"Kelley and I just went out and got shot," said former DEA agent Charlie Martinez. "It was pretty simple."
"That was no effort at all to do that," answered his partner, former DEA agent Kelley McCullough.
They say that now. But in 1982, the partners were kidnapped, assaulted and mostly left for dead during what was supposed to be a surveillance mission in Cartagena, Colombia.
The partners relive the nightmare in No Man Left Behind, which will air at 8 p.m. July 5 on National Geographic Channel. "Kidnapped in Colombia" plays like a suspense-filled thriller.
McCullough, now 74 and semi-retired, said it plays in his memory "like a nightmare." It's clearly for effect, because he falls into laughter.
But the episode, "Kidnapped in Colombia," is not the entire story, said Martinez. It took years and help from others -- including and especially a now-retired agent named Kenny Magee, insists Martinez -- to bring the perpetrator to justice. Rene Benitez wouldn't stand trial for the kidnapping of the two agents for more than a decade after.
It wasn't the end of the story, either.
"It's always there, I think. For me, it's a part of who I am today," said Martinez, 68. It's always been with his body, too: He recently had surgery to replace the hip impacted by his wounds from the kidnapping.
Martinez said he remembers everything in vivid detail especially "the feeling of relief I had when I saw Kelley and I knew he had survived."
When the Purple Heart they each received comes up, McCullough laughs again. "It wasn't a posthumous presentation," he said.
"And that's a good thing," continued Martinez.
But, on the show, it seems as if Martinez and McCullough had nothing to laugh about and nothing but bad luck.
Martinez counters: "We had nothing but good luck if you think about it. ... We survived."
But there are compelling arguments to the contrary: Martinez, who was bleeding from a gunshot wound, had to hide in the woods with fire ants crawling all over him; an also-injured McCullough, after finding help from a priest and a policeman, encounters his captor when they return to look for Martinez; and each one thought the other was dead.
The duo speaks of the terror as if it happened yesterday, but they only dwell on the lessons.
"It teaches you to appreciate the things that are important to you," said Martinez. "It taught me to appreciate my friends and family and it taught me to be more careful and suspicious initially. I think I'm a better person for it ultimately. Every day is a gift."
He said it even made him a better firearms instructor because he could bring real-life experience to it.
McCullough was excited for the assignment in Colombia that year. He says that he had worked undercover for 13 years, that he felt "young and invisible."
"I was accustomed to being in compromising situations," he said. "So I had come through that without any close calls or anything like that. You kinda get a false sense of security with all the tourists around ...
"I realized that life is precious. Like Charlie, I became more cautious and really appreciated life and friends. I realized that I wasn't invisible after that. I could be found."
Said Martinez: "You weren't bullet-proof either. We found that out."
So, this episode will be both new and old to the forever partners. They haven't seen the re-enactment.
"I guess it's too late now to have issues with it," said McCullough and they both laughed.
"Nobody cares what we think," said Martinez, still laughing. "I'm kinda excited to see how it all comes together. We know how it ends."
They were interested in other things, too: "Did they have good-looking guys playing us?" and "How about us? How did we look?"
They'll be able to decide for themselves when they finally see the show on Tuesday, in the comfort of their own homes.
"I don't know how good it will be, so I don't want to be embarrassed to have a bunch of friends," said McCullough, though he's sure "all my grandkids" will be there to watch.
Martinez now lives in East Texas where he "happily" runs a "little tree farm business" with "my adult supervisor," his wife since November, Adrianne. Then the cautious kicked in when he's pressed about where he lives in East Texas: "Come on. I'm not going to give you my address."
But he will tell you where he's going. The partners plan to go on a cruise next year. And it will stop in Cartegena.
SUNDAY
Preacher: Dominic Cooper looks like a completely different person in every role he plays. And so it is here. 8 p.m. AMC
Ride With Norman Reedus: We're along for the fan favorite's ride from Austin to San Antonio. 9 p.m. AMC
Roadies: Dallasite Luke Wilson stars as Bill, a tour manager for a rock-n-roll band in the series premiere of a show created by Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous). 9 p.m. Showtime
MONDAY
NCIS: Viewers can always count on a good marathon on a holiday weekend, and here you go. 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. USA
The Bachelorette: They're off to the Argentine countryside. 7 p.m. ABC
iHeartRadio Summer Pool Party: Of course, two of the guests are DNCE and Flo Rida. Because a party ain't a party until they ran all through. 7 p.m. The CW
TUESDAY
The Mindy Project: Season 4 comes to a close on July 5 with Mindy torn between two lovers. Hulu
Uncle Buck: The finale to a short summer season. 8 p.m. ABC
To Tell the Truth: Betty White, NeNe Leakes, Yvette Nicole Brown and Jalen Rose try to guess who's telling the truth. Anthony Anderson hosts, while a Dallasite plays. 9 p.m. ABC
WEDNESDAY
American Tarzan: It's hardly a coincidence that Discovery would launch this new reality TV competition series right after the latest Tarzan movie hit the big screen? Texan Tim Reames is among the contestants trying to become king of "Mother Nature's Most Brutal Obstacle Course." 9 p.m. Discovery Channel
Tyrant: The third season premieres as a former pediatrician takes on the role of president of a country he left long before. 9 p.m. FX
Royal Pains: It's the last house call for the series that lasted eight seasons. 9 p.m. USA
THURSDAY
Greatest Hits: Meghan Trainor sings "I Want It That Way" with the Backstreet Boys. 8 p.m. ABC
Queen of the South: Mark Consuelos showed up in last week's episode as Dallas lawyer Teo Alijarafe. The City of Dallas showed up, too. Teresa learns her role as Camila (a steely Veronica Falcon) continues her move to stage a coup for her husband's empire. 9 p.m. USA
FRIDAY
Deadly Women, Killer Women and Women in Prison: I like it when they forego the cutesy titles in favor of self-explanatory ones. 6, 7 and 9 p.m.
SATURDAY
Outlander: Two characters are introduced in modern times in the season finale. 8 p.m. Starz
Flex & Shanice: Season 3 of the reality TV show follows the lives of the married entertainment couple of comedian-actor Flex Washington and singer Shanice. 8 p.m. OWN
Home entertainment
Roald Dahl's The BFG: The Big Friendly Giant is coming back to home video in a remastered edition. The extras feature an interview with the author as he talks about this, and some of his other creations.
Also out this week: The Adderall Diaries; Boy and the World; By the Sea; Cabin Fever; Code of Honor; Dear Eleanor; Emma's Chance; The Family Fang; Get Smart: Season One; House of Cards: Complete Fourth Season; I Saw the Light; The Mermaid; Mothers & Daughters; Murder, She Baked: The Chocolate Chip Mystery; Only Yesterday; The Real Ghostbusters: Complete Collection; Saving Hope: The Complete Second Season; Search Party; Term Life; Vicious: The Finale; and Vigilante Diaries.
