Trump Wants to Bring Back the Rock!

No, not that Rock, the other, even more notorious Alcatraz Rock.

By Greg Rabidoux

I assure you, Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson never went anywhere. Still fast. Still furious.

No, the "Rock" that President Trump wants to rebuild and reopen to house some of our current, notorious criminals and terrorists is the literal not Hollywood-made Rock.

This tiny Alcatraz Island fortress sits a mere 2.9 miles from San Francisco in the shadow of the Golden Gate Bridge. Once a proud and fully functional symbol of America's commitment to punishing the baddest of the bad guys like Al Capone, George "Machine Gun" Kelly, James "Whitey" Bulger, Mickey Cohen, and of course, the Birdman of Alcatraz himself, Robert Stroud, immortalized by actor Burt Lancaster in the film of the same name, Alcatraz now sits dilapidated and in disrepair. Since 1972, after 2 years of Native American Indian occupation, California decided to turn it into a tourist attraction. Today, SF Supervisor Danny Lauter calls it "beloved and unique to San Francisco" and calls Trump's proposal to rebuild and reopen it nothing short of absurd.

But in the wake of Trump working with actor Jon Voight to restore Hollywood while placing 100% tariffs on foreign made films (think China) maybe it's time to invite the "worst of the worst" to come back and visit Alcatraz for an extended stay. Like for the rest of their miserable lives. Clint Eastwood, once dubbed the "Rock of the Western" by famed Spaghetti-western films director Sergio Leone, brought more Hollywood fame to Alcatraz with his portrayal of real-life inmate Frank Morris and his gang who escaped the fortress in 1962 but were never seen from or heard of again (Escape from Alcatraz) and were presumed dead. But who knows? Maybe Frank and his Boys are sitting in some Mexican hideout playing Pinochle and applauding Trump's latest but surely not his last provocative proposal to Make America, and Alcatraz, Great Again.

Ever the businessman, President Trump can't stand having an asset in America's portfolio collecting dust when it could be collecting criminals. And just for the record, in my April 10th blog I called for White House action to undue decades of China's exploitative trade practices when it comes to film. And we can thank Joe Biden for that mess too. Just saying.

Greg Rabidoux is an award-winning filmmaker, author, and screenplay writer who sleeps better at night knowing criminals are under lock and key and not sipping margaritas with Senators from Maryland.