you. But I really couldn’t do that.”

For Mary Hunter, that one signal was the last communication she had with her husband until his 9:30 a.m. phone call Wednesday. He then explained to her that he indeed had slipped into his Peter Sellers imitation to fool his Iraqi captors. “He said that he was told he had to say that,” said Mary Hunter. If he hadn’t obeyed, he would have gotten “in very deep trouble.”