Hellgate Prison featured a storyline of a penitentiary out of control, having fallen to the chaos of its population of prisoners rioting after uprising against the tyranny and controversial practices of the warden Robert L. Strickland. Warden Strickland had been attempting to cash in on his role at the prison by charging civilians to come in and take "tours" of the facility; he'd become obsessed with running the prison at maximum efficiency and wanted to display this to the paying public. After ignoring orders to cease and decist his practices by the Federal Bureau of Prisoners, Strickland began creating sales materials in an attempt to coerce the public to come and tour his prison. A breakdown in prison security and operating procedures in October of 1956 lead to an uprising, in which 99