DKosty123 This show got a lot of critique during it's run for being to violent and glorifying Mafia type criminals. As for the violence, while there is a lot of shooting, there is only a few times you see much blood. The Godfather films and The Sopranos since have done more to glorify the Mafia than this program ever did.The show was well written having an original basis on the book The Untouchables by Elliott Ness. Desilu seemed to be very good at getting writers to adapt fine scripts for most of the show. One does shudder to think what the show would have been if it weren't for Van Johnson's wife telling him to turn down Lucy's offer that Van play Ness because "television will never amount to anything". Robert Stack fits the role very well even though he was not the first choice. The show at it's height was a top rated program though it did not have the long term staying power of I Love Lucy. Walter Winchell was the master stroke of casting in the narrators role. His voice is so authoritative that it gives the show a feeling of reality with each introduction. Desilu did an early parody of the show in the mid 1960's when it was producing the original Star Trek series. If you ever catch it, the episode is called "A Piece of The Action" and Star Trel literally borrowed some of the Untouchables sets at Desilu to film the episode. Years later, Saturday Night Live did a great satire of Untouchables when Desi Arnez hosted.The music, especially the theme song, along with Winchell helps sell this show to the audience.

tforbes-2 Strangely, I remember my parents watching "The Untouchables" when I was a toddler. Actually, it was the theme music during its final season that I recall.I saw a little bit of the show on YouTube today (15 June 2008), and was struck by Quinn Martin's influence here. It reminded me very much of a show Mr. Martin would begin in 1965, "The FBI." As much as I love the latter series, one advantage Desi Arnaz and Quinn Martin had here was a lack of interference from government agencies.The show was not only a precursor to "The FBI," but it also was ahead of its time when it came to gritty crime dramas. It began just as the 1950s was ending, and when life in the United States was once again becoming unsettled. Perhaps it might have even been a precursor to "The Godfather" when it came to portraying the Mafia; then again, it debuted only two years after the famous Apalachin, NY gathering that brought the Mob to national attention.In any event, "The Untouchables" was a very brave series that, like "The FBI," had high-quality production and acting. And I am glad it is coming out on DVD.PS: Watch for a 1960 episode was features "Bewitched" regulars Elizabeth Montgomery and David White!

edwagreen Outstanding weekly television series of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Who can ever forget that haunting theme music that was played at the beginning and end of each episode? The show was just terrific, even down to the superb narration of Walter Winchell.Having lost the Academy Award for his brilliant performance in "Written on the Wind," in 1956, Robert Stack turned his attention to this television series. He portrayed Eliot Ness, a crime buster of A-1 quality, who would bring down some of the biggest names in crime history.With a terrific supporting cast, each weekly episode was an absolute treasure to view. People such as Nehemiah Persoff and Virginia Vincent had standard stand-out roles.Yes, there was plenty of violence but Chicago of the 1930s was just that.

snollen63 I have been a historian of 20th century American culture for more than 25 years, with a specialty in the 1920s-1940s, as well as a film historian and filmmaker. "The Untouchables" is just as accurate any other Hollywood dramatization of gangland lore. When you have to crank out an hour-long TV episode every week for several years, who can afford to do research 24 hours a day? This show was more or less as accurate as it possibly could be. It is the ONLY version of gangland culture I have seen that has included Dutch Schultz's unforgettable babble, "A boy has never wept, nor dashed a thousand Kim." Hell, that was enough for me. If you need my credentials, check out my newest book (my 15th), "Warners Wiseguys," a look at the classic Warner Bros. gangland world.