The time is Oct. 19, 1932: the depth of the Depression in the U.S., which was a perfect time for gangsters to offer "the numbers." For desperate people, looking for any kind of unforeseen hope, a little financial break even for a day or two, this lure to put money down on a number from 0 to 999 was tough to resist. The mob made an absolute fortune on this. Their take was 40 percent, so the profit had to be big.
Elliot Ness' objective, of course, is to break this number's game. He's hoping a friend of fellow agent "Martn Flaherty" (Jerry Paris) will help him do so, but Marty is not happy about leaning on an old friend. Nonetheless, when an old man kills a racketeer in a rage over a wrong number, Ness knows more than ever that something has to be done about this new crime gimmick That, and the fact that many people spent their family's bread money to gamble it away on "numbers."
Jay C. Flippen and Darryl Hickman play "Al" and "Phil" Morrisey, respectively. They are father-and-son numbers runners and they are the key to the story
It's a decent episode but like a lot of these that I am re-visiting 40 years later, a lot slower than I remembered. It's just that times have changed and movie and TV shows are faster- paced than they were in the 1950s and '60s
Elliot Ness' objective, of course, is to break this number's game. He's hoping a friend of fellow agent "Martn Flaherty" (Jerry Paris) will help him do so, but Marty is not happy about leaning on an old friend. Nonetheless, when an old man kills a racketeer in a rage over a wrong number, Ness knows more than ever that something has to be done about this new crime gimmick That, and the fact that many people spent their family's bread money to gamble it away on "numbers."
Jay C. Flippen and Darryl Hickman play "Al" and "Phil" Morrisey, respectively. They are father-and-son numbers runners and they are the key to the story
It's a decent episode but like a lot of these that I am re-visiting 40 years later, a lot slower than I remembered. It's just that times have changed and movie and TV shows are faster- paced than they were in the 1950s and '60s