''Midnight Express'' is a 1977

nonfiction Non-fiction (or nonfiction) is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to convey information only about the real world, rather than being grounded in imagination. Non-fiction typically aims to present topics objectively ...

book by Billy Hayes and William Hoffer about Hayes' experience as a young American who was sent to a Turkish prison. The U.S. had declared a "War on Drugs" in the early 1970s, and Hayes was made an example of for trying to smuggle

hashish Hashish (; ), usually abbreviated as hash, is a Compression (physics), compressed form of resin (trichomes) derived from the cannabis flowers. European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, Lisbon, As a Psychoactive drug, psychoactive ...

out of

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. When his sentence was extended to 30 years, he decided to make his escape. The book was adapted by

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born ) is an American filmmaker. Stone is an acclaimed director, tackling subjects ranging from the Vietnam War and American politics to musical film, musical Biographical film, biopics and Crime film, crime dramas. He has ...

and directed by

Alan Parker Sir Alan William Parker (14 February 1944 – 31 July 2020) was an English film director, screenwriter and producer. His early career, beginning in his late teens, was spent as a copywriter and director of television advertisements. After abo ...

into a 1978 feature film of the same name that took many liberties with the book. After reading the book, Australian country music singer Shane Nicholson recorded an album and title track, '' Bad Machines'', which was inspired by the book.

Editions

*Dutton, 1977. (First edition)

References

1977 non-fiction books Non-fiction books about Turkey Autobiographies adapted into films Hayes Turkey–United States relations Works about cannabis trafficking Memoirs of imprisonment Cannabis in Turkey E. P. Dutton books {{crime-book-stub