Presenting my very biased list for Top 10 Bodyguard Movies of all time. This is an unscientific study with the only criteria being that they have an element of Executive Protection included (and of course that they get a lot of play in my DVD).

1. Star Wars

 You have to look at #1 on my list with 2 things in mind.  1. Obi-Wan was Luke’s bodyguard!)  And 2. I’m a huge Star Wars fan so anytime I can relate that to Executive Protection i’m going to slid it in!

2.. Man on Fire

The gold standard as far as i’m concerned.

3. Custodio (The Minder)

Foreign film but i’m so glad I tracked it down after I got the recommendation.

4. The Bodyguard 

Yeah it’s Cliché, but it’s a good movie

5. Way of the Gun

People either love or hate this one, but it’s one of my personal favs.  The elevator scene won me over (but why did they think leaving her alone was a good idea???)

6. Shogun Assassin

Classic.

7. Guarding Tess

I had stayed away from this movie for years as I thought it was going to be a comedy that just poked fun at the profession without knowing anything about it.  However I saw it for the first time just a short while ago and I loved it. It actually gave a good snapshot of the frustration and give and take that goes into working long term with a client.  (with a humors slant of course)

8. Heat

Not even sure if there are any BG’s in it, but it still makes list.  The Bank Robbery scene. ’nuff said.

9. Ronin

Too many scenes to mention but the coffee cup ambush and the introduction (not to mention the REAL car chase sequences) get this one regular rotation in my DVD.

10. In the Line of Fire

Clint and John both in their prime.

Honorable Mention:

The Unit

While it won’t make the official list as it’s television, the good episodes reached a high standard and had some pretty dynamic storytelling.

So that’s my list.  Agree? Disagree?  Which ones did I miss?

A humorous example of what happens when you don’t have security.  (I think the artist was a great sport)  While the guy on stage was harmless, what if he wasn’t, or decided later not to be? I’m guessing it was a promoter who *finally* came on the stage, (not artist security) and STILL didn’t get the fan off.  (If it was security, he might want to trying some continuing training like the ICON CELEBRITY PROTECTION COURSE)

Had a great time over the last few months working on the Bodyguard 2 Minute Tip segments with Harlan Austin of Bodyguard Careers.  The aim is to give some “bite sized” nuggets that would be useful for individuals that are interested in getting into the field of Executive Protection.  So far the response has been extremely positive and in 2012 we plan on more installments, as well as other participants.  In the meantime, you can catch up on the tips in one place by clicking below.

Ethics in Executive Protection

Bodyguards & Professional Email

Choosing An Executive Protection School

Choosing the Right Footwear

In this week’s installment of the two-minute video tip, host Harlan Austin of Bodyguard Careers and Elijah Shaw of the ICON Executive Protection Academy discuss the importance of doing your research when choosing an Executive Protection School.  There are some wonderful schools in the industry that include Trojan, ESI, EPI, MAX, ICON and many more.  In addition, there are some great supplemental programs such as Tony Scotti’s Vehicle Dynamics, the surveillance courses from Argus and the firearm related offerings from Panther Protection.  Do your research and determine what works for you.

Catch all the 2 Minute Tips HERE

Take a moment to check out  a visual diary of students and instructors of the ICON Executive Protection Training Academy. With courses specializing in Executive Protection, Celebrity Protection & Weapons Tactics.  ICON offers real world training by instructors who do the job every day, not just teach “theory” from a text book. For more information about the training courses, including the special finance and scholarship opportunities, click HERE.

The story of scuffles between the Close Protection Team for Diplomats and the Security Detail of the Host have been a topic of recent discussion on the public message boards of the North American Bodyguard Association.  Add another example into a long list, this time occurring at the United Nations.  

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan‘s security detail got into a violent brawl on Friday with U.N. security guards outside the General Assembly hall, leaving at least two U.N. personnel injured, including one who was taken to the hospital, possibly with broken ribs, according to U.N. diplomats and officials.

The Turkish leader tried to rush to get into the U.N. chamber to take his seat.

He and his entourage, however, were stopped at an exit near the meeting room and told they could not enter the hall from that exit. The Turkish guards demanded that their prime minister be allowed to pass, and allegedly pushed the U.N. security guards. The U.N. guards pushed back, and the Turks apparently began swinging. One diplomat who was working on the floor two stories below said he could hear the fighting.

Read the full story HERE.

* UPDATED * Now includes the (shaky) video between the Turkish Protection Detail and the Uniformed UN Security Staff

…and while it was only for a split second, we at ICON Services Corporation still think it was pretty cool.

It all started when I received an email from Marshall B., an ICON Alumni who was watching the A&E show Storage Wars.  Lo’ and behold, what flashes across the screen when the participants visit a Nevada Gun Range?  Thats right, the ICON VIP Protection Targets.  The Targets, created in partnership with America’s largest distributor of paper targets, were initially designed for close protection bodyguard work, honeing the shooters skills in a variety of true-to-life scenarios.  Since then they’ve expand beyond the world of Executive Protection and have made their way into ranges across the US.  In fact, the target featured in the clip, also has the distinction of being the best selling individual target in the companies line for 2011.

