The Untouchables (1959–1963): Season 2, Episode 30 - The King of Champagne - full transcript
After Federal Agents destroy a large shipment of champagne there a void in the market. Bottle manufacturer Edmund Wald decides that perhaps the time has come to start filling the bottles he sells. He teams with a bootleg liquor distributor, Michel Viton, who has the contacts to sell the stuff to. He also gets his cheapskate uncle Barney Loomis, a legitimate restaurant owner, involved by getting him to lend him the up-front money he needs to the the illicit liquor operation underway. Wald is taking all the risk however with both Viton and Loomis making sure their own interests are protected. Wald has his own plans however.
Mr. Monk here?
Who wants to know?
Oh, federal men.
Right over there in the corner.
Thanks.
Tonight's episode...
starring Robert
Stack as Eliot Ness.
Co-starring Robert Middleton,
Michael Constantine
and Barry Morse.
And narrated by Walter Winchell.
During the third week
in November 1932,
Eliot Ness and his Untouchables,
acting on the information
imparted by an anonymous tip,
raided a warehouse
on Laurie Street
on Chicago's South Side.
Federal agents!
Hold it right there!
What's this all about?
Hey, we thought
those were books.
Books?
Lee, you and Rico
make a spot-check.
See how much more
literature you can find here.
Who do you work for?
I don't know. Who hired you?
An employment agency.
They told us to come down
to this empty warehouse,
wait for a shipment of
books, and stack the cases.
What employment agency?
The Marshall Employment Agency.
We answered an ad in the paper.
Who's supposed to pay you?
We were paid in advance
by the employment agency.
Didn't that seem strange to you?
Mister, when you haven't
worked in over five months
and somebody gives you cash,
believe me, it
don't seem strange.
When did these cases get here?
Last night.
Can you remember
the name of the trucker?
No, sir.
We'll have to hold
you for a while
till we can verify your stories.
That's okay with us.
We're telling you
the truth, mister.
Let's go.
It's all champagne.
It must be part of
the big shipment
that's coming for
the New Year's.
Rico, pick up the landlord
of this warehouse, will you?
Right. That was
quite a tip we got.
There's only one trouble
with a tip as good as this one.
It's usually from a guy
who is waiting in the
wings to take over.
The following morning, the
Untouchables discovered
that the Marshall Employment
Agency had suddenly shut down.
But office records substantiated
the warehouse workers'
story, and they were released.
After intensive investigation
failed to link the landlord,
Michel Viton, to the
bootlegged champagne,
Ness called the 57th
Chicago police district
to set him free.
Qu'est que c'est?
What is it?
All right.
Empêchez!
Laissez-moi tranquille!
Let me alone!
Very well.
Après vous.
Good to see you, Viton.
My name is Wald.
W-A-L-D. Ed Wald.
I am very particular
with whom I shake hands.
Also for what reason I shake?
Sure. I understand.
Birdie tells me you
didn't want to come here.
The last person who told me
to follow him
brought me into a jail.
This ain't no jail.
I make bottles.
What has that to do with me?
Your note said
to follow this man,
and a matter of great concern
to me would be discussed.
I have no concern with bottles.
Not even this kind of bottle?
Oh, a good bottle
of Chateau Blanc always
concerns a Frenchman.
Taste it.
Poorly corked.
Well?
A little flat due to
the poor corking.
Oh.
Birdie corked it.
He pushed it in with his hands.
That ain't easy.
The cork starts out three times
as big as the bottle opening.
This bottle was corked here?
Corked here, labeled
here, bottled here.
Where did you get the wine?
From a man in Indiana.
He's been trying to make
champagne for years.
He's finally come up with
that combination of spiced cider
and sugarcane you're drinking.
Pretty good?
Incroyable.
Why are you telling me all this?
Let me put my cards
on the table, Viton.
I make bottles for some,
shall we say, whiskey interests.
I heard about
the raid last night.
I'm offering you a proposition.
You've got the contacts, I
can supply the champagne.
What do you say?
Before I say, I
would like to ask.
Who told you about this raid?
Oh, word gets out
about all the raids.
What are you
worrying about that for?
I'm not worried.
I'm just uncomfortable
that anyone should know
so much about me and my affairs.
Uncomfortable or
not, are you in or out?
How much does this
fellow in Indiana charge?
I figured out, it'll come
to two dollars a quart.
That includes the champagne,
shipping from Indiana,
bottling and labeling.
Two dollars?
We can sell it for
ten dollars a quart.
How much can he supply?
All we can sell.
Equal partners?
Equal partners.
I am, as you say, in.
I'll need $200,000
to get rolling.
What for?
$100,000 for the first
batch of champagne,
and $100,000 to
smuggle in a proper
corking machine from France.
I don't have that kind of money.
But I tell you what I can do.
I know where you can get a
corking machine for nothing.
Can you supply the money?
I got an uncle.
It'll be like pulling teeth,
but I think I know
how to handle him.
Good.
There is one more thing.
Have you ever
heard of Seth Otis?
Sure. He's in champagne, too.
I was going to go to him
if you turned me down.
The big orders are coming
in now for New Year's.
It will be difficult
for us as it is
to deliver the
champagne on time.
So?
So, Otis can make
deliveries right away.
We will have to stop him.
You understand me.
Tell him where Otis lives.
He reads lips.
Seth Otis.
231 Gallagher Avenue.
Apartment C.
Now, where do we get
the corking machine?
There is one in the
Industrial Museum
on Clinton Street.
You're kidding?
It is sitting in the museum
waiting for you.
The next morning,
the murder of Seth Otis,
known bootlegger, was
reported to Captain Dorset
of the Chicago police department
who immediately notified
Ness and the Untouchables.
Look at this.
Looks like his neck
was crushed in a vise.
What do you think, Eliot?
Otis had gotten into
champagne recently.
If I'm not mistaken, this
murder is part of a plan
that began with a
tip on a warehouse
full of champagne
two nights ago.
A plan leading to what?
The coronation of a king.
The king of champagne.
Thanksgiving Eve, 1932,
while most of
America was preparing
for the long holiday weekend,
Louie Monk and two accomplices
went to work for Ed Wald
at the Industrial Museum.
Psst.
Lift your feet!
Who is it?
Who's there?
