Last night was the private premiere party for J.J. Abrams' new San Francisco-based time-and-space-bending TV show Alcatraz. As far as we can tell, no one other than Entertainment Weekly and the show's principal stars were in attendance at the shindig, which was held — where else? — on the Rock itself. We're kind of bummed nobody invited us along because we love television and have been saving up a ton of Jurassic Park jokes to tell Sam Neill for, like, years now. Anyway according to EW's party report, Fox and Warner Brothers "pulled out all the stops" for the party, which included making people eat off of prison-issue tin plates at dinner and interviewing the cast in the shower room. Because that seems fun. more ›

Some forty years after a group of protesters — which swelled at one point to 800 people — occupied the island of Alcatraz for 19 months to protest the unfair seizing of Native American lands, a room in the prison's basement is getting a permanent exhibit including video and sound recordings about the occupation. The occupation ended in 1971, after protesters had hoped for almost two years to turn the island into an American Indian university or cultural center. more ›

Were you aware that Alcatraz could be rented out for events, for a price? Neither were we! Leave it to major liquor distributor William Grant & Sons, who came to the Bay Area to host a booze-industry fete and butter up a bevy of local beverage folks, to inform us. The occasion was Repeal Day (the repeal of Prohibition), which is actually not until December 5th, and the theme was, appropriately 1920s/Speakeasy. more ›

If you've ever wanted to spend a night on Alcatraz, the National Parks Service might be coming up with your next staycation destination. In a lengthy proposal (which the Examiner handily broke down for you), the Golden Gate Recreation Area details a couple possible plans to spruce up the facilities and restore historical structures while also adding new tourist draws like overnight accommodations and concessions on the island. more ›

Alcatraz, the latest time-traveling island psychodrama from J.J. Abrams and company got picked up by Fox for the 2012 season. Wonderful, and now we have this teaser trailer. It looks very... mysterious? Kinda dark? Apparently J.J. Abrams' vision of San Francisco is as gray as Sam Neill's hair these days. Jump to around 1:34 for a cameo from those gunshots on Filbert Street from a couple months back, and it only took a minute and forty seconds for Hugo Reyes Jorge Garcia to utter "Holy crap! You gotta come see this!" Glad to see he's not a victim of typecasting, at least. [YouTube] more ›

UGO Entertainment reports that J.J. Abrams' San Francisco-set (obviously) time-traveling (also kind of obvious) crime drama Alcatraz has been picked up by Fox. You'll remember crews were around town filming the pilot episode back in February and they must have captured some particularly compelling footage because rumor has it Fox was ready to pass on the series. more ›

"Alcatraz View" by Demetrios Lyras. more ›

The Annual Indigenous Peoples Thanksgiving: Sunrise Gathering on Alcatraz Island will take place bright and early on Thursday morning. Boats depart Pier 33 every fifteen minutes starting at 4:45 a.m. through 6 a.m. more ›

Get thee to Alcatraz. We Players artistic director Ava Roy brings the Prince of Denmark to The Rock, with chilling results. by Naomi Kirsten more ›

Protesters gathered at Pier 33 yesterday to draw attention to the firing of longtime Alcatraz Cruises employee Vincent Atos, who was suspended last year over a sexual harassment complaint for being "too gay." Atos was, at the time, trying to organize a union for cruise workers and suspects this had something to do with his punishment. more ›

A tool shed originally built by prisoners and recently restored sits above the gardens on Alcatraz Island. "Scoured by wind and steeped in criminal history, Alcatraz has a forbidding face. But look a little closer and you see a gentler side to this old fortress, the gleam of flowers blooming brightly on the island's rocky slopes." Aw. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg) more ›

While most city folk were enjoying the newly warm weather, about 800 people from around the state (and a few non-Californians) converged on Aquatic Park to freeze their goggles off for the Alcatraz Sharkfest swim. Swimmers arrived Saturday at the Maritime Museum as early as 5:30 am to catch a ferry to Alcatraz. At around 8:45, they jumped off the boat for a 1.5 mile race back to shore. But even as they shivered out of the water, barely able to walk, let alone speak for numbness, swimmers remarked on this being the best conditions in recent memory. The water was about 60 degrees with fairly mild currents for the area. more ›

Timecapsule: December 16, 1937 more ›

The clink. more ›

In terms of propositions this year, especially SF propositions, it's a pretty lean year. Both A and B, in fact, seem to be so non-controversial that neither the SF Republicans nor Starchild appear to object. Then there's Proposition C. more ›

Who knew that one of the five islands in San Francisco Bay was privately owned? Even stranger, "Red Rock Island" is now up for sale, for a paltry $10 million. The last time we remember one of our islands changing hands was way back in 1847, when Captain John C Fremont bought Alcatraz for $5000. Fremont was in town, as you no doubt remember, as the head of a surveying expedition. A man of... more ›