Not long ago, I saw the movie "Public Enemies," starring Johnny Depp. The film chronicled, with somewhat reasonable accuracy, the life and death of 1930s era gangster John Dillinger.

The bank robbers and machine gunners of the era earned an odd celebrity status in the public mind. These were brutal, bloodthirsty, charismatic killers who were wrapped in myths of modern-day Robin Hoods, little guys "sticking it to the man," common people taking on the evil banking institutions.

I grew up in the Chicago area, where the gangster culture thrived in the 1920s and early 1930s: Capone, Moran, bootlegging, speakeasies, the St. Valentine's Day Massacre.

So, after seeing the movie, I did a little "Web checking" on Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, Babyface Nelson, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde and a few others.

Here's what I learned: 1934 was a bad year to be a bad guy. By the end of July 75 years ago, Dillinger was dead, along with Bonnie and Clyde, notorious kidnapper Theodore Klutas and others.

Before Thanksgiving 1934, Pretty Boy Floyd and Baby Face Nelson also would be dead, along with a handful of other killers.

Here's a rundown of the major "celebrity criminals" wanted by the FBI, state and local law enforcement officials and when they died:

January 6, 1934: Theodore "Handsome Jack" Klutas (Chicago area kidnapper). April 11, 1934: Eugene Green. April 30, 1934: John "Red" Hamilton. May 23, 1934: Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. June 7, 1934: Tommy Carroll (Dillinger associate). July 22, 1934: John Dillinger Sept. 22, 1934: Charles Makley (Dillinger associate). Oct. 17, 1934: Harry Pierpoint (electrocuted). Oct. 22, 1934: Pretty Boy Floyd. Nov. 17, 1934: Baby Face Nelson

There's a lot of good historical and biographical information online about the gangsters of the 1930s. Among the best sites to visit:

Gangster Era Files

http://foia.fbi.gov/gangster.htm

Read and download declassified FBI files on Nelson, Floyd, Capone, Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde and more. Fascinating information.

John Dillinger

www.johndillinger.com

A good site for information on the life and times of John Dillinger.

Public Enemy #1

www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/dillinger

Online companion to the PBS program on John Dillinger. Lots of good information.

John Dillinger Museum

www.dillingermuseum.com

Bonnie and Clyde

www.historybuff.com/library/refbonnie.html

A nicely written overview of the life and times of Bonnie and Clyde. No rose-colored glasses here - the two are shown just as they were in the 1930s: Murderous bank robbers who, according to John Dillinger himself, gave bank robbing a bad name.

Bonnie and Clyde Artifacts

http://texashideout.tripod.com/bc.htm

A large collection of photos related to Bonnie and Clyde. Warning: Some are graphic.

Pretty Boy Floyd

www.trutv.com/library/ crime/gangsters_outlaws/outlaws/floyd/1.html

Good historical piece on the gangster. More text than images - an 11 "chapter" online book, but quite compelling reading.

Baby Face Nelson

www.trutv.com/library/ crime/gangsters_outlaws/outlaws/nelson/1.html

Similar in scope to the Floyd history. Interesting.

Machine Gun Kelly

www.trutv.com/library/ crime/gangsters_outlaws/outlaws/kelly/1.html

Again, a good historical narrative about the gangster and his escapades.

(Keith Darnay has worked in the online world for more than a decade, the traditional media world for a few decades more and manages the online department and Web site for the University of Mary. His own site, featuring this column going back to 1995, is at www.darnay.com.iec.)