Who is it?
Let's go.
At 8:47, November 24, 1932,
the body of the night watchman
was discovered by John Wellin,
curator of the
Industrial Museum,
and reported to the authorities.
Well, there's
nothing inside, Eliot.
You say the machines that
were stolen were specifically
for corking sparkling wines
and champagne, Mr. Wellin?
Yes, they were high
pressure machines.
They were made in France.
It adds up, Lee.
Whoever tipped
us and killed Otis
is going to make
his own champagne.
This is not just
another power play.
This is somebody
who is smart enough
to accomplish what no other
bootlegger has been able to do.
But I had thought
there have been
palatable substitutes
ever since the
beginning of Prohibition.
For whiskey, Mr. Wellin,
but never for champagne.
Oh.
Not till now.
We've got the impression.
It'll take weeks
to check them out.
How long has that black smudge
been on the wall, Mr. Wellin?
Why, I-I don't know.
I never saw it before.
Looks like diesel fuel.
Diesel fuel?!
Why, I didn't know there
were any diesel trucks
operating in Chicago as yet.
Apparently there are.
Lee, check the Automobile
Department, will you?
Well, they're closed,
Eliot; Thanksgiving.
Call the police. See if
someone can get us the records
of any diesel trucks registered.
This is a terrible
thing, terrible.
W-Why did they have to kill him?
Why couldn't they just have
tied him up and let him live?
Been dealing with criminals
for many years, Mr. Wellin.
I still can't answer that one.
I don't know.
I'm hungry.
Music is good
for your digestion.
You have to eat before anything
makes a difference
to your digestion.
Shut up.
Did you pay for the record?
No.
Did you pay for the phonograph?
No.
Did you pay for this
food you're going to eat?
No.
Did you pay for this house?
You know I didn't
pay for this house.
Just answer your
father "yes" or "no."
No.
Did you pay for the
clothes you're wearing?
No.
Everything is my money.
Yes or no? Yes.
As long as it's my money
I'll have all the
opinions around here.
♪ ♪
Anybody have any different
views on this matter?
It's a shame your Cousin Ed
has to see all this disrespect.
You liked the music,
didn't you, Ed?
Sure.
It's good for you,
calms you down.
A man has to be calmed down
when he's got a family of spenders!
That's all they do,
Ed, spend my money!
Now, Barney, please don't.
This is the only
group in America
that never heard
of the Depression!
Shall I turn the record over?
Don't strain yourself.
Hello?
How many dinners did you serve?
Is that all?
What kind of a turnover is that?
Well, get them out!
Tell the waiters
to clear the tables
and put down the checks,
and stand there until they pay!
Never mind, I'll come
down and do it myself.
Biggest restaurant
day of the year
and that rotten crew of
mine lets the customers
sit around over their coffee!
190 dinners!
Do you want us to wait for you?
No, I'll eat at the restaurant.
I'm sure you can all stuff
yourselves without me.
Barney, I got to talk to you.
Some other time, Ed.
Barney, it's important.
All right, come
on in the library.
Make it snappy.
I got a good deal
for you, Barney.
I've had enough of
your "good deals."
Your good deals are
like the kitchen door
to my restaurant marked "out."
Nothing ever comes "in."
This is different. Oh,
they're all different.
Honest, Barney, I mean it.
There's a fortune to be made.
What have you got?
Champagne.
You're going into bootlegging?
I'm just going to bottle it.
Somebody else
is going to sell it.
You dumb ox!
Do you think I've worked
and slaved my whole life
just to end up in jail?
Barney, how are you
going to wind up in jail?
You're giving your
nephew a loan.
Nobody has to know what for.
Even if I was caught,
do you think I'd involve you?
How much money can I make?
Double your money,
quick! How quick?
Give me $10,000. I'll give
you back $20,000 in a week.
In one week?
One week.
All right.
Sign a note.
Your bottling business
must be worth $10,000.
I've got the IOU
all ready, Barney.
You forgot to put
down that the money's
got to be returned in one week.
And initial it.
You won't be sorry, Barney.
I'd rather you give me
the $20,000 next week.
I don't feel like going
into the bottling business.
Don't worry, Barney.
But I'm ready to go into the
bottling business if necessary.
You know what I mean, Ed?
I-I know what you mean, Barney.
All right, you can
go back inside now
and stuff yourself with
the rest of the vultures.
The records of the
Motor Vehicle Bureau
disclosed that there
were three diesel trucks
registered in the
city of Chicago.
The first belonged
to an established
interstate trucking firm.
And the second was
registered in the name
of Louis Monk.
Is Mr. Monk here?
Who wants to know?
Oh, federal men, huh?
When will he be back?
Uh, I don't know, sir,
when he'll be back.
Is his diesel truck here?
Yeah, it's, uh, right
over there in the corner.
Thanks.
Wait!
The other one ran out, Eliot.
Our only lead.
We'll have to get a
new one, the hard way.
If they're making
their own champagne,
they'll have to have bottles.
Make a list of every
bottle manufacturer
in Chicago and check them out.
That's a long shot.
Who do you think will
get the champagne first?
Whoever can pay the most.
The Parkshore Club.
We'll keep an eye on it, too.
Call Captain Dorset, then
get the coroner over here.
Right.
On the day after
Thanksgiving in 1932,
the first bulk shipment
of bogus champagne
sped north from Indiana.
Upon its arrival in
Chicago, $10,000 was paid
to the driver, and
the precious cargo
was immediately processed
in a special workroom
that Ed Wald had
assembled in the cellar
of his bottle factory.
Meanwhile, Michel Viton
met with Harry Brooks,
the wealthy owner
of the Parkshore
Club on Lake Michigan.
I never pay more than
ten dollars a bottle, Michel.
What do you want
me to do, Harry?
Sell you champagne at a loss?
Things are tighter now
than they've ever been.
Believe me, at $12 a quart
I am just scraping through.
When did you say you
could make the first delivery?
Tomorrow night, 4,500 quarts.
That comes to, uh... $54,000.
Yeah.
Well, there's $40,000 here,
and $14,000 more makes $54,000.
Right?
On delivery.
Now.
54 grand.
Merci, Harry.
I wish you had a little mercy.
Oh, honestly, Harry...
Yeah, yeah, yeah,
yeah, I know, I know.
