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ALCATRAZ...THE ROCK.
FOR OVER 29 YEARS,
THE NATION'S MOST NOTORIOUS PRISON,
A HOME FOR SUCH MASTER CRIMINALS
AS AL CAPONE, MACHINE GUN KELLY,
AND ITS BIRDMAN ROBERT STROUD.
OF SAN FRANCISCO'S ICY COLD BAY,
A TREACHEROUS MOAT
THAT WAS THE BEST GUARANTEE
THAT NOBODY WOULD SUCCESSFULLY ESCAPE.
AND NOBODY DID... UNTIL JUNE 11, 1962.
ON THAT NIGHT, THREE MEN BROKE OUT OF THEIR CELL HOUSE
AND VANISHED INTO THE WAVES IN A HOMEMADE RAFT.
JOHN ANGLIN, HIS BROTHER CLARENCE,
AND FRANK MORRIS,
BRILLIANT MASTERMIND OF THE ESCAPE,
WERE NEVER SEEN AGAIN.
10 DAYS LATER,
AUTHORITIES DISCOVERED PIECES OF THE RAFT.
IT HAD BROKEN UP AT SEA.
THE THREE CONVICTS APPEARED TO HAVE SWUM FOR IT.
DID THEY MAKE IT?
THE DEBATE CONTINUES.
IF THEY WENT INTO THE WATER
WITH THE PRIMITIVE FLOATATION EQUIPMENT THAT THEY HAD,
THEY WERE DROWNED WITHIN 30 MINUTES.
THEY SUCCUMBED TO HYPOTHERMIA AND DROWNED.
I'D STAKE MY LIFE ON IT,
THAT THEY'RE OUT THERE IN THAT BAY RIGHT NOW,
OR THEIR BONES ARE OUT THERE.
I FELT THAT THEY DIDN'T MAKE IT,
BUT I THOUGHT WE'D FIND A BODY,
AND WE DIDN'T FIND A BODY.
IN THE DECADES THAT HAVE PASSED
SINCE THAT JUNE NIGHT,
NO TRACE OF FRANK MORRIS,
AND
HAS EVER BEEN FOUND.
THEY MAY STILL BE AT LARGE,
AND, PERHAPS, ARE STILL IN HIDING.
FOR 30 YEARS,
ALCATRAZ WAS THE MOST DREADED PRISON IN AMERICA...
TOUGH, COLD, AND VIRTUALLY ESCAPE-PROOF.
14 ESCAPES WERE ATTEMPTED.
10 MEN DIED,
AND ALL THE REST WERE CAPTURED, EXCEPT THREE.
MANY FORMER INMATES BELIEVE THOSE THREE MEN MADE IT.
ONE OF THESE INMATES WAS A SUSPECTED COLLABORATOR,
CLARENCE CARNES.
A CONFIDENTIAL CLOSE FRIEND OF THE ESCAPEES,
CLARENCE CARNES SPENT 13 YEARS ON ALCATRAZ
AND WAS THE YOUNGEST PERSON IN CONFINEMENT,
ARRIVING IN 1946 WHEN HE WAS JUST 18 YEARS OLD.
THAT SAME YEAR, CLARENCE BECAME EMBROILED
IN THE BLOODIEST ESCAPE ATTEMPT
IN ALCATRAZ' HISTORY-- A DESPERATE BID
THAT RESULTED IN THE DEATHS
OF TWO GUARDS AND THREE INMATES.
TWO OTHER INMATES WERE EXECUTED
FOR THEIR ROLE IN THE MURDERS,
BUT CARNES WAS SPARED
AND INSTEAD RECEIVED A LIFE SENTENCE.
DON DeNEVI, A PROFESSOR AT MERRITT COLLEGE IN OAKLAND,
CO-WROTE A MANUSCRIPT WITH CLARENCE CARNES.
THIS WAS THE FIRST INSIDER'S ACCOUNT
OF THE ESCAPE.
CLARENCE PASSED AWAY LAST YEAR,
BUT DeNEVI SHARES HIS COLLABORATOR'S OPINION.
