Customer Reviews

Crime of the Century: The Lindbergh Kidnapping Hoax

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

First off, I am neither a huge fan nor a huge detractor of Charles A. Lindbergh; I acknowledge and appreciate his contributions (which are many) to the field of aviation, and beyond that I have no opinion of him as a person. Therefore, I read this book with a completely open mind regarding the disappearance of his son, Charles A. Lindbergh Jr., in March of 1932.

First, the positive -- "Crime of the Century" presents a fascinating 'alternative' solution as to solving the mystery regarding the child's disappearance, and it outlines a scenario which can go far in convincing the casual reader that Lindbergh had motive and opportunity to commit a crime for which an "innocent man" was eventually given the death penalty.

Second, the far more prevalent negative -- "Crime of the Century" is written in a sloppy, meandering, and poorly-edited manner, one which will turn off a lot of readers as being annoying and inexcusably unprofessional considering the fact that the authors are literally damning the respected name of a long-dead celebrity. Furthermore, the authors of this book have apparently picked and chosen their "evidence" from an a la carte table of other, more powerful artifacts that utterly contradict the entire premise of their book. In other words, the authors have either ignored established evidence that doesn't support their own thesis, or nipped and tucked at the pieces of evidence they did choose so that they would conveniently fit the slots they created in their story. Still further, the authors do a slapdash job of citing sources -- they make wild, bold claims about what people "thought" or people's "characteristics" without the slightest inclination to say where on earth they have the evidence to support such claims. Their "notes" at the back of the book are inadequate and perfunctory, making their entire book seem like something of a gossipy editorial rather than a cold, hard analysis that can withstand assault by doubters.

Perhaps most annoying of all about this book is that the authors do not concede that their thesis is a POSSIBILITY among many, but rather THE answer to what happened. This strikes me as both disrespectful to the vast body of work already published about this case -- work which is generally, I dare say, infinitely superior to this one both in dedication to research and in presentation -- and to the weighty subject matter at hand. A baby was murdered. A family grieved.

Rather than do the sensible (and responsible) thing of taking in all the evidence compiled by other researchers over the years and exploring all avenues to where such evidence leads, describing to the reader why other theories are flawed where as their own has so convinced them that they are willing to call a national hero not only a murderer, but also a DOUBLE murderer (because if Lindbergh was guilty he led directly to Haupmann's execution), the authors of this book have chosen instead to write a sloppy, poorly-executed book that focuses on sensationalism rather than responsible investigation.

They look at all the evidence from a biased viewpoint, contort potentially useful evidence so that it supports their biased viewpoint, and conveniently do not mention any evidence which refutes their biased viewpoint.

The authors of this book have a wonderful and absolutely plausible scenario. They fall flat on their faces, however, because they don't take the time to destroy other theories in a methodical manner. They waste many pages on interesting but useless "background" information on Lindbergh's life -- ostensibly to establish Lindbergh's 'shady' personality, although I suspect part of the reason might be to flesh out their book, since the amount of "research" they did could have been condensed to a paper of about 15 pages rather than the meandering 250 page mess it eventually became. They could have much more usefully filled those extra pages with responsible documentation of sources and methodical dismantling of established theories regarding this case.

This book should be one star, but it gets two for its interesting theory.

As a 25+ year law enforcement veteran, and current homicide detective (and NO, I was not involved in the O.J. investigation) my first impression upon hearing of this book and its premise, was to dismiss it out of hand. After all, I had read most everything else about the Lindbergh case and there had never been a hint that the kidnap was anything but real. Then I read the book. It's true, the book is not exceedingly well written but these two guys are not professional journalists. What I sensed as I read was the presence of a fellow dogged police investigator (Monier) and, what I have begrugingly come to admire over the years: the skeptical mind of the criminal defense lawyer (Ahlgren). In tandem, their approach to sleuthing an old case is deadly. As I proceeded through the book all the crazy facts of the case which had never seemed to make sense to anyone, and which had provided much of the lure to the Lindbergh case, suddenly seemed to fall into place. The authors show in Lindbergh himself those personality traits which, in my own experience, are consistent with a parent who commits a terrible crime, and then concocts a cover-up. Did Lindy in fact do it? The authors are honest enough to conceed that Lindy as culprit is only one of many scenarios, although one that has previosly been overlooked by the journalists and other amateurs who have studied this case. For me, in my own experience, I'd say it's the most likely explanation.