At $12 a bottle you're
just scraping through.
Hello?
This is Viton.
I just closed the
deal with Brooks.
Great!
But I could get only
eight dollars a bottle.
Eight dollars?!
Why?
Unfortunately,
Otis got to Brooks
before we got to Otis.
The Parkshore
Club is overstocked.
It's the best I could do.
Okay.
I need $20,000 for my uncle.
Well, 4,500 quarts
at eight dollars a quart
comes to $36,000.
Your share is only $18,000.
But I will lend
you the other two.
Okay.
Okay, just bring it right over.
Coming!
Coming!
Police after you?
No, police ain't after me.
Do you know what time it is?
Time to give you 20,000 bucks.
You got it on you?
In cash.
Well, come on, come on.
Let's get out of the doorway.
Come in.
Barney, who is it?
It's Ed!
Is something the matter?
Nothing's the matter.
Now go to sleep!
And turn off the light!
We get an electric bill here
that would knock your eye out.
$20,000.
I'll get you back your note.
Forget about the note, Barney.
What's a lousy $10,000 note?
That's nickels and dimes.
I told you I was
talking about a fortune.
Well, how much are
you talking about?
New Year's is coming, Barney.
That's the killing of
the year in champagne.
I need a hundred
thousand to get me started.
$100,000?
You get it back
double in a month.
What do you say?
I say you're out of your mind!
You think I'm going to let
you have that kind of money?!
But I told you I'd
double it for you.
Well, telling's one thing,
but doing it's another!
Didn't I come through
with the $20,000?
So what?
You think that gives you a right
to most of my life's savings?
You fool, you're throwing
away $100,000 profit!
Ed, if you had some
security, I'd think about it.
But without security,
nothing doing.
If I had any security,
you think I'd be here?
Wait a minute.
You do have security.
What are you talking about?
Your life.
You take out an insurance policy
tomorrow morning for $100,000
naming me as beneficiary,
and I'll lend you the money.
You mean to say...?
I got only one
more thing to say.
You pay the premium.
Okay... Uncle.
Well, here are the names
of all the bottle
manufacturers in Chicago.
There are 30 of them.
We'll each take ten tomorrow.
Hello. Ness.
A delivery's being made
at the Parkshore Club, Eliot.
Shall I try and stop it?
No, let them unload.
I want to get a good
look at that champagne.
We're leaving now.
Right.
Let's go.
They took the cases up there.
The truck had Indiana plates.
I've got the number.
We'll check it, but
they're probably phonies.
Let's go see the delivery.
Phew!
Wow.
It's hard to believe
this stuff's synthetic.
Maybe it isn't.
Looks like expensive
imported stuff.
Well, if it were imported,
it wouldn't be
packed this badly.
This batch didn't
travel very far.
It was bottled right
here in Chicago.
What do you want to
do about these cases?
Smash them.
Let the king know
we're after his throne.
And now back to
The Untouchables.
The news of the Untouchables'
raid of the Parkshore Club
brought Michel Viton to Wald.
Wald? Wald!
Wald, hâte!
What's the matter?
The Parkshore Club
was hit last night.
I know. The federal
agents are getting closer.
You don't know how close.
I had a call from a friend
of mine this morning,
fellow who makes bottles, too.
He had a visit from a fed.
A fed? Relax.
Relax?!
What is your brain made
of, glass like your bottles?
Come on, let's go downstairs.
Soon as I got the call,
I moved the whole operation
to the outskirts of town.
Good.
Why the sour face?
The Parkshore Club would
have been our best account.
More than half our business.
How are we going to replace it?
Well, isn't the owner going
to open up someplace else?
Of course, but it takes time.
It won't be open for New Year's.
Do you know the
Parkshore customers?
Most of them.
I got an idea.
My uncle's got a big restaurant
on the North Side.
We could make some
renovations, make it ritzy.
We could have it
open for New Year's.
We can supply it ourselves.
Get the money coming and going.
Would your uncle agree?
Not till he found out how
much money he could make.
Didn't I tell you to get
rid of all your bottles?
Didn't I tell you no more
drinking around here
until the feds stop snooping?
Is there more?
Where is it?
Now, are you sure
that's all there is?
Okay. I'll be back in an hour.
Anybody here?
Anybody here?
Hello? Anybody here?
Get up.
Get up!
Hello, Barney.
What are you doing here?
Keep away from my restaurant.
What happens if
the law is watching?
You think I want
to lose this place?
You're my uncle, remember?
What's so terrible
that I visit my uncle?
We're a close family, remember?
We're so close, I make
out my insurance policy
with you as my beneficiary.
I don't like you hanging
around my restaurant!
And I don't like you yelling
at me just like my father!
You're his brother all right!
What are you trying to
do, stir up the poor dead?
Is that what you want?
Nah.
Well, whatever
it is, spit it out,
then follow the spit out.
Ah, Barney.
Barney, you ever hear
of the Parkshore Club?
Who hasn't?
The best people
in Chicago go there.
You can get them here, Barney.
The best people in Chicago.
No more serving jerks fish stew.
You'll be serving the
cream of the crop, Barney,
at cream-of-the-crop prices.
You could get them to come here?
Guaranteed.
Of course, you have
to renovate a little.
Parkshore serves
whiskey, doesn't it?
Barney, you got
to take some risks
to make that kind of money.
I told you before.
I'm not going to end up in jail!
Okay.
Never mind.
I'll find somebody else.
Hold on.
What do you get out of it?
I sell you the champagne,
and I'm a third partner
in the restaurant.
A third?
That only leaves me two thirds!
Correction. It
leaves you one third.
Michel Viton gets a third.
Who's he?
Michel?
Michel, this is my Uncle Barney,
that fine fellow I've
been telling you about.
Enchanté, Monsieur.
What does he do?
He gets the Parkshore
people to come here.
And for that he gets a third?
Oh, nothing doing.
You will make more
in one weekend
from your third
than you can make
in a whole year in this place.
I take the cost
of the renovations
out of your shares.
It's okay with me if
it's okay with Michel.
Oh, but of course.
Mr. Wald?
My name is Ness.
I'm a federal agent.
You ever seen
this bottle before?
Uh... no.
Any idea as to how it
got into your building?