THESE GUYS MADE IT.
THEY MADE IT BECAUSE CLARENCE SAID THEY DID,
AND I TRUST THAT.
IF YOU CALL THE BUREAU OF PRISONS TODAY,
THEY WILL TELL YOU NO ONE ESCAPED FROM ALCATRAZ.
THEY MADE IT. THIS IS AN EMBARRASSMENT.
WHO'S GOING TO ADMIT TO THAT?
ALCATRAZ HAD A DESERVEDLY FORMIDABLE REPUTATION.
THE RATIO OF GUARD TO INMATE
WAS THE HIGHEST OF ANY PRISON IN THE COUNTRY--
ONE GUARD TO EVERY THREE CONVICTS.
ALCATRAZ WAS THE LAST STOP
IN THE FEDERAL
AND ONLY THE WORST TROUBLEMAKERS WERE SENT THERE.
THERE WERE FEW PRIVILEGES,
AND FOR THE FIRST TWO YEARS OF OPERATION,
PRISONERS WERE NOT EVEN ALLOWED TO TALK TO ONE ANOTHER.
OUT OF A 24-HOUR DAY,
23 WERE SPENT IN A SOLITARY CELL.
THE INMATES WERE COUNTED AT LEAST 14 TIMES A DAY,
BUT NO MAN-MADE SECURITY PRECAUTIONS
COULD BEGIN TO MATCH ALCATRAZ' MOST DISTINGUISHED FEATURE,
THE BAY THAT SURROUNDS IT.
ALCATRAZ WAS OPENED
BECAUSE IT WAS HOPED TO BE--
IEVE
THE INESCAPABLE PRISON.
ALCATRAZ WAS NEVER CONSIDERED ESCAPE-PROOF.
IT WAS CONSIDERED TO BE
A VERY DIFFICULT PLACE TO ESCAPE FROM
FOR ONE REASON AND ONE REASON ONLY--
ER
THAT LAY BETWEEN THE ISLAND AND THE MAINLAND.
FROM THE ISLAND AND ANGEL ISLAND.
THAT WAS THE ONLY THING
THAT MADE IT DIFFICULT TO ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ, WAS THAT WATER.
ONE OF THE HALLMARKS OF ALCATRAZ' RIGID SECURITY
WAS THE SPORADIC SHAKEDOWNS OF THE PRISONERS' CELLS.
CLARENCE CARNES WAS OFTEN TARGETED,
AS HE WORKED IN THE PRISON LIBRARY
AND DISTRIBUTED READING MATERIAL
TO THE BORED PRISONERS.
COME ON OUT OF THERE. IT'S SHAKEDOWN TIME.
AUTHORITIES SUSPECTED THAT HE USED THIS JOB
AS A COVER TO CIRCULATE CONTRABAND MATERIALS.
THEY WERE CORRECT.
CARNES WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT INMATE ON ALCATRAZ.
HE HAD GAINED THE RESPECT
OF VIRTUALLY ALL THE OTHER INMATES
BECAUSE HE KNEW HOW TO KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT.
HE WAS, IN A SENSE,
THE GODFATHER OF...ALCATRAZ.
THOSE WHO NEEDED INFORMATION,
CE
OUT.
OK, CLOSE IT UP.
CLARENCE WAS INVITED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ESCAPE,
BUT, AS HE WAS UNDER SUCH CLOSE SCRUTINY,
HE DECLINED.
HE DID REMAIN CLOSE TO THE PLOT,
EGAN WITH AN WEST.
WEST WAS A CLOSE FRIEND OF CARNES
AND WAS ASSIGNED TO PAINT THE TOP TIER
ISON.
ONE DAY WHILE WORKING THERE,
HE DISCOVERED A WAY TO ACCESS THE PRISON'S ROOF
THROUGH A VENTILATION SHAFT.
WEST NOTICED THAT THE VENTILATION DUCT
THROUGH THE CELL HOUSE ROOF
TRUCTED
SO THAT THERE WERE CROSSBARS IN-BETWEEN.
