Birdman of Alcatraz ( film ) - wikipedia Birdman of Alcatraz ( film ) Birdman of Alcatraz original film poster by Saul Bass Directed by John Frankenheimer Produced by Harold Hecht Stuart Millar Guy Trosper Written by Thomas E. Gaddis ( book ) Guy Trosper Starring Burt Lancaster Karl Malden Thelma Ritter Neville Brand Edmond O'Brien Music by Elmer Bernstein Cinematography Burnett Guffey Edited by Edward Mann Distributed by United Artists Release date July 3, 1962 ( 1962 - 07 - 03 ) Running time 143 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $2,650,000 Birdman of Alcatraz is a 1962 biographical drama film starring Burt Lancaster and directed by John Frankenheimer. It is a largely fictionalized version of the life of Robert Stroud, a federal prison inmate known as the `` Birdman of Alcatraz '' because of his life with birds. In spite of the title, much of the action is set at Leavenworth Prison, where Stroud was jailed with his birds. When moved to Alcatraz he was not allowed to keep any pets. The film was adapted by Guy Trosper from the 1955 book by Thomas E. Gaddis. It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role ( Burt Lancaster ), Best Actor in a Supporting Role ( Telly Savalas ), Best Actress in a Supporting Role ( Thelma Ritter ) and Best Cinematography, Black - and - White. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 4 Reception 5 See also 6 References 7 External links Plot Robert Stroud ( Lancaster ) is imprisoned as a young man for committing a murder in Alaska. He is shown as a rebellious inmate, fighting against a rigid prison system : on his way to jail by train he breaks open the window to allow the suffocating inmates to breathe. His rebellious attitude puts him in conflict with Harvey Shoemaker ( Malden ), the warden of Leavenworth Prison. While in jail, Stroud learns that his mother ( Ritter ) tried to visit him but was denied and told to return later in the week. Outraged, he attacks a guard over the issue and stabs the man to death. Stroud is sentenced to death, but his mother runs a successful campaign and he is commuted to life in prison. The terms of the sentence require that he be kept in solitary confinement for the rest of his life. To break the monotony, Stroud adopts an orphaned baby sparrow as a pet. This starts a trend and he and the other convicts acquire birds, such as canaries, as gifts from the outside. Before long, Stroud has built up a collection of birds and cages. When they fall ill, he conducts experiments and comes up with a cure. As the years pass, Stroud becomes an expert on bird diseases and even publishes a book on the subject. His writings are so impressive that a doctor describes him as a `` genius ''. Stroud later meets bird - lover Stella Johnson ( Field ) and agrees to go into business, marketing his bird remedies. He and Stella later marry, but his mother disapproves and this causes a rift between mother and son. He is abruptly transferred to the federal penitentiary at Alcatraz ( the `` Rock '' ), a new maximum security institution where he is not permitted to keep birds. He is now growing elderly but still shows a rebellious side, writing a history of the U.S. penal system that is suppressed by Shoemaker, now warden of the Rock. Still at odds with authority, Stroud nevertheless manages to help stop a prison rebellion in 1946 by throwing out the guns acquired by the convicts. He then assures the authorities that they can now re-enter the premises without fear of being shot. Although Stroud has been a thorn in his side for decades, Shoemaker acknowledges that he has never lied to him and takes him at his word. Although constantly denied parole, Stroud is eventually transferred to another prison in Missouri after a petition campaign. 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. He even gets to meet Thomas E. Gaddis ( Edmond O'Brien ), the author of the book based on his life. Cast Burt Lancaster as Robert Stroud Karl Malden as Harvey Shoemaker Thelma Ritter as Elizabeth McCartney Stroud Neville Brand as Bull Ransom Betty Field as Stella Johnson Telly Savalas as Feto Gomez Edmond O'Brien as Thomas E. Gaddis Hugh Marlowe as Albert Comstock Whit Bissell as Dr. Ellis Crahan Denton as Kramer James Westerfield as Jess Younger Production This was to have been the American film debut for British director Charles Crichton until he clashed with Lancaster and was replaced by Frankenheimer. According to Strother Martin, `` I had a nice role in Birdman of Alcatraz. They fired the original director, Charles Crichton, and I went out with him. I was replaced by Leo Penn who was eventually cut out of the picture