Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century [Paperback]

Hal Higdon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1999

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.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"There have been many spectacular murders in America since 1924, including a presidential assassination, but for the first half of the century, it was the murder of Bobby Franks that most shocked the public. Hal Higdon has superbly re-created the crime, combining painstaking documentation with an absorbing, often suspenseful narrative."-Newsday "Hal Higdon's book ... may be the definitive nonfiction history of this 1920s 'crime of the century.' Higdon recounts every rumor surrounding the case and every detail of the sensational trial, amassing some provocative portraits along the way."-Publishers Weekly "The best factual account of the case yet turned out."-Chicago Sun- Times "Higdon's book outdoes anything Alfred Hitchcock ever filmed. It is a masterpiece of suspense."-Oakland Tribune "A well-researched book that tells a fascinating story." - T. C. Samford, The Ohioana Quarterly "The 1990s was an important decade for the republication of major works on the 1920s... This reprint ... should be considered among these important republications... [Higdon] manages to tell a well-known story and somehow keep even the knowledgeable reader in a state of suspense. This is a remarkable feat and one that historians - who are so prone to offering their conclusions at the outset and then filling a book-length narrative with evidence to support those conclusions - should take note of." - David M. Wrobel, Michigan Historical Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press (April 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0252068297
• ISBN-13: 978-0252068294
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #607,001 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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46 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating story told in a rather disjointed manner., July 18, 2002

By 

Mary J. Alderdice "geek, book lover, craft fiend" (Washington DC Metro Area, US) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century (Paperback)

When I was a sophomore in college, I took a criminal sociology course which touched on a number of famous cases of the 20th century. One of the cases the class reviewed was that of Leopold and Loeb, the two genius, well-bred, affluent Jewish teenagers who murdered a neighbor for intellectual thrills. I didn't think much of the case after the class, until recently, when it suddenly came to mind again for some inexplicable reason.

When I went on my search for a book about the case, I originally was looking for "Compulsion" by Meyer Levin, as that was the title I remembered from my class. However, it seems that work is out of print, and so I went with "Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century" by Hal Higdon. I think this was, in the long run, probably the better choice, more firmly rooted in the world of fact than the based-on-true-events stylings of Levin's work. That is not, however, to say that Higdon's piece does not have its own issues.

I found this book to be very hard to work through, despite being interested in the subject matter. While it did, for the most part, provide a very complete picture of all of the pertinent details, I felt that the narrative was very disjointed. Higdon would often seem to switch thoughts mid-paragraph, including details seemingly unrelated to the topic being discussed. I also found it maddening that the book would often seem to be working up to a comclusion regarding some particular point, and then would abruptly stop. Names of various persons and locations were thrown around with abandon, with no hint as to whether or not the reader should recognize the name from earlier in the tale or if this was a new, separate non-sequiter. It was a very frustrating way to read a book, and this jarring writing style would often derail me from my interest in the book.

But, despite the distracting writing style, the tale told remains fascinating. Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb seemed to have every advantage. They were both from well-off and well-respected families, they never wanted for any material good, they were even - in their own ways - well-liked. Combined with their superior intellects (Leopold had an IQ of 210, Loeb of 160), these two young men should have been able to achieve anything they wanted... and apparently, they felt the same way. Unfortunately, what they set their sights on was the kidnapping and murder of a neighborhood youth. The investigation and the trial to follow would hold Chicago in its thrall for months on end, with the media doing their best to spur on the public's fervor for anything to do with the case.

This tale does not lack for interesting characters. At the core, of course, are Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb. Why would two young men, just 19 and 18 years old respectively, take it upon themselves to perform this bizarre act? What possible motive could they have had? But in addition to these two young men who would find themselves at the center of the "Crime of the Century," there was also Clarence Darrow, one of the pre-eminent attorneys of his day. Darrow's staunch opposition to the death penalty would play an enormous role in the course the trial would take. There were any number of other players in the game that would have roles of varying importance, and many of them proved to be quite interesting in their own rights.

All in all, I would say that this book is very interesting... despite the writing. There may be other works out there that tell the tale of Leopold and Loeb with a more readable writing style, but I do give Higdon credit for completeness. I learned a great deal about the primary participants in this sad tale as well as much about what was historical fact and what was simply myth that had been built up around the case over the years.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chillingly straight-forward account, January 7, 2000

By 

K.Goldberg (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century (Paperback)

This straightforward account of the 1924 Leopold and Loeb murder of Bobby Franks and its lengthy aftermath makes for chillingly effective non-fiction. I liked Higdon's "just the facts" approach, which proceeds without sympathy, fluff or verbosity. The book corrects certain misconceptions that resulted from "Compulsion," Meyer Levin's superb but sympathetic novel about the crime. Higdon should apply his skills to other "media event" crimes, such as Nicole Simpson or the Lindbergh kidnapping, and write another fine book.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A perfect example of why we need 3 1/2 stars, May 21, 2005

By 

Charles Evans "Call me Kevin" (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century (Paperback)

It is strange that I hardly ever recall hearing of the Leopold and Loeb killing until a few weeks ago. After doing a little research I knew that I needed to find a good authoratative book on the subject. Well, I sorta found one....

Hal Higdon, has done a wondeful job researching this long lost topic. Higdon has obviously read through all of the newspaper reports, psychological profiles, and everything else concerning this case... the research is top notch. The writing is a bit of another story.

The back cover indicates that Higdon writes for "Runner's World", and I think that may be the issue with the writing. "Leopeld and Loeb; The Crime of the Century" reads like a 345 page magazine article! The information is there and presented in a sraightforward manner, but that is about it. There is very little flare and almost no suspense in the telling. I agree that some may think that there is no need for flare and suspense in non-fiction, but I look at "The Devil in the White City" as an example that the two can coexist.

In Short, "Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century" will probaly hold your interest because of its participants and the nature of the crime. While Higdon's writing did nothing to ditract from the tale, the opposite is also true - he added very little. My final review - read Higdon's version if you are interested in this particular crime, but if you are just looking for a great nonfiction crime story look towards "The Devil in the White City".