"The Untouchables" (1959) TV series 1959-1963

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Release Date:

15 October 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama

Plot:

Special Agent Eliot Ness and his elite team of incorruptable agents battle organized crime in 1930s Chicago.

Plot Keywords:

Organized Crime | Mafia | Police | Cult TV | U.S. Treasury Agent

Awards:

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Robert Stack	...	Eliot Ness (119 episodes, 1959-1963)
Walter Winchell	...	Narrator (119 episodes, 1959-1963)
Nicholas Georgiade	...	Agent Enrico Rossi / ... (113 episodes, 1959-1963)
Paul Picerni	...	Agent Lee Hobson / ... (91 episodes, 1959-1963)
Abel Fernandez	...	Agent William Youngfellow / ... (82 episodes, 1959-1963)
Steve London	...	Agent Jack Rossman / ... (64 episodes, 1959-1963)

Series Directed by
Walter Grauman		(21 episodes, 1959-1963)
Stuart Rosenberg		(16 episodes, 1960-1962)
Paul Wendkos		(12 episodes, 1961-1963)
John Peyser		(10 episodes, 1959-1961)
Robert Butler		(7 episodes, 1962-1963)
Bernard L. Kowalski		(7 episodes, 1962)
Howard W. Koch		(4 episodes, 1960)
Tay Garnett		(3 episodes, 1959-1960)
Roger Kay		(3 episodes, 1959-1960)
Don Medford		(3 episodes, 1961)
Ida Lupino		(3 episodes, 1962-1963)
Alex March		(3 episodes, 1962-1963)
Vincent McEveety		(3 episodes, 1962-1963)
Allen Reisner		(3 episodes, 1963)
Joe Parker		(2 episodes, 1959)
Robert Gist		(2 episodes, 1962-1963)
Abner Biberman		(2 episodes, 1962)
Paul Stanley		(2 episodes, 1962)
Leonard Horn		(2 episodes, 1963)

Series Writing credits
Oscar Fraley		(102 episodes, 1959-1963)
Eliot Ness		(101 episodes, 1959-1963)
Harry Kronman		(17 episodes, 1960-1963)
John Mantley		(12 episodes, 1960-1963)
George Eckstein		(9 episodes, 1961-1963)
Leonard Kantor		(8 episodes, 1959-1962)
David Zelag Goodman		(8 episodes, 1960-1963)
Joseph Petracca		(7 episodes, 1959-1961)
Harry Essex		(6 episodes, 1959-1961)
Robert C. Dennis		(6 episodes, 1959-1960)
William Spier		(4 episodes, 1960-1961)
Herman Groves		(4 episodes, 1962-1963)
Jerome Ross		(3 episodes, 1959-1960)
Charles O'Neal		(3 episodes, 1960-1961)
Sy Salkowitz		(3 episodes, 1961-1962)
John D.F. Black		(3 episodes, 1962-1963)
Harold Gast		(3 episodes, 1962-1963)
David Karp		(2 episodes, 1959)
Ben Maddow		(2 episodes, 1960)
Robert Libott		(2 episodes, 1962-1963)
Gilbert Ralston		(2 episodes, 1962-1963)
Carey Wilber		(2 episodes, 1962-1963)
Tony Barrett		(2 episodes, 1963)

Series Produced by
Lloyd Richards	....	associate producer / producer (50 episodes, 1960-1963)
Alan A. Armer	....	executive producer / producer (37 episodes, 1960-1963)
Jerry Thorpe	....	executive producer (32 episodes, 1960-1961)
Quinn Martin	....	executive producer (28 episodes, 1959-1960)
Vincent McEveety	....	associate producer / producer (26 episodes, 1961-1962)
Josef Shaftel	....	producer (25 episodes, 1959-1961)
Del Reisman	....	associate producer / producer (24 episodes, 1961-1963)
Norman Retchin	....	producer (18 episodes, 1959-1960)
Alvin Cooperman	....	producer (14 episodes, 1962-1963)
Leonard Freeman	....	executive producer (11 episodes, 1962-1963)
Charles Russell	....	producer (7 episodes, 1959-1960)
Sidney Marshall	....	producer (4 episodes, 1959-1960)
Walter Grauman	....	producer (3 episodes, 1960-1961)
Desi Arnaz	....	executive producer (3 episodes, 1961-1962)
Stuart Rosenberg	....	producer (3 episodes, 1961-1962)
Paul Harrison	....	producer (2 episodes, 1959-1960)
Herman Hoffman	....	producer (2 episodes, 1960-1961)
Bert Granet	....	producer (unknown episodes)

Series Original Music by
Nelson Riddle		(3 episodes, 1960)
Pete Rugolo		(2 episodes, 1962)
Leith Stevens		(2 episodes, 1962)
Jack Cookerly		(unknown episodes)
William Loose		(unknown episodes)

