Where the Money Was: The Memoirs of a Bank Robber

by Willie Sutton, Edward Linn

The Broadway Books Library of Larceny
Luc Sante, General Editor

For more than fifty years, Willie Sutton devoted his boundless energy and undoubted genius exclusively to two activities at which he became better than any man in history: breaking in and breaking out. The targets in the first instance were banks and in the second, prisons. Unarguably America’s most famous bank robber, Willie never injured a soul, but took on almost a hundred banks and departed three of America’s most escape-proof penitentiaries. This is the stuff of myth—rascally and cautionary by turns—yet true in every searing, diverting, and brilliantly recalled detail.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Crime, True Crime, Memoir

464 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

Reviews

[Walt · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Willie the Actor" Sutton may have been a prolific robber; but he was more prolific as a prison escape artist. Much of the book profiled his (considerable) time in prison. There was a great amount of detail and a lot of the expected self pity that ex-convicts write when recalling their lives of crime. Sutton and Linn offer a little more balance. Sutton recalls the detail and sheer bravado of some of his exploits while Linn balances the self pity of spending nearly half his life in prison.

Sutton tries to pass himself off as a master criminal. He repeats over and over how much time he spent studying prospective banks and businesses before selecting a target and executing a robbery. His heyday was during the 1920s when he used a variety of disguises to gain easy admission to the businesses before they opened for business. His specialty was uniforms - police, mail, delivery, etc. I immediately thought of the gunmen in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre dressed as police. However, such disguises were not commonplace among the denizens of the underworld.

Unfortunately for Sutton, he was often captured, identified, and convicted. His modus operandi often worked against him as his exploits became recognizable. His selection of associates often worked against him. Strange that he rarely took blame for his misfortunes, always casting blame on others. But he was quick to claim success - either in a robbery or settling prison riots. The result is that readers should be a little doubtful of his stories.

The next logical leap is to evaluate Sutton's claims of violence. He claims again and again that he did not carry live guns on his robberies. However, in multiple prison escapes, his primary focus was in securing a gun. Considering his penchant for desperate prison escapes and constant robberies; it is easy to see him stepping up his criminal record. The most famous murder connected to Sutton was that of Arnold Schuster, whose identification of Sutton led to his final arrest. Mafia turn coat Joe Valachi testified that Albert Anastasia ordered the murder because he hated informers. Sutton and Linn devote a chapter to the Schuster murder and argue that the most likely motive was personal or low-level underworld behavior. They cast doubt on Anastasia; while desperately exculpating Sutton.

In a similar vein, Sutton operated in a world of criminals and naturally flowed between independent operator and associate of gangsters and organized crime. To this end, he has some interesting comments and interactions with Dutch Schultz and others. In one memorable story, Sutton's crimes were too daring for some of Schultz's men. But these instances are few and far between.

Overall, this book is far more detailed than most criminal autobiographies. At 400+ pages Sutton and Linn try to offer a very detailed account of Sutton's many crimes while establishing sympathy for him through his many efforts to get out of jail. Ultimately, they used legal technicalities to start a domino effect to remove multiple life sentences against him and win his freedom. In this regard, Sutton is more braggart than victim even though the story tries to portray the prison authorities as antiheroes and Sutton as the main hero. A more neutral biography would better distinguish between the real Sutton and the self-serving Sutton.

[Roybot · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Where the Money Was” is the biography of notorious robber, escape artist, and braggart, Willie Sutton. Sutton became famous in the 20s and 30s for his brazen daytime robberies, which frequently involved elaborate ruses and costumes (such as disguising himself as a postal worker or police officer), and gained further fame after escaping from three different prisons. This book captures, in Sutton’s own words, his history and career up to his eventual release.

If there’s anything Sutton wasn’t, it was modest. The book is interesting enough, but I couldn’t help but feel like it was one final attempt to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes. I can’t tell whether it’s two pets fact to one part fiction or two parts fiction to one part fact. They say the best lies are the ones that contain a grain of truth, and this has the feel of something that contains less than the full truth.

Still, nobody can deny that Sutton was a real character, and if his book is a little self aggrandizing, that may be part of the charm, and it’s certainly in keeping with his personality. He was no Robin Hood, but we all get to be the hero of our own story, even when our story is robbing banks, I guess.

Three stars.

[David Chess · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining, informative, fast-moving story about a fascinating character. It also touches on interesting historical developments that are relevant to the story, like the actual on-the-ground consequences of the Supreme Court ruling that allowed prisoners convicted in state courts to file writs in federal courts, and have those writs actually considered. In fact being a smart guy, Willie Sutton was just as interested in the law while in prison as he was in robbing banks when out of it, and the reader gets an enjoyable education on aspects of both endeavors. I only wish my edition had an index! :)

[Barry · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look into the mind of a brilliant thief and escape artist. It's almost as if Sutton were sitting and talking with you.