Probably belongs to Birdie.
He works for me,
cleans up the place.
He's a handyman.
He's a wino.
Uh, I think he's downstairs.
He's not there anymore.
He tried to strangle
me, then he ran out.
Fool.
I'm sorry, Mr. Ness.
You know winos.
They go wild every
once in a while.
I only kept him on
because I felt sorry for him.
What do you pay him?
Ten dollars a week.
Do you have any idea how
much champagne is a bottle?
No. Between $12 and $14.
How does he manage
that on ten dollars a week?
I don't know.
Maybe he stole it
or maybe he was
celebrating something special.
I really don't know.
What kind of bottles
you make here?
What you see...
Pharmaceutical
bottles and fancy glass.
I suppose you never made
any bottles for whiskey
or champagne. You suppose right.
How come there's
nobody working today?
I laid them off.
Things get slow
around Christmas.
But you didn't lay the wino off?
Well, the shop gets dirty
whether we're working or not.
That's all, Mr. Wald.
Thanks for your cooperation.
Anytime, Mr. Ness.
Anytime.
Somewhere in Chicago,
there are hundreds of
bottles just like this one.
I've got a feeling Wald's
going to help us find them.
Break it into four
six-hour shifts.
Rico, you take it
from midnight to 6:00.
Bill, 6:00 till noon.
Lee, noon till six,
and I'll take it from
6:00 till midnight.
Captain Dorset, please.
Eliot Ness speaking.
Hello, Eliot.
Hello, Dorset?
I'd like you to put
out an all-points
for a man called Birdie.
He's a mute.
Powerfully built, early 30s,
six foot four, long brown hair.
Last seen in the vicinity
of 768 Bates Avenue.
He's probably
unarmed, but dangerous.
What's the charge, Eliot?
Suspicion of murder.
Remember Otis's neck?
Sure.
I think Birdie's hands
were the vise that broke it.
Got you. We'll get
on it right away.
Thanks.
My name is Wald.
I think Mr. Ness would
like to question this man.
Just as soon as he came
back I brought him right over.
Tell him to sit down.
He can read lips.
Where did you get the champagne?
He says he got it from the pier
where the passenger
ships leaves.
Who from?
When?
He doesn't know.
He made a deal a couple of
months ago with a guy he met.
Birdie leaves money in a
rope locker under the pier
on the first of the month.
Sometime during the month
three bottles of
champagne are left for him.
What's the name of the
man you made the deal with?
Where does he live?
When are you supposed
to make the next payment?
Tomorrow.
That's why he came
back... To get his salary.
Why did you try to
strangle me, Birdie?
Says he was frightened.
All right, you can go.
Is that all?
One more thing, Mr. Wald.
I want Birdie to put the payment
in the rope locker as usual.
Sure thing.
Thanks for bringing him in.
Why did he bring him here?
My guess is Wald's hoping
we'll stake out the pier.
Sit around all month waiting
for someone to show up
with three bottles of champagne.
That's just what we're
going to do... play his game.
Lee, phone Dorset, call
off the all-points on Birdie.
Right.
I should never have let
myself get mixed up in this.
I closed my
restaurant and... Hello?
They're watching
the rope locker, Ed,
just like the crown
jewels of England was in it.
And you keep watching
them, you hear?
Don't worry.
Ness bit hook, line and sinker.
Start the renovations, Barney.
I don't know.
Sooner or later Ness
will stop watching the pier.
Then what?
He'll watch it this whole month.
That's all that counts.
By that time this
place will be open
and we'll make enough
money New Year's Eve
to open up five
more just like it.
He won't be able
to find them all.
What's there to think about?!
My skin, that's what!
This is more of a risk
than I bargained for.
You want to back out?
You want to blow a fortune?
No.
I just want more of
a share for my risk.
Nothing doing.
I'm not giving you a penny more.
I don't want it from you.
If you think that Frenchman
is going to give you anything,
you got another thing coming.
I don't want him to
give me anything.
I want to take it.
All he has to do is to get
the people here the first time.
Once they come, they'll
know how to get here
by themselves, won't they?
Go on.
Now, if you'll make a New
Year's resolution to kill Viton,
and that his share comes to me,
I'll start the renovations.
Otherwise, you'll just
have to get yourself
another location.
You drive a hard
bargain, don't you, Barney?
It's not hard on you, is it?
No.
But it's gonna be hard on Viton.
New Year's Eve... Will I
have to wear a tuxedo?
Of course.
Do you know where I
can get one wholesale?
I followed Wald to a
restaurant on the North Side.
He was in there
a couple of hours.
A Speak?
No, it's a family
type restaurant,
but it's been closed
for the past two days.
Who owns it?
A guy by the name
of Barney Loomis.
You switch to Loomis,
I'll keep an eye on Wald.
Right.
During the last weeks
of December 1932,
Eliot Ness continued
his vigil on Ed Wald
and Barney Loomis
was now included
in the Untouchables'
surveillance.
Hobson and Youngfellow
split 12-hour shifts
watching the rope
locker under the pier,
and this activity was
reported to Ed Wald
whose sense of security
remained unimpaired.
At 7:00 p.m. on New Year's Eve,
Barney Loomis
entered his restaurant
on the North Side of Chicago.
15 minutes later,
Michel Viton walked
into Loomis' restaurant.
And five minutes
following Viton,
Ed Wald arrived with Birdie.
Loomis inside?
Not only Loomis.
Do you remember the owner of
that warehouse on Laurie Street?
Viton?
He went in about
five minutes ago.
Wald, Loomis and Viton.
Three kings.
In this case three kings
make a full house, Rico.
Get Hobson and Youngfellow.
I'll try to get a look
inside while I wait.
How do you like it?
It only cost me $35.
It looks like a million, Barney.
The guest list, Viton.
Eh, certainement.
The finest people in the city.
They will be coming
in about an hour.
Everything's all set.
Not quite.
What's the matter? Did
you forget something?
You forgot to make your
New Year's resolution.
No, I forgot to pay you
the $200,000 I owe you.
Well, you don't
have it yet, do you?
Birdie has it, Barney.
Birdie is going to pay you.
What do you mean, Birdie?
No.
You don't mean it.
You don't mean it.
I'm doing you a favor, Barney.
