Alex Mason

Early Life & Military Career
Mason was born on June 3, 1933 and raised in Fairbanks, Alaska; the geographical proximity of his home state to Communist Russia brought the threat of the Cold War much closer to his doorstep than most Americans. This was a key contributor to his fervent anti-Communist ideals and eventually led to his enlistment in the USMC. He spent his youth hunting elk and grizzlies in the Alaskan wilderness with his father (a WWII veteran and recipient of the Purple Heart for wounds received during action at the Makin Atoll); as such, he is adept in cold weather environments and is an excellent sniper; at the age of 23 he became the youngest Wimbledon Cup winner in the history of the marksmanship competition.

He was recruited to SAD/SOG at the age of 25 after an exemplary term of service with the Mariens. Having served with distinction since joining the Agency, Mason has a long standing friendship with many of his fellow Agency colleagues and shows a particular kinship with operative Frank Woods. Always itching for action, Mason's tendency towards impulsiveness is the one trait that may not have been completely "trained out of him." However, his close friend Woods is well aware of this, and knows exactly when and how to rein him in.

Family
The information stated below is referenced from files found in Alex Mason's CIA account.

A few years after Alex came back from Vorkuta to join the SOG, his mother fell ill and his father called him and his siblings to her death bed. Mason failed to arrive, leaving a bad impression on his father and his sister, Marion. The two sent a few more letters to Alex but he failed to reply to any of these. From then his father considered that his son died in Vorkuda. Marion had also let Mason know that he could stay with her if he needed to, and that her children still loved their uncle Alex.

Service in Afghanistan
The information presented in the following section only appears in CoD:Black Ops For DS

In the early 1950s, Mason served as a United States Marine in Afghanistan. Shortly after his service there, he joined the CIA.