The Lawless Years
The Lawless Years is an American crime drama series that aired on NBC from April 16, 1959, to September 22, 1961. The series is the first of its kind, set during the Roaring 20s, preceding The Untouchables by half a season.[1]
| The Lawless Years | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Crime drama |
| Directed by | Allen H. Miner James Neilson |
| Starring | James Gregory Robert Karnes John Vivyan |
| Theme music composer | Raoul Kraushaar William Loose |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 47 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Jack Chertok |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 25 mins. |
| Production companies | Jack Chertok Television Productions California National Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Original release | April 16, 1959 – September 22, 1961 |
Premise
The series depicts the activities of real-life police detective Barney Ruditsky as he fights organized crime in New York City.[2] Its original title was Ruditsky.[3]
The show has "a certain claim to authenticity . . . in its meticulous attention to period detail" and in depicting actual cases on which Ruditsky worked.[2] Unlike other police dramas of its time, The Lawless Years focuses more on character studies than on action.[4]
Cast
Main
- James Gregory as Barney Ruditsky[1]
- Robert Karnes as Max[1]
- John Dennis as Dutch Schultz
- Norman Alden as Lulu
- Brad Trumbull as Brody
- John Vivyan as Louis Buchalter
- Stanley Adams as Gurrah
- Carol Eve Rossen as Anna
- Paul Richards as Louis 'Louy' Kassoff
- Robert Ellenstein as Legs Diamond
- Henry Corden as Wavey Gordon
- Robert Sampson as Mad Dog Coll
Episodes
Season 1: Spring/Summer 1959
| Nº | Ep | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The Nick Joseph Story (pilot)" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger | April 16, 1959 |
| 2 | 2 | "The Immigrant" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger | April 23, 1959 |
| 3 | 3 | "The Jane Cooper Story" | Allen H. Miner | Peggy O'Shea & Lou Shaw | April 30, 1959 |
| 4 | 4 | "The Cutie Jaffe Story" | Allen H. Miner | Allen H. Miner Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | May 7, 1959 |
| 5 | 5 | "The Dutch Schultz Story" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | May 14, 1959 |
| 6 | 6 | "The Lion and the Mouse" | Allen H. Miner | Allen H. Miner & Arthur E. Orloff | May 21, 1959 |
| 7 | 7 | "No Fare" | Allen H. Miner | John Meredyth Lucas | May 28, 1959 |
| 8 | 8 | "The Payoff" | Allen H. Miner | John Meredyth Lucas Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | June 11, 1959 |
| 9 | 9 | "The Marie Walters Story" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger | June 18, 1959 |
| 10 | 10 | "The Maxie Gorman Story" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger | June 25, 1959 |
| 11 | 11 | "The Muddy Kasoff Story" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger | July 2, 1959 |
| 12 | 12 | "Framed" | Allen H. Miner | Allen H. Miner Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | July 16, 1959 |
| 13 | 13 | "Four the Hard Way" | Allen H. Miner | Allen H. Miner | July 23, 1959 |
| 14 | 14 | "The Tony Morelli Story" | Allen H. Miner | Peggy O'Shea & Lou Shaw | July 30, 1959 |
| 15 | 15 | "The Ray Baker Story" | Allen H. Miner | Charles Larson | August 6, 1959 |
| 16 | 16 | "Lucky Silva" | Allen H. Miner | John Meredyth Lucas & Allen H. Miner Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | August 13, 1959 |
| 17 | 17 | "The Morrison Story" | Allen H. Miner | Jo Eisinger Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | August 20, 1959 |
| 18 | 18 | "The Poison Ivy Story" | Allen H. Miner | Allen H. Miner Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | August 27, 1959 |
| 19 | 19 | "The Prantera Story" | Allen H. Miner | Charles Larson Based on the Memoirs of: Barney Ruditsky | September 3, 1959 |
Season 2: Fall 1959
| Nº | Ep | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 1 | "The Al Brown Story" | October 1, 1959 |
| 21 | 2 | "The Big Greeny Story" | October 8, 1959 |
| 22 | 3 | "The Art Harris Story" | October 15, 1959 |
| 23 | 4 | "The Billy Boy 'Rockabye' Creel Story" | November 5, 1959 |
| 24 | 5 | "The Big Man" | November 12, 1959 |
| 25 | 6 | "The Joe Angelo Story" | November 19, 1959 |
| 26 | 7 | "The Billy Grimes Story" | December 3, 1959 |
| 27 | 8 | "The Sonny Rosen Story" | December 17, 1959 |
Season 3: Spring/Summer 1961
| Nº | Ep | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | 1 | "The Jack 'Legs' Diamond Story" | May 12, 1961 |
| 29 | 2 | "The Sonny Rosen Story II" | May 19, 1961 |