Series Cinematography by
Charles Straumer		(101 episodes, 1959-1963)
Glen MacWilliams		(6 episodes, 1962-1963)
Robert B. Hauser		(4 episodes, 1960)

Series Film Editing by
Ben Ray		(35 episodes, 1959-1963)
Robert L. Swanson		(22 episodes, 1959-1962)
Robert Watts		(14 episodes, 1961-1963)
Elmo Veron		(10 episodes, 1960-1961)
William B. Murphy		(8 episodes, 1960-1961)
Axel Hubert Sr.		(5 episodes, 1962-1963)
George Jay Nicholson		(4 episodes, 1959-1960)
John M. Foley		(3 episodes, 1959-1961)
J. Frank O'Neill		(2 episodes, 1962)

Series Casting by
James Lister		(59 episodes, 1960-1963)
Lynn Stalmaster		(59 episodes, 1960-1963)
Kerwin Coughlin		(28 episodes, 1959-1960)

Series Art Direction by
Rolland M. Brooks		(78 episodes, 1959-1963)
Howard Hollander		(50 episodes, 1961-1963)
Ralph Berger		(48 episodes, 1959-1962)
Frank T. Smith		(32 episodes, 1959-1961)
William Glasgow		(9 episodes, 1961)
James Hulsey		(2 episodes, 1962)

Series Set Decoration by
Sandy Grace		(60 episodes, 1959-1961)
Harry Gordon		(46 episodes, 1961-1963)

Series Costume Design by
Frank Delmar		(10 episodes, 1959-1962)

Series Makeup Department
Kiva Hoffman	....	makeup artist (105 episodes, 1959-1963)
Irene Beshon	....	hair stylist (50 episodes, 1959-1961)
Anna Malin	....	hair stylist (8 episodes, 1961-1962)
Jane Chabra	....	hair stylist (7 episodes, 1962-1963)
Jean Udko	....	hair stylist (5 episodes, 1961-1962)
Beth Langston	....	hair stylist (3 episodes, 1961-1962)
David Newell	....	makeup artist (2 episodes, 1959-1962)
Merle Reeves	....	hair stylist (2 episodes, 1961-1963)
Lorraine Roberson	....	hair stylist / makeup artist (2 episodes, 1962)

Series Production Management
Marvin Stuart	....	production manager (77 episodes, 1960-1963)
Argyle Nelson	....	production supervisor (60 episodes, 1959-1961)
Jerry Thorpe	....	executive in charge of production / production executive (48 episodes, 1961-1963)
James Paisley	....	production supervisor (45 episodes, 1961-1963)
Lloyd Richards	....	production manager (28 episodes, 1959-1960)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sergei Petschnikoff	....	assistant director (35 episodes, 1959-1961)
Vincent McEveety	....	assistant director (28 episodes, 1959-1961)
Bud Grace	....	assistant director (22 episodes, 1960-1963)
Ted Schilz	....	assistant director (22 episodes, 1961-1963)
Russ Haverick	....	assistant director (4 episodes, 1960-1963)
Marvin Stuart	....	assistant director (2 episodes, 1960)
Lou Watt	....	second assistant director (unknown episodes)

Series Art Department
Alan Levine	....	property master (44 episodes, 1959-1963)
Irving A. Feinberg	....	property master (30 episodes, 1959-1961)
Kenneth L. Westcott	....	property master (14 episodes, 1961-1962)
Don Smith	....	property master (10 episodes, 1959-1963)
Charles West	....	property master (3 episodes, 1959-1960)
Al Joyce	....	property master (2 episodes, 1959)

Series Sound Department
Joseph G. Sorokin	....	sound editor / supervising sound editor (68 episodes, 1959-1963)
T.T. Triplett	....	sound engineer (47 episodes, 1959-1961)
S.G. Haughton	....	sound engineer (44 episodes, 1961-1963)
Ross Taylor	....	sound editor (26 episodes, 1961-1963)
Cam McCulloch	....	sound engineer (23 episodes, 1959-1962)
Josef von Stroheim	....	sound editor / supervising sound editor (15 episodes, 1959-1960)
Wayne Fury	....	sound editor (7 episodes, 1961)
Karl Zint	....	sound engineer (6 episodes, 1959)
John Post	....	sound editor (2 episodes, 1961)

Series Special Effects by
A.D. Flowers	....	special effects (unknown episodes)
A. Paul Pollard	....	special effects (unknown episodes)

Series Stunts
Charlie Picerni	....	stunts (52 episodes, 1961-1963)
Carol Daniels	....	stunt double: Barbara Luna (2 episodes, 1959-1962)

Series Costume and Wardrobe Department
Frank Delmar	....	costumer / wardrobe / ... (106 episodes, 1959-1963)
Byron Munson	....	costumer (2 episodes, 1960)

