Charles Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd. Photo from the FBI files.

For the bands see Pretty Boy Floyd (American) and Pretty Boy Floyd (Canadian).

For the 1960 film see Pretty Boy Floyd.

Charles Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd (February 3, 1904 – October 22, 1934) was an American bank robber and alleged killer, romanticized by the press and by folk singer Woody Guthrie in The Ballad of Pretty Boy Floyd. Image File history File links Charles Arthur Pretty Boy Floyd, from the FBI files. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the federal criminal investigative and intelligence agency, which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... Pretty Boy Floyd is an American Glam Metal band. ... Pretty Boy Floyd were a Canadian glam metal band. ... For other uses see film (disambiguation) Film refers to the celluliod media on which movies are printed Film — also called movies, the cinema, the silver screen, moving pictures, photoplays, picture shows, flicks, or motion pictures, — is a field that encompasses motion pictures as an art form or as part of... February 3 is the 34th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1904 (MCMIV) was a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Bank robbery is the crime of robbing a bank. ... Woody Guthrie with Guitar Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (July 14, 1912–October 3, 1967), known as Woody Guthrie was an influential and prolific American folk musician noted for his identification with the common man, the poor and the downtrodden, and for his abhorrence of fascism and exploitation. ...

Birth

Floyd was born in rural Folsom, Georgia in Bartow County, on February 3, 1904. His family moved within a year or so to nearby Adairsville, Georgia. There they lived on Railroad Street until Charles was about ten years old. They then moved to Oklahoma, where they worked a farm that never generated much cash. At the age of seventeen, Floyd married Wilma Hargrove (also known as Ruby). The popular history says that Floyd committed his first crime when he struck down a sheriff's deputy who had been rude to Wilma, but contemporary sources agree that Floyd simply needed a way to make ends meet. February 3 is the 34th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1904 (MCMIV) was a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Official language(s) None Capital Oklahoma City Largest city Oklahoma City Area  Ranked 20th  - Total 69,960 sq mi (181,196 km²)  - Width 230 miles (370 km)  - Length 298 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ... Sheriff is both a political and a legal office held under English common law, Scots law or U.S. common law, or the person who holds such office. ... Deputy may mean: A member of a Chamber of Deputies, National Assembly, etc. ...

The Time magazine of 22 October 1934, mentions a robbery of $350 in pennies from a local post office as his first known crime. He was eighteen years old at the time. Three years later, he was busted for a payroll robbery in St. Louis, Missouri and served three years in prison. When paroled, he vowed that he would never see the inside of another prison. He did not, however, go straight. Partnering with more established criminals in the Kansas City underworld, he committed a series of bank robberies over the next several years; it was during this period that he earned the nickname "Pretty Boy". Like his contemporary Baby Face Nelson, Floyd hated his nickname. (Clockwise from upper left) Time magazine covers from May 7, 1945; July 25, 1969; December 31, 1999; September 14, 2001; and April 21, 2003. ... October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Small-town post office and town hall in Lockhart, Alabama A post office is a facility (in most countries, a government one) where the public can purchase postage stamps for mailing correspondence or merchandise, and also drop off or pick up packages or other special-delivery items. ... Nickname: Gateway City, Gateway to the West, or Mound City Location in the state of Missouri Coordinates: Country United States State Missouri County Independent City Mayor Francis G. Slay (D) Area    - City 66. ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Fountains or Heart of America Location Location in Jackson, Clay, Platte, and Cass Counties in the state of Missouri. ... Lester J. Gillis, a. ...

