Hoover consequently amassed a great deal of power and was in a position to intimidate and threaten others, including multiple sitting presidents of the United States. ==Early life and education== John Edgar Hoover was born on New Year's Day 1895 in Washington, D.C., to Anna Marie (née Scheitlin; 1860–1938), who was of Swiss-German descent, and Dickerson Naylor Hoover (1856–1921), chief of the printing division of the U.S.
John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American law enforcement administrator who served as the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States.
Hoover consequently amassed a great deal of power and was in a position to intimidate and threaten others, including multiple sitting presidents of the United States. ==Early life and education== John Edgar Hoover was born on New Year's Day 1895 in Washington, D.C., to Anna Marie (née Scheitlin; 1860–1938), who was of Swiss-German descent, and Dickerson Naylor Hoover (1856–1921), chief of the printing division of the U.S.
Hoover did not have a birth certificate filed upon his birth, although it was required in 1895 in Washington.
It gave me an excellent foundation for my work in the FBI where it has been necessary to collate information and evidence." Hoover obtained a Bachelor of Laws from The George Washington University Law School in 1916, where he was a member of the Alpha Nu Chapter of the Kappa Alpha Order, and an LL.M.
in 1917 from the same university.
He accepted the clerkship on July 27, 1917, aged 22.
He received additional authority from the 1917 Espionage Act.
Out of a list of 1,400 suspicious Germans living in the U.S., the Bureau arrested 98 and designated 1,172 as arrestable. ===Bureau of Investigation=== ====Head of the Radical Division==== In August 1919, the 24-year-old Hoover became head of the Bureau of Investigation's new General Intelligence Division, also known as the Radical Division because its goal was to monitor and disrupt the work of domestic radicals.
Targets during this period included Marcus Garvey; Rose Pastor Stokes and Cyril Briggs; Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman; and future Supreme Court justice Felix Frankfurter, who, Hoover maintained, was "the most dangerous man in the United States." In 1920, Edgar Hoover was initiated at D.C.'s Federal Lodge No.
1 in Washington D.C., becoming a Free Mason at the age of 25, becoming a 33rd Degree Inspector General Honorary in 1955. ====Head of the Bureau of Investigation==== In 1921, Hoover rose in the Bureau of Investigation to deputy head and, in 1924, the Attorney General made him the acting director.
He was appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation – the FBI's predecessor – in 1924 and was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935, where he remained director for another 37 years until his death in 1972 at the age of 77.
1 in Washington D.C., becoming a Free Mason at the age of 25, becoming a 33rd Degree Inspector General Honorary in 1955. ====Head of the Bureau of Investigation==== In 1921, Hoover rose in the Bureau of Investigation to deputy head and, in 1924, the Attorney General made him the acting director.
On May 10, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge appointed Hoover as the fifth Director of the Bureau of Investigation, partly in response to allegations that the prior director, William J.
23, 1929 – Hoover oversaw the protection detail for the Japanese Naval Delegation who were visiting Washington, D.C., on their way to attend negotiations for the 1930 London Naval Treaty (officially called Treaty for the Limitation and Reduction of Naval Armament).
23rd, 1929 photo is shown on the right.
Melvin Purvis was a prime example: Purvis was one of the most effective agents in capturing and breaking up 1930s gangs, and it is alleged that Hoover maneuvered him out of the Bureau because he was envious of the substantial public recognition Purvis received. Hoover often praised local law-enforcement officers around the country, and built up a national network of supporters and admirers in the process.
23, 1929 – Hoover oversaw the protection detail for the Japanese Naval Delegation who were visiting Washington, D.C., on their way to attend negotiations for the 1930 London Naval Treaty (officially called Treaty for the Limitation and Reduction of Naval Armament).
The Japanese delegation then visited the White House to meet with President Herbert Hoover. ===Depression-era gangsters=== In the early 1930s, criminal gangs carried out large numbers of bank robberies in the Midwest.
Hoover once said the Bureau had "much more important functions" than arresting bookmakers and gamblers. Although Hoover built the reputation of the FBI arresting bank robbers in the 1930s, his main interest had always been Communist subversion, and during the Cold War he was able to focus the FBI's attention on these investigations.
