Birdman of Alcatraz is a 1962 American biographical drama film directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Burt Lancaster.

[3][4] It is a largely fictionalized[5] version of the life of Robert Stroud, who was sentenced to solitary confinement after having killed a prison guard.

While in the exercise yard during a heavy rainstorm, Stroud finds a downed nest holding an orphaned baby sparrow.

During the move, he meets several reporters and displays a range of knowledge on more than just birds, such as the technical details of a passing jet aircraft.

British director Charles Crichton was picked for this film and his United States debut, but he clashed with Lancaster and was replaced by Frankenheimer.

[10] On being cast as Feto Gomez, Telly Savalas said he "was in awe" of Lancaster, despite saying he was never nervous when interviewing famous figures including Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower.

[15] He recalled how "I couldn't catch my breath in the presence of Burt Lancaster", who he credited as launching his career and remained among Savalas' favorite performers.

For the prison laundrette scene which lasts for around 90 seconds, an entire steam laundry from 1914 was brought on set, complete with all piping and machinery which was operational.

For scenes in Stroud's isolation cell, the small set size meant that the movie camera required around a third of the amount of available space.

[20] The movie features many birds being friendly around Lancaster, to which he explained they had been specially trained by two men brought on to the set from Japan.

At the press conference, Lancaster made his views clear that he believed Stroud should be released, even offering to visit Washington to try and use his influence to help the cause.

"[23] Warden James F. Maroney declined United Artists' invitation to show the film in Alcatraz to inmates, after a special screening was set up for him and three of his staff.

He went on to say that he and his staff "found the film interesting and occasionally, but not always, realistic", but suggested that the inmates would prefer to watch entertainment that distracts them from their environment, rather than one which reminds them of their current one.

[26] One of the first critic's reviews of the film by Philip K. Scheuer praised it as "one of the finest pieces of film-making to come out of Hollywood in many a disappointing day", describing Lancaster's performance as "an astonishing tour de force.

"[27] In discussing the film's prison setting, Variety wrote, "Birdman reverses the formula and brings a new breadth and depth to the form.