Arrest

Their string of crimes hit a hiccup in Sylvania, Ohio, where they were caught in the midst of a bank robbery and Floyd was sentenced to fifteen years. However, he escaped on his way to prison and rebuilt his gang. In the years that followed, he was blamed for a long string of bank robberies and vilified as a "Public Enemy" by the FBI. The popular legend holds that he was not, in fact, responsible for all of these, and that his name was being attached to robberies committed by others. In the words of Woody Guthrie, "Every crime in Oklahoma was added to his name." It is possible that Floyd and other criminals might have become more active as a result, since Floyd would be blamed regardless of what they did. Sylvania is a city located in Lucas County, Ohio. ... Bank robbery is the crime of robbing a bank. ... Public Enemy is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... Woody Guthrie with Guitar Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (July 14, 1912–October 3, 1967), known as Woody Guthrie was an influential and prolific American folk musician noted for his identification with the common man, the poor and the downtrodden, and for his abhorrence of fascism and exploitation. ...

Floyd would hide out between crimes in towns near the one in which he had grown up, protected by the locals. The popular legend says that they did this out of love for his generosity and their hatred of the banks, which were at that time foreclosing on many farms. However, the contemporary press claimed that he simply bribed them for their silence.

With his partner George Birdwell, Floyd robbed the banks in Earlsboro, Konawa, Maud, Morris, Shamrock, Tahlequah, and on December 12, 1931, two banks in one day at Castle and Paden, Oklahoma. Bank insurance rates doubled, and the governor of Oklahoma placed a $56,000 reward on Floyd's head. December 12 is the 346th day (347th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 19 days remaining. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1931 calendar). ... Official language(s) None Capital Oklahoma City Largest city Oklahoma City Area  Ranked 20th  - Total 69,960 sq mi (181,196 km²)  - Width 230 miles (370 km)  - Length 298 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Official language(s) None Capital Oklahoma City Largest city Oklahoma City Area  Ranked 20th  - Total 69,960 sq mi (181,196 km²)  - Width 230 miles (370 km)  - Length 298 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ...

The man was also accused of participating in the Kansas City Massacre, a shootout that resulted in the deaths of five men in 1933. He denied being there, but the authorities and the press were sure he was involved. Charles Arthur “Pretty Boy” Floyd. ...

Death

After narrowly escaping ambush by the FBI several times, Floyd was killed on October 22, 1934, when FBI agents shot him near East Liverpool, Ohio. As is the case with many aspects of Floyd's life, the circumstances surrounding his final moments are disputed. According to the FBI, Floyd died cursing his killers to the end. However, Chester Smith, the sharpshooter who felled Floyd, stated in a 1984 interview that after he had (deliberately) wounded, but not killed, Floyd, Melvin Purvis questioned him briefly and then ordered him shot at point-blank range. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... East Liverpool is a city located in Columbiana County, Ohio. ... A marksman (also designated marksman) is a profession which is mostly to be found in military context. ... 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Melvin Purvis (1903 - 1960) was a U.S. lawman and FBI agent. ...

Floyd's body was placed on public display in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. His funeral was attended by between twenty and forty thousand people, and remains the largest funeral in Oklahoma history. He was buried in Akins, Oklahoma. Sallisaw is a city in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, United States. ... Underwater funeral in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea A funeral is a ceremony marking a persons death. ... Official language(s) None Capital Oklahoma City Largest city Oklahoma City Area  Ranked 20th  - Total 69,960 sq mi (181,196 km²)  - Width 230 miles (370 km)  - Length 298 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ... Akins is a census-designated place located in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma. ... Official language(s) None Capital Oklahoma City Largest city Oklahoma City Area  Ranked 20th  - Total 69,960 sq mi (181,196 km²)  - Width 230 miles (370 km)  - Length 298 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ...

Legacy

Floyd earned his nickname from Midwestern prostitutes because he obsessively combed his greasy pompadour. He hated it enough that, according to legend, he killed two men just for calling him "Pretty Boy," and his dying words were "I'm Charles Arthur Floyd!" Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ... Pompadour is a style of haircut which takes its name from Madame de Pompadour. ...