This is following a string of sightings that included, a S.W.A.T member who engaged the targets in a shoot house training exercise at his department.  What made it memorable is because he knew one of the models in the shoot (the hostage, who of course, remained unharmed).  In addition several weeks ago, I received a great email with one of my colleagues overseas in Afghanistan, who mentioned that while he was training with some VERY DISTINGUISHED individuals, he was happy to see the ICON Targets in use at the range.   You can find that story HERE.

If your a fan of the show, you can catch the episode HERE.  (the targets @ 21:15 mark).  Click HERE to see the full line of the ICON VIP Protection Targets.

I know it might sound odd, but you can do effective VIP Protection for recognizable personalities without having to resort to tactics that would paint your Client in a negative light.  We’ve recently seen some horror stories about what happens when a bodyguard is overly aggressive.    Executive Protection Agents can most effectively ensure the safely of the VIP by remembering that one of the most important pieces of the puzzle comes in the planning & preparation stage.  In industry lingo, we term that the Advance, which includes  anticipating encounters  before they happen and having effective systems in place to negate or counter them.

While some view the fans, the press and the paparazzi as a major problem, we have to be aware that, particularly in the arena of Celebrity Protection, those three are a constant.    Taking the wrong approach in dealing with them could have a negative effect to the client, and one that could also affect security.  (Insiders tip, managers and agents don’t like bad press, if the Protection Agent is responsible for it –even if they thought they were doing the “right thing”,  they could still be on the unemployment line).

I try and stress this fact during the Celebrity & VIP Protection Training Course that I teach at ICON.  ”Verbal Judo” is sometimes more effective than taking them to the floor.  With that said, it’s always nice to hear it from someone else:

Via the Star Tribune

“The security guys with Kim Kardashian garnered praise for being impressively un-heavy-handed.

Although Kardashian was in a VIP section, the security was not pouncing every time she was approached. One excited woman was gently asked not to rush up on Kardashian but to give the reality star a few minutes to adjust to the scene.

As you can see from my video, the security guys were calm and civil and not shoving people out of the way as she and her fiancé arrived at the restaurant.”

full story HERE.

While the incident between a celebrities security and a male who happened to be a West Point Cadet has been commented on at length at several different places across the ‘net, I also want to mention another fire I saw brewing from the moment I watched the footage.  I’m speaking about the on-duty officers who stopped working long enough to take photos with the celebrity.  Unless they were clueless of the incident that occurred minutes before, I think there was a lapse in judgement, if nothing else from appearances sake.

The Houston Examiner reports :

Two Houston Police officers have been disciplined for posing in pictures with a celebrity’s bodyguards after an airport scuffle that made national headlines.

A new criminal investigation has also been launched into the encounter.

West Point cadet Richard King, 23, is suing legendary R & B singer Patti Labelle after her bodyguards pounced on him in a videotaped scuffle on March 11th.    King said his career at the United States Military Academy at West Point ended because of the ordeal.

Video that was aired on news outlets worldwide showed three of Labelle’s bodyguards confronting King in an intense physical struggle in which King claims in his lawsuit that he was beaten, shoved, and assaulted.

Shortly after medics took him away, the surveillance video of the encounter shows at least one Houston Police officer embracing Labelle and posing for photographs near a pool of blood that King had left on the ground in the spot where he was confronted.

Sgt. David Johnson has been given formal notice that he is being transferred away from the HPD Airport Division as a result of his posing for pictures in this ordeal.   One HPD source involved in the case says Sgt. Johnson had gotten into trouble for the same thing in the past. (emphasis mine, ES) That source said Sgt. Johnson had been seeking autographs and photographs with other celebrities he encountered while patrolling the airport and escorting dignitaries through the airport, which prompted supervisors to warn him against similar encounters in the future.

For the full article click HERE.

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It’s more the mentality than anything, and I take issue when it occurs on a protective detail in which the officer are involved.  In many cases law enforcement may be used in an official (or unofficial capacity) by Executive Protection Teams, however compensation for that isn’t intended to come in the form of an autograph or a picture.  Theres a time and place for everything, and more often than not, that request comes at moments that increase rather than limit the VIP’s exposure.

As far as the rest of this story.  it’s unfortunate and one that i’m sure will be concluding in the courts.

First there were bulletproof T-Shirts.

then there were bulletproof summer Polo’s

Next there were bulletproof Underwear.

Now you can accessorize your outfit with the inclusion of a bulletproof clipboard.  The folks at ThinkGeek.com, which have some up with some pretty unconventional inventions in the past, have added what they call the Bulletproof Body Armor Clipboard to their line-up and even included a video field testing it.

From their tongue-in-cheek product description:

Each Bulletproof Body Armor Clipboard is a section of Level II body armor, with a clip attached to hold the paper. Level II body armor is tough enough to stop the penetration of 9mm bullets.  The Bulletproof Body Armor Clipboard is the toughest clipboard we’ve ever held. Sure, it’s heavy, but when you own a clipboard that can stop bullets, weight doesn’t matter anymore. Nothing matters anymore, other than your own awesomeness for being the only person in the office to own aBulletproof Body Armor Clipboard.

For more on the clipboard including video of their field test, click HERE.