How The 1962 Escape From Alcatraz Glamorized Crime Forever
Hannah Gallagher
Engl 1102 Listicle
How the 1962 Escape
From Alcatraz
Glamorized Crime Forever
Glamorized Crime Forever
http://www.topsecretwriters.com/2012/07/what-happened-to-the-men-who-escaped-from-alcatraz/
From Bank Robbers to Celebrities
Although
Frank Morris, Clarence Anglin, and John Anglin weren’t the first criminals to
receive media attention, very few have stuck around in newspaper headlines as
long as these three. Although what got these men put behind bars was nothing
spectacular, their criminal careers live on in infamy over half a century after
their disappearance. When these names come to mind, most people envision a
practically impossible escape pulled off by a mastermind, instead of three men
who had no respect for America’s justice system, or the law as a whole. All
three men had been convicted of multiple crimes, and had attempted to escape
prisons in the past.
Over the
last 52 years Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers have become household names,
and a lot of this fame is due to the portrayal of these men by movie stars such
as Clint Eastwood, and the cast of Fox’s 2012 TV show “Alcatraz”. Instead of
seeing rough men who grew up in America’s jail system, the audiences see
beautiful celebrities in rougher clothes than usual. A quick Google search of
Alcatraz now leaves you with images of red carpet premieres and movie posters
instead of the sight of America’s most notorious prison.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Alcatraz_Cells_8.JPG
Escape Attempt Perceived As An Impossible Feat
Humans have
always had a fascination with achieving what has been thought to be impossible,
from landing on the moon, to amazing survival stories of people lost in the
wilderness. Until 1962, escaping from Alcatraz was regarded as just as
impossible of an event as any of the prior. Journalists and fans alike have praised
the three escapees since they went missing, and this hasn’t died on as the
years have gone on. The popular show “Mythbusters” made an episode focusing on
the escape as recently in 2003, and the two stars attempted the escape
themselves, mimicking the circumstances the escapees faced as well as they
could. Although it was possible, the mythbusters admitted it was very
difficult, and that was without having to make the escape raft under the
watchful eyes of prison guards.
http://images.sodahead.com/blogs/000339889/keystone_cops_xlarge.jpeg
Humiliated the Authorities
Police
officers being portrayed as the idiot antagonist is a common theme in many
sources of entertainment, especially children’s TV shows and movies. This
portrayal leads to an early disrespect for the law that is engrained in the
mind of children. It can reasonably be argued that people like Morris and the
Anglins are to blame for this common caricature of the law enforcement. After
the three supposedly pulled off the impossible, the media was fascinated and
there was ongoing newspaper coverage. Even in recent years, the Alcatraz escape
has been the subject of many headlines. And in all of these articles it is
noted that even after the largest manhunt in American history, none of the
three men were ever discovered. This makes the law enforcement look
incompetent, and not only the police detectives of the past. There is still a
FBI officer assigned to the case, so this escape shows the weakness of the FBI
even with all the advantages they’ve gained from modern technology.
The Mystery Lives On
The final
reason Alcatraz forever glamorized crime is that the fascination with the
escape lives on, even though more than 50 years have passed since the
disappearance of Frank Morris, and Clarence and John Anglin. The threesome
still have many fans, and their seemingly impossible feat is shown in modern
documentaries, TV shows, and movies. It’s also inspired other big cultural
events such as the annual Alcatraz Triathlon. If the public had simply
forgotten about the escape in the year or two that followed, the impact that it
would have made would have been minimal, but instead reminders of these
criminals are still a prominent part of pop culture.
Resources:
Alcatraz Cell. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Alcatraz_Cells_8.JPG>
Clarence Anglin, John Anglin, and Frank Morris. Digital image. Www.kizaz.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
"The Great Escape from Alcatraz." The Great Escape from Alcatraz. Ocean View Publishing Company, n.d. 05 Oct. 2014. [Book]
Resources:
Alcatraz Cell. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Alcatraz_Cells_8.JPG>
Clarence Anglin, John Anglin, and Frank Morris. Digital image. Www.kizaz.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
Clint Eastwood in "Escape From Alcatraz" Digital image. Flixter.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
Escape from Alcatraz. Dir. Don Siegel. Perf. Clint
Eastwood. 1979. Videocassette.
Escapees' Mug Shots. Digital image. Www.topsecretwriters.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
KQED News Staff. "Why One US Marshal Is Still Looking
for Alcatraz Escapees." KQED News. N.p., 11 June 2012. Web. 05 Oct.
2014
Old Fashioned Cops. Digital image. Www.images.sodahead.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
Rees,
Peter. "Escape From Alcatraz/ Duck Quack/ Stud Finder." Mythbusters.
Discovery Channel. Silver Springs, Maryland, 12 Dec. 2003. Television.
Sloate, Susan, and Josh Cochran. Mysteries
Unwrapped: The Secrets of Alcatraz. New York, NY: Sterling Pub., 2008.
Print. [Book]
"The Great Escape from Alcatraz." The Great Escape from Alcatraz. Ocean View Publishing Company, n.d. 05 Oct. 2014. [Book]
"1962: Three Escape From Alcatraz." BBC News.
BBC, 06 Dec. 1962. Web. 28 Sept. 2014. [Newspaper Article]
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