Forrest Silva "Woody" Tucker (June 23, 1920 – May 29, 2004) was an American career criminal first imprisoned at age 15 who spent the rest of his life in and out of jail. He is best known as an
escape artist
Escapology is the practice of escaping from restraints or other traps. Escapologists (also classified as escape artists) escape from handcuffs, straitjackets, cages, coffins, steel boxes, barrels, bags, burning buildings, fish-tanks, and oth ...
, having escaped from prison "18 times successfully and 12 times unsuccessfully", by his own reckoning. The 2018 film '' The Old Man & the Gun'', starring Robert Redford as Tucker, is based on his life.
Early life
Forrest Silva Tucker was born June 23, 1920, in
Miami, Florida
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, to Leroy Morgan Tucker (1890–1938) and Carmen Tucker ( née Silva; 1898–1964). Leroy Tucker, a heavy-equipment operator, left the family when Forrest was six years old. Forrest was raised in Stuart, Florida by his grandmother Ellen Silva (née Morgan). His first escape from detention happened in the spring of 1936, after he was incarcerated for car theft.
Personal life
Tucker married three times and had two children, a boy and a girl; none of his wives knew of his criminal career until they were informed by police.
Prison escapes
A former inmate of
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary
United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz (, ''"the gannet"'') or The Rock was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States, the site of a ...
, Tucker was able to escape from the authorities when he was temporarily moved to a hospital in San Francisco for an operation. He was captured a few hours later still in handcuffs and a hospital gown. His most famous escape was in the summer of 1979 from San Quentin State Prison in California, when he and two confederates built a kayak and paddled away in full view of the guards. He was not apprehended for four years, during which time he and a gang went on a crime spree.
Tucker's crimes of choice were bank robberies. Law enforcement estimates Tucker stole over $4 million from banks during his career. Tucker wrote a number of books about his life, including ''Alcatraz: The True Story,'' and ''The Can Opener'', although it is unclear if they were ever published.
While living in a retirement community in Pompano Beach, Florida, at the age of 79 and married for the third time, Tucker by himself robbed an estimated four banks in the local community. In 2000, law enforcement apprehended Tucker; the Court sentenced him to 13 years in prison at the Federal Medical Center, Fort Worth (now known as
Federal Correctional Institution, Fort Worth
The Federal Medical Center (FMC) Fort Worth is an administrative-security United States federal prison in Fort Worth, Texas, for male inmates of all security levels with special medical and mental health needs. It is operated by the Federal Bure ...
).
In 2003,
David Grann
David Elliot Grann (born March 10, 1967) is an American journalist, a staff writer for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, and a best-selling author.
His first book, '' The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon,'' was published by D ...
in ''
The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' profiled Tucker in a piece titled "The Old Man and the Gun", which described Tucker's most recent bank robbery.
David Grann
David Elliot Grann (born March 10, 1967) is an American journalist, a staff writer for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, and a best-selling author.
His first book, '' The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon,'' was published by D ...
The Devil and Sherlock Holmes
''The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession'' (2010) is a collection of 12 essays by American journalist David Grann.
Essays
The essays were previously published between 2000 and 2009 in ''The New Yorker'', ''The New ...
'' (2010). Tucker did not live out his sentence; he died in prison on May 29, 2004 at the age of 83.Forrest Silva Tucker
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...
. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
Film
In 2010, a film version of Tucker's life, ''The Old Man & the Gun'' was optioned by
Anthony Mastromauro
Antonio "Anthony" Mastromauro (born 1975) is an American film producer. He is the President and Founder of Identity Films an independent production company based out of Los Angeles, California.Identity Films. It had previously been in development at
Warner Bros. Pictures
Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment (both ultimately owned by Warner Bros. Discovery). The studio is the flagship producer of ...
."Mastromauro finds Identity" ''Variety'', February 15, 2010.Robert Redford starred in and produced the film, while David Lowery wrote and directed it. The film was released on September 28, 2018. Redford announced his intent to retire from acting after the film.
Notes
External links
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David Grann
David Elliot Grann (born March 10, 1967) is an American journalist, a staff writer for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, and a best-selling author.
His first book, '' The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon,'' was published by D ...