newbery honor author 

new york times bestseller

Gennifer Choldenko
Gennifer Choldenko

THE ALCATRAZ INTERVIEWS

Toughest Convict on The Rock

Robert Luke, Alca­traz con­vict #1118, was on the island from 1954–1959. Alca­traz was his sixth prison. No trou­ble with the law since Alcatraz.

Robert Luke

1.

While on Alca­traz, did you dream of being free?

All the time.

2.

Were you afraid dur­ing your years on Alcatraz?

Nev­er. I had a rep­u­ta­tion for being extreme­ly vio­lent. Peo­ple were care­ful around me. The only time I was afraid on Alca­traz was when I came back a few years ago and the ranger asked me to speak to the public.

3.

What did you do to pass the time on Alcatraz?

I read two or three books a week. (Checked out from the cell house library). I like his­to­ry. I must have read The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire three or four times. When I read a book, I actu­al­ly become a part of it. My imag­i­na­tion helped, too. Some­times I would take a trip up in my head.

4.

Did you ever play base­ball in the rec yard on Alcatraz?

Yes. I was a field­er. There was only one field­er as we had six-man teams. There was no room in the recre­ation yard for more.

5.

What hap­pened when the ball went over the wall?

If it went over the right field wall it was an auto­mat­ic out. If it went over the cen­ter field wall it was a home run. If it went on the roof of the cell house it was good for two bases.

6.

You have said your cell was “the size of a pool table “did it ever feel like home?

No. We called it our house, but not a home.

7.

I’ve heard you say that you didn’t seri­ous­ly con­sid­er an escape from Alca­traz because as a US Navy man you under­stood how dif­fi­cult it would be to swim to free­dom giv­en the cur­rents in the bay and the tem­per­a­ture of the water. If you were to plan an escape from Alca­traz, how would you do it?

The only chance would be if you worked out­side. I was nev­er allowed to work out­side because I was an escape risk. The last war­den was lax. He didn’t check the cells. That’s one of the rea­sons the (1962) escape happened.

8.

What ques­tion do you get asked the most?

Did you know Al Capone?

9.

Capone died before your time on Alca­traz, of course.

Yes. But if I had been in prison with him, I would have kept my dis­tance. I stayed away from con­nect­ed crim­i­nals because they often have influ­ence over the police or the guards.

10.

But you knew Machine Gun Kel­ly, right?

Yes, he played bridge on the recre­ation yard.

11.

Did you have vis­its while you were on Alcatraz?

Only one. I didn’t like vis­its because they remind­ed me too much of what it was like outside.

12.

What was your worst day on Alcatraz?

My worst days were the 29 days I spent in the dis­ci­pli­nary cells on Alcatraz.

13.

Did you ever see the kids who lived on the island?

No.

14.

What jobs did you have while on Alcatraz?

I worked in the mess hall, the laun­dry, and the glove shop.

15.

Did you ever see con­tra­band come through the laundry?

No. They searched all the laun­dry. But if you want­ed some­thing, you could get it.

16.

In your book, you men­tion the fact that you were a good stu­dent. School was always easy for you. What do you think made you cross the line and begin stealing?

The excite­ment. I got car­ried away. I met some­one who was doing it and the life just sound­ed excit­ing to me. It becomes eas­i­er the more you do it.

17.

Why do you think you end­ed up on Alcatraz?

I made the wrong choic­es. We are all born with the abil­i­ty to make our own choic­es. But once you make the wrong choice, oth­er peo­ple make your deci­sions for you.

18.

Are there any Alca­traz movies that are accurate?

If there was a com­plete­ly true movie about prison, no one would go to it because it would be so bor­ing. It’s the bore­dom that gets you.

19.

You were one of the few men who were released direct­ly from Alca­traz. How did it feel to leave?

The col­ors and immense dis­tances seemed astound­ing. I had just come from a place that had no col­or, and the far­thest you could walk in one direc­tion was less than 100 yards. The whole expe­ri­ence was real­ly overwhelming.

20.

What would you tell a kid grow­ing up today?

Go to school. Learn to read. The lit­er­a­cy rate of cons is so high. Make the right choices.

21.

I’ve heard you say that since your years on Alca­traz you’ve nev­er been in any trou­ble. Though you write you had: “a hair-trig­ger tem­per.” You wrote a pow­er­ful poem about this which is on the back cov­er of your book.

A Lament

That dark man
Still lives
Deep inside me
Wait­ing
But his armor
Is rust­ing
And he will soon
Dete­ri­o­rate
Into dust
And so will
I

— Robert Luke

22.

How did you man­age your tem­per after Alcatraz?

It took time. I learned to walk away from an argu­ment before trou­ble start­ed. I had a few prob­lems with it, but grad­u­al­ly I gained control.

23.

After Alca­traz, did you dream about being in jail?

Yes. For fifty-one years I dreamt about prison. The prison dreams only stopped when I went back to Alca­traz and began speak­ing to the pub­lic about my expe­ri­ence. Before that, only my fam­i­ly and my best friend knew.

24.

In your book, you talk about the epiphany you had while on Alca­traz. You say that you real­ized “the truth, that no one was respon­si­ble for my actions but me.” If you could offer words of wis­dom to your 14-year-old self, what would they be?

Your choic­es will get you in trou­ble if you make the wrong ones. If you make a wrong choice, pull your foot back.

Crim­i­nal his­to­ry pri­or to Alca­traz: rob­bing banks, bur­glary, car theft and assault.

Sent to Alca­traz for attempt­ed escape at Leavenworth.

No trou­ble with the law after Alca­traz. He has lived a hap­py, pro­duc­tive life for the last 54 years.

Author of Entombed on Alcatraz

Inter­viewed by Gen­nifer Chold­enko in Cotati, CA, on Feb­ru­ary 23, 2013