May 23, 1910 - Bonnie Parker
The romantic mythology surrounding Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow has long obscured the nature of their two-year criminal run through Depression-era America — one defined less by daring bank heists than by opportunistic robberies of small businesses and a body count that included civilians and law enforcement officers. The couple's cultural afterlife, shaped largely by a glamorizing 1967 Hollywood film, has made them an enduring case study in how media can reshape public memory of violent crime.
From Wikipedia
Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910 – May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut "Champion" Barrow (March 24, 1909 – May 23, 1934) were American outlaws who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression, committing a series of criminal acts such as bank robberies, kidnappings and murders between 1932 and 1934. The couple were known for their bank robberies and multiple murders, although they preferred to rob small stores or rural gas stations. Their exploits captured the attention of the American press and its readership during what is occasionally referred to as the "public enemy era" between 1931 and 1934. On May 23, 1934, they were ambushed and killed on Louisiana Highway 154 in Bienville Parish, Louisiana, by a law enforcement posse led by retired Texas Ranger Frank Hamer. They are believed to have murdered at least nine police officers and three civilians.
The film Bonnie and Clyde (1967), directed by Arthur Penn and starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway in the title roles, despite being highly fictionalized and historically inaccurate, was a critical and commercial success which revived interest in the criminals and glamorized them with a romantic aura. The Netflix film The Highwaymen (2019) depicted their manhunt from the point of view of the pursuing lawmen.
- Last updated on .