Original subtitles

Tonight's episode:

Starring Robert Stack as Eliot Ness;

co-starring Susan Oliver, Milton Selzer,

and Oscar Beregi.

With special guest star Richard Conte.

And narrated by Walter Winchell.

The bookies had given four to one against it,

but on May 3, 1932...

Through the efforts of Eliot Ness and the Untouchables...

Al Capone was convicted and taken out of circulation.

Out of circulation but not out of business.

Frank Nitti was holding the organization together.

Although the Capone mob still made a big noise,

it wasn't the same.

The lion was down

and the jackals were already slashing at his flanks,

but there were other lions.

One of the biggest was Joe Kulak from St. Louis...

Kulak, the one they called "The Teacher"

because he had trained so many underworld big shots.

He had given them their start.

He still gave them their orders.

On November 9, 1932,

alerted by federal authorities in St. Louis,

the Untouchables watched Kulak arrive.

Their job: to find out what he was doing in Chicago.

Arnie Seeger's place.

He's stepping up in class, entertaining Kulak.

What do you figure it means, Kulak being here?

I don't know, but you can bank on one thing:

it won't be penny ante.

One big organization coast to coast.

We control it all...

The gambling, the whiskey, the houses, the dope.

The whole works.

How are you cutting it up?

You're going to like it, Joe.

Take my word for it, you're going to like it.

Here.

Bouchard for the New Orleans traffic,

Nicholson in Kansas City,

and Danny here is going to take the Pittsburgh territory.

I got Marker Malone in Pittsburgh.

Well, I kind of promised Danny here.

Okay.

You want Malone, you got Malone.

Well, what happens to me?

Maybe you don't trust us?

I want to hear it said.

This much belongs to Kurtz... from here to here.

I want it said right out.

Danny, you can't always say it right out.

No? Well, you're going to say it to me.

I put in a lot of good time with you...

Six stinking months on this thing alone,

working night and day to help you set it up...

And nobody's going to walk in now and give me the boot.

The water cooler is outside.

Get yourself a drink.

He'll simmer down, Joe.

I don't like no arguments.

Ah, forget him.

Now, look, Joe, all the other guys are waiting on you.

You just say the word and I'll set up the meeting.

Maybe I think it over, huh?

Yeah.

Yeah, you think it over.

I don't want to rush you into nothing.

Here, Dutch will take that down for you.

He'll drive you over to the hotel.

I take a cab.

Something wrong?

Joe...

There won't be no arguments.

You ain't gonna be sore, are you?

Just my mouth.

Look, I'm in a spot.

I can't move without him.

I got to put on an act, don't I?

So what?

You know I'm going to take care of you, don't you?

Sure.

Good boy.

Still got a lot of work to do, huh?

Plenty.

Look, uh, suppose I come back later...

After dinner, around, uh, 10:30 or so?

Fine.

All right.

Westside A.C.

Is Arnie there?

Seeger? He just left.

Who's this?

Maxie.

Maxie Schramm?

Yeah.

This is Dan... Dan Kurtz.

How are you, Maxie?

How am I?

I got a lousy prison suit on my back

and five lousy prison bucks in my pocket.

I'm fine.

I got to talk to Arnie.

Well, how about first thing in the morning?

Tonight, I want to talk to him tonight.

Where is he?

He went out to eat.

He's got a dame.

Listen, I got to see him.

Well, look, he's coming back

if you want to drop in around, uh, half past 10:00.

Thanks, I'll be there.

At 10:30 that night, Danny Kurtz returned from dinner

for some late work at Seeger's gym.

A minute or two later, Maxie Schramm arrived.

Arnie?

Is somebody there?

Who's that?

You two still at it?

Don't feel too bad.

Kurtz is working late, too.

I say a dirty word?

Kurtz is dead.

The D.A. just called.

Dead?

Yeah, some drunk stumbled over him in an alley.

In an alley?

I saw him go in, but I never saw him come out.

Back door, I guess.

You see anyone else?

Yeah, Maxie Schramm.

Schramm?

He's in Joliet.

He's back.

He went in right after Kurtz and then came right out.

I didn't give it much thought.

We could pick him up.

Let's start with the flops on State Street.

Hey.

Shh... No noise.

Come on.

Come on, Maxie.

What is it?

Shh... Come on, downstairs.

Who are you guys?

Federal officers.

What do you want?

We'll let you know later. Come on.

Hello, Maxie.

Just happens I had a spare.

