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BILLY HAYES was arrested at the Istanbul airport in October 1970 with two kilos of hashish taped to his body. The Turkish High Court sentenced him to life in prison. In 1975 he escaped from Imrali Island Prison by rowing 17 miles across the open sea in a raging storm. In 1976 Billy wrote Midnight Express, chronicling his time in prison and his brazen, harrowing escape. The book was published in 18 languages and in 1978, made into the iconic Oscar winning movie. Billy Hayes became a modern-day mythical figure, his name known throughout the world.