Donald Trump’s decision to reopen Alcatraz may have been inspired by Hollywood.
On Sunday the president ordered the crumbling prison, currently used as a park and museum, to be reinstated—just hours after his local TV station aired a legendary movie about a real-life escape from the island penitentiary.
The president, as usual, spent the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago bolthole in Palm Beach, South Florida, and presumably—between rounds of golf—had time to catch the 1979 classic Escape from Alcatraz.
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Local TV listings show that it aired on Miami’s local PBS affiliate, WLRN 26, at 9 p.m. Saturday. It was aired again at 11 a.m. Sunday.
At around 6 p.m. Sunday, Trump demanded that the tourist destination be brought back to its former maximum security glory.
“REBUILD, AND OPEN ALCATRAZ!” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who will never contribute anything other than Misery and Suffering.
“When we were a more serious Nation, in times past, we did not hesitate to lock up the most dangerous criminals, and keep them far away from anyone they could harm.”
On Monday he was pressed on where the idea came from. He gave a rambling answer about how he should have been a “moviemaker,” and seemed to suggest that he had recently seen the prison drama.
“I was supposed to be a moviemaker,” Trump said. “It represents something very strong, very powerful in terms of law and order...Alcatraz is, I would say, the ultimate. Sing Sing and Alcatraz, right? The movies.”
Coincidentally, just minutes after his Sunday evening diktat about re-opening Alcatraz, Trump followed up with another post—announcing a 100 percent tariff on films made outside of the U.S.
“Nobody ever escaped,” Trump said Monday, lauding the prison‘s security. “One person almost got there, but they—as you know the story—they found his clothing rather badly ripped up. It was a lot of shark bites, a lot of problems.”
He appeared to be referencing a scene in Escape from Alcatraz that shows a tattered raincoat floating in San Francisco Bay. The escapees had crafted a raft using raincoats, before using it to attempt to reach the mainland.
“It sort of represents something that’s both horrible and beautiful and strong and miserable, weak,” he added. “It’s got a lot of qualities that are interesting.”
CNN reported in 2018 that “TV serves as the lens through which he views the world,” while one report from the New York Times said Trump watches between four and eight hours daily. He denied this.
Business Insider reported that he gorged on seven hours of TV every day during COVID lockdowns.
The film, starring Clint Eastwood, details the daring 1962 escape attempt perpetrated by Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin. They made it off the island in their makeshift raft but what happened next “remains a mystery,” according to the FBI.
No credible evidence has emerged to suggest the men are still alive, either in the U.S. or overseas. The FBI officially closed its case on Dec. 31, 1979. The prison closed in 1963.
Responsibility for the case was handed to the U.S. Marshals Service, which continues to investigate in the unlikely event the trio is still alive.
Trump’s idea, meanwhile, is likely to receive pushback—not least because of the site’s importance as a tourist destination. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie on Monday said that it is “not a serious proposal.” Rafael Mandelman, president of the Board of Supervisors, called it “typically absurd.”
But William K. Marshall III, director of the Bureau of Prisons, said he had ordered an immediate assessment of Alcatraz.
“We look forward to restoring this powerful symbol of law, order, and justice,” he said in a statement. “We will be actively working with our law enforcement and other federal partners to reinstate this very important mission.”
Trump, a one-time reality TV star, admitted in 2018 that he pardoned conservative author Dinesh D’Souza, jailed over an illegal campaign contribution, after seeing him on television. “I don‘t know him, I never met him. I called him last night, first time I’ve ever spoken to him. I said I’m pardoning you. Nobody asked me to do it,” he said at the time.
“I didn‘t know him. I read the papers. I see him on television.”
CNN reported that “executive time” is moulded into Trump’s weekly schedule. During this time he watches taped and live TV and usually reacts to what he sees with social media posts.
In 2016, Trump even admitted that he looked for military advice on cable channels. “Well, I watch the shows. I mean, I really see a lot of great—you know, when you watch your show and all of the other shows, and you have the generals," he told Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd.
More recently, Trump picked Fox News host Pete Hegseth to be his secretary of defense. He also assembled a crack squad of aging actors to revitalize Tinseltown.
Jon Voight—who is actress Angelina Jolie’s father—was chosen as one of his “special ambassadors” to Hollywood, as was Sylvester Stallone and Mel Gibson. It was the 86-year-old Voight who appears to have persuaded Trump to impose the levy on movies made outside the U.S.
In its report on Trump’s viewing habits, the New York Times said TV is so important to Trump that he lives in a giant Truman Show-style drama. “Before taking office, Mr. Trump told top aides to think of each presidential day as an episode in a television show in which he vanquishes rivals,” it said.
