Born in Cornwall, England in 1939, Rick Rescorla enlisted in the British Army in 1957 where he served with an intelligence unit in Cyprus. He also served as a police officer in Rhodesia and enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1963. After basic training he attended OfficerCS and airborne training, and was assigned as a platoon leader in the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. Sent to Vietnam, he was a hero of the 1965 Battle of Ia Drang described in the book and hit movie We Were Soldiers Once...And Young. Co-author Lieutenant General Hal Moore described him as "the best platoon leader I ever saw". Rescorla’s men nicknamed him "Hard Core" for his bravery in battle, and revered him for his good humor and compassion towards his men.

Later Life

After Vietnam, Rescorla became a U.S. citizen, earned college and law degrees, married and raised a family. He continued to serve in the Army Reserve, retiring in 1990 as a Colonel. Since 1985, he worked in corporate security for the investment giant Morgan Stanley. When Islamist terrorists bombed the World Trade Center in 1993 (see World Trade Center bombing), Rescorla was instrumental in evacuating the building. He was literally the last man out. He did research and warned authorities that he expected another attack, but was ignored. At Rescorla’s insistence, all employees practised quarterly emergency evacuations.

On September 11, 2001 American Airlines Flight 11 hit World Trade Center Tower 1 at 8:46 a.m (see September 11, 2001 attacks). Rick Rescorla ignored officials' advice to stay put and began the orderly evacuation of Morgan Stanley’s 2,800 employees on 20 floors of World Trade Center Tower 2, and 1,000 employees in WTC 5. Rescorla reminded everyone to "be proud to be an American", and sang "God Bless America" and other songs over his bullhorn to help evacuees stay calm as they left the building. Rescorla had most of Morgan Stanley’s 3800 employees as well as people working on other floors of WTC 2 safely out of the buildings by the time United Airlines Flight 175 hit WTC 2 at 9:07.

After having reached safety, Rescorla returned to the building to rescue others still inside. He was last seen heading up the stairs of the tenth floor of the collapsing WTC 2. His remains have not been recovered. He leaves a wife and two children.

A biography of Rescorla, Heart of a Soldier by James B. Stewart, was described by Time Magazine as "the best non-fiction book of 2002".