This isn't going to be to everyone's taste and for those who have heard of Bonnie & Clyde in various forms but don't know the history, here's an education.
During the last couple of weekends, I watched a film on the ‘History Channel’ made three years ago about the infamous ‘Bonnie & Clyde’. The film is around 5 hours long and was split into two parts. Considering the violent nature of the film, it probably isn’t to everyone’s preference. I watched it because of the history element and the fame attached to this outrageous duo. I thought the film was superb and I would imagine most of the world has heard of ‘Bonnie & Clyde’, some of it with a romantic notion, but there is "nothing" romantic about it.
Their time together started in 1930 and ended on 24th May 1934. Bonnie Parker was 23 years of age and Clyde Barrow was 24 years of age. At their peak, they were wanted in several states across Central America. They were prolific bank robbers during the Great Depression and they killed 13 innocent people during their two years on the run – another two murders were suspected. Although they were both sick disturbed young people, Bonnie was the big influence on Clyde, and Clyde had the sixth sense. It was Bonnie who wrote about their crimes while on the run and she also sent gloating photos of her and Clyde to the newspapers.
There have been several documentaries and two films (I know of) made over the past years, but this film in particular is highly charged. The closing scene when Bonnie & Clyde were ambushed was very powerful and as the film came to its end, original photos were shown on the screen with written paragraphs about the events. This made me go in search of the photos and I have now found many original photos, including; at the scene of the ambush, the car then-and-now and the dead bodies of Bonnie & Clyde; at the scene and in interval stages after their deaths. Here are my findings below, but be warned, some are a bit graphic.
Firstly, here are just a few of several photos Bonnie sent to the newspapers while they were on the run.
A similar shot from the 2013 film.
This photo is the Six Posse preparing for the ambush on site. They waited all night for Bonnie & Clyde.
Here’s the scene of the ambush at the historic Joplin Hideout 24th May 1934 shortly after they were executed. You can see Bonnie’s body in the passenger seat. There was a heavy machine gun at her side. It was reported that Bonnie or Clyde never fired a single shot at the ambush. It’s also reported that when the firing stopped, the air was a huge haze of gunpowder smoke and the police nervously approached the car with their guns still pointing on target ready to shoot again. One of the police officers said as he leant into the car to retrieve the machine gun from Bonnie’s side, he got “a whiff of Bonnie’s perfume over the sweet smell of blood and gunpowder.”
This picture has been colourised.
Here's Clyde with 28 bullets in him.
Clyde's jacket.
Bonnie & Clyde's weapons found in the car afterwards.
Colourised.
Here’s the car today in a Bonnie & Clyde Museum.
Here are various photos of the bodies just hours after the ambush, including a close-up of Bonnie’s hand shot to pieces.
Bonnie.
Clyde.
Bonnie & Clyde.
This is Bonnie's hand shot to pieces.
And lastly, here is the Ambush Posse led by Texas Ranger Frank Hammer after the ambush.
I’m not into collecting photos of dead criminals, but with watching the film recently and the worldwide fame attached to the duo Bonnie & Clyde, I felt intrigued to see the actual images.
I hope every member of the Six Posse was rewarded a medal and a secured pension for their bravery - they certainly deserved it.
Also in my search, I came across a large stone marking the location of the ambush (I can't find it now) with an inscription about Bonnie & Clyde with the year etc. Someone has painted "God bless them" on this stone.
Bonnie & Clyde were nothing more than a pair of young psychopathic loose cannons who got what they deserved.