YOU COULDN'T CUT THE BARS.
BUT WEST DISCOVERED
THAT ALL YOU HAD TO DO
WAS CUT THE ENTIRE DUCT
FROM ITS SURROUNDING SUPPORT
AND JUST SHOVE THE WHOLE THING OUT.
BY OCTOBER OF 1961,
ALAN WEST HAD BEGUN PLANNING HIS ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ.
HE ENLISTED THE HELP OF TWO BROTHERS,
JOHN AND CLARENCE ANGLIN, BOTH CONVICTED BANK ROBBERS
WHO HAD A HISTORY OF ESCAPES FROM OTHER INSTITUTIONS.
THE ANGLINS WERE EXPERT RAFTSMEN
BECAUSE THEY HAD GROWN UP IN THE FLORIDA SWAMPS.
THEY KNEW HOW TO CONSTRUCT RAFTS.
THEY KNEW HOW TO NEGOTIATE CURRENTS.
THEY WERE EXPERT SWIMMERS AS WELL.
PERHAPS THE MOST PIVOTAL FIGURE IN THE PLOT
WAS AN INMATE NAMED FRANK MORRIS.
ACCORDING TO PRISON RECORDS,
HE HAD AN I.Q. OF 133,
APPROACHING THE GENIUS RANGE.
HIS CELL WAS NEXT TO WEST'S,
AND ONCE HE WAS BROUGHT INTO THE PLAN,
HE PUT HIS INTELLECT TO GOOD USE.
MORRIS ALSO HAD A RECORD OF OTHER ESCAPE ATTEMPTS.
HE HAD BEEN AT ALCATRAZ FOR 1 1/2 YEARS.
MORRIS, IF YOU COULD USE THE TERM,
L TYPE.
HE WAS A THINKER.
ANYTHING CONNECTED WITH THIS ESCAPE
THAT HAD ANY REAL BRAINS BEHIND IT
CAN BE CREDITED TO MORRIS.
THOUGH THEY FOUND A WAY TO BREAK THROUGH THE ROOF,
THE PRISONERS STILL HAD NO WAY TO GET TO THE TOP OF THE CELL BLOCK
FROM THEIR FIRST-FLOOR CELLS,
BUT CLARENCE CARNES KNEW A WAY.
DURING HIS FEW HOURS OF FREEDOM
DURING THE 1946 ESCAPE,
CARNES HAD DISCOVERED THIS UTILITY CORRIDOR
THAT RAN THE LENGTH AND THE HEIGHT OF THE CELL BLOCK.
INSIDE THE CORRIDOR WERE HEATING AND WATER PIPES
THAT FORMED A MAKESHIFT LADDER.
IT WAS A DANGEROUS CLIMB,
BUT IT WAS THE ONLY WAY THE CONVICTS COULD REACH THE ROOF.
WORD BEGAN TO CIRCULATE THROUGH THE PRISON GRAPEVINE
THAT AN ESCAPE WAS ON.
IT SEEMED EVERYONE BUT THE GUARDS
KNEW THAT SOMETHING WAS UP.
CARNES' JOB MADE IT POSSIBLE
FOR HIM TO PASS INFORMATION TO THE FOUR RINGLEADERS.
IT WAS NOT WHAT MIGHT BE CALLED GENERAL KNOWLEDGE,
BUT I THINK THAT THERE WAS QUITE A FEW OF THE OTHER INMATES
T
AND IT'S SURPRISING TO ME
THAT THIS COULD BE THE CASE
WITHOUT SOME INFORMATION GETTING TO THE AUTHORITIES.
THE CONVICTS ON ALCATRAZ--
YOU KNOW...
EVEN IF THE WHOLE POPULATION
KNEW ABOUT IT,
YOU CAN ALMOST BE GUARANTEED
THAT THE GUARDS WOULDN'T EVER HEAR ABOUT IT.
THAT'S JUST THE WAY
THE CONS ON THE ROCK WERE.
