Dillinger Shot Dead: FBI Ends Public Enemy No. 1
John Dillinger had been designated Public Enemy Number One by the FBI when he walked into the Biograph Theater on Chicago's North Side on July 22, 1934, to watch Manhattan Melodrama with two women. One of them, Ana Cumpanas (known as "The Lady in Red"), had tipped off the Bureau in exchange for help with her immigration status. As Dillinger exited the theater, FBI agents closed in. He reached for a pistol and ran into an alley. Three agents fired, hitting him in the neck, face, and side. He died on the pavement. He was 31. The FBI had spent over a year chasing him through bank robberies, prison breaks, and plastic surgery. His death made J. Edgar Hoover's career.
July 22, 1934
92 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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