This book should have been a best-seller. Contrary to first impressions, it does NOT belong in the genre of "conspiracy theory books." In my opinion, it is just the opposite - an unconspiracy book. It unravels a conspiracy theory - one that has been with us for over 65 years and took the life of an innocent man. I have read all the books on Hauptmann, Lindbergh and the Morrows that I can find. But,I continually re-read Crime of the Century: The Lindbergh Kidnapping Hoax by Stephen Monier and Gregory Ahlgren because the theories proposed in their riveting account of their own modern-day re-investigation of that sensatonal case are so shockingly plausible! The reader comes away asking "Why didn't anyone think of this before?!" In fact, their theories make all of the loose jig-saw-puzzle pieces, which journalistic investigators like Anthony Scaduto "Scapegoat" (1976) and Ludovic Kennedy "The Airman and the Carpenter" (1984) have repeatedly questioned since 1976, finally fit into all the right places. Ahlgren and Monier have tied up so many loose ends with the simplest approach of all. It has been apparent to many investigators since 1976 that Hauptmann was "scapegoated" by the police in a frantic attempt to solve this 3-year-old kidnapping murder. If that is so, and there is enough evidence uncovered now to conclude that a travesty of justice did take place in Flemington, who really did it? If Hauptmann wasn't in New Jersey climbing a ladder, who was? In this age of public awareness regarding parental abuse (and murder) of young children (Susan Smith in South Carolina is a good example) is it so implausible to think that a parent could have been responsible for a kidnapping hoax 66 years ago? Even if that parent is the greatest hero in the world? All the more reason, I would think, for a man to cover up a foolish and sadistic prank that went awry. How would it have looked to the world if the "Lone Eagle" admitted accidentally dropping his young child from a homemade ladder out of the nursery window on a rainy, windy March evening while playing one of his typically sadistic "pranks" on his wife? When you read biographies of Charles Lindbergh you begin to understand where Monier and Ahlgren are coming from. He seems to have been a pathological prankster. Even Anne Lindbergh, in a letter to her mother-in-law, written on the night of the "kidnapping", reveals that her first instinct upon looking at an empty crib was that Charles took him "as a joke." Why would any mother even think of such a thing? Because her husband had a very twisted side to his personality, playing sadistic pranks throughout his life. The authors have reinvestigated the case, and the trial, as if it were happening today. Policemen of the 30s were trained simply as foot soldiers in the battle against gangster crime and had no psychological training to ever enable them to suspect a hero - (it was also pre-Watergate). The New Jersey Police actually handed the entire investigation of the "kidnapped" child over to it's father! Yes, Lindbergh was the order-giver during the entire investigation up until the baby's body was found in the woods near his home 2 months later. Even H.Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr. (Jersey Chief of Police) took orders from the missing baby's father! The authors have brilliantly explained many puzzling episodes in the enire fiasco - Why did Lindbergh lie at the Hauptmann trial? Why did the Lindbergh family suddenly, and secretly, leave the United States? Was it the fault of the Press that the Lindberghs could not live in America? Why did Lindbergh become an outspoken anti-Semite and Nazi sympathizer? There will never be an end to the complexities of this case but this book offers any reader an enticing challenge to think skeptically and logically about our justice system as well as the realities of human nature.

Although this book could have used a good editor, the two authors have cleaned up this red-herring rich tale and left us with the only reasonable explanation for the death of the Lindbergh baby. Charles Lindbergh was not a hero, if you evaluate his entire life. I'm left to wonder if his still-living wife ever figured it out and whether his adult children have read this book. I'm sure this literary family have speculated about the whole matter. Also, Mrs. Hauptmann's entire life was spent proclaiming her husband's innocence, she died without peace. Lindbergh let that happen too.

This is without question the worst book written on the Lindbergh kidnapping. The authors offer a theory that Lindbergh accidentally killed his son and then created the kidnapping to cover his blunder. Lindbergh then coldly sat idly by and allowed Hauptmann to be executed.

The problem with this book is that there is not one single, solitary, piece or scintilla of evidence to support the theory. In actuality, the official records reveal that Lindbergh did not have sufficient time to do all of the things he would have had to have accomplished for this foolish theory to work.