Hundley, a Justice Department prosecutor, said Hoover may have inadvertently kept alive the concern over communist infiltration into the government, quipping that Hoover's "informants were nearly the only ones that paid the party dues." ====Florida and Long Island U-boat landings==== The FBI investigated rings of German saboteurs and spies starting in the late 1930s, and had primary responsibility for counter-espionage.
Hack notes that Hoover was romantically linked to actress Dorothy Lamour in the late 1930s and early 1940s and that after Hoover's death, Lamour did not deny rumors that she had had an affair with him.
These included those of Machine Gun Kelly in 1933, of Dillinger in 1934, and of Alvin Karpis in 1936, which led to the Bureau's powers being broadened. In 1935, the Bureau of Investigation was renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
In late July 1934, Special Agent Melvin Purvis, the Director of Operations in the Chicago office, received a tip on Dillinger's whereabouts that paid off when Dillinger was located, ambushed, and killed by Bureau agents outside the Biograph Theater. Hoover was credited for overseeing several highly publicized captures or shootings of outlaws and bank robbers.
These included those of Machine Gun Kelly in 1933, of Dillinger in 1934, and of Alvin Karpis in 1936, which led to the Bureau's powers being broadened. In 1935, the Bureau of Investigation was renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
He was appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation – the FBI's predecessor – in 1924 and was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935, where he remained director for another 37 years until his death in 1972 at the age of 77.
These included those of Machine Gun Kelly in 1933, of Dillinger in 1934, and of Alvin Karpis in 1936, which led to the Bureau's powers being broadened. In 1935, the Bureau of Investigation was renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
These included those of Machine Gun Kelly in 1933, of Dillinger in 1934, and of Alvin Karpis in 1936, which led to the Bureau's powers being broadened. In 1935, the Bureau of Investigation was renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Luisa Stuart, a model who was 18 or 19 at the time, told Summers that she had seen Hoover holding hands with Tolson as they all rode in a limo uptown to the Cotton Club in 1936. Actress and singer Ethel Merman was a friend of Hoover's from 1938, and familiar with all parties during his alleged romance of Lela Rogers.
Two of his siblings did have certificates, but Hoover's was not filed until 1938 when he was 43. Hoover lived in Washington, D.C.
The first arrests of German agents were made in 1938 and continued throughout World War II.
Luisa Stuart, a model who was 18 or 19 at the time, told Summers that she had seen Hoover holding hands with Tolson as they all rode in a limo uptown to the Cotton Club in 1936. Actress and singer Ethel Merman was a friend of Hoover's from 1938, and familiar with all parties during his alleged romance of Lela Rogers.
Johnson, and buried seven canine pets, including a Cairn Terrier named Spee De Bozo, at Aspen Hill Memorial Park, in Silver Spring, Maryland. ===Sexuality=== From the 1940s, rumors circulated that Hoover, who was still living with his mother in his early 40s, was homosexual.
Hack notes that Hoover was romantically linked to actress Dorothy Lamour in the late 1930s and early 1940s and that after Hoover's death, Lamour did not deny rumors that she had had an affair with him.
Edgar Hoover (1993), stated that there was no ambiguity about the FBI director's sexual proclivities and described him as "bisexual with failed heterosexuality." Hack further reported that, during the 1940s and 1950s, Hoover attended social events with Lela Rogers, the divorced mother of dancer and actress Ginger Rogers, so often that many of their mutual friends assumed the pair would eventually marry.
He went on to add, in 1941, that the United States Attorney General had to be informed of its use in each case. The Attorney General Robert H.
The first known portrayal was by Kent Rogers in the 1941 Looney Tunes short "Hollywood Steps Out".
Truman objected to the plan, emerging bureaucratic competitors opposed the centralization of power inherent in the plans, and there was considerable aversion to creating an American version of the "Gestapo." ====Plans for suspending habeas corpus==== In 1946, Attorney General Tom C.
In the 1950s, evidence of the FBI's unwillingness to investigate the Mafia became a topic of public criticism. After the Apalachin meeting of crime bosses in 1957, Hoover could no longer deny the existence of a nation-wide crime syndicate.
