Alcatraz Screw

June 3, 2002
The 15 years Gregory spent guarding The Rock are distilled into blunt prose and telling anecdotes in his matter-of-fact memoir (though Gregory died in 1996, his widow, Velma, shepherded his manuscript to publication). In 1947, Gregory, a Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBP) officer, was transferred to Alcatraz, the precursor of today's "super maximum" prisons. In cool, detailed recollections, Gregory, a trusted officer under four wardens, focuses on the nitty-gritty of Alcatraz management. His ex-marine toughness (he was nearly killed at Iwo Jima) helped him deal fairly—if severely—with inmates, even as unrest, fueled by drugs and legal challenges, swept through the prison in the 1950s. Gregory's narrative recalls a time when men wore fedoras and spoke in clipped sentences, and his evocation of Alcatraz has the austerity of classic prison films: "I…got my usual headlock on the convict, pulled him out and steered him into the Hole." He has an eye for important details, from the blackjacks (small lead clubs) carried by guards that were banned elsewhere to the subtleties of prison race relations in the pre–civil rights era. He's unsympathetic to the inmates' crooked ways, and yet he struggles to believe that they're redeemable men. Factual and disciplined, this is a valuable bit of history, and FBP archivist Roberts's helpful introduction tackles the myths about Alcatraz, and how the FBP's "media blackout" policy regarding its famous inmates, such as "Machine Gun" Kelly, helped fuel them.
Illus. (July)Forecast:Unlike Ted Conover's
Newjack, this isn't for the literary; but hard-core true-crime and prison buffs will find it offers a rare look inside The Rock.

September 1, 2002
There has been a resurgence of interest in Alcatraz. In The Great Escape (2001), Jolene Babyak gives her version of the only successful escape from the Rock, and in Alcatraz Justice (2002), Earnest Lageson rehashes a long-forgotten trail of three inmates involved in a hostage situation. Now, Gregory, a former prison guard, has written his memoir of 15 years at Alcatraz. Given his background as a marine in World War II, it is no surprise that Gregory was a hard-nosed officer who stressed his ability to keep a dangerous population in line. Yet he also includes in the memoir some priceless prison vignettes. For example, he describes a fracas in the yard between a young officer and some seasoned cons, a confrontation between a doctor and his patients, and the poignant story of a mentally deranged inmate whom he saved from the abuse of the other officers. Although Alcatraz was unique because of its remote location, readers may be surprised to learn that the conditions at the prison, and the characteristics of its inmates, were not so different from those that exist today. For comparison, try Ted Conover's Newjack (2001), the memoirs of an officer in Sing Sing Correctional Facility in the 21st century. Alcatraz Screw will probably not appeal to the general reader, but it will certainly appeal to readers interested in prison life and those who have a special interest in Alcatraz. Recommended for crime collections in public libraries.-Frances Sandiford, formerly with Green Haven Correctional Facility Lib., Stormville, NY

Copyright 2002 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.