The authors also claim to have visited the New Jersey State Police Museum and Archives to research the case. I have personally spoken to my friend, Mark Falzini, who informs me that neither author ever set foot in the archives. They sent a letter requesting a few photos and so forth, but that was it.

In the strongest possible terms, I caution anyone about buying or reading this book. It is tabloid journalism at best, libel at worst.

In 1927 Charles Lindbergh flew the first solo trans-Atlantic flight from New York to Paris, this is recorded in the history books. In 1932 his 20-month-old son was abducted and killed, also recorded in the history books.

The subsequent investigations lead to the arrest, conviction and death of Bruno Richard Hauptmann, again recorded in history. But what if history was wrong and what if Hauptmann was setup? That is what the authors try to prove in this book.

The book gives new evidence and sheds new light on a crime many consider to be the worst in history. The authors show that Lindbergh cremated the body before any autopsy was ever done. They show, with convincing arguments that Lindbergh's story doesn't add up.

The authors take apart, piece by piece, every shred of evidence and show that the wrong man was convicted and that the investigators were detailed as they lead the public to believe. This first rate work gives the reader a clear picture and after reading you can decide if they have done their homework.

One wonders whether justice will ever be done in the this case. Will the American justice system ever be prepared to say we were wrong and ensure that Hauptmann receives the pardon which is his right.

Once again the facts speak for themselves and in this book give the best account of those same facts with a conclusion that is very difficult to deny.

Enough has been said and written, it is clear that Hauptmann is innocent.

The problem with so many of the Lindbergh Kidnapping books is that they are the products of various authors who are pushing some theory, personal observation, an unproven conclusion or an interpretation. This book would have been fabulous, if the authors would have taken the time to footnote each and every one of their "established facts" and "proveable conclusions." Real investigators do this, scientific investigators do this, lawyers trying cases use footnotes and citations, and so do professional historians. The authors should go back through their book and footnote everything in it---as I believe serious students of the Kidnapping, other investigators and future readers will want to know where they got this or that fact, observation, conclusion, and why they came to this or that interpretation. The problem with most of the books that deal with the Lindbergh Kidnapping is that they are the product of research that is NOT careful, scientific and methodical---nor do they use data, documents and facts that are proveable. This book is disappointing on account of it's lacking the application of the scientic method appropriate to the authors' investigations--footnotes and other citations would have given their work the veracity that it deserves. Without them, it's just another hack job.

In this book, Ahlgren and Monier construct an alternate hypothesis of the circumstances surrounding the death of Charles Lindbergh, Jr., in 1932 (read some of the other reviews to find out who their suspect is). The authors are trained crime professionals and their guess is a plausible one. But it is just that - a guess. The trail is colder than the South Pole. There are many possible hypotheses as to what happened to the Lindbergh baby and this is only one of them. Ahlgren and Monier present a convincing case that Bruno Hauptmann, the man arrested, convicted, and executed for the kidnapping, was either innocent or, at worst, a subsidiary figure in a kidnapping ring. He was ruthlessly "framed" by the New York and New Jersey police, who concocted additional evidence to build a case against Hauptmann. However, Ahlgren and Monier never explain how a large percentage of the Lindbergh ransom money ended up in Hauptmann's possession. Furthermore, the case for Hauptmann has also been made by other books and documentaries. This book should be very interesting to people who have an interest in the Lindbergh kidnapping case. However, readers should not rely on it as their one and only book to tell them about the "Crime of the Century."

Growing up in New Jersey I recalled how Mrs. Hauptmann would always proclaim her husband's innocence upon the anniversary date of his execution. She steadfastly and adamantly asked the extant governor for clemency and routinely was denied. No action was ever taken by law enforcement nor anyone else all this time. This book clears the record completely.

Well written, precise, detailed and accurate, the authors clearly show who actually killed Lindbergh's son and unfortunately, the true, real and actual evidence points to none other than Lindbergh himself, as I also expected. You see I live in Hillsborough, New Jersey a neighboring landmass near Hopewell and the Lindbergh home.

I recommend this book for anyone who is willing to shed historic events for the real deal and discover for themselves how tragic one innocent man was executed in place of a villain proclaimed hero. Another piece of disturbing history in the land of the free and home of the brave.