Gary Gilmore
His cold demand to be executed for murder made him a macabre celebrity and restarted America's death penalty machinery in 1977.
1940–1977 (age 37)·American murderer·Birthday: December 4·The Silent Generation
Biography
Gary Gilmore transformed from a violent career criminal into a grim national symbol. After being convicted for the senseless murders of two men in Utah, he shocked the legal system and the public by insisting the state carry out his death sentence. His refusal to appeal came at a pivotal moment, just after the Supreme Court had reinstated capital punishment. Gilmore's stubborn desire to die turned his case into a media circus, with Norman Mailer's book 'The Executioner's Song' documenting his final months. On a January morning in 1977, before a firing squad, he became the first person executed in the United States in nearly a decade. His case forced a reluctant public to confront the practical reality of the death penalty after a long hiatus, making him an unwilling and controversial figurehead for its return.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Gary was born in 1940, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Gary Was Born
The biggest hits of 1940
#1 Movie
Fantasia
Best Picture
Rebecca
Gary's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1940Born
The Blitz: Germany bombs London
Gas: $0.18/galHome: $2,938Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I'll Never Smile Again" — Tommy DorseyBest Picture: Rebecca
1945Started school
WWII ends; atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $4,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Sentimental Journey" — Les Brown & Doris DayBest Picture: The Lost Weekend
1953Became a teenager
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1956Could drive
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1958Could vote
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1961Turned 21
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1970Turned 30
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1977Died at 37
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
Key Achievements
- Was the first person executed in the United States after the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976.
- His case, and his demand to die, became the central subject of Norman Mailer's Pulitzer Prize-winning true crime novel, 'The Executioner's Song.'
- His execution ended a de facto ten-year moratorium on capital punishment in America.
- His legal battle established precedent regarding a prisoner's right to waive appeals and accept execution.
Did You Know?
His final words to the firing squad were, 'Let's do it.'
He was a distant relative of the infamous frontier outlaw, Butch Cassidy.
He donated his eyes for corneal transplants after his execution.
The movie rights to his story were sold for a substantial sum while he was on death row.
“Let's do it.”