IN PREPARING FOR THEIR ESCAPE,
THE CONVICTS TOOK ADVANTAGE
OF ONE OF ALCATRAZ' FEW LUXURIES.
IN THE EARLY PART OF THE EVENING,
THERE WAS WHAT THEY CALL A MUSIC HOUR,
AND ANYBODY WHO HAD A STRING INSTRUMENT COULD PLAY.
WHEN THAT MUSIC IS PLAYING,
IT KIND OF HAS AN EFFECT OF DEAFENING
,
AND THE INMATES THAT WERE DIGGING
AWAY.
YOU THINK IF SOMEBODY'S GOING TO ESCAPE,
THEY'RE GOING TO ESCAPE OUT THROUGH THE FRONT.
IT NEVER ENTERED MY MIND
THAT SOMEBODY'D GO BACK THROUGH THE CORRIDOR.
I DON'T KNOW WHY. IT'S LIKE...
I GUESS YOU DON'T USE THE BACK DOOR.
IN-BETWEEN HEAD COUNTS,
THE ANGLINS, WEST, AND MORRIS DUG OUT
THE REAR OF THEIR RESPECTIVE CELLS.
[FOOTSTEPS RECEDE]
WEST ALSO USED THE TIME
S
IN ORDER TO EVADE THE INCESSANT HEAD COUNTS
WHILE THEY PREPARED THEIR ESCAPE,
THE CONVICTS DEVISED A BRILLIANT PLOY.
THEY DECIDED THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO MAKE DUMMY HEADS
TO BE IN THEIR BUNKS,
IN CASE ONE OF THEM WAS NOT IN THERE
WHEN THE GUARD WOULD GO BY.
THIS WAS A TIME
WHEN THE LIGHTS WERE TURNED LOW,
AND IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT
TO RECOGNIZE OTHER THAN TO SEE THAT A FACE
WAS IN THE BED.
MORRIS ASKED ME ABOUT HOW YOU MIX FLESH TONE
BECAUSE I'M AN ARTIST.
I DID A LOT OF OIL PAINTING ON ALCATRAZ.
HE ASKED ME A NUMBER OF TIMES,
AND I BEGAN TO WONDER,
WHY IS HE SO INTERESTED IN FLESH TONE?
AND THEN I BEGAN TO PUT IT ALL TOGETHER,
BECAUSE THEY NEEDED A FLESH TONE COLOR
FOR THE DUMMY HEADS.
THE CONSTRUCTION OF THESE DUMMIES
TOOK PLACE AFTER THE LIGHTS HAD BEEN EXTINGUISHED.
THE DUMMIES THEMSELVES WERE MADE FROM SOAP,
CONCRETE POWDER, AND STOLEN PAINT.
ONE OF THE ANGLINS WORKED IN THE BARBER SHOP
AND PROVIDED THE HAIR
THAT GAVE THEM AN EXTRA TOUCH OF REALISM.
THIS IS ONE OF THE ACTUAL DUMMIES THE MEN CREATED,
STILL PRESERVED BY THE NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM
ACROSS THE BAY IN SAN FRANCISCO.
THESE ARE TWO DRILLS USED BY THE CONVICTS.
AND PARTS FROM A VACUUM CLEANER.
THEY ARE THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN USED
TO DRILL THROUGH THE HUGE DUCT
LEADING TO THE ROOF.
THESE ARE THE ACTUAL SPOON HANDLES
WHICH AUTHORITIES BELIEVE WERE USED
TO DIG THROUGH THE CONVICTS' CELL WALLS.
BY THE TIME THE CONVICTS HAD CRAFTED THESE ITEMS,
THEY'D MANAGED TO SURMOUNT MANY OF THE OBSTACLES
BUT HUGE ONES REMAINED.
THEY STILL HAD TO FIND A PLACE TO HIDE
WHILE THEY USED THE DRILLS TO CUT THROUGH TO THE ROOF.