What were you doing in Seeger's gym tonight?

I went to see Arnie... to hit him for a job.

And maybe hit Danny Kurtz, too?

Not me, honest.

I never killed him.

Who said he was killed?

We know you were in the gym with him.

One minute, that's all.

I came right out.

Why? Because you saw it happen?

Who killed him, Maxie?

I don't know, honest.

The both of them against the light...

I couldn't even tell it was Kurtz.

Please, I just copped a parole.

You get me mixed up in a killing and then...

Look, Mr. Ness, I'm just a two-bit flunky.

Everybody knows that.

I never carried a gun in my life.

What's Kulak doing in town?

How should I know?

I need some information, Maxie.

Why ask me?

I'm not a stool pigeon.

You turned state's evidence once.

You get another boy.

I learned my lesson the hard way.

I had three years to think about it,

three years with nobody talking to me.

Men that used to be my friends spitting

when they had to pass.

Sometimes wanting to spit at myself.

I can pay you, Maxie.

I don't need you.

I got Arnie Seeger.

All right, so I... so I sold out once!

That don't mean any lousy fed can buy me any time he wants.

I ain't no salami hanging up on a hook

for anybody who's got the price.

Keep it.

I gotta say thanks?

One thing I can't stand... being cold.

I never could stand the cold.

He's going to be a big help.

He'll be back.

Following traditional underworld practice,

Danny Kurtz's body lay in state the next day.

Seeger paid his respects in mid-afternoon.

It's a hard thing to lose a good friend.

He was with you a long time.

Well, I always say you got to roll with the punch.

You lose a friend, you make a friend.

You're going to make plenty.

You got the touch.

Joe, you been thinking over

what we talked about yesterday?

Apple, Mister?

Would you buy an apple?

Here, that's for you.

Oh, thank you.

Like they say, an apple a day

You makin' double sure?

One for me, and one for my partner.

You got elegant hands, Arnie.

First thing you ever told me, remember?

When I come into the shop for a manicure.

"You got elegant hands."

Well, you have, just elegant.

Roxie?

Kulak's in.

And that means all the rest of his boys.

Ten days from now, we're gonna have a meeting.

And a month from now,

we're gonna own the whole country.

It's that big, huh?

I'll tell you how big.

You're gonna have so many fur coats,

you'll have to hire a girl to wear 'em for you.

And a new car?

One for every day of the week.

And Sundays and holidays, too.

And diamonds.

Diamonds?

For breakfast, with cream and sugar.

With cream and sugar?

I guess you want to talk business.

I heard you were out.

I been looking for you at the gym all day.

It wouldn't been right to go down there today.

Losin' a good friend like Danny.

What's on your mind?

Arnie... look, I'm broke.

I got to have a job.

Not with me.

You talk too much.

Once.

Once. I only done it once.

Arnie, I was in a jam.

They were putting the pressure on.

I couldn't take no 20-year rap.

Dutch, get my jacket, huh?

And brush it off good.

I kept you out of it, didn't I?

I kept you clean.

I was counting on you.

So, what do I do?

You ever heard of working?

You looked around lately?

You seen the breadlines?

Arnie, you owe me!

Nothing.

I owe you nothing.

It's long distance from Cincinnati.

Mr. Schweger. Shut up.

You used to be pretty.

He thinks I'm pretty now.

Three years.

What's he done to you?

What's he done?

You want to know?

I got clothes and money and my own car.

I got charge accounts in the best stores.

I can walk into any top place in town

and the maitre d' knows my name.

Does he know it's Mrs. Maxie Schramm?

Suppose I tell him?

Go ahead.

You wouldn't be around long.

Arnie takes what he likes, and he likes me.

He'd rub you out like a soup stain.

Maxie, you couldn't call what we had a real marriage.

How long was it? A month? Six weeks?

You want me to tell you in hours or minutes?

You don't know how it is for a girl.

It's hard to be alone.

Three years can be an awful long time.

Yeah.

At 10:00 that night,

on the platform of a remote elevated station,

Maxie Schramm met with Eliot Ness.

$500. That's as high as I can go.

It ain't the money.

All right, then, that's it.

$500 when the job is done.

Enough to keep you going till then.

You get anything, that's the number to call.

For the next several days,

Maxie hung around the edges of Seeger's world

trying to dig out information for Ness.

Eight days passed before he hit pay dirt.

Hey, Georgie.

What happened to your papers?

