Murphy, Jack (1937 – 2020)

Florida-based surfer and convicted thief and murderer, best known for stealing the massive Star of India sapphire in 1964. "Mr. Murphy was a caricature drawn from the publicity that engulfed him," the New York Times wrote in 2020. "The tabloids romanticized the museum theft as a 'crime of the century,' idealized him as a handsome blond adventurer in dark sunglasses who charmed women, smoked dope and loved jazz. Even the mainstream press portrayed him as a kind of folk hero."

Jack Murphy was ...