You won't have to worry
about so much money.
No! No...!
Have a good laugh,
Viton... You're next.
What are you talking about?
Ten dollar
champagne sold for $12
with your partner getting four.
Drop it, Wald.
Four hours later, the new
year of 1933 was ushered in,
but for a large portion
of Chicago's champagne
drinking population,
it was ushered in dry.
Who wants to know?
Oh, federal men.
Right over there in the corner.
Thanks.
Tonight's episode...
starring Robert
Stack as Eliot Ness.
Co-starring Robert Middleton,
Michael Constantine
and Barry Morse.
And narrated by Walter Winchell.
During the third week
in November 1932,
Eliot Ness and his Untouchables,
acting on the information
imparted by an anonymous tip,
raided a warehouse
on Laurie Street
on Chicago's South Side.
Federal agents!
Hold it right there!
What's this all about?
Hey, we thought
those were books.
Books?
Lee, you and Rico
make a spot-check.
See how much more
literature you can find here.
Who do you work for?
I don't know. Who hired you?
An employment agency.
They told us to come down
to this empty warehouse,
wait for a shipment of
books, and stack the cases.
What employment agency?
The Marshall Employment Agency.
We answered an ad in the paper.
Who's supposed to pay you?
We were paid in advance
by the employment agency.
Didn't that seem strange to you?
Mister, when you haven't
worked in over five months
and somebody gives you cash,
believe me, it
don't seem strange.
When did these cases get here?
Last night.
Can you remember
the name of the trucker?
No, sir.
We'll have to hold
you for a while
till we can verify your stories.
That's okay with us.
We're telling you
the truth, mister.
Let's go.
It's all champagne.
It must be part of
the big shipment
that's coming for
the New Year's.
Rico, pick up the landlord
of this warehouse, will you?
Right. That was
quite a tip we got.
There's only one trouble
with a tip as good as this one.
It's usually from a guy
who is waiting in the
wings to take over.
The following morning, the
Untouchables discovered
that the Marshall Employment
Agency had suddenly shut down.
But office records substantiated
the warehouse workers'
story, and they were released.
After intensive investigation
failed to link the landlord,
Michel Viton, to the
bootlegged champagne,
Ness called the 57th
Chicago police district
to set him free.
Qu'est que c'est?
What is it?
All right.
Empêchez!
Laissez-moi tranquille!
Let me alone!
Very well.
Après vous.
Good to see you, Viton.
My name is Wald.
W-A-L-D. Ed Wald.
I am very particular
with whom I shake hands.
Also for what reason I shake?
Sure. I understand.
Birdie tells me you
didn't want to come here.
The last person who told me
to follow him
brought me into a jail.
This ain't no jail.
I make bottles.
What has that to do with me?
Your note said
to follow this man,
and a matter of great concern
to me would be discussed.
I have no concern with bottles.
Not even this kind of bottle?
Oh, a good bottle
of Chateau Blanc always
concerns a Frenchman.
Taste it.
Poorly corked.
Well?
A little flat due to
the poor corking.
Oh.
Birdie corked it.
He pushed it in with his hands.
That ain't easy.
The cork starts out three times
as big as the bottle opening.
This bottle was corked here?
Corked here, labeled
here, bottled here.
Where did you get the wine?
From a man in Indiana.
He's been trying to make
champagne for years.
He's finally come up with
that combination of spiced cider
and sugarcane you're drinking.
Pretty good?
Incroyable.
Why are you telling me all this?
Let me put my cards
on the table, Viton.
I make bottles for some,
shall we say, whiskey interests.
I heard about
the raid last night.
I'm offering you a proposition.
You've got the contacts, I
can supply the champagne.
What do you say?
Before I say, I
would like to ask.
Who told you about this raid?
Oh, word gets out
about all the raids.
What are you
worrying about that for?
I'm not worried.
I'm just uncomfortable
that anyone should know
so much about me and my affairs.
Uncomfortable or
not, are you in or out?
How much does this
fellow in Indiana charge?
I figured out, it'll come
to two dollars a quart.
That includes the champagne,
shipping from Indiana,
bottling and labeling.
Two dollars?
We can sell it for
ten dollars a quart.
How much can he supply?
All we can sell.
Equal partners?
Equal partners.
I am, as you say, in.
I'll need $200,000
to get rolling.
What for?
$100,000 for the first
batch of champagne,
and $100,000 to
smuggle in a proper
corking machine from France.
I don't have that kind of money.
But I tell you what I can do.
I know where you can get a
corking machine for nothing.
Can you supply the money?
I got an uncle.
It'll be like pulling teeth,
but I think I know
how to handle him.
Good.
There is one more thing.
Have you ever
heard of Seth Otis?
Sure. He's in champagne, too.
I was going to go to him
if you turned me down.
The big orders are coming
in now for New Year's.
It will be difficult
for us as it is
to deliver the
champagne on time.
So?
So, Otis can make
deliveries right away.
We will have to stop him.
You understand me.
Tell him where Otis lives.
He reads lips.
Seth Otis.
231 Gallagher Avenue.
Apartment C.
Now, where do we get
the corking machine?
There is one in the
Industrial Museum
on Clinton Street.
You're kidding?
It is sitting in the museum
waiting for you.
The next morning,
the murder of Seth Otis,
known bootlegger, was
reported to Captain Dorset
of the Chicago police department
who immediately notified
Ness and the Untouchables.
Look at this.
Looks like his neck
was crushed in a vise.
What do you think, Eliot?
Otis had gotten into
champagne recently.
If I'm not mistaken, this
murder is part of a plan
that began with a
tip on a warehouse
full of champagne
two nights ago.
A plan leading to what?
The coronation of a king.
The king of champagne.
Thanksgiving Eve, 1932,
while most of
America was preparing
for the long holiday weekend,
Louie Monk and two accomplices
went to work for Ed Wald
at the Industrial Museum.
Psst.
Lift your feet!
Who is it?
Who's there?
Who is it?
Let's go.
At 8:47, November 24, 1932,
the body of the night watchman
was discovered by John Wellin,
curator of the
Industrial Museum,
and reported to the authorities.
Well, there's
nothing inside, Eliot.
You say the machines that
were stolen were specifically
for corking sparkling wines
and champagne, Mr. Wellin?