Oh, I ain't selling no more papers tonight.

I'm doin' a job for Mr. Seeger.

Really getting up in the world, huh?

Here, let me hold that for you. Thanks.

Here you are.

Thanks. I think it's booze.

Don't tell the cops, huh? No Hey, taxi!

Looks like you spent a lot today.

I spend a lot every day.

Nobody's here.

Seeger's got an apartment.

520 Beck Street, 1-C.

He's expecting company.

He sent a kid over today with some booze.

You know it's Seeger's place?

I know it's his key.

Looks to me like some kind of meeting.

Who's meeting?

Corey from New York, Tomack from L.A.

Them two for sure.

How do you know?

Their top boys hit town today.

They always come in first to kind of look things over.

New York and L.A.

That's coast to coast.

You all right? You need anything?

I could use some dough.

Sure.

Three bucks?

Oh, I gotta get out of that flop.

I'm getting chewed up alive every night.

You live it up now, the wrong people

might be asking questions.

Keep in touch, huh?

Working on Maxie's one slim lead,

Ness quickly developed a plan.

It would take a lot of man hours...

Hobson and the other Untouchables

would have to contact the railroads,

the airlines, the bus companies,

and check their reservation list

to learn which princes of the underworld

were bound for Chicago.

The next afternoon,

Ness borrowed a technician, George Cooper, from the police.

Together they drove out to 520 Beck Street.

They discovered that apartment 1-C had recently been rented

by an attractive blonde,

who very much resembled Roxie Plummer.

Real homey, isn't it?

Yeah.

How long will it take you to wire up?

Ground floor...

I can drill right through to the cellar.

About 45 minutes.

Watch yourself.

Check in every two hours, huh?

Right.

SEEGER: Go ahead, Joe.

This place is made to order, huh?

Gives you an idea of how I operate.

Organization... That's my middle name.

I tried to make it comfortable.

It's nice.

The way I got it worked out, Joe,

the boys are all in on Thursday morning.

They come straight here and we have our meeting

and in two hours they're gone,

and nobody even knows they've been in town.

Clean, huh?

The kid left the refreshments in the closet.

I hope there's enough for all of us.

You're a good host.

Arnie never forgets anything.

I figure a deal as big as this...

Arnie, they must have done it while I...

And now back to The Untouchables.

After three hours had passed without word from Cooper,

Ness picked up his men and returned to Beck Street.

There was nothing to indicate

that the police technician had ever been there.

The alley.

Nothing there.

There's nothing anywhere.

You stay.

I'll send the coroner out.

I'd have swore it said "private" on that door.

I guess maybe I didn't hear you knock.

I got your present.

Present?

The trunk.

What are you talking about?

520 Beck Street, apartment 1-C.

The one Roxie Plummer rented for you.

Where is she, Arnie?

Why? What do you want her for?

Suspicion of murder.

Save your time, Ness.

She was with my sister all day.

Yeah. Playing mahjong.

Where were you all day, Seeger?

Playing mahjong, too?

Yeah, that's right.

You can't pin no murder on me, Ness.

Can't I?

Kulak, aren't you out of your territory?

You better keep your bags packed.

I pull the right string,

you're on the next train back to St. Louis.

Now, just one lousy minute... You try to put him

on a train, I'll have so many lawyers around,

the train won't move for a week.

We ain't no lousy punks you can roust around.

We know our rights; we know the law.

Now, let me tell you, the law can work both ways.

Thanks.

I'll try to remember.

What was that all about?

Just testing. I think we struck a nerve.

Seeger sure took it big, all right.

What do you suppose he's working on?

Whatever it is, he can't swing it without Kulak.

You.

You want to make the big organization.

You want to run the whole country.

What can he do? What can he prove?

I don't want no Fed on my back.

We call the meeting off.

You can't.

Bouchard's on the train already.

Tomack's coming out from L.A.

So we'll forget the apartment.

So we find some other place.

The Rathskeller, maybe.

Nobody goes down there, only private parties.

And we move in quiet.

How's Ness gonna know?

How does he know about the apartment?

How?

That's what I ask myself... Who's talking to him?

All the time it comes out the same answer.

Who?

Who finds the place for you?

Who fixes it up?

Who knows about the meeting? Who?

Oh, now, Joe, hold it, if you mean the girl...

Who you got around all the time?

You think she don't have eyes to see?

You talk on the phone, you think she don't listen?

Now, Joe, you're wrong.