| 30 | 3 | "Louy K, part one" | May 26, 1961 |
| 31 | 4 | "Louy K, part two: 'Sing Sing'" | June 2, 1961 |
| 32 | 5 | "Louy K, part three: 'Birth of the Organization'" | June 9, 1961 |
| 33 | 6 | "Louy K, part four: 'Heyday of the Organization'" | June 16, 1961 |
| 34 | 7 | "Louy K, part five: 'The Disintegration'" | June 23, 1961 |
| 35 | 8 | "The Miles Miller Story" | June 30, 1961 |
| 36 | 9 | "The Kid Dropper Story" | July 7, 1961 |
| 37 | 10 | "Ginny" | July 14, 1961 |
| 38 | 11 | "Little Augie" | July 21, 1961 |
| 39 | 12 | "The 'Mad Dog' Coll Story, part one" | July 28, 1961 |
| 40 | 13 | "The 'Mad Dog' Coll Story, part two" | August 4, 1961 |
| 41 | 14 | "Blood Brothers" | August 11, 1961 |
| 42 | 15 | "The Vincent Gorida Story" | August 18, 1961 |
| 43 | 16 | "Artie Moon" | August 25, 1961 |
| 44 | 17 | "Triple Cross" | September 1, 1961 |
| 45 | 18 | "The Jonathan Wills Story" | September 8, 1961 |
| 46 | 19 | "Romeo and Rose" | September 15, 1961 |
| 47 | 20 | "Ike, the Novelty King" | September 22, 1961 |
Production
Jack Chertok was the producer.[1] The real Ruditsky served as technical advisor.[2] California National Productions produced the series.[5]
The series was broadcast initially from 8 to 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursdays. In July 1959 it moved to 8:30-9 p.m. ET on Thursdays, and in October 1959 it moved to 10:30-11 p.m. ET on Thursdays. When it returned in May 1961, it was on from 9 to 9:30 p.m. ET on Fridays.[2]
Seeking sponsors
Episodes' content made finding a sponsor difficult.[4] The series began with no sponsor because the premiere episode had one gangster killing another criminal "by plunging an ice pick into a vital spot."[6] Before that development, the trade publication Variety reported that Philip Morris was the "hottest prospect" to take on the series to advertise its Parliament and Marlboro cigarette brands.[7] Variety added that cigarette company P. Lorillard was also "in there pitching for the story" as a potential co-sponsor with Whitehall Pharmacal.
A week after that article appeared, Variety reported that NBC was offering sponsorship of The Lawless Years for a "special introductory price".[8] The $25,000-per-episode rate was "approximately $20,000 below the actual production cost of each episode."[8] The reduced rate was to be good until the fall season began, at which time the network hoped to increase the per-episode charge to $45,000.[8]
Midas Muffler Company became a sponsor in July 1959, "making its first major buy in network video" as it agreed to sponsor segments of The Lawless Years for July through September.[9]
Critical response
Critic John Crosby praised the look of the program: "the series is beautifully filmed and the settings and costumes and all the outer trimmings are marvelously authentic . . . they comprise a large part of the charm of The Lawless Years."[10] He added that the show's plots were secondary in importance to the 1920s-era settings.[10]
Newspaper journalist Hal Humphrey wrote, "The opening chapters in Ruditsky's hoodlum-infested underworld made gripping drama."[6]
References
- McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 472. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
- Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (June 24, 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 774. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- "Prohibition". Variety. March 4, 1959. p. 42. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- Irvin, Richard (October 28, 2022). Pioneers of "B" Television: Independent Producers, Series and Pilots of the 1950s. McFarland. p. 59. ISBN 978-1-4766-8996-8. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- "Web Sales: Syndication's Syndrome". Variety. March 18, 1959. p. 40. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- Humphrey, Hal (May 3, 1959). "'Lawless Years' On Its Own: Admen Objected To Thug's Use Of Icepick So New Series Rides Without Sponsor". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 149. Retrieved May 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Philip Morris hot on 'Lawless Years'". Variety. March 4, 1959. p. 17. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- "'Lawless Years' At Bargain Prices". Variety. March 11, 1959. p. 31. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- "NBC's $1,000,000 Summer TV Coin Out of Chi Shop". Variety. July 1, 1959. p. 26. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- Crosby, John (July 10, 1959). "'Lawless Years' Relives 'Old Days'". Chillicothe Gazette. New York Tribune. p. 3. Retrieved May 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.