The Botched Bank Robbery that Inspired 'Dog Day Afternoon'

In 1972 John Wojtowicz, Sal Naturile, and Robert Westenberg attempted to rob a branch of the Chase Manhattan Bank in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Gravesend. What ensued would go on to inspire the Al Pacino film "Dog Day Afternoon." The three armed men entered the bank ready to make off with cash to pay for a gender reassignment surgery for Wojtowicz's former lover. They thought it would be a straightforward heist, but fate had other plans. Unbeknownst to the robbers, the money held inside the vault had already been collected, leaving the branch with half of the funds expected and setting off a chain of events that had New Yorkers on the edge of their seats.