You got to take my word for it.

You're way off base.

If I thought there was even one chance in a thousand...

I don't want no chances at all.

I can't.

You don't want me for the meeting, huh?

You got till tomorrow night.

Joe...

Joe, I... I can't.

Dutch?

Keep driving.

What's the idea?

What's going on?

What... You're wrong.

It's got to be a mistake.

I'm going down to meet Arnie now.

Right on Jackson, to the lake.

Why?

What'd I do? I didn't do anything.

Why?

Please, you got to give me a break.

I'm not asking much, just...

Dutch, I-I could be nice to you.

I got money at the apartment, big money.

And jewelry.

Stuff you could easily turn into cash.

You could tell Arnie you missed me.

Forget it.

You keep washing, weather like this,

you take the skin right off your hands.

I been waiting.

Glad you called... I want to talk to you.

Not to me. No more.

And I ain't talkin' to you.

We were doing fine. What happened?

What happened?

The word is out Seeger's mad.

He killed a cop last night,

so what do you think he's gonna do to me?

I thought you didn't like the cold.

It's a whole lot colder being dead.

Maxie.

Rose.

What?

He's looking for me.

Arnie... he's gonna kill me.

I didn't know who else to come to.

Maxie, he'll kill me.

Why? I don't know.

He's sore. Ness is on his back.

Maxie... help me.

I need some money.

You got money.

You spend a lot every day.

It's at the apartment, everything is.

I can't go back.

Please?

A few bucks, just to get out of town.

I know, I got no right.

But you told me once...

Was a time you would've done it,

anything I asked.

Oh, Maxie, I never changed, not down deep.

I was scared, that's all.

That month we had together,

that's the only nice thing that ever happened to me.

But you were gone.

You weren't there, and I was scared.

Maxie, I been scared all my life.

How much?

If I can get to Dayton... My sister's in Dayton...

Only 20, 30 bucks.

Oh, I ain't got that much.

But maybe I can get it.

Where?

A friend of mine... he owes me.

I done a job for him. Who?

It don't matter. You don't know him.

I done a job.

I never changed, neither, Rose, not for a minute.

Three years in that stinkin' hole,

and all I ever thought about was you.

It's gonna take a while.

I got to see someone.

I'll go with you. No, no, you wait.

Buy yourself a cup of coffee or something.

I'll be back in an hour, and we can lam out tonight.

A dame.

You can't even handle a dame.

And you let her get away with it like that.

She might have even gone straight to Ness!

Arnie!

Your hands.

You're wrong.

I never talked.

I never sold out to Ness.

Would I come back?

You could have lots of reason for coming back.

I know who's singing.

Who?

Maxie.

Maxie Schramm.

Right under your nose.

I had a feeling it was him.

I saw him snooping around Georgie the other day,

when you sent the kid over with the booze.

And the next day the apartment was bugged.

I just ran into Maxie.

I strung him along,

let him think I was open for a deal.

He's waiting for me now.

Ida's Cafe on State Street.

Dutch.

And don't louse it up this time.

Hold it.

Take Boomer along.

I told you, he went out to eat.

I don't know where.

You said he'd be back in 15 minutes.

It's over a half hour!

Hold it. Here he is.

It's Maxie.

Yes, Maxie?

Let's talk.

I don't like the cold.

20 minutes? Same place?

I'll be waiting.

Come on, Maxie.

The alley.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Let's get out of here.

It's cold.

The night man at the icehouse discovered Maxie's body

and telephoned the police.

15 minutes after the call was relayed to him,

Eliot Ness visited the flophouse on State Street.

This was his.

He liked to be down here at the end.

Did he have any personal stuff?

Clothes? Anything?

Anything he had would be in here.

I don't charge for the lockers.

Terrible thing.

You know who done it?

It might be hard to prove.

Nice little fella.

Stuck to himself.

Used to come and go.

You a friend of his?

That might be hard to prove, too.

You want anything else?

We'll call you.

Do you have your light handy?

The next day was Thursday,

a bright, sunny morning,

especially bright for Arnie Seeger.

This was his day.

He left his hotel shortly after 10:00.

As a rule, he didn't waken before noon,

but today he was expecting company.

At about the same time, Eliot Ness was in his office.

He was expecting company, too.

Let go. I can walk by myself.

Don't these apes know how to treat a lady?

They know.

Maxie Schramm was killed last night.

Does that mean anything to you?

Is that why you dragged me in?

