Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw
A rollicking true story of Bibles and bank robberies in Southern California, from a talented and highly praised gonzo journalist.
 
NAMED A BEST TRUE CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
 
Chas Smith grew up deeply enmeshed in the evangelical Christian world that grew out of Southern California in the late 1960s. His family included famous missionaries and megachurch pastors, but his cousin Daniel Courson was Grandma’s favorite. Smith looked up to Cousin Danny. He was handsome, adventurous, and smart, earned a degree from Bible college, and settled into a family and a stable career.
 
Needless to say, it was a big surprise when Cousin Danny started robbing banks. Known as the “Floppy Hat Bandit,” Courson robbed 19 of them in a torrid six-week spree before being caught and sentenced to seven years. When he tried to escape, they tacked on another year. And when he finally got out, despite seeming to be back on the straight and narrow, Cousin Danny disappeared. Banks started getting robbed again. It seemed Cousin Danny might be gunning for the record.
 
Smith’s Blessed Are the Bank Robbers is the wild, and wildly entertaining, story of an all-American antihero. It’s a tale of bank robberies, art and jewel heists, high-speed chases, fake identities, encrypted Swiss email accounts, jilted lovers, and the dark side of an evangelical family (and it wasn’t just Danny; an uncle was mixed up with the mujahideen). It’s a book about what it means to live inside the church and outside the law.
 
1139963099
Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw
A rollicking true story of Bibles and bank robberies in Southern California, from a talented and highly praised gonzo journalist.
 
NAMED A BEST TRUE CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
 
Chas Smith grew up deeply enmeshed in the evangelical Christian world that grew out of Southern California in the late 1960s. His family included famous missionaries and megachurch pastors, but his cousin Daniel Courson was Grandma’s favorite. Smith looked up to Cousin Danny. He was handsome, adventurous, and smart, earned a degree from Bible college, and settled into a family and a stable career.
 
Needless to say, it was a big surprise when Cousin Danny started robbing banks. Known as the “Floppy Hat Bandit,” Courson robbed 19 of them in a torrid six-week spree before being caught and sentenced to seven years. When he tried to escape, they tacked on another year. And when he finally got out, despite seeming to be back on the straight and narrow, Cousin Danny disappeared. Banks started getting robbed again. It seemed Cousin Danny might be gunning for the record.
 
Smith’s Blessed Are the Bank Robbers is the wild, and wildly entertaining, story of an all-American antihero. It’s a tale of bank robberies, art and jewel heists, high-speed chases, fake identities, encrypted Swiss email accounts, jilted lovers, and the dark side of an evangelical family (and it wasn’t just Danny; an uncle was mixed up with the mujahideen). It’s a book about what it means to live inside the church and outside the law.
 
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Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw

Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw

by Chas Smith
Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw

Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw

by Chas Smith

eBook

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Overview

A rollicking true story of Bibles and bank robberies in Southern California, from a talented and highly praised gonzo journalist.
 
NAMED A BEST TRUE CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
 
Chas Smith grew up deeply enmeshed in the evangelical Christian world that grew out of Southern California in the late 1960s. His family included famous missionaries and megachurch pastors, but his cousin Daniel Courson was Grandma’s favorite. Smith looked up to Cousin Danny. He was handsome, adventurous, and smart, earned a degree from Bible college, and settled into a family and a stable career.
 
Needless to say, it was a big surprise when Cousin Danny started robbing banks. Known as the “Floppy Hat Bandit,” Courson robbed 19 of them in a torrid six-week spree before being caught and sentenced to seven years. When he tried to escape, they tacked on another year. And when he finally got out, despite seeming to be back on the straight and narrow, Cousin Danny disappeared. Banks started getting robbed again. It seemed Cousin Danny might be gunning for the record.
 
Smith’s Blessed Are the Bank Robbers is the wild, and wildly entertaining, story of an all-American antihero. It’s a tale of bank robberies, art and jewel heists, high-speed chases, fake identities, encrypted Swiss email accounts, jilted lovers, and the dark side of an evangelical family (and it wasn’t just Danny; an uncle was mixed up with the mujahideen). It’s a book about what it means to live inside the church and outside the law.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781647005467
Publisher: Abrams Press
Publication date: 03/15/2022
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 272
File size: 826 KB

About the Author

Chas Smith is the author of Cocaine + Surfing, Welcome to Paradise, Now Go to Hell, which was a finalist for the PEN Center USA Award for Nonfiction, and Reports from Hell. Smith began his career as a foreign correspondent, writing pieces for Vice, Paper, and Blackbook, among others, from Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Somalia, Azerbaijan, and Colombia, which led to a brief career as a war correspondent for Current TV. He lives in Los Angeles.
Chas Smith is the author of Cocaine + Surfing, Welcome to Paradise, Now Go to Hell, which was a finalist for the PEN Center USA Award for Nonfiction, and Reports from Hell. Smith began his career as a foreign correspondent, writing pieces for Vice, Paper, and Blackbook, among others, from Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Somalia, Azerbaijan, and Colombia, which led to a brief career as a war correspondent for Current TV. He lives in Los Angeles.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Welcome to Paradise 1

Chapter 2 Uncle Dave 13

Chapter 3 A Brief History of Bank Robbery in America 23

Chapter 4 Jesus Freaks 43

Chapter 5 An Evangelical Camelot 61

Chapter 6 Of Cinder Block Mausoleums and Men 79

Chapter 7 Mohegan Sun 91

Chapter 8 A Brief History of Gambling in America 97

Chapter 9 Rob a Bank 107

Chapter 10 Paradise Found 119

Chapter 11 Paradise Lost 131

Chapter 12 Do Not Wear Clothing That Resembles the Clothing That Prisoners Wear 141

Chapter 13 Nothing Could Be More Absurd Than Moral Lessons at Such a Moment 151

Chapter 14 A Brief History of Fugitives in America 157

Chapter 15 Fathoming Secrets 165

Chapter 16 Weird, Right?? 175

Chapter 17 Can I Possibly Not Understand Myself That I Am a Lost Man? 187

Chapter 18 A Nice Place for Rough Boys 203

Chapter 19 Intentional Living 211

Chapter 20 Get Down. Get the Fuck Down, Now. 227

Chapter 21 Writer's Retreat 235

Chapter 22 You've Never Been to Heaven, But You Got Pretty Close Last Night 239

Postscript 253

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