ADDITIONALLY, IN THE MIDST OF THE PRISON'S
TIGHT SECURITY AND CLOSE SCRUTINY,
THEY HAD TO FIND SOME PRIVATE SPACE
WHERE THEY COULD BUILD THEIR RAFT.
ALAN WEST CAME UP WITH THE SOLUTION.
HEY, WHAT'S GOING ON UP THERE?
WHEN WEST WAS PAINTING,
SOME MATERIAL
AND SO--I DON'T KNOW WHO GAVE THE ORDERS
THAT HE WOULD BE ALLOWED TO HANG SOME BLANKETS
UP ALONGSIDE OF THERE
SO THAT THIS MATERIAL
WOULD NOT GET THROWN OVER THE SIDE.
IN RETROSPECT,
IT GAVE THOSE PEOPLE A PLACE TO WORK.
FOR EIGHT MONTHS,
THE CELL HOUSE ROOF WAS BLANKETED OFF,
GIVING THE INMATES COMPLETE PRIVACY
TO DRILL OUT THE VENTILATION SHAFT
AND COLLECT THE ITEMS THEY NEEDED FOR THEIR ESCAPE.
MORRIS AND THE ANGLINS WOULD TAKE TURNS CLIMBING TO THIS WORK SPACE.
THE DUMMIES LEFT ON THEIR PILLOWS
ENABLED THEM TO EVADE THE NIGHTLY HEAD COUNT.
EACH NIGHT, WITH A LOOKOUT IN PLACE,
THEY WOULD MAKE THE HAZARDOUS CLIMB TO THE ROOF.
IN HIS MANUSCRIPT, CARNES WRITES,
"MANY TIMES THROUGH THE YEARS,
SCAPE,
D BEEN
"AND BEING TOO HASTY TO TRY TO GET AWAY.
"THEY HAD NOT BEEN THOROUGH IN THEIR THINKING,
AND THAT'S WHAT DEFEATED THEM ON ALCATRAZ."
THE FOUR MEN WHO PAINSTAKINGLY PREPARED
APE
MADE NO SUCH MISTAKES.
[FILING]
THEY CAN HEAR YOU ALL THE WAY UP HERE. YOU HAVE TO BE QUIET.
SHUT UP AND KEEP FILING.
COME ON, HIT IT! YEAH, YEAH!
TO THE PATROLLING GUARDS AT ALCATRAZ,
ER,
BUT THE INMATES KNEW DIFFERENTLY.
GAZE
.
SECRETLY PASSING THEM THE RAINCOATS THEY NEEDED
TO BUILD THEIR RAFT AND LIFE JACKETS.
AT NIGHT,
THE MEN MADE THEIR LIFE PRESERVERS IN THEIR CELLS
AND HID THEM IN THE PARTIALLY DUG-OUT ESCAPE TUNNELS.
IN THIS SECRET WORK SPACE HIDDEN BY THE BLANKETS,
THE ANGLINS AND MORRIS TOOK TURNS ASSEMBLING THEIR RAFT.
THEY WERE GETTING CLOSE, VERY CLOSE,
TO THE TIME WHEN THEY WOULD BE READY.
JUNE 11, 1962.
THE LIGHTS HAD BEEN EXTINGUISHED.
THE TIME TO ESCAPE HAD FINALLY ARRIVED.
ALAN?
ALAN.
YEAH?
TIME TO GO.
QUIETLY, THE ANGLINS MADE THE BY NOW ROUTINE TRIP
TO THEIR WORK SPACE.
AND FOR THE FIRST TIME,
WEST TRIED TO SLIP THROUGH THE HOLE
IN HIS CELL WALL.
FRANK?
WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?
I CAN'T GET THROUGH. THE HOLE'S TOO SMALL.
EVERYBODY'S UPSTAIRS READY TO GO.
WEST HAD HIS EXIT CARVED OUT
HE NEEDED
WAS TO PUNCH HIS WAY THROUGH.
ERE'S
THAT HAD BEEN USED
AS PART OF THE REINFORCED MASONRY
WHEN THE CELL HOUSE HAD ORIGINALLY BEEN BUILT
AND THAT NO ONE KNEW WAS THERE.
