Walter T. Shaw - “The Son” Bio
Timeline

Walter T. Shaw is considered the world's most notorious (former) jewel thief. His long-awaited memoir, “A License To Steal,” (Omega Publishing, April '08, $24.95, hardcover) chronicles the saga of his father, probably one of the most important inventors of our time, who was ripped off by corporate America and the mafia, and how this drove Walter himself to become one of the country's most infamous jewel thieves, having taken an estimated $70 million from the rich and famous from Long Island to Florida. In the forward, by Frank Langella, he writes, “Full of love, fear, violence, hate and the quest for redemption, this book is an unbelievable journey through life.”



The son, who observed his father's dedication, determination and continued disappointment in his honorable attempts at achieving success; the young man who grew to resent and despise the wealthy population whom he clearly blamed for the distress they consistently caused his father through their corporate manipulation; the young Walter T. Shaw, whose early exposure with organized crime led to a career that awarded him the lifestyle his father only could dream about. With that same determination, passion and drive he learned from his father, the young Walter soon became a ringleader and one of the most celebrated jewel thieves in history. The wealth and lifestyle the young Walter achieved from his involvement with organized crime, which he so wanted to share with his father, is ultimately what caused their separation and later Walter Jr.'s imprisonment. It is this man's great desire to give back to society his father’s legacy!

Walter T. Shaw maintains that it should have been his father who became famous. Although Shaw Sr. died penniless, he invented and patented numerous telephonic breakthroughs including the speakerphone, conference calling, call-forwarding and even the “Red Phone” used by the Eisenhower Administration to contact the Kremlin. However, as a systems engineer for Bell, the most powerful monopoly of that time, he was stopped from marketing his inventions.

Shaw Sr., desperate for money, turned to the mafia and designed the “black box” that allowed Mob bookmakers to make toll-free, untraceable calls. However, it was this device that landed Shaw Sr. in front of a Senate subcommittee and Robert F. Kennedy, for which he was later convicted.

Watching in anger as his father was under Senate investigation for organized crime, Walter T. Shaw, then 12, was comforted by an unlikely figure; New York mob boss Carlo Gambino. He whispered to Walter, “The only difference between us and these politicians, judges and senators, is they have a license to steal and we don't need one.”

Walter, a media darling, has appeared on Oprah, Rachael Ray, Montel Williams, and Inside Edition to talk about burglary prevention.

“Walter T. Shaw's Book, “A License To Steal” takes you on a chilling ride through the underworld…”
~ Frank DiMatteo, Publisher and Editor of “Mob Candy” magazine

"At the best of times Walter Shaw was known as the ‘Dinnertime Burglar,’ swaggering, arrogant and evil-genius leader of a gang of master jewel thieves. A Rolls Royce driving millionaire at 23, Shaw was called a ‘modern day Jessie James’ by a U.S. Federal judge. Police described him as ‘right out of Humphrey Bogart,’ the press, ‘a master criminal.’”
~ Reviewer Ron Laytner - Internationally Syndicated Author and Journalist

At 26 Shaw was an expert at blackmail, swindling, forgery, and leading a gang grossing ten million dollars a year. At 28 he was a terrified convict locked in with prisoners trying to collect a $200,000 Mafia reward on his life."

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING:

Dan Riemer, a West Palm Beach private investigator who once investigated Shaw as a police detective, said that he believes Shaw has reformed and changed. "Walter was indeed the greatest jewel thief that ever lived", Riemer said. "He has stopped and turned his life around and mended his ways. After his incarceration, his decision to lead a legitimate life is a great success story."

Jim Lewis, who once prosecuted Shaw and years later became his defense attorney, said at a Palm Beach press conference, "He was a state of the art jewel thief and hated by Florida State law officers, who put him in prison to serve his time." Lewis added that Shaw has started a new life - a legal life. "As far as I know, Walter has lived a legitimate life since being let out of prison," Lewis said.

Eddie Egan (who has since passed away) had seen it all, his more than 9,256 career arrests qualify him as one of America's most prominent authorities on crime. He followed Walter's career for over twenty years. Gene Hackman played the part of Eddie Egan ("Popeye Doyle") in the movie about one of Eddie's most famous busts, "The French Connection."

This is what Egan had to say about Walter’s book, written about Walter Shaw, “This true to life exposure of one of the best and most successful burglars the U.S. has ever known, keeps the reader's attention from beginning to end. The helpless law enforcement agents had to resort to stool pigeons to affect an arrest on this second story man, age 19, stealing over $10,000,000 a year. They had to also manipulate the penal code in order to keep him in jail. The circus-like atmosphere developed by prosecutors, defense attorneys, jailer, parole officers, and hit men on this case are revealed throughout the book. Cover to cover, non-stop thrills and chills ...and this is only part of the story. These exploits of Walter Shaw A.K.A. ‘Archie Lewis’ must and will be made into a full length motion picture. I thought that after 23 years as a New York City detective and 17 years in the film industry I had heard and seen it all, until I met and got to know and like ‘Archie Lewis.’ Read it and get to know him. Like him or hate him ...but read it.”

And now Walter T. Shaw wants to set the record straight. His father led the world into a brilliant “high-tech” future, with the ground-breaking inventions which changed the world as we know it. Walter’s Documentary, “Genius On Hold” captures your awe with the brilliance of both men - one working in the light and the other in the shadows. “Genius On Hold” is based on the true story about a genius inventor and his son. The communal drive for loyalty, destiny and redemption will be a journey few will ever embark on!