Series Editorial Department
Bill Heath	....	editorial supervisor / supervising editor (103 episodes, 1959-1963)

Series Music Department
Nelson Riddle	....	composer: theme music / composer: themes (118 episodes, 1959-1963)
Robert H. Raff	....	music supervisor / music editor (77 episodes, 1960-1963)
Ted Roberts	....	music supervisor (28 episodes, 1959-1960)
Wilbur Hatch	....	music supervisor (20 episodes, 1960-1963)
Julian Davidson	....	music coordinator (17 episodes, 1962-1963)

Series Other crew
Harry Fried	....	story editor (60 episodes, 1959-1961)
Kellam de Forest	....	researcher (47 episodes, 1961-1963)
Arthur Fellows	....	assistant to executive producer (27 episodes, 1959-1960)
Del Reisman	....	story editor (21 episodes, 1961-1962)

Production Companies

• Desilu Productions
• Langford Productions

Distributors

• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1959-1963) (USA) (TV)
• CBS Paramount Domestic Television (2006) (USA) (TV)
• CBS Paramount International Television (2004) (Non-USA) (TV)
• Desilu Studios
• Paramount Pictures
• Super! Drama TV (2006) (Japan) (TV)

Special Effects

• Howard Anderson Company, The (photographic effects) (as Howard Anderson Co.)

Other Companies

• Glen Glenn Sound Company  sound (as Glen Glenn Sound Co.)
• Stalmaster-Lister Co.  casting

Also Known As:

Runtime:

60 min (118 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Backlot, Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Desilu Productions

Trivia:

One of the groups that tried to end this show was the estate of 'Al Capone (I)'. It was their claim that this show was unfairly profiting from the Capone name.

Goofs:

Continuity: The opening credits for the fourth season show a book open to a page that reads "The Untouchables, 1929--1933". This contradicts the chronology of several episodes set in 1934 or 1935.

Quotes:

Police Officer:There is nothing in that area... except an old abandoned warehouse.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Elizabethtown (2005)

An outstanding series where the bad guys are really bad

Although the reputation of The Untouchables is that it is about prohibition, there are more stories about murder and extortion than about the alcohol trade, which is a background in many stories, but central to only a handful.

These bad guys are really bad. Not only are there the commonplace shootings, but people have their cars blown up. They are knifed in the back. They are strangled in the back seats of cars. They are blinded when acid is thrown in their faces. They are hanged. They are set on fire. Good friends and reliable employees have their lives snuffed out with the villain employing less thought than he would spend on selecting the right tie to wear. As Frank Nitti (exquisitely played by actor Bruce Gordon) put it, while plotting the murder of a young man who worked tirelessly to make Nitti's enterprises succeed, "It's a matter of economics. Two of these (displaying bullets) cost 15 cents." While Frank Nitti is the best known of the criminals in this outstanding series, he appears in a tiny minority of the stories, about 25 of 118. Other actors with different personalities but equivalent levels of viciousness terrorize the innocent and not-so-innocent with levels of violence that are shocking even today, and were surely even more shocking in the 50s and early 60s.

While Bruce Gordon as Frank Nitti is the best remembered portrayer of gangsters from this show, in other episodes, veteran actors like William Bendix and Nehemiah Persoff, and then-young actors like Martin Landau and Robert Redford, put on entertaining and gritty performances that rarely disappoint. All the while, the newsreel style announcing of Walter Winchell adds enormously to the sensation of reality.

Today's viewer has the fun, not available to the viewers back then, of frequently spotting future stars in the cast, like Alan Hale Jr.(Skipper on Gilligan's Island), Elizabeth Montgomery (Samantha on Bewitched), Carroll O'Connor (Archie Bunker on All In The Family), Gavin McLeod (Capt. Steubing on The Love Boat), Jack Warden (veteran of countless movies and TV shows), Lee Van Cleef (perennial star and costar of westerns), Peter Falk (Columbo), Raymond Bailey (Mr. Drysdale on The Beverly Hillbillies -- without his toupee). The list goes on and on.

Two often-made criticisms of the show are justified, but to my mind, unimportant. First, it is true that in real life Eliot Ness never met most of the notorious criminals that he and his men defeat on the show. However, the show is admitted to be fictional. Second, it is true that the characters of the good guys, Ness and crew, are not particularly colorful. However, the gangsters and their victims provide ample color, and the solid steadfastness of Robert Stack as Eliot Ness and the rest of his crew gives viewers an anchor of emotional security in the face of the omnipresent evil portrayed on the show. Without this, the helplessness of the victims in the face of the ruthlessness, treachery and cold-heartedness of the villains that dominate the show episode after episode might be difficult to bear.

Everyone will benefit when the operators of networks that play reruns of old series finally decide to put real quality before the viewers and begin to regularly show The Untouchables, The Fugitive, Rawhide, and the other real classics of years past.