''Man Against the Mob'' (also known as ''Trouble in the City of Angels'') is a 1988

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...

television movie directed by

Steven Hilliard Stern Steven Hilliard Stern (November 1, 1937 – June 27, 2018) was a Canadian television and documentary director, producer and writer. Biography Stern attended Ryerson Institute of Technology and served in the Canadian Infantry before inauguratin ...

,Roberts, Jerry. ''Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors''. Scarecrow Press, 2009. pp. 569. starring

George Peppard George Peppard (; October 1, 1928 – May 8, 1994) was an American actor. He is best remembered for his role as struggling writer Paul Varjak in the 1961 film '' Breakfast at Tiffany's'', and for playing commando leader Col. John "Hannibal ...

Kathryn Harrold Kathryn Harrold (born August 2, 1950) is an American counselor and retired actress, best known for her leading roles in films '' The Hunter'' (1980), '' Modern Romance'' (1981), ''The Pursuit of D. B. Cooper'' (1981), ''Yes, Giorgio'' (1982), an ...

and

Max Gail Maxwell Trowbridge Gail Jr. (born April 5, 1943) is an American actor who has starred on stage, and in television and film roles. He is best known for his role as Detective Stan "Wojo" Wojciehowicz on the sitcom '' Barney Miller'' (1975–1982 ...

. ''Man Against the Mob'' is a precursor of the 2013 theatrical feature '' Gangster Squad'', in that it deals with the post-war formation of a special

LAPD The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal Police, police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the thir ...

unit set up to suppress Organized Crime in Los Angeles. It may have been inspired by the success of the 1987 theatrical feature ''

The Untouchables Untouchables or The Untouchables may refer to: American history * Untouchables (law enforcement), a 1930s American law enforcement unit led by Eliot Ness * ''The Untouchables'' (book), an autobiography by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley * ''The Un ...

'', a period drama which also depicted an elite law enforcement unit pitted against mobsters. This was designed around the actor

as a tough LA cop in the late 1940s. A December 10, 1989

-TV movie follow-up, ''Man Against the Mob: The Chinatown Murders'', is a sequel that also stars Peppard, reuniting him with his co-star from ''

The Blue Max ''The Blue Max'' is a 1966 British war film directed by John Guillermin and starring George Peppard, James Mason, Ursula Andress, Karl Michael Vogler, and Jeremy Kemp. The film was made in DeLuxe Color and filmed in CinemaScope. The plot ...

'',

Ursula Andress Ursula Andress (born 19 March 1936) is a Swiss-German actress, former model and sex symbol who has appeared in American, British and Italian films. Her breakthrough role was as Bond girl Honey Ryder in the first James Bond film, '' Dr. No'' (19 ...

. The first movie was a pilot of a proposed NBC series entitled ''City of Angels'' but ended up panning out as only the two TV movies before George Peppard died in 1994.''Blockbuster Video guide to movies and videos, 1996'',

Dell Pub. Dell Publishing Company, Inc. is an American publisher of books, magazines and comic books, that was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte Jr. with $10,000 (approx. $145,000 in 2021), two employees and one magazine title, ''I Confess'', and s ...

, 1995. pp. 719

Background and plot

Investigating a brutal homicide, Peppard discovers that the killing is more than a common sex crime. A trail of evidence leads Peppard to a group of visiting Chicago mobsters, and ultimately to several of Los Angeles' better known citizens. Set in Los Angeles in the 1940s just after the War, the script has some pointed humour and there are witty lines and dialogue exchanges. Kathryn Harrold plays a War widow who is the love interest. He has lost his wife, Kathryn has lost her husband, and they both slowly get attracted to one another. Steven Stern does a satisfactory job of directing. Peppard's character is heroic, straight and honest, and fights the Mob's attempts to come in from New Jersey and infiltrate L.A., and they are being aided by an entire division of corrupt L.A. cops known as 'Metro Division'. Peppard escapes several assassination attempts, won't give up, and becomes pretty much a lone wolf as his few supporters are killed around him. Stella Stevens plays an owner of a nightclub. Part of the shooting of the movie was done at the

