Adam John Walsh (above), age 6,was abducted from a mall
in Hollywood, Florida, and later found murdered.
In the aftermath of the crime, Adam’s father, John Walsh,
became a leading victims’ rights activist and host of the
long-running television show America’s Most Wanted.
TV series aired on FOX from February 7, 1988 to
June 18, 2011.
On this day in 1950, the Federal Bureau of Investigation
instituted the “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” list in an
effort to publicize particularly dangerous fugitives. The
creation of the program arose out of a wire service news
story in 1949 about the “toughest guys” the FBI wanted
to capture. The story drew so much public attention that
the “Ten Most Wanted” list was given the okay by J. Edgar
Hoover the following year.
John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972)
