John Dillinger
John Dillinger (June 22, 1903 - July 22, 1934) was an American bank robber, considered by some to be a notorious and dangerous criminal, while others considered him a Robin Hood-like hero. His exploits, along with those of other criminals, such as Bonnie and Clyde and Ma Barker, dominated the attentions of the American press and its readers during what is sometimes referred to as the public enemy era , between 1931 and 1935, a period which led to the formation of the modern FBI.
Dillinger was born on June 22, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indiana, and grew up in nearby Mooresville. In 1923, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, but deserted within a few months. Dillinger returned to Indiana where he married and attempted to settle down. But things did not go well. He had difficulty holding a job and his marriage disintegrated. One night in 1923, while out on a drinking binge, Dillinger assaulted and robbed a well-known local citizen. He was soon captured, convicted and sentenced to ten years in prison, despite having no prior criminal record.
The experience embittered Dillinger. He embraced the criminal lifestyle behind bars, learning the ropes from seasoned bank robbers like Harry Pierpont. The two planned heists they would commit just as soon as they were released.
Dillinger served time in Indiana prisons until 1933, when he was paroled. Within four months, he was back in prison. His gang sprang him, but he was captured again by the end of the year in Tucson, Arizona, and sent back to prison in Crown Point, Indiana.
On March 3, 1934, Dillinger escaped from "escape-proof" (as it was dubbed by local authorities at the time) Crown Point jail. Newspapers reported that Dillinger had escaped using a wooden gun blackened with shoe polish , but this story would later prove erroneous. The reality was a real gun had been smuggled into the jail, and Dillinger used this gun to capture and lock up several guards. An investigation about the true facts of the escape were done some time later by the Hargrave Secret Service of Chicago, on the orders of the Illinois Governor. The governor and Illinois state Attorney General Philip Lutz eventually chose not to release information because they didn't want Dillinger to possibly know of informants they spoke to. As a result, the findings about the gun were never made public, and this, coupled with Dillinger himself actively perpetuating the wooden gun story as an ego boost, is a reason many even today believe the "wooden gun" escape was real.
Once out of prison, he continued to rob banks and was eventually named Public Enemy Number One by the U.S. Justice Department's Division of Investigation, later known as the FBI. The United States Department of Justice then offered a $10,000 reward on June 23 for Dillinger's capture, or $5,000 for information leading to his apprehension.
Dillinger's last day of freedom was July 22, 1934. Dillinger attended the film Manhattan Melodrama at the Biograph Theater in Chicago with his girlfriend, Polly Hamilton, and brothel owner Ana Cumpanas (aka Anna Sage), who was facing deportation charges. When they exited the theater, Sage tipped off the FBI, who opened fire, killing Dillinger. Sage had identified herself to agent Melvin Purvis by wearing an agreed-upon orange and white dress, which despite the colouring, led to the enduring notion of the "Lady in Red" as a betraying character. Though she had delivered Dillinger as promised, Sage was still deported to her home country of Romania, where she remained until her death.
To this day, loyal fans continue to observe "John Dillinger Day" (July 22) as a way to remember the fabled outlaw that he was. Members of the "John Dillinger Died for You Society" traditionally gather at the Biograph Theater on the anniversary of Dillinger's death and retrace his last walk to the alley where he died, following a bagpiper playing "Amazing Grace".
To this day, there are doubts whether Dillinger actually died on July 22, 1934. Some people who knew him said they did not recognise the body. An autopsy contained information that was controversial, such as:
- None of his scars were mentioned in the report. (Actually, the dead man was positively identified as John Dillinger by his sister Audrey, by a scar on his leg received in childhood.)
- The corpse has brown eyes. - Dillinger's were grey, according to police files. (This was no doubt an error on the part of the coroner, probably resulting from eye discoloration caused by a traumatic head wound.)
- The body showed signs of some childhood illness, which Dillinger never had. (This is another error. The dead man had a rheumatic heart condition. So did John Dillinger, according to the later testimony of Dr. Patrick Weeks, who had been Dillinger's physician at the Indiana State Prison.)
In 1969 the newspaper Indianapolis Star received a letter from a person called 'John Dillinger'. The letter contained a photo of a man who looked like a more aged Dillinger. The letter was bogus. The FBI has at least two sets of post mortem fingerprints of the dead man. Though scarred by acid, the prints were clearly identifiable as those of John Dillinger.
A lot of legends surround John Dillinger. One of the rumors that followed his death was that he had a very large penis. This legend is the result of the photograph of his corpse; the bulge caused by his arm, stiff from rigor mortis, covered with a sheet; some who saw grainy newsprint copies of the photo mistakenly believed it to be his unnaturally large, erect penis.
John Dillinger is one of the main characters in the science fiction series of books, The Illuminatus! Trilogy.
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Last updated: 05-15-2005 22:04:29