Five years after Floyd's death, Woody Guthrie wrote a ballad romanticizing his life of crime. This song has been performed by many of the great figures in country and folk music, and was recorded by Bob Dylan on the Smithsonian's tribute to Guthrie in 1988. The song plays up Floyd's generosity to the poor, and contains the very famous line: Woody Guthrie with Guitar Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (July 14, 1912–October 3, 1967), known as Woody Guthrie was an influential and prolific American folk musician noted for his identification with the common man, the poor and the downtrodden, and for his abhorrence of fascism and exploitation. ... A ballad is a story in a song, usually a narrative song or poem. ... Folk music, in the original sense of the term, is music by and for the common people. ... Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman on May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter, author, musician and poet who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. ... The Smithsonian castle, as seen through the garden gate. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

"Some will rob you with a six-gun,
And some with a fountain pen."

The song has also been covered by The Byrds on their album Sweetheart of the Rodeo, by folk-punk band Ghost Mice, and by Guthrie's son Arlo on his album Precious Friend with Pete Seeger. The Byrds (formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964) was an American rock group. ... Sweetheart of the Rodeo is an album by American country rock band The Byrds, released on July 29, 1968 (see 1968 in music). ... Ghost Mice is a two-piece folk-punk band that hails from Bloomington, IN. Ghost Mice was created from the ashes of former pop-punk bands The Devil is Electric and Operation: Cliff Clavin. ... A press photo of Arlo Guthrie. ... Seegers album Clearwater Classics. ...

A film, Pretty Boy Floyd, was made in 1960 by Herbert J. Leder, starring John Ericson. 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... Image:Leder. ...

Many books have been written about Pretty Boy Floyd, including a semi-fictionalized biography by Pulitzer Prize-winner Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana in 1994. In this work, Floyd is sympathetically portrayed as a good natured man and a reluctant killer, popular with women but devoted to his family. He is more a victim of the poor social conditions of the time than a cold blooded criminal. The gold medal awarded for Public Service in Journalism The Pulitzer Prize is an American award regarded as the highest honor in print journalism, literary achievements, and musical compositions. ... One of McMurtrys bookstores in Archer City, Texas Larry McMurtry (born June 3, 1936 in Wichita Falls, Texas) is an Academy Award winning screenwriter, American novelist and essayist. ... Diana Ossana is an American Academy Award-winning writer who has collaborated on writing screenplays, teleplays, and novels with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Larry McMurtry since they first worked together in 1992, on the semi-fictionalized biography Pretty Boy Floyd. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ...

There were also two hair metal bands called Pretty Boy Floyd, a Canadian band that has broken up and an American band who are still together. See: Pretty Boy Floyd (American) and Pretty Boy Floyd (Canadian). It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Classic Metal. ... Pretty Boy Floyd is an American Glam Metal band. ... Pretty Boy Floyd were a Canadian glam metal band. ...

Floyd was mentioned in the novel The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, in which the mother of the Joad children claims that she knew Floyd's mother and is afraid that her son Tom might become bitter and violent like Floyd. The Grapes of Wrath is a work of fiction written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. ... John Ernst Steinbeck III (February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was one of the best known and most widely read American writers of the 20th century. ...

Depression era gangsters. ... 1933 Memphis Police Department booking photo of Kelly George R. Kelly aka George Machine Gun Kelly Barnes (July 18, 1895 - July 18, 1954) was a notorious American gangster during the prohibition era. ...

Sources

• Time, 22 October 1934
• "Sister of infamous gunslinger 'Pretty Boy Floyd' recalls a kindly brother," Associated Press; May 14, 2002

October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... May 14 is the 134th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (135th in leap years). ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...

External links

• Pretty Boy Pretty Boy Flash Presentation
• Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd: Public Enemy No. 1
• Kansas City Massacre FBI History
• Woody Guthrie Woody Guthrie pages, which in turn rely on the liner notes for Bobby Barnett, American Heroes & Western Legends, Bear Family Records (BCD 16 121 AH), 1997
• Sturgis House, East Liverpool, Ohio