Crime
On this day, Nov.23, 1959
November 21, 2008
Robert Stroud, “The Birdman of Alcatraz,” is released from solitary confinement for the first time since 1916.
Stroud was sent to prison in 1909 after he killed a bartender. He had nearly completed his sentence at Leavenworth Federal Prison in Kansas when he stabbed a guard to death in 1916.
For the next 15 years, Stroud lived in solitary confinement amongst the canaries that were brought to him by visitors. But after being ordered to give up his birds in 1931, he redirected his energies to writing and publishing about them.
When the publisher failed to pay Stroud for his first book, Stroud took out advertisements complaining about the situation. Prison officials retaliated by sending him to Alcatraz, the federal prison with the worst conditions.
Stroud gained widespread fame when author Thomas Gaddis wrote a biography that trumpeted Stroud’s ornithological expertise. The book was turned into a movie in 1962 starring Burt Lancaster as “The Birdman.” Stroud died while still incarcerated in 1963, at age 73. He was never allowed to see the movie he inspired.
Stroud was sent to prison in 1909 after he killed a bartender. He had nearly completed his sentence at Leavenworth Federal Prison in Kansas when he stabbed a guard to death in 1916.
For the next 15 years, Stroud lived in solitary confinement amongst the canaries that were brought to him by visitors. But after being ordered to give up his birds in 1931, he redirected his energies to writing and publishing about them.
When the publisher failed to pay Stroud for his first book, Stroud took out advertisements complaining about the situation. Prison officials retaliated by sending him to Alcatraz, the federal prison with the worst conditions.
Stroud gained widespread fame when author Thomas Gaddis wrote a biography that trumpeted Stroud’s ornithological expertise. The book was turned into a movie in 1962 starring Burt Lancaster as “The Birdman.” Stroud died while still incarcerated in 1963, at age 73. He was never allowed to see the movie he inspired.
