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The Big House

The Big House explores some of America's toughest prisons from the inside out.
200010 episodesTV-PG
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Episodes

  1. S1 E1 - Lewisburg Federal
    January 16, 2001
    45min
    TV-PG
    Built in 1932, the federal penitentiary in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, looks more like a church than a prison. Its history and inmate roster includes Alger Hiss, Morton Sobel and Al Capone.
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  2. S1 E2 - Florida State at Raiford
    January 17, 2001
    45min
    TV-PG
    At the height of its infamy, Florida State Prison at Raiford was the scene of stabbings, beatings and even a decapitation. Today, Raiford is home to Florida's death row inmates awaiting execution.
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  3. S1 E3 - Maze Prison
    June 29, 2002
    44min
    TV-PG
    Maze Prison near Belfast holds both Catholic and Protestant prisoners, including paramilitary groups. Investigate the Dirty Protest, when prisoners smeared human waste on prison walls.
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  4. S1 E4 - Auburn
    May 28, 2003
    44min
    TV-PG
    Auburn State Penitentiary is one of America's first bids at criminal rehabilitation. Founded by liberal prison reformers, they believed this could be attained through penitence, hard work and silence.
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  5. S1 E5 - Parchman
    May 29, 2003
    45min
    TV-PG
    State Prison in Parchman, Mississippi is a land without visible boundaries. Embodying the traditions and folk wisdom of the South, its legacy includes brutal executions in a gas chamber.
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  6. S1 E6 - Kentucky State Penitentiary
    June 24, 2003
    43min
    TV-PG
    Called the "Castle on the Cumberland," Kentucky's maximum-security prison houses the "worst of the worst" and holds a gruesome national record of seven executions in a single day.
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  7. S1 E7 - L.A. County Jail
    July 22, 2003
    43min
    TV-PG
    The largest prison system in the free world, Los Angeles County Jail faces a staggering challenge--feed 75,000 meals a day and keep an estimated 16,000 gang members from killing each other.
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  8. S1 E8 - Folsom
    January 17, 1999
    44min
    TV-PG
    Opened in 1880, Folsom Prison experienced many escapes that same year. Designed for habitual felons doing hard time, its violent history includes 93 hangings between 1895 and 1937.
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  9. S1 E9 - Attica Prison
    January 9, 2000
    45min
    TV-PG
    Attica was hailed as an architectural landmark in rural NY State and a model for the confinement of dangerous criminals. In September 1971, it became home to the worst prison riot in U.S. history.
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  10. S1 E10 - McNeil Island
    January 11, 2000
    45min
    TV-PG
    McNeil Island has been the scene of daring escapees and home to train robbers, gangsters and even politicians. Interviews include a former inmate who attempted to escape and former wardens.
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