Drake Hotel Drake Hotel may refer to: ;in Canada * Drake Hotel (Toronto), Ontario ;in the United States (by state) *Drake Hotel (Chicago, Illinois), listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) *Drake Hotel (Gallup, New Mexico), NRHP-listed in M ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

as well as older historic hotels in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

in the

MacArthur Park MacArthur Park (originally Westlake Park) is a park dating back to the late 19th century in the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles. In the early 1940s, it was renamed after General Douglas MacArthur, and later designated City of Los Angeles H ...

area.

Featured cast

Reception

It was the 17th highest rated show of the week.

Production information, crew, credits, misc.

*Production Companies:

, Von Zerneck Sertner Films, Worldwide Media *Executive Producers: Frank Von Zerneck, Robert M. Sertner *Producers: Phillips Wylly Sr.,

*Co-Producer: John Rester Zodrow *Associate Producer: Susan Weber-Gold *Director:

*Editor: Barrett Taylor *Negative cutter: Susanne Gervay *Assistant Editor: Bob Leader *Casting: Dick Dinman *Music: Artie Kane *Music editor: John Mick *Music Supervisor: Terri Fricon *Extras Casting: Bill Dance *Actors/musicians (in club scenes):

Luis Bonilla Luis Diego Bonilla (October 12, 1965) is an American jazz trombonist of Costa Rican descent. He is also a producer, composer, and educator. Biography Early life, musical education and influences Luis Bonilla was born and raised in Eagle Rock, ...

, Jack Cooper, Phil Feather, Alan Parr, Charlie Richard *Production Manager: Phillips Wylly Sr. *Assistant Directors: Ray Marsh, James J. Fitzpatrick *Location Managers: Flip Wylly, Barry S. Jones *Script Supervisor: Lee Nowak *Production Coordinator: Anne Hart *Production Designer: Shay Austin *Set Decorator: Debra Combs *Sound, Sound mixer: Richard Lightstone *Sound re-recording: Wayne Artman, Tom Beckert, Tom Dahl *Sound Effects: Rich Harrison *Director of Photography: Denis Lewiston *Camera Operator: Monty Rowan *Costumes: Donna Roberts-Orme *Hair Stylist: DeAnn Power *Makeup: Davida W. Simon

Critiques, reviews, ratings

There is an interesting entry by James Robert Parish in his book ''Prostitution in Hollywood films: plots, critiques, casts, and credits for 389 theatrical and made-for-television releases'' (1992) talking about the plot and the use of prostitution as part of the two ''Man Against the Mob'' TV movies.Parish, James Robert. ''Prostitution in Hollywood films: plots, critiques, casts, and credits for 389 theatrical and made-for-television releases''. McFarland, 1992. pp.263 *review "...thanks to George Peppard's performance the film scored excellent ratings when first telecast in 1988. A 1989 TV-movie followup, ''Man Against the Mob: The Chinatown Murders'' failed to match the ratings of the first effort." ''Hal Erickson - Allrovi''Erickson, Hal. Review and Write up, Allmovie Guide

Awards

1989
Edgar Allan Poe Awards The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

*Best Television Feature or Miniseries writing: David J. Kinghorn

References

External links

*
''Man Against The Mob''
at TCM Movie Database *
''Man Against The Mob'', Movies at The New York Times''Man Against the Mob'' at MSN Entertainment
{{Steven Hilliard Stern 1988 television films 1988 films 1988 crime drama films 1980s American films 1980s English-language films 1980s police procedural films American crime drama films American drama television films American police detective films Crime television films Films about the Los Angeles Police Department Films about organized crime in the United States Films directed by Steven Hilliard Stern Films scored by Artie Kane Films set in the 1940s Films set in Chicago Films set in Los Angeles Films shot in Chicago Films shot in Los Angeles NBC network original films