The Underground Railway (31 Dec. 1959)

When Frank Halloway breaks out of prison, his crooked lawyer arranges for him to follow the underground railway to Los Angeles where he hopes to collect his $250,000 share of the loot from ... See full summary »

Director:

Walter Grauman

Writers:

Leonard Kantor, Eliot Ness (book),

Stars:

Robert Stack, Virginia Vincent, Joe De Santis

Cast

Episode complete credited cast:
Robert Stack	...	Eliot Ness
Virginia Vincent	...	Mona Valentine
Joe De Santis	...	Daniel Oates
Cliff Robertson	...	Frank Halloway
Jerry Paris	...	Agent Martin Flaherty
Frank Ferguson	...	Dr. James Crenshaw
Ernest Sarracino	...	Tomaso Fellini
Linda Wong	...	Tuki
Steve London	...	Agent Jack Rossman
Walter Winchell	...	Narrator (voice)

Storyline

When Frank Halloway breaks out of prison, his crooked lawyer arranges for him to follow the underground railway to Los Angeles where he hopes to collect his $250,000 share of the loot from his last job. The so-called railway is a safe route to Los Angeles with help from reliable criminal associates along the way. To also help him along the way, the lawyer arranges for Mona Valentine to travel with him and pose as is wife. She does so for the money she's offered even though she is repulsed by Halloway who is quite ugly. Along the way however, he undergoes plastic surgery to the point that it creates a problem for him at the end of his journey. For Eliot Ness and the Untouchables, capturing Halloway is personal: Halloway killed a fellow agent.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 December 1959 (USA)

Filming Locations:

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

Company Credits

Production Co:

Desilu Productions, Langford Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 51 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

They Transformed His Face, But Not His Heart

It's Aug 3, 1933 outside the walls of Lewisburg (Pa.) Federal Prison, "Frank Halloway" breaks out of prison. He was serving a life sentence and had only been in jail for two years. Guest star Cliff Robertson plays the ruthless criminal who grabs the getaway car and runs over his partner, en route to going after a half-million dollars that had never been recovered in a theft. Robertson has a bunch of cotton or something stuffed in his mouth to make him look like some sort of Neanderthal man!

The story mainly involves "Mona," whom we first see at one of those old, brutal marathon dance contests they used to have in the early '30s. She is supposed to accompany Halloway en route to his destination to get "the loot." Mona is not a criminal; she was just picked out by Halloway's crooked lawyer for the job of going along on this cross-country car trip to make Frank look more legit as a married man. She isn't thrilled at first with the offer but is desperate need for money and is thrilled when she finds out they'll give her a decent amount of cash. She doesn't know the new "husband" is a crook, and is a little freaked out when she sees this Lon Chaney-werewolf-looking guy (who has a complex about his looks).

Elliot Ness and his Untouchables of trying to track Halloway down. They know about the "underground railway" which was, according to narrator Walter Winchell, "a series of stations around the country where a criminal on the lam could eat, sleep and be comfortable. It was organized by smart lawyers and controlled by top gang leaders and protected by certain local politicians. A hunted man going in any direction could travel in safety and style, providing he had the right contacts and enough money."

That all sets up this episode, how the Untouchables go about finding and sending the thug back to jail. The job isn't made easier have Halloway has some teeth work done to change his appearance. Later, he gets more and more plastic surgery done until, at the end, nobody recognizes him.

Overall, this was one of the more intense, better shows with good actors and good photography. Robertson was terrific as the nasty killer.