In 1925 J. Edgar Hoover secretly began to maintain in his own office the "Obscene File"and two other files which were kept separate from the FBI's central records system and which recorded accounts of sexual activities and damaging personal information on dissident activists, prominent leaders and personalities, even Presidents and First Ladies. In addition, Hoover had his aides keep "summary memoranda" on members of Congress reporting on their "subversive activities" and "immoral conduct." He also had aides create office files in which memoranda labeled "Do Not File" itemized illegal break-ins by agents authorized by Hoover; these "files" were also kept apart from the Bureau's central records and were regularly destroyed. Having cracked Hoover's secret filing systems, Athan G. Theoharis and John Stuart Cox present with unprecedented accuracy and comprehensive primary evidence the definitive biography of J. Edgar Hoover, the man who was the FBI for 48 years." The Boss" draws on previously unknown and extremely sensitive Bureau files as well as interviews with Hoover family members, agents, politicians, and "targets" of FBI investigations to reveal the man, the administrator, and the power-monger who manipulated American politics for half a century. Although many relevant records were destroyed, the authors obtained access to office files maintained by Hoover and two of his key aides, Clyde Tolson and Louis Nichols, in addition to other sensitive records, such as the break-in file, index for authorized wire-taps and bugs, Hoover's directives to heads of FBI field offices and agents, and files pertaining to prominent personalities including Eleanor Roosevelt, John and Robert Kennedy, Attorneys General Harlan Stone and Homer Cummings.Throughout his tenure in office, Hoover promoted a positive image of G-men as efficient, professional, and apolitical. His own public persona is so well-known as to be a staple of the nation's mythology, It was, however, his personal zealotry against radical dissent (broadly defined) that motivated the Bureau's operations. His files reveal that more than Senator Joseph McCarthy, Hoover was instrumental in creating the anti-Communist paranoia that was called McCarthyism, but, the authors suggest, would have been more accurately named Hooverism. Under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover, the FBI kept 25 million personal files that is, approximately one for every ten Americans. Author note: Athan G. Theoharis, Professor of History at Marquette University, is the author and editor of many books, including "Beyond the Hiss Case" and "Spying on Americans" (both published by Temple). John Stuart Cox is a freelance writer.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
In Secrecy and Power (1987), Richard Gid Powers argued that the late FBI director achieved greater power than any figure in U.S. history. Theoharis and Cox, from a study of previously inaccessible FBI files plus extensive interviews, shed further light on the methods by which Hoover attained, employed and abused power, demonstrating that "The Boss" more proficiently undermined our constitutional guarantees than any political leader before or since. The authors also speculate about what made "this sad, impoverished man" tick as they probe the darker aspects of Hoover's psyche, elaborating for instance on his identification of political radicalism with filth and licentiousness, "neither of which ever failed to arouse in him an almost hysterical loathing." This important biography adds significantly to the growing dossier demythologizing a legend. Theoharis is a history professor at Marquette University, Cox a freelance writer. Illustrations.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
$27.95. biog Hoover was the fourth child born to a willful mother and a weak father. As a young FBI agent, imbued with his mother's Calvinistic sense of rectitude, he distinguished himself with his work ethic and organization of raids on such radical groups as the IWW; as director, he reformed the agency and initiated the illegal break-ins, wiretaps, and cooperation with sources such as Hedda Hopper that enriched FBI files with politically explosive material. Through adroit use of the Freedom of Information Act, Theoharis and Cox have produced a richly documented biography of a Mephistophelian man. Highly recommended. James L. Jablonowski, Univ. of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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