The prison environment, like the military, police, sheriff departments or any other place where people mix, experience its share of humorous as well as offbeat situations. Admittedly because of the somber environment in a prison setting, staff, as well as inmates, strives to inject some humor or change of pace into the scene as you will see in some of the prose in this book. Penitentiary Politics, Pranks and Poetry is a collection of short stories, poems and commentary which evolved from Ivan L. Fail's military service, seventy seven years as a consumer, and his twenty nine year, three prison career as a federal correctional officer which began on January 25, 1960 at the Federal Correctional Institution at Lompoc, California. He transferred to the U S Penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas in mid-1961. In mid-1963 he transferred to the U S Medical Center for Federal Prisoners at Springfield, Missouri where he retired on December 31, 1988.