In 1950, at the outbreak of the Korean War, Hoover submitted a plan to President Truman to suspend the writ of [corpus] and detain 12,000 Americans suspected of disloyalty.
Truman did not act on the plan. ====COINTELPRO and the 1950s==== In 1956, Hoover was becoming increasingly frustrated by U.S.
Edgar Hoover (1993), stated that there was no ambiguity about the FBI director's sexual proclivities and described him as "bisexual with failed heterosexuality." Hack further reported that, during the 1940s and 1950s, Hoover attended social events with Lela Rogers, the divorced mother of dancer and actress Ginger Rogers, so often that many of their mutual friends assumed the pair would eventually marry.
Edgar Hoover (1993), journalist Anthony Summers quoted "society divorcee" Susan Rosenstiel as claiming to have seen Hoover engaging in cross-dressing in the 1950s, at all-male parties. Summers alleged the Mafia had blackmail material on Hoover, which made Hoover reluctant to pursue organized crime aggressively.
The experience shaped both Hoover and the creation of the FBI profiles; as Hoover noted in a 1951 letter: "This job ...
He informed the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the Venona Project in 1952. ====Plans for expanding the FBI to do global intelligence==== After World War II, Hoover advanced plans to create a "World-Wide Intelligence Service".
Eisenhower to sign an Executive Order on April 29, 1953, that barred homosexuals from obtaining jobs at the federal level. In his 2004 study of the event, historian David K.
1 in Washington D.C., becoming a Free Mason at the age of 25, becoming a 33rd Degree Inspector General Honorary in 1955. ====Head of the Bureau of Investigation==== In 1921, Hoover rose in the Bureau of Investigation to deputy head and, in 1924, the Attorney General made him the acting director.
Truman did not act on the plan. ====COINTELPRO and the 1950s==== In 1956, Hoover was becoming increasingly frustrated by U.S.
The House Judiciary Committee then demanded that Silberman testify about them. ===Reaction to civil rights groups=== In 1956, several years before he targeted King, Hoover had a public showdown with T.
In the 1950s, evidence of the FBI's unwillingness to investigate the Mafia became a topic of public criticism. After the Apalachin meeting of crime bosses in 1957, Hoover could no longer deny the existence of a nation-wide crime syndicate.
Some notable portrayals (listed chronologically) include: Hoover portrayed himself (filmed from behind) in a cameo, addressing FBI agents in the 1959 film The FBI Story. Dorothi Fox "portrayed" Hoover in disguise in the 1971 film Bananas. Broderick Crawford and James Wainwright in the Larry Cohen film The Private Files of J.
Hoover wrote an open letter to the press singling out these statements as "irresponsible." In the 1960s, Hoover's FBI monitored John Lennon, Malcolm X, and Muhammad Ali.
Kennedy considered dismissing Hoover as FBI Director, but ultimately concluded that the political cost of doing so would be too great. In 1964, Hoover's FBI investigated Jack Valenti, a special assistant and confidant of President Lyndon Johnson.
In 1964, just days before Hoover testified in the earliest stages of the Warren Commission hearings, President Lyndon B.
By May 1965, local investigators and the FBI had identified the perpetrators of the bombing, and this information was relayed to Hoover.
He made the G-Man brand so popular that, at its height, it was harder to become an FBI agent than to be accepted into an Ivy League college. Hoover worked to groom the image of the FBI in American media; he was a consultant to Warner Brothers for a theatrical film about the FBI, The FBI Story (1959), and in 1965 on Warner's long-running spin-off television series, The F.B.I.
In 1968, the FBI formally closed their investigation into the bombing without filing charges against any of their named suspects.
The report criticized the FBI's (Hoover's) reluctance to investigate thoroughly the possibility of a conspiracy to assassinate the President. When Richard Nixon took office in January 1969, Hoover had just turned 74.
On May 2, 1969, Screw published the first reference in print to J.
Some authors have charged that COINTELPRO methods also included inciting violence and arranging murders. This program remained in place until it was exposed to the public in 1971, after the burglary by a group of eight activists of many internal documents from an office in Media, Pennsylvania, whereupon COINTELPRO became the cause of some of the harshest criticism of Hoover and the FBI.
