Was a wealthy Texas oilman who became famous for being kidnapped by a gang headed by
George Kelly, aka "Machine Gun Kelly", on July 22, 1933. Urschel, his wife and some friends were playing cards in his house in Oklahoma when the gang burst in, guns drawn. Unfortunately, they had neglected to get a picture of Urschel beforehand, so they didn't know who he was or what he looked like; they took Urschel and another man who was at the table (Urschel later identified himself and the other man was released). Yhe gang brought Urschel to a "safe house" and contacted his wife with a demand for $200,000 ransom. His wife agreed to pay, but notified the FBI of the kidnapping. The ransom was eventually paid and Urschel was released, but during his ride to the "safe house"--during which he was blindfolded--and his stay there he paid attention to the sounds around him--oil derricks pumping, traveling through muddy roads, the sounds of an airplane flying overhead at 10:00 am every morning, among other things--and he and the FBI were able to determine that he had been held at a house in Texas. They narrowed it down to one particular place, raided it and captured one of the gang who was still there, and from him they learned that it was the "Machine Gun Kelly" gang. The gang was eventually rounded up and sent to prison.
