To some people, he was known as Ed Flowers, but others knew him as Teddy. Regardless of his moniker, he was a bad man. He robbed banks, escaped prison five times, and took place in shootouts with police. In 2005, after serving a 40-year sentence, he was released from prison, and he's now telling his life story via a serialized feature over at The 11th Hour.
Here's the beginning of Part 1:
By the time I turned 14, I knew what it meant to have money in my pocket. I used to go down on the corner and sell boiled peanuts that my mama would make for me. I’d get a little change, and I’d go buy some more at the farmers market and do it all over again. I enjoyed the freedom it gave me, having my own money to spend. I even helped out some with the bills around our house, pitched in what I could. But just like with most folks, eventually that little scratch wasn’t enough for me. I used to walk down Cherry Street with some buddies and eyeball everyone shopping on the square at Sears and J.C. Penney’s. There was a little old pool hall there called Macon Billiards, and one day I pressed my face up against the glass and looked inside. I could see the men in there, covered in smoke, cracking the rack, and chalking up their hands. The railbirds were watching a game of snooker over on the corner table and there was a green wad of money sitting on a stool beside it. It was the first time I saw a bet, and just watching it from the outside made my heart kick up a notch. I guess I was just born this way.
Check out the rest of Part 1 in its entirety and continue reading until you're caught up. Currently, we've just gotten to Part 7, where we recall the Teddy Bear's Crawford County Jail escape!