The files were sealed by order of Hoover. ===Late career and death=== One of his biographers, Kenneth Ackerman, wrote that the allegation that Hoover's secret files kept presidents from firing him "is a myth." However, Richard Nixon was recorded in 1971 as stating that one of the reasons he would not fire Hoover was that he was afraid of Hoover's reprisals against him.
Summers quoted a source named Charles Krebs as saying, "on three occasions that I knew about, maybe four, boys were driven down to La Jolla at Hoover's request." Skeptics of the cross-dressing story point to Susan Rosenstiel's lack of credibility (she pleaded guilty to attempted perjury in a 1971 case and later served time in a New York City jail).
Some notable portrayals (listed chronologically) include: Hoover portrayed himself (filmed from behind) in a cameo, addressing FBI agents in the 1959 film The FBI Story. Dorothi Fox "portrayed" Hoover in disguise in the 1971 film Bananas. Broderick Crawford and James Wainwright in the Larry Cohen film The Private Files of J.
John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American law enforcement administrator who served as the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States.
He was appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation – the FBI's predecessor – in 1924 and was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935, where he remained director for another 37 years until his death in 1972 at the age of 77.
There was a growing sentiment in Washington, D.C., that the aging FBI chief needed to go, but Hoover's power and friends in Congress remained too strong for him to be forced into retirement. Hoover remained director of the FBI until he died of a [attack] in his Washington home, on May 2, 1972, whereupon operational command of the Bureau was passed onto Associate Director Clyde Tolson.
On May 3, 1972, Nixon appointed L.
According to Laurence Silberman, appointed Deputy Attorney General in early 1974, FBI Director Clarence M.
After The Washington Post broke a story in January 1975, Kelley searched and found them in his outer office.
In a 1978 interview, she said: "Some of my best friends are homosexual: Everybody knew about J.
The House Select Committee on Assassinations issued a report in 1979 critical of the performance by the FBI, the Warren Commission, and other agencies.
Hoover personally made sure Warner Brothers portrayed the FBI more favorably than other crime dramas of the times. In 1979 there was a large increase in conflict in the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) under Senator Richard Schweiker, which had re-opened the investigation of the assassination of President Kennedy and reported that Hoover's FBI failed to investigate adequately the possibility of a conspiracy to assassinate the President.
On December 12, 1979, Gilbert Gude – a Republican congressman from Maryland – introduced H.R.
Another notable attempt came in 1993, when Democrat Senator Howard Metzenbaum pushed for a name change following a new report about Hoover's ordered "loyalty investigation" of future Senator Quentin Burdick.
However, in 1994, after information about Hoover's illegal activities was released, the school's name was changed to commemorate Herbert Hoover instead. ==Theater and media portrayals== J.
In 1998, Democratic Senator Harry Reid sponsored an amendment to strip Hoover's name from the building, stating that "J.
Hoover is also credited with establishing and expanding a national blacklist, referred to as the FBI Index or Index List, renamed in 2001 as the Terrorist Screening Database which the FBI still compiles and manages. Later in life and after his death, Hoover became a controversial figure as evidence of his secretive abuses of power began to surface.
Eisenhower to sign an Executive Order on April 29, 1953, that barred homosexuals from obtaining jobs at the federal level. In his 2004 study of the event, historian David K.
Edgar (2011). William Harrison-Wallace in the Dollar Baby 2012 screen adaptation of Stephen King's short story, "The Death of Jack Hamilton" (2001). Rob Riggle in the "Atlanta" (2013) episode of Comedy Central's Drunk History. Eric Ladin in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire, season 4 (2013). Michael McKean in Robert Schenkkan's play All the Way at the American Repertory Theater (2013). Sean McNall in the movie No God, No Master (2014). Dylan Baker in Ava DuVernay's Martin Luther King Jr.
An example is a lecture titled Civil Liberties and National Security: Did Hoover Get it Right?, given at The Institute of World Politics on April 21, 2015. ==Private life== ===Pets=== Hoover received his first dog from his parents when he was a child, after which he was never without one.
Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2019. Cecil, Matthew (2016).
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