Saturday, April 2, 2011

J. Edgar Hoover

J. Edgar Hoover by Rick Geary  104 pp.



This is another graphic biography done quite well by Geary. This one covers the life of J. Edgar Hoover from his birth to death in Washington, D.C.  Geary does not gloss over Hoover's reactionary political ideas, the absolute control he had over his agents (including whether or not they were permitted to marry), his use of the FBI as a way to spy on everyone up to and including the President, and his relationship (which may or may not have been sexual) with long time companion and assistant, Clyde Tolson, and his refusal to share information with other government agencies, and debunks the stories of Hoover's cross-dressing. Because of Hoover's friendship with long-time Washington neighbor Lyndon Johnson, Hoover was exempted from mandatory retirement and made FBI Director for life, setting a scary precedent. When he died in 1972, ex-President Nixon gave the eulogy at his funeral...[I leave you to insert you own comment on that here]. Once again, Geary does an admirable job of telling the story with his artwork and research.

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