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very well-written story of a very smart and cunning man

[Cathy Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title refers to Sutton's Law, an apocryphal quote that goes something like: "One time somebody asked Willie Sutton why he robs banks, and he replied, 'Because that's where the money is.'" Although he didn't actually invent this quote, Sutton claims in this autobiography it is his "one permanent contribution, however indirect, to the good of mankind."

I disagree. I believe Mr. Sutton's life demonstrates beyond a shadow of a doubt that crime doesn't pay.

Even though he was the master of his craft at bank robbery, jewelry theft and prison escape, he spent most of his time in jail. He was not able to keep his wife or his possessions, or to get to know his daughter when she was growing up. What kind of life is that? Being rich for a little while isn't enough of a pay-off. It seemed like he himself would have been happy to give up crime various times, but getting out of that life can be a tricky business. Not just because of the easy money and the information you may know about certain dangerous people, but also because the challenge was something he truly enjoyed.

I don't necessarily believe everything the author writes is true. This guy lied all the time. He claims he never hurt anyone, and in the end that got him out of prison. A lot of people believe he had the guy who turned him over murdered. I doubt that, because it would have been a really dumb thing to do, way out of character for a guy accustomed to thinking through every detail. Some of the people who got knocked off in his younger years, though... Not so sure about that.

This was fun to read. Willie Sutton was quick-witted and articulate, and had a huge sense of irony. Example: One time he had to get across town. I think he'd just escaped from prison or something. Anyway, he needed to make some distance fast. But when he got down into the subway, he realized he didn't have any money whatsoever. He found himself thinking: Am I going to get away with robbing banks and escaping from an escape-proof prison, only to get detained for jumping a turnstile because I don't have the ten-cent fare?

He ended up walking.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cocky, unapologetic memoir of an infamous bank robber and escape artist who operated in the mid-20th century. Lots of interesting details about the planning and execution of the heists and escapes and some good criminal slang. (Dirty shirts: Shyster lawyers who hang around the courthouse and pick up cases for $50-$100, only to plead their clients out and make a quick buck.) The sad thing is, despite all the successful jobs and escapes, Sutton still ended up spending great chunks of his life behind bars. He eventually became quite the jailhouse lawyer, and was able (with the help of a couple of actual attorneys) to get out of prison, where he was serving a triple life sentence, when he was in his 70s. The book bogs down in the last quarter, with all the details of the legal wrangling that led to the release, but but if you enjoy old-school crime and prison tales, there are plenty of them here.

[Sully Augustine · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars out of 5 - I was a bit torn about the rating of this one. The first couple of chapters were a bit slow going until I got used to the slightly quirky writing style, and the last chapter about his legal appeals could have used some serious editing. But on the whole this book is amazing as the life story of a fellow who robbed banks and jewelry stores as much for the challenge and excitement involved as for the money. Captured and sent to prison he was always planning escape. Amazingly, he succeeded in escaping three times from maximum security prisons, in one case managing to remain uncaptured for six years while robbing banks much of the while. And he apparently did it all without ever injuring anyone during his robberies and prison escapes.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting parts which I wish the author would have expounded on-like how the author diligently studied every angle before robbing a bank, and the immense research. I also liked how he studied his case extensively to become a free man. But overall, the book was weighed down with lots of legal jargon-particularly the last section of the book when he just mentions different folks in quick succession. I also don't get why he was such a hero-at the end of the day he broke the law.

[Orly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have you heard of "Sutton's law"? It's a term used in medical schools, referring to the most likely diagnosis is usually correct (a.k.a. look for the horse and not the zebra" based on bank robber Willie Sutton's retort to "why do you rob banks?" "because that's where the money is!" (Even though that exchange was more than likely made up by a journalist.

The book was enjoyable, but it did drag a bit.

[Abhishek Agarwal · Rating 5 out of 5]

The biggest compliment to Willie Sutton is, you won’t want your teenage kids to read him! Someone who looks up to crime as a career, learns inside out of security systems, both from procedural perspective and engineering perspective, enjoys his work and has full dedication to the craft! What a story!!

[Bridget Gilhool · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed it. Especially for the differences in culture and mores between Willie’s time and now (2025). He sure seemed like a fast study of human nature and charmed a lot of people. His descriptions of prison life were detailed and important. I liked his descriptions of planning the robberies as well.

[Charley Duschen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having been born and raised in Attica, I had a special interest in Willie Sutton. This plus the fact that in the 60s there was a television series about his life. I enjoyed this book and learned a lot about his early life, and that of the various mobs.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but VERY long. It’s an easy read but he includes lots of details and detours that, while interesting, distract somewhat from the story. It is a story that will make you cheer for “the bad guy” because he has a fun personality and never hurts anyone.

[Nguyen Hoang Phong · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Catch me if you can" mixed with "Papillon"! What an entertaining book about a remarkable person!

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

WTF was that? It reads like 4 different half finished books written by a schizophrenic author and it was a super mega yaaaaawn!