Yes, they were high
pressure machines.
They were made in France.
It adds up, Lee.
Whoever tipped
us and killed Otis
is going to make
his own champagne.
This is not just
another power play.
This is somebody
who is smart enough
to accomplish what no other
bootlegger has been able to do.
But I had thought
there have been
palatable substitutes
ever since the
beginning of Prohibition.
For whiskey, Mr. Wellin,
but never for champagne.
Oh.
Not till now.
We've got the impression.
It'll take weeks
to check them out.
How long has that black smudge
been on the wall, Mr. Wellin?
Why, I-I don't know.
I never saw it before.
Looks like diesel fuel.
Diesel fuel?!
Why, I didn't know there
were any diesel trucks
operating in Chicago as yet.
Apparently there are.
Lee, check the Automobile
Department, will you?
Well, they're closed,
Eliot; Thanksgiving.
Call the police. See if
someone can get us the records
of any diesel trucks registered.
This is a terrible
thing, terrible.
W-Why did they have to kill him?
Why couldn't they just have
tied him up and let him live?
Been dealing with criminals
for many years, Mr. Wellin.
I still can't answer that one.
I don't know.
I'm hungry.
Music is good
for your digestion.
You have to eat before anything
makes a difference
to your digestion.
Shut up.
Did you pay for the record?
No.
Did you pay for the phonograph?
No.
Did you pay for this
food you're going to eat?
No.
Did you pay for this house?
You know I didn't
pay for this house.
Just answer your
father "yes" or "no."
No.
Did you pay for the
clothes you're wearing?
No.
Everything is my money.
Yes or no? Yes.
As long as it's my money
I'll have all the
opinions around here.
♪ ♪
Anybody have any different
views on this matter?
It's a shame your Cousin Ed
has to see all this disrespect.
You liked the music,
didn't you, Ed?
Sure.
It's good for you,
calms you down.
A man has to be calmed down
when he's got a family of spenders!
That's all they do,
Ed, spend my money!
Now, Barney, please don't.
This is the only
group in America
that never heard
of the Depression!
Shall I turn the record over?
Don't strain yourself.
Hello?
How many dinners did you serve?
Is that all?
What kind of a turnover is that?
Well, get them out!
Tell the waiters
to clear the tables
and put down the checks,
and stand there until they pay!
Never mind, I'll come
down and do it myself.
Biggest restaurant
day of the year
and that rotten crew of
mine lets the customers
sit around over their coffee!
190 dinners!
Do you want us to wait for you?
No, I'll eat at the restaurant.
I'm sure you can all stuff
yourselves without me.
Barney, I got to talk to you.
Some other time, Ed.
Barney, it's important.
All right, come
on in the library.
Make it snappy.
I got a good deal
for you, Barney.
I've had enough of
your "good deals."
Your good deals are
like the kitchen door
to my restaurant marked "out."
Nothing ever comes "in."
This is different. Oh,
they're all different.
Honest, Barney, I mean it.
There's a fortune to be made.
What have you got?
Champagne.
You're going into bootlegging?
I'm just going to bottle it.
Somebody else
is going to sell it.
You dumb ox!
Do you think I've worked
and slaved my whole life
just to end up in jail?
Barney, how are you
going to wind up in jail?
You're giving your
nephew a loan.
Nobody has to know what for.
Even if I was caught,
do you think I'd involve you?
How much money can I make?
Double your money,
quick! How quick?
Give me $10,000. I'll give
you back $20,000 in a week.
In one week?
One week.
All right.
Sign a note.
Your bottling business
must be worth $10,000.
I've got the IOU
all ready, Barney.
You forgot to put
down that the money's
got to be returned in one week.
And initial it.
You won't be sorry, Barney.
I'd rather you give me
the $20,000 next week.
I don't feel like going
into the bottling business.
Don't worry, Barney.
But I'm ready to go into the
bottling business if necessary.
You know what I mean, Ed?
I-I know what you mean, Barney.
All right, you can
go back inside now
and stuff yourself with
the rest of the vultures.
The records of the
Motor Vehicle Bureau
disclosed that there
were three diesel trucks
registered in the
city of Chicago.
The first belonged
to an established
interstate trucking firm.
And the second was
registered in the name
of Louis Monk.
Is Mr. Monk here?
Who wants to know?
Oh, federal men, huh?
When will he be back?
Uh, I don't know, sir,
when he'll be back.
Is his diesel truck here?
Yeah, it's, uh, right
over there in the corner.
Thanks.
Wait!
The other one ran out, Eliot.
Our only lead.
We'll have to get a
new one, the hard way.
If they're making
their own champagne,
they'll have to have bottles.
Make a list of every
bottle manufacturer
in Chicago and check them out.
That's a long shot.
Who do you think will
get the champagne first?
Whoever can pay the most.
The Parkshore Club.
We'll keep an eye on it, too.
Call Captain Dorset, then
get the coroner over here.
Right.
On the day after
Thanksgiving in 1932,
the first bulk shipment
of bogus champagne
sped north from Indiana.
Upon its arrival in
Chicago, $10,000 was paid
to the driver, and
the precious cargo
was immediately processed
in a special workroom
that Ed Wald had
assembled in the cellar
of his bottle factory.
Meanwhile, Michel Viton
met with Harry Brooks,
the wealthy owner
of the Parkshore
Club on Lake Michigan.
I never pay more than
ten dollars a bottle, Michel.
What do you want
me to do, Harry?
Sell you champagne at a loss?
Things are tighter now
than they've ever been.
Believe me, at $12 a quart
I am just scraping through.
When did you say you
could make the first delivery?
Tomorrow night, 4,500 quarts.
That comes to, uh... $54,000.
Yeah.
Well, there's $40,000 here,
and $14,000 more makes $54,000.
Right?
On delivery.
Now.
54 grand.
Merci, Harry.
I wish you had a little mercy.
Oh, honestly, Harry...
Yeah, yeah, yeah,
yeah, I know, I know.
At $12 a bottle you're
just scraping through.
Hello?
This is Viton.
I just closed the
deal with Brooks.
Great!
But I could get only
eight dollars a bottle.
Eight dollars?!
Why?
Unfortunately,
Otis got to Brooks
before we got to Otis.
The Parkshore
Club is overstocked.
