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Alcatraz Island was opened from 1934 to 1963. At that time it was the last stop in the federal penitentiary pipeline. It housed famous criminals such as Al “Scar face” Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, and Robert Stroud, “The Birdman of Alcatraz” (Am ....

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.... by guards on a central walkway surrounded by bars. All doors on the island were electronically operated and were designed to slam and let the inmate know the guards were in total control. Coming back from work inmates were checked eleven times and had to get through three metal detectors. Then in their cells they were counted up to thirty times a day (Stuller 87). Well-behaved inmates could spend their Saturday and Sunday afternoons watching a movie or in the recreation yard. In the yard they could lounge about, lift weights, play in a softball game, or sit down to a game of chess, dominoes, or bridge. A typical day went like this: At 6:30 AM yo ....