By Mark D. Zimmerman
MELVILLE, New York — Donald Trump announced that he is directing the Bureau of Prisons to rebuild and enlarge Alcatraz Prison “to house America’s most ruthless and violent offenders,” though even Trump admits that reopening the prison would be a major undertaking, calling it “a big hulk that’s sitting there rusting and rotting.”
The prison, officially known as United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, and often referred to as The Rock, is located on an island in San Francisco Bay. Opened in 1934 and closed in 1963, the site is now a public museum under the auspices of the National Park Service, with more than 1.4 million visitors annually.
Among the most famous prisoners housed at Alcatraz were Al Capone, Machine Gun Kelly, and Robert Stroud, the Birdman of Alcatraz. When the prison first opened in 1934, there were already 7 Jewish inmates, whose religious needs, including a Passover seder, were served by prison chaplain Rabbi Rudolph Coffee.
Among the better known Jewish inmates who served time at Alcatraz was Irving Wexler, better known as Waxey Gordon (based on the excellent pickpocketing skills he developed as a child on New York’s Lower East Side). Another Jewish prisoner was George Brooks, who was serving time at Leavenworth in Kansas for drug trafficking until he was transferred to Alcatraz. This was done as punishment when Brooks led an inmate strike of white, Indigenous, Jewish, and Catholic prisoners. In particular, however, Brooks helped lead the “Colored Committee” of Black inmates, an unusual activity for a white man.
Another prominent Jewish prisoner at Alcatraz was Meyer Harris “Mickey” Cohen, whose parents had immigrated to Los Angeles from Kiev. Before he was 10 years old, Cohen was sent to Reform School for petty theft and shoplifting. He continued his criminal activities, working with Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel among others. Among his criminal activities were bookmaking, tax evasion, and a number of violent crimes. He went to Alcatraz in 1961 for tax evasion, where he was the only prisoner there who was ever released on bail, with his bond signed by U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren. What else is true of Mickey Cohen?
A. The best man at his wedding was William “Stumpy” Zevon, father of the American rock singer-songwriter Warren Zevon.
B. He was an ardent supporter of Menachem Begin’s paramilitary organization the Irgun.
C. Cohen’s bodyguard Johnny Stompanato was killed in self-defense by Cheryl Crane, the daughter of actress Lana Turner.
D. Cohen helped establish the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, the oldest continuously operating resort on the Strip.
E. While in prison, Cohen earned the nickname, the Loxman of Alcatraz, as he caught salmon in San Francisco Bay and cared for them in the prison bathtub.
Link to answer: https://rrrjewishtrivia.com/alcatraz-answer.html
“It’s morally wrong to allow a sucker to keep his money.”
— Mickey Cohen