[Olga Vannucci · Rating 4 out of 5]

He was smart, really a genius:
Robbing banks, escaping prison.

[Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

For more than fifty years, Willie Sutton devoted his boundless energy and undoubted genius exclusively to two activities at which he became better than any man in history: breaking in and breaking out. The targets in the first instance were banks and in the second, prisons. Unarguably America’s most famous bank robber, Willie never injured a soul, but took on almost a hundred banks and departed three of America’s most escape-proof penitentiaries. This is the stuff of myth—rascally and cautionary by turns—yet true in every searing, diverting, and brilliantly recalled detail.
As a side note this has to be one of the most entertaining books I've ever read.

[Peter Wibaux · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first heard about this autobiography during the dotcom boom in the 1990s, in a book about a stockmarket. I guess it was the title that drew the topic. Sutton is quoted as having made the statement 'that's where the money was' when asked why he robbed banks (his book tells a slightly different version).

What made this a must (e- and re-) read, and led me to keep a hardback copy when I made my bookshelf triage last year (about one in ten books made it onto the new shelves) is the early part.

It is said that the quality of your reading is measured not by the books you read, but those you read twice.

One star is lost for the last part of 'Where The Money Was', which although a poignant account of Willie Sutton's final years, and his struggle to be released from jail, does not hold the reader as the first part does.

In some ways that compares with the biography of the spy Pero da Covilha, one of the heroes of The India Road. The bio, written in the late XIXth century by the Count of Ficalho, a Portuguese nobleman and gentleman scientist, is far more interesting in its early part than the latter days of Pero's life and death in Ethiopia, in his quest for Prester John.

The fascinating aspect of Sutton's autobiography, at least the five-star earlier part, is the depiction of New York at the start of the XXth century—a brutal image of growing up in Brooklyn's poor neighborhoods, the garbage, the grossly polluted rivers, and the constant tension with the authorities.

Sutton's exceptional attention to detail, and masterful control of bank staff during his robberies, contrast sharply with his naivete in his choice of 'friends'—who invariably shopped him to the police in one form or another.

If this book was one third shorter it would be unputdownable, not least because it tells a true tale—as it stands it's still a cracking read, one century on.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fun read. Willie Sutton, bank robber extraordinaire, has written a book about his exploits (and life), which were the basis for the book Sutton. Although Willie has a "co-writer" you get the feeling that Willie actually wrote the book (or dictated it). It isn't philosophical, Willie admits his evil deeds, he doesn't try to blame his actions on a bad upbringing, government programs, etc. He simply enjoyed what he did. It was a challenge to his "problem solving" instincts to rob a bank without hurting anyone. The style is breezy, the words well-chosen (Willie did educate himself in prison, reading many of the great classics), the exploits fun (if you can look past the idea that money was being taken from those of us who had deposited it). His life was a lot less dramatic than the novel Sutton, but isn't that expected? But the idea that there were three Willies - one he thought he was, one he told others he was, and the real one - did play a role in how I read this.

For just plain fun, read this. It doesn't take long and it's a good commentary on a different kind of criminal and his society.

[Wes Locher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found Willie Sutton's memoir, "Where the Money Was," to be an enjoyable view into the mind of a criminal who used his brains over his brawn.

Though the 400+ pages gave more detail than was perhaps necessary in most situations, we got a good view into Willie's youth and his family and it explained a bit about why he grew up to be a criminal mastermind. Though the book got a bit long in the tooth toward the end (where we spend many pages meticulously recounting the details of courtroom drama), it's definitely a detailed memoir and I can envision Sutton writing the details from his cell where we spent the majority of his later years.

The scenes detailing the casing and robberies of various banks in the NYC/Pennsylvania areas were great and it was very interesting to read about (harmless) crimes from a different point of view. If you've ever wanted to get inside the mind of a bank robber, or just like a good historical story, then you'll appreciate "Where the Money Was."

[Cindy Hartley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Willie was a very interesting character. He went down in history as Willie the Actor because he wore many uniforms and accessories during his robberies, he didn't use violence, and he was never a "rat". The fictional book "Sutton" really was the catalyst of my interest, and I must admit I lost a little of it in this actual account of his life. His story was told simply to appeal to the average person and I'm sure I may have read it cover to cover if I didn't have a huge stack to "to read" books to get to.

[Suzie Quint · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Willie Sutton spent more time in prison than he did robbing banks, but he escaped some of the tightest security even there with the same style and imagination he used to rob the banks. It's hard not to admire this man of intelligence, wit, and loyalty, even while acknowledging that he wasted his life.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned that bank robbers do get caught eventually. But Willie Sutton was a character.

[David Hooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book from a criminal who also a master of psychology and used his brain, not force, to rob banks, break out of jail, and defeat the court system.

[J.C. · Rating 1 out of 5]

could not imagine myself reading this book for the next month when there is new Murakami and Palahniuk sitting on my shelf right now.