Letters From Alcatraz - Michael Esslinger [95]
The Bureau of Prisons denounced Lancaster for helping to glorify the actions of a murderer and pledged to extend no support to the filming. Lancaster had also made attempts to visit Stroud and Former Correctional Officer Clifford Fish recalled an episode when Lancaster demanded that he be allowed to dock his yacht next to Alcatraz and meet Stroud in person. It was communicated to Lancaster that he would not be permitted to dock at Alcatraz and that if he approached without permission, his boat would be fired upon by tower guards. Reluctantly, Lancaster conceded.
The original director of the film was Briton Charles Crichton, but after only one month he was fired by Lancaster and replaced with John Frankenheimer. Lancaster had immersed himself in Stroud’s very complex character and the atmosphere on the set had taken on almost a symbolic significance; it was clear that this was the filming of a true epic. Lancaster would be forced to shave half of his head to accurately recreate the appearance of thinning hair and complicated makeup procedures were used to capture the effect of the aging process over time.
Burt Lancaster having makeup applied during the production of Birdman of Alcatraz.
Emotionally the filming was also very exhausting and taxing to the actors and film crew. In January of 1961, during the filming of the 1946 Alcatraz Riot at the Columbia studio, Burt Lancaster’s brother died suddenly of heart attack at the early age of fifty-five. It would prove to be an eerie and horrific scene, as the body was taken from the set on an ambulance stretcher. Despite this horrible tragedy, the crew continued filming through what would later be described as a surreal event. Guffey would later comment that it had almost felt like he was sitting in the middle of a real riot, as the actors were in a deeply emotional state following the death of Lancaster’s brother, John.
After the film was completed in February and following initial screenings and an unsuccessful editing, it was decided that the opening segments would need to be rewritten and re-filmed. Lancaster had made another commitment to film the movie Judgment at Nuremberg and would need to fulfill this obligation before returning to work on Birdman in May of 1961.
Birdman of Alcatraz finally premiered in April of 1962. Lancaster, Gaddis and Stroud’s attorney Stanley Furman, held press conferences at the various screenings, attempting to rally support for Stroud’s release. Lancaster sent personal letters inviting guests to special screenings of the movie, stating:
“... I would be delighted to discuss with you the inside details of an incredible epic story. The film, based on the life of the most defiant man I have ever read or heard about. Your understanding will begin when you read the enclosed material on Stroud the killer, convict, scholar, scientist. I am convinced that only by showing you the film personally and talking with you could you comprehend my deep involvement, emotionally and intellectually, with this man and his life.”
A personal invitation from Actor Burt Lancaster, inviting Bureau of Prisons Director James Bennett to a screening of Birdman of Alcatraz in 1962.
Critics declared Birdman of Alcatraz a masterpiece and Lancaster reined an Academy AwardÒ nomination for his portrayal of Stroud. Meanwhile, Stroud himself continued his legal battle for his own release. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy had earlier