It's the best I could do.
Okay.
I need $20,000 for my uncle.
Well, 4,500 quarts
at eight dollars a quart
comes to $36,000.
Your share is only $18,000.
But I will lend
you the other two.
Okay.
Okay, just bring it right over.
Coming!
Coming!
Police after you?
No, police ain't after me.
Do you know what time it is?
Time to give you 20,000 bucks.
You got it on you?
In cash.
Well, come on, come on.
Let's get out of the doorway.
Come in.
Barney, who is it?
It's Ed!
Is something the matter?
Nothing's the matter.
Now go to sleep!
And turn off the light!
We get an electric bill here
that would knock your eye out.
$20,000.
I'll get you back your note.
Forget about the note, Barney.
What's a lousy $10,000 note?
That's nickels and dimes.
I told you I was
talking about a fortune.
Well, how much are
you talking about?
New Year's is coming, Barney.
That's the killing of
the year in champagne.
I need a hundred
thousand to get me started.
$100,000?
You get it back
double in a month.
What do you say?
I say you're out of your mind!
You think I'm going to let
you have that kind of money?!
But I told you I'd
double it for you.
Well, telling's one thing,
but doing it's another!
Didn't I come through
with the $20,000?
So what?
You think that gives you a right
to most of my life's savings?
You fool, you're throwing
away $100,000 profit!
Ed, if you had some
security, I'd think about it.
But without security,
nothing doing.
If I had any security,
you think I'd be here?
Wait a minute.
You do have security.
What are you talking about?
Your life.
You take out an insurance policy
tomorrow morning for $100,000
naming me as beneficiary,
and I'll lend you the money.
You mean to say...?
I got only one
more thing to say.
You pay the premium.
Okay... Uncle.
Well, here are the names
of all the bottle
manufacturers in Chicago.
There are 30 of them.
We'll each take ten tomorrow.
Hello. Ness.
A delivery's being made
at the Parkshore Club, Eliot.
Shall I try and stop it?
No, let them unload.
I want to get a good
look at that champagne.
We're leaving now.
Right.
Let's go.
They took the cases up there.
The truck had Indiana plates.
I've got the number.
We'll check it, but
they're probably phonies.
Let's go see the delivery.
Phew!
Wow.
It's hard to believe
this stuff's synthetic.
Maybe it isn't.
Looks like expensive
imported stuff.
Well, if it were imported,
it wouldn't be
packed this badly.
This batch didn't
travel very far.
It was bottled right
here in Chicago.
What do you want to
do about these cases?
Smash them.
Let the king know
we're after his throne.
And now back to
The Untouchables.
The news of the Untouchables'
raid of the Parkshore Club
brought Michel Viton to Wald.
Wald? Wald!
Wald, hâte!
What's the matter?
The Parkshore Club
was hit last night.
I know. The federal
agents are getting closer.
You don't know how close.
I had a call from a friend
of mine this morning,
fellow who makes bottles, too.
He had a visit from a fed.
A fed? Relax.
Relax?!
What is your brain made
of, glass like your bottles?
Come on, let's go downstairs.
Soon as I got the call,
I moved the whole operation
to the outskirts of town.
Good.
Why the sour face?
The Parkshore Club would
have been our best account.
More than half our business.
How are we going to replace it?
Well, isn't the owner going
to open up someplace else?
Of course, but it takes time.
It won't be open for New Year's.
Do you know the
Parkshore customers?
Most of them.
I got an idea.
My uncle's got a big restaurant
on the North Side.
We could make some
renovations, make it ritzy.
We could have it
open for New Year's.
We can supply it ourselves.
Get the money coming and going.
Would your uncle agree?
Not till he found out how
much money he could make.
Didn't I tell you to get
rid of all your bottles?
Didn't I tell you no more
drinking around here
until the feds stop snooping?
Is there more?
Where is it?
Now, are you sure
that's all there is?
Okay. I'll be back in an hour.
Anybody here?
Anybody here?
Hello? Anybody here?
Get up.
Get up!
Hello, Barney.
What are you doing here?
Keep away from my restaurant.
What happens if
the law is watching?
You think I want
to lose this place?
You're my uncle, remember?
What's so terrible
that I visit my uncle?
We're a close family, remember?
We're so close, I make
out my insurance policy
with you as my beneficiary.
I don't like you hanging
around my restaurant!
And I don't like you yelling
at me just like my father!
You're his brother all right!
What are you trying to
do, stir up the poor dead?
Is that what you want?
Nah.
Well, whatever
it is, spit it out,
then follow the spit out.
Ah, Barney.
Barney, you ever hear
of the Parkshore Club?
Who hasn't?
The best people
in Chicago go there.
You can get them here, Barney.
The best people in Chicago.
No more serving jerks fish stew.
You'll be serving the
cream of the crop, Barney,
at cream-of-the-crop prices.
You could get them to come here?
Guaranteed.
Of course, you have
to renovate a little.
Parkshore serves
whiskey, doesn't it?
Barney, you got
to take some risks
to make that kind of money.
I told you before.
I'm not going to end up in jail!
Okay.
Never mind.
I'll find somebody else.
Hold on.
What do you get out of it?
I sell you the champagne,
and I'm a third partner
in the restaurant.
A third?
That only leaves me two thirds!
Correction. It
leaves you one third.
Michel Viton gets a third.
Who's he?
Michel?
Michel, this is my Uncle Barney,
that fine fellow I've
been telling you about.
Enchanté, Monsieur.
What does he do?
He gets the Parkshore
people to come here.
And for that he gets a third?
Oh, nothing doing.
You will make more
in one weekend
from your third
than you can make
in a whole year in this place.
I take the cost
of the renovations
out of your shares.
It's okay with me if
it's okay with Michel.
Oh, but of course.
Mr. Wald?
My name is Ness.
I'm a federal agent.
You ever seen
this bottle before?
Uh... no.
Any idea as to how it
got into your building?
Probably belongs to Birdie.
He works for me,
cleans up the place.
He's a handyman.
He's a wino.
Uh, I think he's downstairs.
He's not there anymore.
He tried to strangle
me, then he ran out.
Fool.
I'm sorry, Mr. Ness.
You know winos.
They go wild every
once in a while.
I only kept him on
because I felt sorry for him.
