In January 1930, Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker met at a friend’s house in Dallas, Texas, and, as the legend goes, it was love at first sight. Their budding courtship was disrupted when Clyde was jailed a month later in Waco, but at Clyde’s request, Bonnie smuggled a gun into the jail, allowing Clyde and two other convicts to escape. It was a temporary freedom, however, as Clyde was soon captured in Ohio and extradited to Texas, serving almost two years in prison before being paroled in February 1932. Bonnie and Clyde were reunited soon after, and Bonnie became part of the Barrow Gang, which included several of Clyde’s friends, his brother Buck, and Buck’s wife, Blanche.

The news stories of Bonnie and Clyde’s criminal adventures captivated a downtrodden nation at the height of the Great Depression. Their outlaw antics and unlikely love story helped turn the gangster and his moll into folk heroes akin to Robin Hood and Maid Marian or Romeo and Juliet. But it wasn’t meant to last. After an increasingly violent crime spree that stretched almost two years, the pair was ambushed and killed by law enforcement in Louisiana in 1934. Their deaths made headlines across the nation, and thousands of people attended their funerals.

Over the years, the exploits of Bonnie and Clyde became synonymous with a kind of romantic lawlessness usually reserved for tales of the Wild West. Here are five surprising facts about one of the most infamous crime duos in American history.

Bonnie and Clyde Were Never Married

Bonnie and Clyde were partners in crime who became immortalized in myth and legend — but they were never married, because Bonnie already had a husband. In 1926, just a few days before she turned 16, Bonnie Parker married her high school sweetheart, Roy Thornton. Their marriage was tumultuous and Thornton was often absent or in trouble with the law. The couple separated numerous times, and Bonnie’s mother Emma recommended divorce, but Bonnie refused. Though she was identified as “Mrs. Roy Thornton” in wanted posters and was still wearing her wedding ring when she was killed, Bonnie personally reverted to her maiden name, and her tombstone reads “Bonnie Parker.” Thornton, who was in prison for robbery when he learned of Bonnie’s death, said, “I’m glad they went out like they did. It’s much better than being caught.” Thornton was shot and killed three years later during an attempted prison break.

Back in 1969, the global population was a comfortable 3.6 billion — a long way from today’s 8.1 billion. In the United States, 202 million people (versus some 341 million today) were going about their business. Glue sticks had just been invented and Nutter Butter was first put on sale. “Michael” and “Lisa” were the most popular baby names, the movie Oliver! won Best Picture at the 41st Academy Awards, and the New York Mets provided one of baseball’s greatest upsets when they won the World Series four games to one against the Baltimore Orioles. 

That all sounds reasonably relaxing, but don’t let 1969 fool you — it was a transformative and tumultuous year in America. These five facts offer a snapshot of the final 12 months of the decade, from music to politics to a trip to the moon (but, alas, no aliens). 

Some 650 Million People Watched the Moon Landing

In July 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins traveled to space on the first crewed mission to land on the moon. Back on Earth, meanwhile, an estimated 650 million people worldwide — about a fifth of the global population — were glued to their television sets to watch events unfold. The moon landing itself was broadcast live to the world on July 21 as the images were beamed back to Earth. Engineers at three tracking stations — one in the U.S. and two in Australia — busily converted the raw feed into a format compatible with terrestrial broadcasts, providing arguably the most historic TV broadcast in history.