| | | The Gangs of Chicago Didn't Know What Hit Them.
Features: DVD
The Untouchables comes to DVD for the first time, featuring the last 14 of 28 Season One episodes. Considered one of the best crime series of its time, the hit show starred Emmy winner Robert Stack (Unsolved Mysteries) as real-life Chicago gangbuster and prohibition agent Eliot Ness, famous for bringing down the notorious Al Capone.Executive Produced by Quinn Martin (TV's The Fugitive) and narrated by Walter Winchell, whose distinctive voice lent credibility to the show, the resulting series depicting 1930s Chicago was dramatic fiction with documentary authenticity...and became an instant classic! Each week, Ness and his men wrestled with such flavorful villains as Dutch Schultz, Lucky Luciano...even Ma Barker! But these agents could never be bought off. They were The Untouchables!
"...as good as any of the crime movies being made at the time...any fan of this era in America's crime history should consider this a must own." Jon Jordan, Crimespree Cinema
"...a pleasant mix of film noir and extremely heightened drama...a rare breed: hard-boiled camp." Jude Clement, TVDVDReviews.com
Editor's Note
Thirty years before they hit the big screen via Brian DePalma's brilliant movie adaptation, Eliot Ness's legendary exploits came to life in the classic 1950s and '60s television series THE UNTOUCHABLES. Created by veteran crime-drama producer Quinn Martin, the series followed Ness (Robert Stack) and his team of crack crimefighters--including agents Martin Flaherty (Jerry Paris), Jack Rossman (Steve London), Enrico Rossi (Nicholas Georgiade), and William Youngellow (Abel Fernandez)--as they took on the Mafia underworld of gangsters Al Capone (Neville Brand) and Frank Nitti (Bruce Gordon) in Prohibition-era Chicago. Smart and iconic, the series distinguished itself with superb voiceover narration from broadcaster Walter Winchell and a gritty style that nonetheless eschewed graphic depictions of gore and violence. This collection presents the second half of the vintage series' debut season.
| Features | Audio: English, Spanish Dolby Digital Mono | | Bonus Episode From The Lucy Show | | Dubbed: Spanish | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, Spanish, Portuguese |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Paramount |
| Release Date: 4/14/2009 |
| Running Time: 780 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1959 | | Catalog ID: 12278 | | UPC: 00097361227849 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English, Spanish Dubbed | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Standard 1.33:1 [4:3] |
| Cast & Crew | Bruce Gordon | | Neville Brand | | Robert Stack | | Ben Ray, et. al. - Editor | | Charles Straumer, et. al. - Cinematographer | | Eliot Ness, et. al. - Writer | | Nelson Riddle, et. al. - Original Music By | | Quinn Martin - Executive Producer | | Rolland M. Brooks, et. al. - Art Director | | Stuart Rosenberg - Producer | | Walter Grauman, et. al. - Director | | Walter Winchell - Narrated By |
| Awards |
Nominee (1961) | | | Emmy, Elizabeth Montgomery, Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role | | | Grammy, Nelson Riddle, Best Soundtrack Album or Recording of Music Score from Motion Picture or Television | |
Winner (1960) | | | Emmy, Robert Stack, Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Series (Lead or Support) | | | Emmy, Ben Ray, Robert L. Swanson, Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing for Television | |
Nominee (1960) | | | Emmy, The Untouchables, Outstanding Program Achievement in the Field of Drama |
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| | Professional Reviews | DVD Town 7 of 10
"The Untouchables," starring Robert Stack as Eliot Ness, was the kind of cops and robbers show that kids loved...Considering all the sound and fury over violence and sex on TV now, audiences saw an awful lot back then. Along with what I saw in National Geographic magazines, I caught my first glimpse of female breasts in this show. In the pilot, you saw a stripper from the side, then full frontal. Yes, she was wearing pasties, but they were tiny ones (the pasties) and it certainly was enough to leave an impression on a young boy..."The Untouchables" was one of the best crime dramas of its time, a retro-historical film noir melodrama that works, still, because of the way it evokes the Roaring Twenties. And newsman Walter Winchell's narrative deserves a large share of the credit. Casting him was a stroke of genius, and it provided the inspiration for two funny, parody pop song compilations that blended a Winchell "Untouchables"-style narrative with excerpts from popular songs. More than the Emmys, that's how you know you've created a winner. - James Plath
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