What do you pay him?
Ten dollars a week.
Do you have any idea how
much champagne is a bottle?
No. Between $12 and $14.
How does he manage
that on ten dollars a week?
I don't know.
Maybe he stole it
or maybe he was
celebrating something special.
I really don't know.
What kind of bottles
you make here?
What you see...
Pharmaceutical
bottles and fancy glass.
I suppose you never made
any bottles for whiskey
or champagne. You suppose right.
How come there's
nobody working today?
I laid them off.
Things get slow
around Christmas.
But you didn't lay the wino off?
Well, the shop gets dirty
whether we're working or not.
That's all, Mr. Wald.
Thanks for your cooperation.
Anytime, Mr. Ness.
Anytime.
Somewhere in Chicago,
there are hundreds of
bottles just like this one.
I've got a feeling Wald's
going to help us find them.
Break it into four
six-hour shifts.
Rico, you take it
from midnight to 6:00.
Bill, 6:00 till noon.
Lee, noon till six,
and I'll take it from
6:00 till midnight.
Captain Dorset, please.
Eliot Ness speaking.
Hello, Eliot.
Hello, Dorset?
I'd like you to put
out an all-points
for a man called Birdie.
He's a mute.
Powerfully built, early 30s,
six foot four, long brown hair.
Last seen in the vicinity
of 768 Bates Avenue.
He's probably
unarmed, but dangerous.
What's the charge, Eliot?
Suspicion of murder.
Remember Otis's neck?
Sure.
I think Birdie's hands
were the vise that broke it.
Got you. We'll get
on it right away.
Thanks.
My name is Wald.
I think Mr. Ness would
like to question this man.
Just as soon as he came
back I brought him right over.
Tell him to sit down.
He can read lips.
Where did you get the champagne?
He says he got it from the pier
where the passenger
ships leaves.
Who from?
When?
He doesn't know.
He made a deal a couple of
months ago with a guy he met.
Birdie leaves money in a
rope locker under the pier
on the first of the month.
Sometime during the month
three bottles of
champagne are left for him.
What's the name of the
man you made the deal with?
Where does he live?
When are you supposed
to make the next payment?
Tomorrow.
That's why he came
back... To get his salary.
Why did you try to
strangle me, Birdie?
Says he was frightened.
All right, you can go.
Is that all?
One more thing, Mr. Wald.
I want Birdie to put the payment
in the rope locker as usual.
Sure thing.
Thanks for bringing him in.
Why did he bring him here?
My guess is Wald's hoping
we'll stake out the pier.
Sit around all month waiting
for someone to show up
with three bottles of champagne.
That's just what we're
going to do... play his game.
Lee, phone Dorset, call
off the all-points on Birdie.
Right.
I should never have let
myself get mixed up in this.
I closed my
restaurant and... Hello?
They're watching
the rope locker, Ed,
just like the crown
jewels of England was in it.
And you keep watching
them, you hear?
Don't worry.
Ness bit hook, line and sinker.
Start the renovations, Barney.
I don't know.
Sooner or later Ness
will stop watching the pier.
Then what?
He'll watch it this whole month.
That's all that counts.
By that time this
place will be open
and we'll make enough
money New Year's Eve
to open up five
more just like it.
He won't be able
to find them all.
What's there to think about?!
My skin, that's what!
This is more of a risk
than I bargained for.
You want to back out?
You want to blow a fortune?
No.
I just want more of
a share for my risk.
Nothing doing.
I'm not giving you a penny more.
I don't want it from you.
If you think that Frenchman
is going to give you anything,
you got another thing coming.
I don't want him to
give me anything.
I want to take it.
All he has to do is to get
the people here the first time.
Once they come, they'll
know how to get here
by themselves, won't they?
Go on.
Now, if you'll make a New
Year's resolution to kill Viton,
and that his share comes to me,
I'll start the renovations.
Otherwise, you'll just
have to get yourself
another location.
You drive a hard
bargain, don't you, Barney?
It's not hard on you, is it?
No.
But it's gonna be hard on Viton.
New Year's Eve... Will I
have to wear a tuxedo?
Of course.
Do you know where I
can get one wholesale?
I followed Wald to a
restaurant on the North Side.
He was in there
a couple of hours.
A Speak?
No, it's a family
type restaurant,
but it's been closed
for the past two days.
Who owns it?
A guy by the name
of Barney Loomis.
You switch to Loomis,
I'll keep an eye on Wald.
Right.
During the last weeks
of December 1932,
Eliot Ness continued
his vigil on Ed Wald
and Barney Loomis
was now included
in the Untouchables'
surveillance.
Hobson and Youngfellow
split 12-hour shifts
watching the rope
locker under the pier,
and this activity was
reported to Ed Wald
whose sense of security
remained unimpaired.
At 7:00 p.m. on New Year's Eve,
Barney Loomis
entered his restaurant
on the North Side of Chicago.
15 minutes later,
Michel Viton walked
into Loomis' restaurant.
And five minutes
following Viton,
Ed Wald arrived with Birdie.
Loomis inside?
Not only Loomis.
Do you remember the owner of
that warehouse on Laurie Street?
Viton?
He went in about
five minutes ago.
Wald, Loomis and Viton.
Three kings.
In this case three kings
make a full house, Rico.
Get Hobson and Youngfellow.
I'll try to get a look
inside while I wait.
How do you like it?
It only cost me $35.
It looks like a million, Barney.
The guest list, Viton.
Eh, certainement.
The finest people in the city.
They will be coming
in about an hour.
Everything's all set.
Not quite.
What's the matter? Did
you forget something?
You forgot to make your
New Year's resolution.
No, I forgot to pay you
the $200,000 I owe you.
Well, you don't
have it yet, do you?
Birdie has it, Barney.
Birdie is going to pay you.
What do you mean, Birdie?
No.
You don't mean it.
You don't mean it.
I'm doing you a favor, Barney.
You won't have to worry
about so much money.
No! No...!
Have a good laugh,
Viton... You're next.
What are you talking about?
Ten dollar
champagne sold for $12
with your partner getting four.
Drop it, Wald.
Four hours later, the new
year of 1933 was ushered in,
but for a large portion
of Chicago's champagne
drinking population,
it was ushered in dry.