J Edgar Hoover
John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 - May 2, 1972) was appointed Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on May 10, 1924 and remained so until his death in 1972. To date, he is the longest-serving leader of an executive branch agency in the United States, having served under a record eight presidents, from Calvin Coolidge to Richard Nixon. He is credited with creating an effective law enforcement organization, but was also accused of flagrantly abusing his authority in blackmailing notable public figures and unwarrantably engaging in political persecution.
He was born in Washington, DC, but the details of his early life are almost unknown; a birth certificate for him was not filed until 1938. All known information can be usually traced back to a single 1937 profile by the journalist Jack Alexander. He was educated at George Washington University, graduating in 1917 with a degree in law. Rather than enlisting for the war he found work with the Justice Department. He soon proved himself capable and was promoted to head the Enemy Aliens Registration Section. In 1919 he became head of the new General Intelligence Division of the Justice Department (see the Palmer Raids). From there in 1921 he joined the Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as deputy head and in 1924 the Attorney General made him director.
When Hoover took over the FBI it had approximately 650 employees, including 441 Special Agents. It was renamed and empowered as the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1935. In 1939 the FBI became pre-eminent in the field of domestic intelligence.
Speculation and rumors that Hoover was gay and, as well, a secret cross-dresser, have never been confirmed. However, Hoover's right-hand man, Clyde Tolson, was a constant companion for more than 40 years, and they often vacationed together. Hoover and Tolson were both lifelong bachelors and Hoover lived with his mother until her death in 1938 when he was 43 years old. Hoover was raised a devout Presbyterian, considered the ministry as a career, and used this publicly known fact to render his personal conduct, sexually or otherwise, unimpeachable during his tenure at the FBI.
An FBI memorandum dated June 11, 1943 mentions rumors of Hoover being "queer" and keeping "a large group of young boys around him," and notes that such rumors had circulated since at least two years earlier. The memorandum declares such rumors are "malicious and unfounded" and "libelous." [1] (http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/hoover1.html)
External links
- http://www.zpub.com/notes/znote-jeh.html
- "Assassinating" J. Edgar Hoover (http://www.thenewamerican.com/tna/1993/vo09no16/vo09no16_hoover.htm)
- The FBI Needs Another Hoover (http://www.aim.org/publications/weekly_column/2001/08/24.html)
- Hoover's dark secret? (http://www.aim.org/publications/aim_report/2003/7.html)
da:J. Edgar Hoover de:J. Edgar Hoover it:Edgar J. Hoover sv:J. Edgar Hoover
Categories: 1895 births | 1972 deaths | Directors of the FBI