WHERE'S WEST?
HIS HOLE'S NOT BIG ENOUGH.
NO WAY. WE'RE LEAVING.
LEAVING THE INSTIGATOR OF THE PLAN BEHIND,
THE ANGLINS AND MORRIS FINALLY,
IN THE WORDS OF CLARENCE CARNES,
"SAW THE MOON FOR THE FIRST TIME IN DECADES."
THEY WERE ALMOST FREE.
THE CONVICTS DESCENDED FROM A CORNER OF THE ROOF
BY WAY OF AN EXHAUST PIPE ADJOINING THE KITCHEN.
IRONICALLY, THOUGH PREPARED FOR EVERY SECURITY BREACH
INSIDE THE PRISON,
SECURITY OUTSIDE WAS WEAK.
NOBODY NOTICED THE MEN
AS THEY CARRIED THEIR RAFT AND LIFE PRESERVERS
CLOSER TO THE BEACH--
THE LAST STEP BEFORE THE MOST GRUELING PART
OF THE JOURNEY.
ONLY ONE FENCE STOOD BETWEEN THEM
AND THE 54-DEGREE WATERS OF SAN FRANCISCO BAY.
IT WAS SO CAREFULLY PLANNED--
THE UTILIZING OF DUMMY FACES,
THE MAKING OF THE LIFE JACKETS,
THE MAKING OF A RAFT--
F ANY RISON
THE ESCAPEES WERE CONFRONTED BY ONE FINAL HURDLE--
THEIR SOLUTION WAS PERHAPS THE MOST INGENIOUS YET.
FRANK MORRIS HAD RECEIVED A SMALL ACCORDION
CALLED A CONCERTINA
FOR USE DURING THE DAILY MUSIC HOUR.
THEY HAD TAKEN THE KEYS
OUT OF THE CONCERTINA.
AND THEREFORE, YOU COULD PUT YOUR HAND
ON ONE STRAP OF THE CONCERTINA
AND PUSH IT UP AND DOWN.
IT WOULD OPERATE JUST LIKE A BELLOWS.
A VERY REMARKABLE EXERCISE OF PATIENCE
AND STICK-TO-ITIVENESS.
THE ONLY WEAK POINT IN THIS ESCAPE
WAS THE FAILURE TO REALLY TAKE SERIOUS CONSIDERATION
OF THAT WATER OUT THERE.
THE RECORD OF PREVIOUS ESCAPES
E BEEN
TO DETER THEM FROM TACKLING THAT WATER.
IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO BEAT THAT WATER.
THAT WAS THE MISTAKE.
FRANK MORRIS, JOHN ANGLIN, AND CLARENCE ANGLIN
HAD MADE IT OFF THE ROCK.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM NEXT REMAINS A MYSTERY.
THE FOLLOWING DAY, AN EXTENSIVE SEARCH BEGAN--
ONE OF THE LARGEST MANHUNTS IN THE COUNTRY
SINCE THE LINDBERGH KIDNAPPING 25 YEARS EARLIER.
WE WERE ORDERED TO GO OUT ON THE BAY
AND, OF COURSE, START LOOKING AROUND THE ISLAND.
AND THEN OVER ON ANGEL ISLAND, SCANNING THE BEACHES
TO SEE IF ANYTHING THAT PERTAINED TO THEM
MIGHT HAVE WASHED UP.
AND THEN IT BECAME EVIDENT
THAT WE WEREN'T GOING TO FIND THEM.
WHETHER THEY HAD MADE IT OR NOT,
NO ONE KNEW FOR SURE.
AUTHORITIES BELIEVED THAT THE MEN WERE HEADED
FOR NEARBY ANGEL ISLAND,
BUT FOR 24 HOURS, NOTHING WAS FOUND.
THEN REMNANTS OF THE ESCAPEES' RAFT
BEGAN TO SURFACE.
AND SO, TOO, DID A CONTROVERSY
ON WHETHER OR NOT THE MEN SURVIVED.
