 He applied for a presidential pardon in May , to no avail . Peter visited him in jail several times , where one prisoner said Reich was known as the " flying saucer guy " and the " Sex Box man . " Reich told Peter that he cried a lot , and wanted Peter to let himself cry too , believing that tears are the " great softener . " His last letter to his son was on 22 October 1957 , when he said he was looking forward to being released on 10 November , having served one third of his sentence . A parole hearing had been scheduled for a few days before that date . He wrote that he and Peter had a date for a meal at the Howard Johnson restaurant near Peter 's school . 
