Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century
by Hal Higdon
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Book Summary Information
Author: Hal HigdonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1999-04-01
ISBN: 0252068297
Number of pages: 384
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
Book Reviews of Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century
Book Review: A Crime That Won't Go Away
Summary: 5 Stars
I have previously read "For the Thrill of It" and "Evil Summer" both of which were written about the murder of Bobby Franks by Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb. The book entitled "Leopold and Loeb--The Crime of the Century" was written in 1975 and is considerably older than the first two which were written within the past two years. I find all three books to be worthwhile reads and worthy of your library especially if you enjoy true crime. This book along with "For the Thrill of It" both go into considerable detail regarding the trial, but I didn't feel this distracted from the book. I did find it interesting that when it came time to discuss the intimate relationship between Leopold and Loeb, the judge wanted women cleared from the courtroom. Both defendants exhibited a haughty attitude regarding their crime during the trial. The mother of Bobby Franks had a very difficult time dealing with the death of her son insisting that "he will be home soon."
I felt the author Hal Higdon did a wonderful job in bringing out the personalities of the two murderers, attorney Clarence Darrow, and other major characters in addition to what Chicago was like during the reign of Al Capone. This was the first "crime of the century" for the 20th century, and the fact that we have had two recent books in addition to this 1975 effort amply illustrates the continued fascination with this case.
During the month of June I had the chance to visit Ellis Avenue between 47th and 50th street in Chicago where this crime took place. A friend of mine and I walked from the former Harvard School on 47th street to Bobby Franks' home on 50th street and visualized what things were like in May of 1924 when the crime was committed. The Franks' home stands, but is now empty and in disrepair. Incidentally, the home of President Barack Obama is one street over and one block down from where Bobby Franks lived.
Summary of Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century
Among the criminal celebrities of Prohibition-era Chicago, not even Al Capone was more notorious than two well-educated and highly intelligent Jewish boys from wealthy South Side families. In a meticulously planned murder scheme disguised as a kidnapping, Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb chose fourteen-year-old Bobby Franks at random as their victim, abandoning his crumpled body in a culvert before his parents had a chance to respond to the ransom demand. Revealing secret testimony and raising questions that have gone unanswered for decades, Hal Higdon separates fact from myth as he unravels the crime, the investigation, and the trial, in which Leopold and Loeb were defended by the era's most famous attorney, Clarence Darrow. Higdon's razor sharp account of their chilling act, their celebrity, and their ultimate emergence as folk heroes resonates unnervingly in our own violent time.Murder & Mayhem Books
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