THE DAY AFTER THE ESCAPE,
A HOMEMADE OAR WAS DISCOVERED FLOATING
BETWEEN ALCATRAZ AND ANGEL ISLAND.
NE
THAT THE CONVICTS HAD LEFT BEHIND
IN THE CELL BLOCK.
ON JUNE 14th, TWO DAYS AFTER THE BREAKOUT,
A RUBBER-WRAPPED PACKET WAS ALSO DISCOVERED
FLOATING NEAR ANGEL ISLAND.
IT CONTAINED AN ADDRESS BOOK,
80 FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHS,
AND A MONEY ORDER
THAT BELONGED TO ONE OF THE ESCAPEES.
MY CONCLUSION WOULD BE
THAT IT WAS ITEMS THAT THESE PEOPLE NEEDED.
THESE WEREN'T KEEPSAKES TO THESE MEN.
THIS WAS ALL THEY HAD IN THIS WORLD.
WHEN I SEEN THAT,
I SAID, WELL, I THINK THEY DIDN'T MAKE IT,
BECAUSE I THINK IT'S SOMETHING
THAT THEY WOULD EVEN POSSIBLY RISK THEIR LIFE TO SAVE.
ON THE 15th OF JUNE,
A PRISON RAINCOAT
ORE
ON THE 22nd, 10 DAYS AFTER THE ESCAPE,
PIECES OF THE CONVICT'S RAFT WERE FOUND
ONLY 50 YARDS OFF THE EAST SHORE OF ALCATRAZ.
I FE
THAT THE FLOATATION EQUIPMENT THAT THEY HAD
AND THAT INSTEAD OF BEING ABLE
THE WATER,
THEY WERE SUBMERGED IN THE WATER.
DON EBERLE WAS THE FBI AGENT
THE
PROBABLY THE EARLIEST
THEY COULD'VE GOTTEN INTO THE WATER
WOULD BE 10:30.
THE OUTGOING TIDE STARTED THAT NIGHT AT 10:00,
AND THAT OUTGOING TIDE
IS VERY STRONG.
AND I FIRMLY BELIEVE
THAT THEY WERE TAKEN
INTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN.
THE DAY
A NORWEGIAN SHIP SPOTTED A BODY
FLOATING 20 MILES PAST THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE.
THOUGH UNABLE TO RETRIEVE IT,
THEIR DESCRIPTION OF IT MATCHED THAT OF FRANK MORRIS.
THEY CITED WHAT HE HAD ON,
AND IT COINCIDED WITH THE APPAREL
THERE IS SOME EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST
THAT AT LEAST ONE OF THE MEN SURVIVED.
THE DAY AFTER THE ESCAPE,
A MAN CLAIMING TO BE JOHN ANGLIN
CALLED A SAN FRANCISCO LAWYER
KNOWN TO REPRESENT ALCATRAZ INMATES.
THE ATTORNEY IN QUESTION WAS OUT OF THE OFFICE,
SO THE CALL WAS TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER ATTORNEY--
EUGENIA MacGOWON.
THE PERSON CALLED,
AND THE RECEPTIONIST PUT HIM THROUGH TO ME.
AND HE SAID, "I'M JOHN ANGLIN,
"AND I WANT YOU TO CONTACT THE U.S. MARSHAL'S OFFICE
TO SET UP A MEETING."
AND I SAID, "FOR WHAT PURPOSE?"
AND HE SAID, IN EFFECT,
"DON'T ASK QUESTIONS. JUST DO AS I TELL YOU.
CALL THE U.S. MARSHAL'S OFFICE TO SET UP A MEETING."
AND I SAID, "WELL, I'M NOT GOING TO DO THAT UNLESS I KNOW WHY."
AND HE SAID, "DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?"
AND I SAID, "NO."
HE SAID, "READ THE NEWSPAPER," AND HE HUNG UP.
THE FBI SET UP A PHONE TAP
IN EUGENIA MacGOWON'S OFFICE,
HOPING THE MAN WOULD CALL BACK.
