Willie Sutton is best known for his reported reply to a question about why he robbed banks: "Because that's where the money is." Whether Sutton actually uttered these words, he certainly lived by them; during a criminal career that lasted nearly half a century (much of which was spent in prison), he stole an estimated $2 million from banks. He also robbed jewelers and other expensive stores. He was known as "the Actor" because of his versatility with disguises, and he was also something of a prison escape artist.

William Francis Sutton, Jr. was born in Brooklyn, the fourth of five children. He lived in a tough neighborhood and attended school only through the eighth grade. He held a number of odd jobs but gradually drifted into criminal activity. He was arrested for murder at 21 but acquitted; a few years later he was arrested for safecracking. Released in 1927, he...