- "Don't get clever, Boris, you don't know 'im!"
- ―George McHale[src]
Disguised as American serviceman "Hoover", a Russian soldier served under Colonel Antonin Dovchenko and Colonel Doctor Irina Spalko, helping them to infiltrate Hangar 51 in Nevada in 1957.
Biography[]
In 1957, disguised with his comrades as US military soldiers, "Hoover" aided Colonel Antonin Dovchenko and Colonel Doctor Irina Spalko in infiltrating Hangar 51 in Nevada, USA as part of a covert Soviet invasion of America to acquire the New Mexico specimen.[1]
Hoover accompanied accompanied his superiors to Hangar 51 in the passenger seat of a small roofless jeep along with Washington. On the way to the hangar, Hoover disapproved of several teenagers led by Jimmy Keegan speeding past in their hot rod. Once they arrived at Hangar 51, Sergeant Wycroft and his MPs approached them, informing them that the base they were entering was closed due to weapons testing. Hoover was among the four soldiers who executed the guards with their machine guns as Dovchenko tied his shoelaces, and then they leapt into a roofless jeep and were led into the hangar itself.[1]
Their prisoners, Indiana Jones and George "Mac" McHale, were released under Dovchenko's orders, and were surrounded by the Soviets as Jones retrieved his fedora. When Dovchenko prepared to beat Indy, Hoover and Washington restrained him, with the Colonel handing the former his cap as he readied his fist. However, Dovchenko was stopped by Spalko, and the two Soviets of lower rank let Indy go. After Jones was coerced into finding the crate holding the Roswell crash victim, he lead the group into the hangar, where they awaited further instructions from their captive. When Jones asked Colonel Dovchenko for he and the other Soviets' bullets, the Colonel translated this to his inferiors and they all laughed at Indy. However, the archaeologist was able to convince Dovchenko to lend him several bullets, which he then used to locate the highly magnetised crate in which the Roswell remains were kept.[1]
The Soviets looked on in awe as Spalko opened the crate, showing them all the corpse of a deceased being from another world. However, Jones used the distraction of the inhuman body to disable the Soviet guarding him and steal a machine gun from both the latter and Franklin for himself and Mac. The two threatened Spalko, but after Mac revealed his loyalty was to the Russians, Indy realized he was outnumbered. Dovchenko ordered him to drop his gun, but when Jones did the machine gun fired and the bullet hit a Soviet in the foot, allowing Jones time to climb a wall of crates and make his escape, despite the efforts of several soldiers to kill him. Hoover and Mac entered a staff car during the chase and pursued Jones who was escaping in a small jeep, with Hoover driving the jeep head on towards the front of the jeep, and another truck right behind Indy. Mac warned his driver not to get clever as he didn't know Indy, but Hoover wouldn't listen and Jones was able to leap out of his jeep, allowing it to drift straight into Hoover and Mac's car, before the truck also collided with the jeep.[1]
With Franklin and Lincoln, Hoover tracked Jones to Doom Town, unaware that the settlement was actually a nuclear testing site. When they heard the air raid siren, Lincoln yelled for the others to come and the soldiers promptly piled into their staff car to escape. However, as they drove away from the exploding town, the nuclear shockwave engulfed them, killing all three men, though not before they spotted a refrigerator flying over them carrying Indiana Jones safely away from blast.[1]
Behind the scenes[]
"Hoover" was played uncredited by stuntman John Dixon in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.[1] Like many of the Soviet Special Forces who infiltrated Hangar 51, Hoover shares his name with a US president, in his case Herbert Hoover.
Mac calls the character "Boris" in the film. However, given that "Boris" was a name commonly associated in American culture for being Russian, it's more likely that "Boris" was just a quick nickname Mac thought up for him, rather than being his actual name.[1]
According to the insignia on his shirt, "Hoover" was pretending to be a Sergeant First Class.[1]
Appearances[]
- Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (First appearance)