entirely. '' Reception Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, reports that 82 % of 17 surveyed critics, both contemporaneous and modern, gave the film a positive review ; the average rating is 7 / 10. In discussing the film 's prison setting, Variety wrote, `` Birdman reverses the formula and brings a new breadth and depth to the form. '' A.H. Weiler of The New York Times called it `` a thoughtful yet powerful portrait that cleaves to the heart and mind despite its omissions ''. According to those who knew him while he was in prison, the mild - mannered characterization of Stroud, as presented in Gaddis ' book and the subsequent film, was largely fiction. Former inmate Glenn Williams went so far as to say that Stroud `` was not a sweetheart ; he was a vicious killer. I think Burt Lancaster owes us all an apology ''. He and another former convict, Jim Quillan, described the real Stroud as a `` jerk '', `` a guy that liked chaos and turmoil and upheaval... Always at somebody else 's expense ''. They regarded the film as a `` comedy... an excellent comedy ''. The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists : 2006 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Cheers -- # 76 See also List of American films of 1962 References Jump up ^ Kate Buford, Burt Lancaster : An American Life, Da Capo 2000 p 209 Jump up ^ Variety film review ; June 20, 1962, page 6. Jump up ^ Harrison 's Reports film review ; June 23, 1962, page 94. Jump up ^ See, e.g., Jolene Babyak, Bird Man : The Many Faces of Robert Stroud ( Berkeley, California : Ariel Vamp Press, 1994, rev. 2011 ) Jump up ^ Rachel Bell, `` Jail Birds : The Story of Robert Stroud '' Jump up ^ Birdman of Alcatraz ( 1962 ), Awards at Internet Movie Database Jump up ^ Bergan, Ronald ( 14 September 1999 ). `` Charles Crichton ''. The Guardian. Retrieved 12 December 2015. Jump up ^ Scott, Vernon ( 20 May 1978 ). `` Actor lives in fear of snips ''. Lodi News - Sentinel. Retrieved 16 December 2015. Jump up ^ `` Birdman of Alcatraz ( 1962 ) ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 12. Jump up ^ `` Review : ' Birdman of Alcatraz ' ''. Variety. 1962. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 12. Jump up ^ Weiler, A.H. ( 1962 - 07 - 19 ). `` Birdman of Alcatraz ( 1962 ) ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 12. Jump up ^ `` Alumni ' revisit The Rock, article on sfgate.com, online home of the San Francisco Chronicle Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Cheers '' ( PDF ). American Film Institute. Retrieved 2016 - 08 - 13. External links Birdman of Alcatraz on IMDb Birdman of Alcatraz at Rotten Tomatoes Birdman of Alcatraz at AllMovie Crime Library article on Robert Stroud Trailer of the movie on YouTube Films directed by John Frankenheimer Forbidden Area ( 1956 ) ( TV ) The Young Stranger ( 1957 ) The Young Savages ( 1961 ) All Fall Down ( 1962 ) Birdman of Alcatraz ( 1962 ) The Manchurian Candidate ( 1962 ) Seven Days in May ( 1964 ) The Train ( 1964 ) Seconds ( 1966 ) Grand Prix ( 1966 ) The Fixer ( 1968 ) The Extraordinary Seaman ( 1969 ) The Gypsy Moths ( 1969 ) I Walk the Line ( 1970 ) The Horsemen ( 1971 ) The Iceman Cometh ( 1973 ) Impossible Object ( 1973 ) 99 and 44 / 100 % Dead ( 1974 ) French Connection II ( 1975 ) Black Sunday ( 1977 ) Prophecy ( 1979 ) The Challenge ( 1982 ) The Holcroft Covenant ( 1985 ) 52 Pick - Up ( 1986 ) Dead Bang ( 1989 ) The Fourth War ( 1990 ) Year of the Gun ( 1991 ) Against the Wall ( 1994 ) The Burning Season ( 1994 ) Andersonville ( 1996 ) The Island of Dr. Moreau ( 1996 ) George Wallace ( 1997 ) Ronin ( 1998 ) Reindeer Games ( 2000 ) Path to War ( 2002 ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Birdman_of_Alcatraz_(film)&oldid=839680950 '' Categories : 1962 films English - language films 1960s drama films Alcatraz Island in fiction American black - and - white films American drama films American films American prison films Films scored by Elmer Bernstein Films about capital punishment Films based on biographies Films directed by John Frankenheimer Films produced by Harold Hecht Films set in San Francisco Films set in the San Francisco Bay Area Films set in Kansas Films set on islands United Artists films Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Deutsch Ελληνικά Español فارسی Français Bahasa Indonesia Italiano ქართული Nederlands 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Svenska Türkçe Українська 9 more Edit links This page was last edited on 5 May 2018, at 00 : 30. 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Question: who starred in the movie birdman of alcatraz
Answer: Burt Lancaster