The Real Untouchables

Part one examines the true story about the "Untouchables." Chicago under prohibition has gained an almost mythic aura. Images of Al Capone's gangsters fighting Eliot Ness and his "Untouchables" have clouded the facts. Most of the information used in books and movies about the "Untouchables" came from Eliot Ness's memoirs, written years after the fact and shortly before his death. Part two examines the role FBI Agent Melvin Purvis had in the demise of outlaw John Dillinger in 1934. Purvis was head of the Bureau's Chicago office and lead the manhunt to capture Dillinger. After a tip from "the lady in red" Purvis and his men cornered Dillinger in the Biograph movie theater in Chicago, and took down public enemy number one. Part three examines New York in the 1930s when everyone with power -- police, judges, politicians -- was in the mob's pocket. When Special Prosecutor Thomas Dewey decided to take on mob boss Lucky Luciano, his odds didn't look very good. A tip about Luciano's involvement in prostitution was a lucky break that led to Dewey's election as governor.