Bums like him get knocked off every day.

I'm busy. I've got some shopping to do.

Rose...

Roxie!

The name is Roxie!

Rose. Rose Plummer.

That's what it says right here.

Marriage certificate signed and witnessed,

copy of the application...

Rose Plummer, Beauty Operator.

We checked it out.

I'm not interested.

Arnie Seeger might be.

Go ahead, tell him.

I told him myself.

Arnie always knew I was married.

To Maxie Schramm?

You figure it out.

Seeger's always been touchy.

Right now, Kulak must be rubbing him raw.

It wouldn't take much to set him off.

Maxie's dead.

He can't sing anymore.

But where'd he get the tunes?

Don't you think Seeger's asking himself?

And suppose he finds out you were Maxie's wife?

What do you want?

I want Seeger for killing George Cooper.

He didn't do it.

Who did?

Why were Maxie and Cooper killed?

What kind of a deal is Seeger pulling?

Who's in it with him?

I want names, dates, places, time, everything!

Helping you turns my stomach.

It did the same to Maxie.

Time was moving against the Untouchables.

Since shortly after 8:30 that morning, half a dozen cities

across the country had been spilling their vice lords

into Chicago.

Jerry Tomack, from the Coast, at 8:43.

Schweger, from Cincinnati, at 9:36.

Del Corey arrived at the Chicago Airport at 10:22

and went immediately to the Rathskeller.

By 10:55, everyone was there... or almost everyone.

Seeger was already counting the profits.

I was just tellin' 'em, Del,

we slice up seven figures every month, maybe more.

The kind of organization we got,

whose gonna tell us where to stop?

Sounds real good.

We just gotta work out the details, that's all.

Well, any time you fellas are ready,

we can get down to business.

You're all in, ain't ya?

Jerry?

Sure. I'm just waitin' for Joe.

Ya. What's the hurry?

I figured Joe to talk for me.

Well, you're all big boys now.

You gotta wait for The Teacher?

You know how Joe is.

What time did he say he'd be here?

Well, he never said exactly.

You want some action?

A C-note says he'll be here by 11:00.

So, I lose a hundred bucks.

Did Joe know the meetin' was for 11:00?

Yeah, he'll be here. Stop worryin'.

I sent one of my men over to pick him up.

Joe's never late for a meetin'.

So what's a couple of minutes, the end of the world?

So the valet is late deliverin' the suit.

The barber shop is crowded this morning

or the driver got hung up in traffic.

Could be a million things holdin' him up.

Arnie, don't play no games with us.

Who's playin' games?

I passed up a couple of big deals in L.A.

I only come east because of Joe.

If it turns out you're just usin' his name...

You think I'd pull a fast one?

Joe's in right from the start.

He was the first one I talked to.

Didn't he tell you?

I never talked to Joe, only you.

Look, I wouldn't try to kid you.

Joe's been here for almost two weeks.

We've been working together every day.

Joe's with me... like that.

Hello?

Room 907, please.

Mr. Kulak.

When?

Oh.

No message.

He left the hotel. When?

When?!

45 minutes ago.

And it takes ten minutes to come here.

15 if the traffic's bad.

I told you.

If you're waiting for Kulak, he won't be here.

Ness, I told you the other day...

Yeah, I know, the law works both ways.

And Kulak's caught right in the middle

for the murder of George Cooper.

Big talk.

We'll be havin' lunch with Joe.

I'll bail him out in no time.

Sorry, no bail.

You boys better save your money for flowers.

All right, maybe he's got Kulak, and maybe he's bluffin'.

But there's no reason why we can't go ahead.

He can't stop us!

Nothin' wrong with just havin' a meetin'.

We're just a bunch of old friends

sittin' around talkin', huh?

He can't stop us!

Jerry, where are you going?

Don't let him run you out.

Jerry, wait!

We can swing it without Kulak!

Wait. Use your head.

Arno. Arno, sit down.

Let's talk it over.

Let's talk. Let's talk it over.

Hey, boys, where you going?

Let's wait. Wait.

Wait!

All these months...

all the time I put into this thing...

now I got nothin'.

You got one thing, you're still alive.

Eliot!

Turning your back like that,

you took a long chance.

Yeah.

It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

Convicted on Roxie Plummer's testimony,

Joe Kulak was executed April 10, 1933.

That same day, Roxie was shot and killed by parties unknown.

Her death had been arranged by six notorious big shots

paying their last respects to The Teacher.