HE NEVER DID, AND THEY EVENTUALLY ENDED THE SURVEILLANCE,
DISMISSING THE CALL AS A PRANK.
A FEW WEEKS AFTER THE BREAK,
CLAR CLAI
A POSTCARD FROM THE ESCAPEES.
IN IT, THEY GAVE THE PREARRANGED CODE WORDS
THAT CONFIRMED THEIR SUCCESS.
THE CARD READ,
"GONE FISHING."
IF THEY HAD MADE IT TO SHORE,
THE FIRST THING THEY WOULD HAVE HAD TO DO
WAS TAKE SOMETHING OFF OF SOMEBODY.
THEY WOULD'VE HAD TO GET A CAR,
THEY WOULD'VE HAD TO GET MONEY,
THEY WOULD'VE HAD TO DO SOMETHING
THAT WOULD HAVE CERTAINLY BEEN NOTICED.
THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF ROBBERIES OR CAR THEFTS
ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE ESCAPEES.
HOWEVER, THE MEN MAY HAVE BEEN HELPED
BY SOMEONE ON THE OUTSIDE.
CLARENCE BELIEVED
THE CONVICTS SECURED THE AID
OF AN ALCATRAZ INMATE NAMED BUMPY JOHNSON.
CLARENCE SHARED WITH ME
THAT ELLSWORTH "BUMPY" JOHNSON,
THE BLACK CAPONE OF HARLEM,
UNDERWORLD KING OF HARLEM,
HAD ARRANGED FOR A BOAT TO BE OUT THERE
INS
NOW, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN PITCH BLACK OUT THERE.
THAT THEY DID GET TO THAT BOAT
THAT WAS WAITING FOR THEM.
WE MADE IT!
ACCORDING TO CLARENCE CARNES,
THE BOAT THEN TOOK THE CONVICTS TO PIER 13
IN SAN FRANCISCO'S HUNTER'S POINT DISTRICT.
MY FEELING IS...
THAT THAT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT CARNES HAS DREAMED UP,
AND THAT THERE IS NOT THE SLIGHTEST POSSIBILITY
THERE'S ANY TRUTH IN IT.
MY OPINION OF CLARENCE CARNES
IS THAT HE'S AN INMATE OF ALCATRAZ,
AND ANY INFORMATION
YOU'D RECEIVE FROM HIM
HAS TO BE TAKEN WITH A GRAIN OF SALT
BECAUSE OF HIS BACKGROUND
AND THAT YOU WOULD HAVE TO SEDULOUSLY VERIFY
EVERYTHING THAT HE SAID.
VER BEEN N
THAT WHAT HE HAS SAID
HAS ANY TRUTH CONCERNING THE FACT
THAT THEY HAVE ESCAPED.
COME ON, WEST.
CO-CONSPIRATOR ALAN WEST
WAS QUESTIONED ABOUT THESE OUTSIDE CONTACTS.
HE DENIED THEY EXISTED.
WEST WOULDN'T HAVE COPPED OUT.
HE WOULDN'T COP OUT.
YOU KNOW, WEST WAS PEOPLE.
HE WAS SOLID PEOPLE.
AND TO THIS DAY I DON'T BELIEVE
HE EVER TOLD THEM NOTHING.
TODAY THE FBI AND PRISON AUTHORITIES
HAVE NOT CHANGED THEIR OPINION.
THEY BELIEVE THE MEN DROWNED
WITHIN MINUTES OF HITTING THE WATER.
THE ESCAPE WAS JUST ANOTHER DISMAL FAILURE,
IN OUR OPINION.
NOW, OF COURSE,
WE NEVER ARE COCKSURE ENOUGH TO SAY,
"WELL, WE KNOW THEY'RE DEAD,"
BUT WE'RE PRETTY SURE THAT THEY WERE DEAD
BECAUSE THERE WAS NO TRACE OF THEM WHATSOEVER.
HOWEVER, THEY'RE STILL ON THE MISSING LIST
AND NOT THE DEAD LIST.