The book recounts Burns' imprisonment on a chain gang in Georgia in the 1920s, his subsequent escape to New Jersey, and the furor that developed.[1] The story was first published in January 1931, serialized in True Detective Mysteries magazine. Later that year, Burns's story was adapted as the motion picture I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang, starring Paul Muni.[2][3] The book and movie were both credited with contributing to Governor Ellis Arnall's effort in 1943 to reform deplorable conditions on Georgia chain gangs.
Plot
Burns was a World War I veteran who returned with post-traumatic stress disorder.[4] He was unwittingly linked to a petty crime and ended up in Georgia's system of prison labor.[5] He convinced another inmate to damage his shackles so he could escape.[6] He ended up in Chicago where he married and had a successful business.[7] He was recaptured, escaped again, and sold his story to film-makers. He returned to Georgia where he was successful in getting his sentence commuted to time served. His story brought national attention to the system of leasing convict labor in Georgia.
The songwriter Jimmie Skinner, reading from his unfinished autobiography, recounts on Volume 6 of the compilation '"Doin' My Time" 1947-1963' that he wrote the country music classic "Doin' My Time" after reading the account of Robert Burns' imprisonment and escape in True Detective Mysteries magazine.
Doin' My Time" 1947–1963, Volume 6, Bear Family Records, BCD 16613 FK, Germany, 2003
This article about a biographical or autobiographical book published in the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by adding missing information.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
