Meet the Kellys: The True Story of Machine Gun Kelly and His Moll Kathryn Thorne

How did a small-time, hip-pocket bootlegger become one of the most notorious gangsters in the country? For George "Machine Gun" Kelly, the answer was simple: a woman. Her name was Kathryn Thorne, a charming, strong-minded beauty who had family connections in the crime world. By the time she met Kelly, she was already an experienced criminal herself, divorced twice, and ready to marry a man who could give her the posh life she always dreamed of. With that in mind, she bought Kelly his first machine gun. And the rest is history . . .

George Kelly wasn't a natural-born gangster and never carried a weapon bigger than a revolver. But Kathryn changed all that. She pushed her husband to commit greater crimes, introducing him to her friends in the underworld and convincing him to join in a series of bank robberies. Soon, the Kellys were living large, with a house in Texas, expensive jewelry, the works. But it wasn't enough, and eventually the couple hatched a daring plot to kidnap oil tycoon Charles Urschel. Their plan worked. They collected the ransom—and captured the attention of the nation, the world . . . and the FBI.

A shocking story of ambition and greed, crime and punishment, Meet the Kellys offers a fascinating portrait of a reluctant gangster named after a machine gun and a scheming moll as driven as Bonnie Parker and Ma Barker.

© 2025 HighBridge Audio (Audiobook): 9781696618991

Release date

Audiobook: May 27, 2025